Chapter 3

For seven straight days, Rhydian never came back to our villa.

I didn't ask. I just filed the petition to dissolve our mate bond and started packing my things.

The first property we owned together was a villa overlooking Moon Goddess Lake. It had been sitting empty for years.

It held some personal belongings that were deeply meaningful to me.

I contacted the pack's asset manager, planning to retrieve them and make a final break with that part of my past.

When I arrived at the door with the manager, I found it ajar. It was supposed to be locked.

From inside, I heard a woman's muffled laugh and a man's low, soothing murmur.

Through the crack in the door, I saw Rhydian pinning Isla against the entryway wall, kissing her neck, his hand roaming her back.

A heartbeat later, he was buried inside her.

A picture of us, our favorite one, used to hang on that very wall.

The familiar, sharp pain flared through our mate bond.

I dug my nails into my palms, trying to ground myself.

I let out a slow breath and gently pulled the door shut, blocking out the sickening scene.

The young she-wolf beside me stared, her jaw slack with shock. I didn’t look at her. "Bad timing," I said, my voice flat. "We'll come back."

The manager was a young she-wolf. She looked at me, her eyes a mix of pity and fury. "Luna, this… The Alpha has gone too far! Should I report this to the Elders?"

I shook my head. "No. This is my private matter."

What was the point? Screaming? Crying? His heart was already gone. Anything I said would just be noise.

I walked quickly toward the parking lot, but Rhydian chased after me and grabbed my wrist.

He was breathing heavily, his shirt collar undone. The air around him reeked of another Omega.

"What are you doing here? Just now…"

I pulled my hand away. My gaze went past him to the villa, my voice flat. "I came to get my things. Since the Alpha has a guest, I won't disturb you."

My calmness made a flicker of panic cross his eyes. He rushed to explain. "Don't get the wrong idea! Isla was being bullied in the pack, people were harassing her at her place. It's quiet and safe here, so I let her stay temporarily. I was just… checking on her."

Just checking on her, yet you couldn't stop yourself from kissing her, from fucking her?

I didn't bother to expose his pathetic lie. I turned to leave.

Suddenly, the sound of shattering glass exploded from the house, followed by a burst of fire!

Rhydian's face changed. He grabbed my chin, his eyes burning with a terrifying rage.

He snarled, his words dripping with venom. "You did this?! Calista, I thought you had finally seen reason, but you pull a stunt like this! Let me be clear. Isla is fragile. If anything happens to her because of you, the Elders will have your head!"

He shoved me away and plunged back into the fire.

I turned to leave, but then my blood ran cold.

The safe.

Inside were the papers for my new life. My only escape.

But more than that... the small urn. The only proof I ever had a pup.

Without those papers, I would never be free. I’d be Rhydian’s property forever.

Without that urn, it would be as if my pup never existed at all.

I would rather die in those flames than leave them behind.

I had to go back.

I grabbed a fire axe from the wall, smashed a window, and climbed through into the heat.

The smoke was thick and choking. Rhydian was carrying a coughing Isla, trying to get out.

When he saw me, his eyes turned to ice. "What are you doing? Don't make things worse!"

I ignored him and ran for the bedroom.

Flames were already swallowing the curtains. The safe was next to the burning wardrobe.

"Calista! Are you crazy?! Get out of there!" Rhydian roared from the doorway.

I threw myself at the safe and spun the dial.

The moment the door sprang open, the crystal chandelier overhead crashed down!

In that split second, his body moved without thinking. He threw himself in front of Isla, shielding her with his own body as he dragged her to safety.

And me? I was just collateral damage. The blast threw me to the floor like a rag doll.

Shards of glass cut into my skin, blood instantly soaking my dress.

Gritting my teeth, I pulled the box out and clutched it to my chest.

Thick smoke filled my lungs. My vision blurred.

Before darkness took me, the last things I heard were Rhydian's footsteps as he ran from the fire with Isla in his arms.

And the sound of the pack's fire alarm beginning to wail.