Chapter 9

Yuna collapsed onto the stone steps in the backyard, her palms and knees raw and bleeding.

She hunched over the ground, coughing violently, her throat burning with smoke and the metallic taste of blood.

The basement behind her was still ablaze, the flames painting half the night sky red. The front yard was chaos. Everyone clustered around Vera and Damon, no one noticing that Yuna had crawled out on her own.

Then, frantic hands grabbed her.

"Luna!"

It was Amy.

Her eyes were red-rimmed, tears streaking her face. In her hands, she clutched a tiny glass vial tightly.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." She dropped to her knees, trembling, and unlocked the handcuffs binding Yuna's wrist. "If I hadn't sent you into the basement, none of this would have happened."

Yuna leaned against the wall, her face pale and the silver burns on her arms still oozing blood.

But she lifted her other hand and gently pressed it against Amy's trembling wrist.

"I told you, this isn't your fault."

Amy sobbed, pressing the magical potion into Yuna's palm, her eyes desperate and full of tears.

Yuna lowered her gaze to the tiny vial, her breath catching slightly.

This was her last chance.

Yuna didn't hesitate. She twisted off the cap and swallowed the icy potion in one gulp.

The instant it hit her throat, the mark at her neck stung like a needle driven deep into flesh, making her fingers twitch.

Then, deep in her chest, the hidden tether that had always bound her to Damon began to loosen.

It was slow, but it was undeniably real.

Yuna closed her eyes, using nearly every ounce of strength just to keep her expression steady.

Selena had said the potion would take effect within half an hour. When it did, the psychic bond between her and Damon would be temporarily severed, and the mark's pull would be reduced to almost nothing.

She needed to get out of the main house and out of the pack's territory before it fully kicked in, or Damon could still track her.

Amy quickly pressed a cloak and a travel pass into her arms, her voice barely more than a breath. She forced a small smile.

"Luna, go. Don't look back."

Yuna's chest tightened, but there was no time to argue. She threw her cloak over her shoulders and slipped through the messy shadows of the backyard, heading for the back door of the main house.

The potion was starting to take effect. The mark at her neck burned hotter and hotter, as if something was being ripped away from her flesh.

At the same time, her whole body felt lighter.

The constant pull she had felt, the unrelenting tug of Damon's moods and emotions, was finally fading.

As she neared the back door, Vera's laughter floated down from the second floor of the main house. It was light, sweet, confident, like she had finally claimed the place she'd been waiting for.

Yuna's steps faltered as memories flashed through her mind.

At sixteen, Damon had confessed to her under the moon, his ears burning red.

At eighteen, he had knelt before the Frostveil Pack's graves and sworn his life to hers.

At twenty, he had bitten the mark into her neck, promising a lifetime together.

And now, after only a few short years, he had crushed it all with his own hands.

So promises could really change, and hearts could really turn cold.

Yuna exhaled slowly, refusing to linger any longer. She pushed open the back door and stepped into the night.

The western forest path was cold, the moonlight spilling over the stone road like a thin layer of frost.

She didn't move quickly. Her body hadn't fully recovered, and the silver burns on her arms still throbbed.

But with every step forward, the tether that had bound her for nine years loosened a little more.

When she reached the edge of the pack's territory, she cast one final glance back toward the Fendon Pack.

The main house shone brightly. From a distance, it felt like a dream she had lived for a long time.

But now the dream was over.

She tugged her cloak higher, covering the mark at her neck and hiding the last glimmer of moisture in her eyes.

"Let's go," she whispered to herself.

And with that, Yuna crossed the border without looking back, leaving the Fendon Pack behind for good.