Chapter 3

Two day before my departure, I walked through the territory in the faint moonlight. Shadows of trees stretched across the ground like cracked scars.

Someone stepped out of the darkness, and a hand covered my mouth.

“Calla. It’s me.”

Silas’ face emerged. I pushed his hand away and stepped back. He stared at his empty hand, expression uneasy.

“Why are you here?” I asked.

“Passing by,” he said, lingering on my face. “I brought something for you.”

He pulled a small black velvet box from his coat. No insignia. I recognized it. Every time he returned, he brought a box like this for me. Inside were moonstone earrings, set in black silver, my favorite style.

“I saw these at Moonstone Springs,” he said. “Iris and I passed by the shop, and I thought they suited you, so I brought them back.”

I opened the box, glanced at the earrings, and closed it again.

“Thank you,” I said flatly.

Silas frowned. He may have expected a smile, or at least a question about the trip.

“You’re not going to try them on?”

“No,” I said, putting the box in my pocket. He watched, silent, tense, hands in his coat pockets.

Maybe my calmness made him nervous.

Silas looked away for a moment, then said quickly, “Calla, Iris moves tomorrow. I arranged a guarded residence for her outside Blackthorn territory. She won’t come back after that.”

Before I could answer, he added, “And I’ll take you to Moonstone Springs in a few days. I know you’ve wanted to go for a long time.”

“It’ll just be us,” he promised. “No council business. No Iris. I’ll stay with you the whole time.”

I nodded. “Good.”

His expression stiffened, as if my answer was too calm to trust.

“You will not have to give way again,” he added. “I promise.”

I had heard that promise before, after the first, third, and fifth times. I believed him every time, but he never followed through. I nodded. “Good.”

He looked at me, searching my face as if to find anger, resentment, or tears. Before, I would cry, cling to him, question why he always chose someone else. I would clutch the moonstone earrings until my fingers went white. This time, I did nothing.

Silas opened his mouth to speak, but his phone vibrated. He glanced at it and put it back.

“You should get on with your day,” I said.

“It’s nothing important.”

“It’s fine,” I added.

He looked at me briefly, then turned and left.

I returned to my apartment, closed the door, and placed the small box on the shelf without opening it. I had kept all his previous gifts, moonstone bracelets, black silver rings, wolf tooth pendants neatly in drawers like silent witnesses. This time, I did not want to keep anything.

Time passed quickly. Work was done, Silas was absent, and I muted all Blackthorn Pack chats. Life became quiet. Only Freya occasionally updated me.

She told me that after that night, Silas argued with Iris. She had stayed at Moonstone Springs all night drinking, eyes swollen the next day. Silas had lost his temper several times in the council hall, scolding elders. I listened, but felt nothing.

In the past, I would obsess over every update about Silas and Iris, checking photos and comments until my eyes hurt, proving to myself that I still cared. This time, I did not.

Freya said Silas had asked about me and called several times. I received the calls but did not answer. My phone lay face down until I was ready.

“You’re not going to answer?” Freya asked.

“No,” I said.

“He’s called six times.”

“I know,” I said.

Freya sighed. “Don’t you think the more you distance yourself, the harder it is for him to let go?”

I did not answer. I only remembered meeting Silas at the Wolf Academy when I was twelve, newly transferred from Hale Pack to Blackthorn territory as a boarding student. He was the Alpha’s heir, two grades above, and our seats were separated by only an aisle.

He stood by me during training to shield me from troublemakers, slipped notes into my locker before exams, and followed me on the first full-moon hunt under the pretext of instructing me. His eyes never left mine.

We grew up together. We ran under moonlight, rolled in snow, honed our claws, shared wolf history lessons. His friends were mine, his territory was mine. I believed it would always be this way.

Then Iris came, an orphan of an old friend of Silas’ father. Quiet, gentle, easily hurt. Silas spent more time with her.

The first time I gave way, he said Iris had been hunted and needed Alpha Sanctuary protection. She could not live in the main house as a third party, so I temporarily stepped aside from the Luna position. He held my hand, saying it would be seven days. I believed him.

The second, third, fourth, and fifth times, he promised it would be the last. Each time, I believed him.

Until this time.

Freya chattered beside me. I looked down at my phone. Tomorrow I would leave. I was no longer Blackthorn’s Luna. No protection, no residency, no medical rights, no council voice, no access to resources. No public title. The Pack no longer recognized me.

I was simply Calla Hayes.

Tomorrow, I could stop being Calla Hayes altogether.

I closed my phone and felt a small sense of relief.