Chapter 2

Back in the small room in the attic, I began packing my things.

When I first fled here, I had left in such a hurry that I barely had enough clothes to change into.

After Theodore found out, he quickly had all kinds of clothes, shoes, and jewelry sent to me, worried that I might be missing something or struggling to settle into my new home.

But everything changed after Erin lost her mate.

Whenever she took a liking to something of mine, Theodore would ask me to give it to her.

Every time I objected, he would try to persuade me.

“They're only a few clothes. Don't be so petty. I'll buy you new ones later.”

So I stopped arguing.

But as time went on, Erin wanted more and more.

First it was my clothes, then my shoes and jewelry, and eventually, she even wanted my room.

When I finally refused outright, Theodore only grew impatient with me.

“Bella, can't you be more understanding? How are you supposed to be the perfect Luna when you're acting like this?”

Theodore and I argued about it several times, and even his parents came to speak to me in private.

“We know this isn't fair to you, but Ethan was the only family Erin had left.”

“Her parents have been gone for years. Could you please try to be a little more understanding?”

I looked at them and found myself unable to answer.

I had lost both of my parents too, so of course I knew what it felt like to have no one left to rely on.

In the end, I gave in and let Erin have the largest bedroom while I moved into the attic.

It wasn't until I started packing that I realized just how little here actually belonged to me.

Aside from my clothes, all I had left were the letters Theodore had sent me over the years.

I took them out of the drawer and suddenly remembered how my parents used to tease me about Theodore when they were still alive.

We could have called or texted, but we'd insisted on writing letters.

Whenever my parents teased me about it, I would blush and hurry back to my room, reading Theodore's letters over and over again.

It was an agreement between us, and every letter held another promise we had made to each other.

I pulled one from the stack, its paper already creased from how many times I had unfolded and reread it.

Theodore had written it shortly after his wolf awakened, and the excitement in his handwriting was impossible to hide.

“Bella, my wolf tells me you're my fated mate. We're destined to be together.”

That single sentence had once kept me awake all night with excitement.

Now, reading it again, all I felt was the bitter irony of it.

I folded the letter again and carefully put it away.

Since I had already decided to leave, it was time to return these letters to him too.

Early the next morning, I had barely stepped out of my room when I overheard several servants whispering nearby.

“The Alpha is so good to Erin. He stayed by her side the entire night and never left her for a second.”

“Exactly. I've never seen the Alpha look that worried about anyone before.”

“Unlike Bella. She keeps clinging to this place just because her parents once did the pack a favor. Does she really think she's the lady of the house?”

I stayed hidden around the corner, listening to their laughter as my heart grew colder.

“All right, that's enough. Get back to work!”

“I heard the Alpha is taking Erin to the Northern Forest to help her clear her mind. We need to hurry and prepare food for them.”

With that, they hurried away.

I looked down at the letters in my arms and felt foolish for having waited so long.

The Northern Forest was the place Theodore had once promised in his letters that he would take me someday.

The Moon Goddess's power was said to be purest there, and when someone entered the forest with their fated mate, they could seal a lifelong bond, pledging themselves to each other alone.

I had waited seven years for him to fulfill that promise.

And now, he was breaking it.

The vibration of my phone pulled me from my thoughts.

It was a message from the driver who was coming to pick me up, asking whether anything had changed about our six o'clock departure that evening.

I wiped the tears from the corners of my eyes and replied without hesitation.

Everything was still on schedule.