“What kind of foolish tale is that?” I said hoarsely. “Since when does betrayal dress itself up as mercy?”
Gerald’s reply still echoed in my ears when I lifted my head.
They were there.
Gerald and Tessa walked side by side through the healer’s stone corridor, their steps unhurried, their closeness unmistakable.
The moment he saw me, Gerald’s expression darkened. He strode toward me, holding up his rune-stone.
“What are you doing here?” he demanded. “Are you following us now?”
Leaning on my staff, I answered calmly, “My leg was acting up. I felt faint from hunger. I came to see a healer.”
Tessa laughed softly. “Victoria, you have always been resilient. Since when did you become so delicate?”
For a brief second, Gerald hesitated. His gaze lingered on my pale face and unsteady stance. His voice lowered.
“What happened to your leg? Why did you not tell me?”
I met his eyes and said nothing.
Why did it hurt?
Even now, he believed my pain was an act.
After the accident, he had disappeared for seven days to celebrate with her. When he returned and saw me using a support staff, he mocked me for pretending injury to gain sympathy.
Later, he had locked me in the cellar to appease her anger.
Since I was already leaving, there was no reason to explain.
I lowered my gaze and endured the silence.
Something in my stillness unsettled him. He reached out and seized my wrist, urgency creeping into his voice.
“Tessa and I only underwent a ritual with the healers,” he said quickly. “It will not affect our bond. Tomorrow is our thirtieth bonding night. I prepared something special for you.”
I almost laughed.
“I have a surprise for you as well,” I said softly.
Perhaps driven by guilt, he arranged for my stay in the healer’s den and even brought me fruit. An unfamiliar kindness.
My son and his mate came later, awkward and restrained.
“Mother, it is not what you think.”
“Father and Aunt Tessa ended things long ago. They are only allies now.”
“Allies who share blood rituals?” I replied tiredly. “That is enough. You may go.”
They stared at me, stunned. I had always spoken gently. My coldness struck harder than shouting.
At that moment, my rune-stone vibrated.
[I am coming for you tonight. Be ready. If not, I will carry you.]
I replied with two words.
[Do not be late.]
Gerald entered with another basket of fruit, his gaze flicking to my rune-stone.
“Who were you speaking to?” he asked.
“A debt keeper,” I replied. “It is time to settle accounts.”
He smiled faintly. “If you lack resources, you only need to ask. I have never let you go without.”
True. Even beggars were fed scraps.
That day, Gerald played the role of a devoted mate, tending to me with care.
I knew better.
It was not love. It was guilt.
As night fell, his rune-stone lit up.
He glanced at it, locked the screen, and stood quickly.
“There is an urgent matter,” he said, pressing a brief kiss to my forehead. “Rest. I will return.”
Minutes after he left, a message appeared on my stone.
[Do not grow proud. One call from me and he is already gone.]
Attached was an image of Gerald kneeling before her, lips pressed reverently to her swollen belly.
I turned the stone dark.
Then I opened my travel chest and left the healer’s den.
A black carriage waited beneath the moonlight. The window lowered, revealing Edmund’s calm, resolute face.
Once inside, I opened the pack message board and selected several records.
One of the bond ring and dissolution parchment sealed away.
One of my healer’s record from the accident.
One of Gerald and Tessa entwined while I lay near death.
And one final page from my journal, where I had counted sixty-six disappointments.
At the strike of midnight, I sent them all, marking Gerald.
[After the sixty-sixth wound, I am free. Enjoy your thirtieth bonding night. This is my farewell.]
