CHAPTER 2: The Bond that would not break

(ELARA’S POV)

Cold.

That was the first thing I felt when I opened my eyes again.

Not pain, not grief, just bone shattering cold.

The rain had softened, but the ground beneath me was still mud.

So I wasn’t dead.

A weak, bitter laugh scraped out of my throat before it immediately turned into a cough.

Blood—metallic and warm—coated my tongue.

Perhaps death would have been kinder.

I pushed myself up on weak trembling arms, every movement dragging a new wave of pain through my body.

The moment I sat up, my hands flew to my neck instinctively.

The mark burned.

Not like before—not like the tearing agony in the hall.

This was… different.

It felt weak. Twisted. Changed.

But it was still alive.

That scared me more than anything else. Bonds didn’t… fight back.

Yet somehow, I could still feel that faint but undeniable pull.

“No…” I whispered, shaking my head slowly, confused. “That’s not possible.”

Darius had rejected me— I had felt it happen inside me.

I had lived the moment his voice turned into a weapon, each word cutting through my heart deeper than any blade ever could.

I had lived the way his claws tore into my neck—not just flesh, but something far more sacred.

It wasn’t just pain. It was violation.

That should have been the end.

But somehow— for some inexplicable reason— the bond was still there.

The mating mark itself had been ruined beyond recognition, torn into nothing but an ugly purple scar veined with gold.

But somehow, the bond beneath it was still alive and I could still feel the man that destroyed me.

I let out a shaky breath.

“So even now…” I murmured. “You won’t let me go.”

By the time I managed to stand, the sky was already pale.

Dawn came slowly, as if even the sun was reluctant to rise on a world that had just cast me out.

The soft gold at the horizon was gentle— far too gentle. Too indifferent.

It should have been beautiful. It should have meant hope.

Instead, it only made everything feel more final.

A flicker of something—survival, I think—pushed through my mind.

I remembered Darius’ words then.

If I was still within his territory when the sun rose fully, he would kill me. He had said so himself.

My legs almost gave out as I took my first step, but I forced myself forward.

One step, then another.

The forest beyond the pack gates loomed ahead. It was dark, dense, and frightening.

I had never gone far before— I’d never needed to.

But I had to do that now, if I wanted to survive.

Though I wasn’t even sure what I was still fighting for.

Branches clawed at my skin as I stumbled into the trees, my bare feet slipping repeatedly against wet earth.

But I didn’t stop. I couldn’t.

The mark pulsed even harder as I moved.

Could he feel me too?

Could Darius still sense me through whatever this broken, cursed thing between us had become? Could he somehow tell that I wasn’t as far away as he had commanded me to be?

The thought that Darius could somehow sense me was enough to make me move faster, ignoring the pain. Ignoring the way my vision blurred at the edges.

I didn’t know how long I had walked, but I knew that I couldn’t stop moving.

Every time my body came close to giving out, I would hear Darius’s voice again in my head, cold and promising;

“If you are within ten miles of my border by sunrise, I will tear your heart out myself.”

So I kept walking, because the thought of Darius finding me terrified me more than the pain ripping through my body.

By the time my strength finally gave out, I barely even felt anything. My knees hit the ground first, then everything else followed.

I lay there, staring blankly at the roots tangled beneath me, my breath shallow, uneven.

“So this is it…”, I whispered, lying on tangled roots, my breath uneven and tired.

Perhaps this was the best way for me to die. Not in the pack.

Not by Darius’ hand.

Alone.

My eyes eventually drifted shut.

The cold crept in deeper this time, slowly taking my consciousness again.

⸻

Sounds woke me— light footsteps.

My eyes snapped open.

I knew I was surrounded before I saw them.

The first thing I realized was that I could not catch their scent.

They must have been using blockers. Or maybe my already wounded wolf had finally given up and died.

“W-Who’s there?”, I called into the darkness, trying to sound firm, but my voice came out thin and shaky instead. More frightened than threatening.

Every instinct in my body screamed at me to move but, I simply wasn’t strong enough.

The footsteps grew closer…

They were obviously wolves. My heart pounded painfully in my chest as the sounds multiplied around me.

The worst part was that I couldn’t see them. Yet they were surrounding me.

My back hit the rough bark of a tree as I stumbled away instinctively. I tried to summon my claws, tried to call on any shred of strength left in me.

But nothing happened.

Goddess, I was completely defenseless.

A figure moved suddenly to my right. Another emerged between the trees ahead of me, eyes flashing dangerously in the dark.

They were hunting.

One of them stepped forward, and the growl that left him this time was no longer a warning.

It was a decision.

My stomach dropped.

The wolf crouched low, then it lunged at me.

I screamed in pure as shock I threw myself sideways.

Pain exploded through my right arm.

The wolf’s claws had caught me anyway, ripping through my sleeve and carving lines in my skin.

Mud splashed across my face as I hit the ground hard.

The wolf wheeled around immediately, preparing to strike again.

The others began circling closer.

My heart hammered in my chest as I realized something terrifying.

This wasn’t a patrol.

These weren’t wolves trying to scare me away.

They intended to kill me.

I scrambled backward until my spine slammed against a tree trunk.

I had nowhere else left to run.

The largest wolf took another step forward, its eyes fixed on my throat, staring at the ruined mark.

Then it launched itself again.

“Stand down.”

The command cut through the forest.

It wasn’t very loud, or even threatening. Instead, it almost sounded… calm.

Yet it was clear, spoken with the kind of certainty that expected obedience without wanting to demand it.

The wolf froze mid-leap, its body hitting the ground heavily, claws digging into the wet earth as it fought against the order.

Growls rumbled through the surrounding trees.

Not from one wolf, but the whole pack of them.

Reluctant.

Frustrated.

But obedient.

One by one, they lowered their heads and slowly backed away into the shadows.

The forest fell silent once more, but my chest kept rising and falling with fear.

When the person who had given the command stepped out of the shadows, my breath caught.

Not because he looked frightening, but because my mind started comparing him to Darius before I could stop myself.

But they were nothing alike.

Darius had the look of a man carved from power itself— sharp, and untouchable. There had always been something so regal about him. Something that kept the rest of the world at a distance.

Every movement he made demanded attention whether he spoke or not.

The man in front of me did not demand anything. And somehow, that made him even harder to look away from.

His pale blond hair shone beneath the moonlight, falling carelessly over his forehead.

His blue eyes settled on me with a steadiness that made my breath stop.

There was no disdain in his gaze. No barely concealed disgust, or sharp cruelty.

After what felt like forever, he finally broke the silence.

“You seem far from home,” the softness of his tone made the words hurt more than they were supposed to.

“Home.”

I almost laughed at that.

The Ironridge Pack had never truly been home to me. Not as the orphan child they tolerated out of obligation, and certainly not as the Luna they barely concealed their hatred towards.

I had spent twenty five years in the pack feeling like a guest no one wanted— despised and dejected.

“You can’t lose something you never had.” I murmured, my fingers tightening against the bark behind me.

The man didn’t reply. Instead, his gaze shifted.

It landed on my neck.

On the ruined mating mark.

For the first time since he appeared, something flickered across his expression.

It wasn’t exactly shock. No, this was something quieter. Something that resembled emotion.

Perhaps it was pity.

My stomach twisted at the thought of it.

I hated pity.

Cruelty, I understood.

Disgust, I could survive.

But pity felt unbearable.

His eyes lingered on the mark before he lifted them back to mine. And when I finally allowed myself to meet his eyes, there was no revulsion there. Only a strange kind of understanding.

“That looks painful,” he murmured.

I swallowed, willing my voice to be firm.“I’ll survive.”

The words sounded weak, even to my own ears.

His gaze softened slightly, as though he knew I was lying. Then, after a few seconds of silence, he stepped closer and held out his hand toward me.

“You’re bleeding all over my territory.” He said. “Come with me

I stared at his outstretched hand.

My whole life, no one had reached for me like that.

Not until today. Not until him.

And somehow, that frightened me more than the wolves ever could.

But I took it.