Chapter 4
1537 Words
Kira's pov
I couldn't bear to see that house or those people again.
The morning after I walked out, I called Professor Elias Crane, my former military instructor as I explained what I needed, a proper resting place for my parents' ashes at the military cemetery.
He didn't ask questions and within hours, he'd made the arrangements.
Two days later, I stood before their granite headstone as workers lowered the restored urn into the ground. The stone was simple but dignified, engraved with their names and ranks:
Combat Commander Ronan Vance, Head Healer Liora Vance Heroes of the Wolf Kingdom
I knelt on the cold earth, my fingers tracing the letters.
"Mom, Dad, I'll find Caleb," I whispered. "I know he's alive somewhere, probably finishing some mission we don't know about. I'll bring him back to see you. I promise."
Now that my parents were properly laid to rest, I could focus on finding him.
I stayed until the workers finished, until the last shovel of earth was patted down and the groundskeeper assured me he'd tend the grave himself.
Night had fallen by the time I finally stood to leave.
The first drops of rain hit my face as I walked toward the cemetery gates. Within moments, the drizzle became a downpour, soaking through my coat and plastering my hair to my face.
I stopped. I wished the rain would pour harder, washing away all the pain.
Until headlights cut through the rain behind me.
A sleek black car pulled up alongside the path, moving slowly to match my pace. The back door opened, and a driver stepped out, holding a large black umbrella.
"Miss," he said respectfully, extending it toward me. "Please."
I glanced past him into the backseat. Through the rain-streaked window, I caught a glimpse of a man's profile, sharp cheekbones, silver-blonde hair, an air of authority even in the shadows.
The damp wind carried a sharp Alpha scent, and my warrior instincts went on high alert—its scent was mixed with blood and the acrid smoke of battle.
Our eyes didn't meet. He was looking down at something in his lap, perhaps a tablet or documents.
"I'm fine, thank you," I said to the driver.
"The Alpha insists," the driver replied gently, pressing the umbrella into my hand before I could refuse again.
Before I could respond, he'd returned to the car. It pulled away smoothly, disappearing into the rain.
I stood there, staring after it. In the rear window, his back was as sharp as a blade.
My phone suddenly buzzed.
Where are you? Damon's voice echoed in my mind through our link.
I slammed my mental walls up, blocking him out. I didn't have the energy for him tonight.
My legs were heavy, each step requiring more effort than the last. The cold had seeped into my bones despite the umbrella.
I made it halfway home before the world started tilting.
The last thing I remembered was my hands slipping from the steering wheel.
I woke to the scent of jasmine and cedar, the bridal chamber Damon and I had shared for three years.
My head pounded and yhe room spun slightly as I tried to sit up.
"Easy." Damon's voice came from beside the bed.
He sat in the chair he usually tossed his clothes on, leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. His hand reached out to grasp mine, his expression twisted with something that looked like guilt.
"What happened?" My throat was dry.
"You fainted. Someone found your car on the side of the road and called emergency services. They contacted me." Damon squeezed my hand. "Kira, about yesterday... what my mother did to your parents' ashes. It was unintentional. I just—Serena was there, and I didn't want to create an awkward situation in front of her."
“So what? Your Thornwood family’s pride matters more than my parents, huh?” I pushed his hand away.
Damon froze, ready to argue, but in the end, he said nothing.
"I brought you something." Hereached into his pocket, pulling out a small velvet box.
Inside was a bracelet, a delicate silver links with a blue-white moonstone centerpiece that matched our mating rings perfectly.
"I had this made for you," he said softly. "As reparation. I know things have been... difficult between us. My relationship with Serena is purely professional. We work closely together because of the pack alliances, but you're my mate, Kira. I’ll set everything right."
I stared at the bracelet, and against my will, memories flooded back.
Three years ago, Damon had slipped a ring onto my finger during our mateship ceremony. The same blue-white moonstone had glowed softly in the ceremonial firelight as he'd promised to cherish me, to stand beside me through everything.
The Moon Goddess's blessing had felt warm on my skin. I have never taken off that wedding ring. Part of the magic of the matebond is entwined with it, allowing me to better sense my mate's mood.
Afterward, I'd supported him in starting his business. We'd worked late into countless nights, building something together. I'd believed in us. In him.
But then I remembered the photo Serena had sent, her nearly naked in his arms, my mother's necklace at her throat, their lips locked together.
Why was he doing this? If he didn't love me anymore, why pretend? Why give me jewelry and make promises he had no intention to keep?
Mira whimpered inside me. I turned my face away, swallowing the tears that threatening to spill.
"Trust me, please. I love you…just like before," Damon said softly, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear.
I had no words, and silence stretched between us.
He signed and placed the bracelet on the nightstand. "I have some work to handle. We'll talk more later."
He left before I could respond. That tall figure overlapped with the Damon who promised me three years ago. Memories of our past moments flashed through my mind, stirring my thoughts.
I lay there staring at the bracelet, my wolf crying inside me.
Should I believe his words?
That he still loves me, that he’ll set everything right, and then we’ll be like we were before.
Mira wavered slightly—I could feel it. The mate bond had bound her to Damon’s wolf for three years; it wasn’t something that could be broken overnight.
My phone buzzed on the nightstand an hour later.
A text from an unknown number. Just an address.
Grandeur Hotel. Room 1847.
My hands shook as I stared at the message.
The Grandeur Hotel was one of the most expensive in the capital. I took the elevator to the eighteenth floor, my heart pounding with each passing level.
Room 1847 was at the end of the hall.
The door stood slightly ajar.
Through the gap, I could see them.
Serena straddled Damon on the bed, her hair cascading down her bare back. His hands gripped her waist as she moved against him, their bodies tangled together in intimacy I'd thought was reserved for mates.
The blue-white moonstone bracelet, identical to the one he'd just given me glinted on her wrist.
Tears burned in my eyes, but I couldn't look away.
I lost track of time—so long that even the pain had dried up.
My phone buzzed again.
Another message from the same number:
I thought you should know the truth. Those "couple's rings" Damon gave you? He designed them specifically for me three years ago. The blue represents the sky, my element as a pilot. The white represents the Langley pack's colors. They were always meant to be ours.
You were convenient. A placeholder until he could afford to choose me.
I'm sorry you had to find out this way. But better now than later, don't you think?
- S
The phone slipped from my numb fingers.
Everything clicked into place with brutal clarity.
The rings had never been about us. They'd been designed for her, and he'd simply given me a matching set to keep me compliant while he used my parents' death benefits to build his empire.
He'd never loved me.
He'd only needed the money.
I turned and walked away, my footsteps silent on the plush carpet. Neither of them noticed me leaving.
I walked straight to the Alliance’s Mating & Marriage Administration.
The elder handed me the papers.
I tore the seal open with my thumb and eased the papers out just far enough to read the header.
Request for Dissolution of Mating Contract.
I never imagined that breaking the bond could be so simple.
I packed when I got back to the pack house.
The few personal items I'd brought into this marriage. Everything else, the jewelry he'd given me, the expensive dresses, all of it, I left behind.
I didn't want anything from him.
I placed the papers in the center of Damon's desk in his study, weighing them down with the bracelet he'd given me earlier.
Then I walked out of the Thornwood pack house for the last time, my bag over my shoulder and my parents' memory the only thing I carried in my heart.
I didn't look back.
- Writer
