Chapter 5

When I woke up from unconsciousness, the smell of antiseptic in the pack infirmary stung my nose.

A sharp, throbbing pain came from my arm.

I slowly sat up, the bandages pulling at the raw skin.

The room was empty. My legs were a little weak as I got out of bed.

But soon, I heard a familiar voice from the hallway.

"Sadie, how are you feeling? Does it still hurt?"

It was Xander.

I followed the sound to the next room.

Through the half-open door, I saw a scene that broke my heart.

Xander was sitting by the bed, holding Sadie's hand tightly.

His eyes were filled with worry and pain.

"I thought I was going to lose you," he said, his voice trembling.

Sadie leaned weakly against the pillows, her face a pale, pitiful mask.

"Xander, I was so scared... If something happened to me, what would happen to our baby?"

"It won't," Xander soothed, stroking the back of her hand. "I won't let anything harm either of you."

Three healers were crowded around the bed, meticulously examining every inch of Sadie's skin.

"Alpha, Omega Sadie only has some minor scrapes. Nothing serious. The fetal heartbeat is strong; the pup wasn't affected at all. She just needs a few days of rest."

And me? I had silver shards in my arm and had bled all over the floor. All I got was a single nurse who hastily wrapped a bandage around the wound.

They didn't even check for silver poisoning.

I stood outside the door, the burning sensation from my wound growing stronger.

The ache in my chest was so bad I couldn't watch anymore.

I never knew a broken heart could literally hurt so much it was hard to breathe.

Ignoring the healer's protests, I pushed through the pain and checked myself out of the infirmary.

Back in my suite, I continued packing, throwing away anything I wasn't taking.

I only packed a few simple outfits and my identification. That was enough.

Finally, I walked to the nightstand.

A framed photo of us sat there. Our first picture together, taken in front of the Moon Goddess Falls.

We were so happy then.

Xander was holding me from behind, and my smile was as bright as the sun.

Our wolves had merged under the moonlight. The Goddess herself had witnessed our love.

But now, everything was different.

I carefully tore the photo in half. I put my half in my wallet.

I crumpled Xander's half into a ball and tossed it in the trash.

I remember five years ago, Xander held my hand and whispered in my ear,

"Regina, you're mine. You can only ever be by my side."

But you were wrong, Xander.

For the rest of my life, there will be no you in my world.

————

After coaxing Sadie to finish her herbal soup and fall asleep, Xander finally remembered me.

He walked to the next room, only to find a young healer changing the sheets.

The bed I had been in was empty. There was nothing there.

A cold dread washed over Xander. He grabbed the healer's arm.

"The patient in this room, where is she?"

The healer gave him a strange look.

"Alpha, you mean the Luna? She left early this morning."

"What?"

Xander's unease grew. He immediately reached out to me through our mind link, but all he got was silence.

A faint ache throbbed in his chest.

He shot to his feet, his face dark and terrifying.

After a long moment, he remembered to contact the manor's head of security.

"Where is the Luna?"

The guard was silent for a moment before his panicked voice came back.

"Alpha, the Luna... she's gone! She left the manor with a suitcase..."