Chapter 3

Kyle did not leave right away.

The next morning, the southern passage permit was temporarily delayed. Lina had nightmares during the night, he said. She dreamed rogues dragged her into Shadow Marsh, and her wolf spirit had become unstable.

Kyle brought her back to my house.

I was upstairs packing when his voice floated up from below. "Don't be afraid. I'm here. No rogue will touch you."

Lina sniffled. "Will Serena hate me even more? Does she think I'm doing this on purpose to keep you here?"

"Let her try," Kyle said coldly. "She is spoiled. Once the ceremony is complete, she will learn what kind of restraint a Luna is supposed to have."

I folded my last cloak into the suitcase.

In my last life, I had spent years trying to become that so-called proper Luna. I turned myself into a joke.

Kyle's scent still lingered in my room: fir, cedar, and the faint metallic edge of old battlefields. It used to make me feel safe. Now it only made the walls feel too tight.

I opened the window and let the northern wind sweep in, scattering it piece by piece.

Lina did not knock before walking in. When she saw my suitcase on the floor, satisfaction flickered in her eyes. "Serena, are you really leaving?"

I ignored her and packed the moonstone necklace my mother had left me into a small box.

Lina came up behind me and lowered her voice. "Kyle promised me last night. Even if you two complete the ceremony, he will keep a room for me in the main house. So what if you become Luna? His heart isn't yours."

I closed the box. "Good."

She froze, clearly displeased by my lack of reaction. "Why are you pretending? You used to care about him more than anything."

"I did."

"And now?"

I finally looked at her. "Now he feels dirty."

Then she suddenly reached for the moonberry cake on the table. It was the offering cake I had prepared for the ceremony. According to Blackthorn tradition, the future Luna was supposed to cut it and offer it to the Moon Goddess.

Her hand slipped on purpose.

The white porcelain plate shattered on the floor. Sharp pieces flew everywhere. Instinctively, I raised my hand to block them. A shard sliced deep into my palm, and blood welled fast.

Lina screamed before I could speak. "Serena, why did you push me?"

Kyle rushed in almost immediately.

The first thing he saw was Lina sitting among the broken porcelain with tears in her eyes. The second was my bleeding hand. His gaze stopped on my palm for only a heartbeat before returning to her.

"Where are you hurt?"

Lina held out her finger. There was a tiny cut on it. "I'm fine, Kyle. Don't blame her. She's just upset."

Kyle looked up at me, disappointment settling on his face like something practiced. "Serena, how long are you going to keep this up?"

My blood dripped onto the floor, one drop after another.

"It wasn't me."

The words sounded useless even to my own ears.

As expected, Kyle's voice turned cold. "That is what you always say. You are a warrior of Silver Vale. Your claws can tear out a rogue's throat. Lina is an Omega. Who do you think I will believe?"

I laughed softly. "Her, of course."

He frowned. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing." I clenched my palm. "Take her to the healer house. We wouldn't want that tiny cut to heal too slowly."

For a second, my calmness seemed to choke him. Then Lina whispered that it hurt, and Kyle immediately scooped her into his arms. As he passed me, he said, "I will deal with you when I get back."

The door closed.

He did not see the blood running into my sleeve. He did not see that the shard had cut open the small box with my moonstone necklace inside, or that my blood had touched the stone and made it glow faintly.

That moonstone was my Pack Council identity mark. With it, I could prove I was the heir of Silver Vale in any territory.

I bandaged my hand, picked up my luggage, and left the house.

Three days later, on the morning of our scheduled mate ceremony, Kyle finally contacted me through the mindlink.

"Serena, Lina had another nightmare last night. Her wolf spirit is unstable, so the ceremony will be postponed." His tone made it sound as if he was doing me a favor. "Don't start a fight. Once the Full Moon Festival is over, I will make it up to you with a grander ceremony."

I stood in the snowy mist at the northern border and looked up at the marker of Frostmoon Pack. Behind me waited the warrior convoy Adrian had sent.

"Fine," I said softly.

Kyle seemed relieved. "That's more like it. When I get back, apologize to Lina and we can put this behind us."

I cut the link without answering.

He did not know I had already returned my Blackthorn passage mark.

When I stepped across the northern boundary, the road back to him broke completely.