Chapter 4

The kind guards escorted us safely to the edge of Black Wolf pack territory.

I helped Mom wrap Rex's body carefully with clean animal hide, and together we carried him back to our stone house.

Once inside, Mom went to the old cabinet by her bed and pulled out a wolf fang pendant carved with a crescent moon—a keepsake she'd hidden for years.

She stitched a leather envelope from another piece of hide, placed the pendant inside, and handed it to me.

"Lilith, ask one of the older werewolves going out to hunt in Moon Forest to deliver this to Bray Wagner, the Alpha of the Silvermoon pack."

I clutched that heavy bundle of leather in my hands as I felt my chest burn with hatred.

The look in Rex's eyes before he died had told me he'd been driven to the edge, with nowhere left to go.

Was I really going to just walk away from it all?

But when I looked at Mom's trembling hands and tear-streaked face, I quietly sealed the leather pouch.

I found an older werewolf who was just about to leave for a hunt. I handed him the package with both hands and pressed my last piece of dried venison into his palm as payment.

He patted his chest and promised he'd deliver it to Bray personally.

After he left, Mom and I spent the entire night at Rex's side. At dawn, we carried Rex's body to the hills behind our house to choose a burial cave.

We'd planned to lay him to rest beside my father. But, whether by chance or on purpose, the cave next to my father's was now marked as Miles' new grave.

I took a deep breath. "Mom, let's pick a different spot and move Dad's remains too."

Mom also saw Miles' name on the new grave. She nodded and turned to follow me toward the werewolf who managed the burial grounds.

We'd just taken a few steps when Kellen appeared at the end of the stone path, supporting Ella as they approached.

Ella's expression changed the instant she saw what we carried. "Lilith, what do you think you're doing? My father was just buried. Are you really going to disturb his spirit so soon?"

Before I could answer, she shrieked for Kellen, "Look! They're doing it on purpose! They won't even let my father rest in peace!"

Kellen's expression darkened suddenly. Before I could react, he drew the bone knife from his belt and swung it down, hacking at Rex's body.

I moved on instinct to protect the body, but I wasn't fast enough. The knife cut through hide and flesh, splitting Rex's body in two.

The animal hide tore open, and his upper half thudded to the ground. His head rolled right off the cliff, disappearing into the chasm below.

I stared in disbelief, feeling my rage boil over. "Kellen, do you even know whose body you just destroyed?"

He leaned down and said indifferently, "Why should I care? All I know is that you've messed with the wrong people."

Without another word, he hurled the animal hide at my face.

I stood there numbly as pain and shock crawled across my skin.

"Lilith!" Mom rushed to me, but didn't dare touch the spot where the hide had struck me.

She sobbed and screamed at Kellen, "You heartless jerk! What did our family ever do to you to deserve this? How could you treat Lilith and Rex this way?"

I wrapped my shaking arms around her, my voice barely above a whisper. "Mom, forget it. I was foolish to believe promises that should never have been trusted, and to fall for a man I never should've loved."

Kellen finally looked up at me, meeting my eyes this time. However, I wouldn't even spare him a glance.

I patted Mom's back, then kneeled down to gather the scattered remains of Rex. Warm tears dripped down my cheeks, blending with the dirt beneath me.

Kellen just stood there in silence. Even when Ella tugged on his sleeve, he didn't seem to notice.

As dusk fell and the mountain wind howled, Mom and I finally gathered every last piece of Rex and wrapped him in the animal hide just before the blizzard rolled in.

When we were about to leave, Kellen stepped in front of us, blocking the path.

"Lilith, whose body is this? Tell me. This time, whatever you say, I'll believe you."

I forced a crooked smile. "Kellen, it doesn't matter anymore. Just like you said, why should you care? From this day on, my life has nothing to do with you!"

I pushed past him, guiding Mom away from the mountain without looking back.

When we returned to our stone house, two tall, unfamiliar werewolves were waiting at the door.

I knew the Silvermoon Pack had sent their people for us.

Before leaving, I stopped by the witch's house and requested a Moon Pact.

When I cut my palm and let the blood drip onto the contract, I finally felt a bit of relief.

By sunrise, the Moon Pact was in effect. Kellen and I were no longer bonded as mates.

…

After I left, Kellen stood by the cliff for a long time.

He didn't understand what was wrong with him. He thought he'd long since lost all feelings for me, but when he heard me say I'd loved the wrong person, it felt like an icicle had pierced his chest and stole his breath away.

He tried to stop me, perhaps because he just wanted to hold on to something.

But the woman who once looked at him with affection now stared at him with a chilling indifference, not letting even a trace of warmth through.

Panic grew inside him like wild vines, and his hands trembled with pain.

Ella grabbed his arm, but for the first time, her touch made his skin crawl. He yanked his arm away, ordered the guards to escort her home, and wandered deeper into the pack lands alone.

Inside the stone house I used to share with him, every rock wall was marked with traces of our past.

My charcoal sketches of him, the bone wind chimes he made, the mushrooms I had dried and stacked in the corner…

He climbed the stone steps to the upper floor, pried open a hidden compartment in the wall, and pulled out a moonstone pendant with our names engraved on it.

While tracing the words engraved on it, he thought to himself, "She's still my mate. She can't really be gone. All these tantrums are nothing. Sooner or later, she'll come back to me. I shouldn't feel this anxious."

But when he tried to sleep, all he saw behind closed eyes was me, with blood streaming down my forehead as I gathered Rex's remains.

When he opened his eyes, all he saw was the cold, empty ceiling.

Restless, he kicked over the bedside table and gulped down half a jug of liquor. He finally collapsed onto the bed, clutching the moonstone to his chest as he drifted into a heavy sleep.

He woke the next day to a searing pain in his chest, and he rolled on the floor in agony. He could feel something slowly tearing itself from his body.

All at once, he sat up, panic in his eyes for the first time in his life.

He couldn't sense me anymore!