CHAPTER SIXTEEN: The Woman Who Died for MeRonan’s POVThe sound of Selene’s footsteps faded into the silence.And I stood there—paralyzed—watching her disappear.I should’ve gone after her.My heart screamed it.But my feet wouldn’t move.Because Sasha was still here.Alive.Real.And burning like a fire I’d thought was long extinguished.She stood where Selene had just broken, her eyes locked on me like she hadn’t just shattered my world.“You didn’t stop her,” Sasha said, a bitter smirk playing on her lips. “You let her walk away.”I looked at her. I didn’t see the girl I once loved.I saw the storm she brought.The fire that now threatened to burn down everything I built.“You had no right,” I said quietly, still shaken. “You had no right to kiss me.”Her eyes flared. “No right?” Her voice cracked—like glass beneath pressure. “Ronan, I died for you.”“I know,” I said, my voice rough. “But I moved on.”“You moved on?” Her laugh was sharp. Ugly. “How do you move on from the girl who
CHAPTER Fifteen : The Fall After the StormSelene’s POVI didn’t know how my legs carried me. I didn’t know how I made it down the stairs, through the courtyard, past the voices that had once called me Luna.I only knew that something inside me had cracked.And once it cracked—it wouldn’t stop breaking.Ronan didn’t come after me.Not when I opened the door.Not when I looked back one last time.Not when the tears blurred my vision so much I nearly missed the step.He just stood there, holding a ring he once said was for me.But it wasn’t.Not anymore.My chest tightened as the words from Sasha echoed louder in my skull:“You were always temporary.”“This life was mine.”I stumbled into the forest, not knowing where I was going—only that I had to go.I had to leave before I collapsed in front of them all.Before the proud Luna turned into the broken girl again.I fell once, my knees hitting the dirt.I didn’t rise immediately.I stayed there.Crying.Sobbing.Tearing at the grass like
Chapter Fourteen - The Mate Who ReturnedSelene’s POVThe sun was soft that morning. The sky glowed with the kind of peace I hadn’t felt in a long time. For once, I wasn’t waking up with fear. No nightmares. No blood. No battles. Just warmth… and Ronan’s arms around me.His breath brushed the back of my neck. Steady. Safe.I closed my eyes again, wanting to stay like this for just a little longer. The way his fingers traced lazy circles on my stomach made my body hum. My heart felt like it had finally found a place to rest.I turned in his arms, facing him.His silver hair was slightly messy, his lashes long and still. He looked younger in sleep—like the scars of everything we’d been through had softened. I touched his cheek. He stirred, then smiled when he opened his eyes and saw me.“Good morning,” I whispered, voice still hoarse from sleep.He kissed my forehead gently. Then my nose. Then my lips. And I melted all over again.It was too easy to fall for him.Too easy to want this e
Chapter Thirteen: The Man I Almost LostSelene’s POVThe door creaked open, and my heart dropped.Blood.It was the first thing I saw.Ronan stumbled inside, his steps heavy, uneven. His shirt was torn, soaked in red. Cuts traced his arms, and his eyes—those storm-gray eyes—were barely open. His body swayed like he would fall at any moment.“Ronan!” I screamed, rushing forward.Lucien was behind him, breathing hard, his own clothes a mess, but he looked less wounded. He held Ronan by the waist, struggling to keep him up.“He wouldn’t stop until he got you back,” Lucien muttered, his voice hoarse.I didn’t hear anything else.I dropped to my knees as Ronan collapsed into my arms.His body was hot—too hot—and trembling. His pulse was faint. My hands pressed against his chest, trying to stop the bleeding from one deep wound near his ribs.“You’re safe,” he whispered, his voice barely there. “That’s all I need.”“Don’t you dare talk like that,” I cried. “You’re not going anywhere.”Lucien
Chapter Twelve: The Cost of Saving HerRonan’s POVWe rode under the shadow of night.Lucien was beside me, silent, his face hard with focus. We wore black from head to toe, the kind that didn’t catch moonlight. Over our heads—hoods made of ash-dusted fabric. Our faces were marked with dirt and wolf-blood paint. We looked like two of Kael’s men. We needed to.Because tonight wasn’t a war of numbers.It was a war of minds.Every step forward made my blood boil.Every breath I took carried her name.Selene.Kael had her.And the only thing that stopped me from tearing into his den like a mad beast was the need to be smart. Strategic. One wrong move, and she could vanish again. Or worse—be broken beyond repair.Lucien glanced at me as we neared the perimeter of Kael’s hidden camp.“Stay sharp,” I whispered.We moved quietly, slipping through the ranks of Kael’s outer guard like shadows. I knew his men. I had trained half of them before Kael ever dared call himself Alpha. That’s what made
Chapter Eleven - A Storm Inside MeRonan’s POVThe wind was quiet when I came back.Too quiet.The trees didn’t sway like before. The birds didn’t sing. Everything was still—like the forest itself knew something had gone wrong.I had only stepped away for a moment. Just one moment. Selene had smiled at me, sweat on her face, her hands bruised from training, but she said she was fine. I believed her. I should have stayed. I should have never left her alone.But now… she was gone.The first thing I saw was the ground.The flowers we had walked over were crushed. The place where we sparred was scattered.And then I saw it—blood.Fresh. Red. Right beside the old training stone. My heart dropped. My chest tightened. My hands clenched.“No…” I whispered to myself. My breath started coming faster. My mind raced. A thousand thoughts ran through me.I looked around wildly. I called her name.Nothing.Only the forest. Only silence.My legs moved on their own. I searched every corner, sniffed th