Chapter 3

Nyra’s POV

“Run!”

“Get out—!”

My eyes snapped open as chaos erupted around me. My lungs burned as I coughed, the sharp scent of wolfsbane filling the air. The Blood Moon glowed above, casting everything in red.

My breath caught.

No… I pushed myself up, my heart racing as I looked around. This was the same room, the same night, and the same chaos from seven years ago.

My gaze landed on the couch and I saw Isolde lying there unconscious but alive.

What is going on? Didn't she die seven years ago? Didn't I just die?

My hands began to shake as I grabbed a shattered phone beside me and through the screen I saw the year as 2025

This was seven years ago, the night it all began. I had been reborn!

I tried to stand but my leg was crushed under a heavy boulder and I couldn't move.

A loud crash echoed as the door was kicked open and Cassian rushed in looking younger.

“Cassian…” I reached out, my voice desperate as I coughed. “Save me!”

His eyes met mine and then he turned and walked past me. He scooped up Isolde like she was a fragile glass and whispered to her.

“I’m never letting you die again.”

That was when I realized he had also been reborn and this time he chose to save Isolde and ignore the mate bond.

“Cassian… please…” I cried out as a last desperate attempt.

He cast me a contemptuous look and snarled, “Keep up.”

Then he turned and walked away without sparing me another glance.

I couldn't move, he knew my leg was under a boulder and I was trapped. Was he really going to let me die in her place?

I had begged Cassian even though he was the one who killed me in my past life. I thought maybe this time he would feel remorse, that he would save me, knowing my leg was trapped and I couldn't move.

But he had looked at me without a trace of guilt… like I was nothing and has always been nothing to him.

My vision blurred, darkness slowly creeping in at the edges. I stopped struggling after a while. There was no point. I was still trapped, my legs were numb, I couldn’t move or shift or even crawl out. My wolf has long gone quiet due to the wolfsbane I was inhaling.

I let out a small sigh. Maybe this is my fate. No matter how many chances I was given, I would end up here… always losing to Cassian and Isolde, dying alone and terrified.

My eyes began to close when I felt something warm wrap around my wrist. My eyes snapped open in an instant and before I could react I was pulled forward, my body lifted off the ground effortlessly as if I weighed nothing.

The sudden movement made my head spin, and instinctively, my hand clutched onto the man’s shirt.

“Don’t move. I’ve got you.”

His voice was low and steady like a deep rumble but I could hear him easily above the chaos.

His strong arms held me gently against his chest as I nestled in his arms. I could barely think past the pain throbbing in my leg but his smoky scent enveloped my senses, making my wolf stir faintly in response. His scent was unfamiliar and didn’t belong to any pack I know so who was he?

When something crashed behind us, he shifted slightly, turning his body so that mine was shielded without hesitation.

I forced my eyes open, trying to see him, but my vision refused to focus properly. All I caught was the hard line of his jaw and a brief glimpse of his dark eyes when he glanced down at me.

His eyes were cold and unreadable. He didn’t speak again or ask me any questions, he just carried me bridal style out of the hall.

Through the blur of movement, I caught sight of Cassian standing at a safe distance, holding Isolde tightly in his arms. His hands were pressed protectively against the back of her head, his entire body angled toward her like nothing else existed except them.

His face was filled with relief, fear, tenderness, and possessiveness. All emotions he never showed toward me in the seven years of our past life together but he’s shown her in a single instant.

The last fragile piece of hope I didn’t even realize I was still holding onto quietly shattered. I turned away from them, he must be very happy he’s saved his beloved life.

As the darkness pulled me under, I thought I heard the faint voice of Cassian calling out for me but it must have been my mind playing tricks on me. He had his beloved Isolde, he had no use for me again.

—

When I opened my eyes again, everything was quiet but I was assaulted by the bright sunlight. I groaned as I felt a sudden headache in my temples so I shut my eyes.

“Nyra?”

My breath hitched and for a moment I didn’t dare breathe or move as I heard the familiar voice.

“Nyra, are you awake?” the voice sounded again, laced with worry this time.

Slowly, I snapped my eyes open and turned toward the direction of the voice and I saw her.

My mother sat beside the bed, her eyes filled with worry, her hand hovering just above mine as if she was afraid to touch me and cause me more pain.

"You're awake,” she said softly, “Does anything hurt?”

My vision blurred instantly as tears filled my eyes.

“Mom…” the word broke out before I could stop it.

I sat up abruptly and wrapped my arms around her, holding her tightly, as if letting her go would make her disappear.

“I missed you,” I whispered, my voice shaking, “I missed you so much.”

My mom stiffened in surprise before she chuckled and hugged me back, her hand moving to my hair in a soothing motion.

“What is it?” she murmured softly, “You’re acting like I’ve been gone for years.”

I longed to say yes, that it’s been six years since I last saw her, embraced her, and inhaled her sweet motherly scent but the words stuck in my throat and I only sobbed.

In my last life, my mother had barely made it past my first year of marriage. She and my father had gone for a pack summit but it was an ambush and they were killed.

For years, I mourned the loss of my parents. I wished my mother was alive when I had no one on my side, when I had to go through the treacherous nights of miscarriages alone, when I would cry silently afraid to make Cassian worry not knowing he was the cause of my sufferings.

Those moments I wished my mother was still alive so she would hold me in her arms and I would cry out my heart to her but she was dead.

Except now, the moon goddess has granted me a second chance with my mom and I’ll be damned if I let her go to that bloody summit. My arms tightened around her as I sniffled. I won’t lose her again, not this time.

“You really scared me last night,” she said, pulling back slightly to look at me, “If Cassian hadn’t rushed in to save you, I shudder to think what would have happened to you.”

I frowned. Cassian saved me? How dare he make such claims when he hadn’t even looked back. He had only been focused on his precious Isolde and another man saved me.

My fingers curled slightly against the bedsheets, anger rising in my chest.

“Mom,” I said quietly.

She looked at me, still worried.

“You’re completing the mating ritual with Cassian soon, you must be careful.”

I met her gaze and said in a certain voice, “I’m not going to complete the mating ceremony with Cassian, I’m rejecting him as my mate.”