Violette woke to the sound of a healer talking beside her bed.
"... yes, that's what I heard. Alpha Blackthorn has been at the Healing Hall since this morning, but he doesn't know that his mate is being treated here. He's in a private den-suite with a woman. I heard he came because his nephew fell ill after a tumble. Alpha Blackthorn even summoned every senior healer in the Hall just to treat a pup who had only a scratch."
"I feel so sorry for Luna Blackthorn. While her mate was tending to another woman's pup, she was waiting for approval for her ritual, but Alpha Blackthorn didn't answer her mind-link messages. In the end, the pup in her womb couldn't be saved."
"It turns out that the bond between Luna and Alpha Blackthorn was just a fairy tale. I saw Alpha Blackthorn treat a woman named Irene as if she were the apple of his eye."
"Shh, let's go. We can't talk about this. No one can know about Luna Blackthorn's ritual."
"Yes, we have to leave before Luna Blackthorn wakes up."
The healers' voices finally faded away. They didn't notice Violette's clenched fist under the blanket.
She opened her eyes with a blank stare, then got out of bed and pulled the infusion tube out of her hand.
Her face was still pale. Barefoot, she walked out of her chamber. Her wolf was silent inside her, curled tight and unmoving, the way it had been since the ritual. Like something in it had gone quiet and refused to come back.
She stopped at the door of the private den-suite, hearing laughter and cheerful chatter from inside.
"Daddy, I'm sleepy. Read me a story."
Through the crack in the door, Violette saw Hans sitting back on the bed with Damien on his lap. Irene sat on the side of the bed, cutting fruit. The room smelled like night-blooming jasmine and warm honey, and beneath it that acrid chemical sweetness that always clung to Irene's skin. It had seeped into the linens, the air, the walls. As if this were her den.
Hans was dressed casually, showing that he wasn't attending to any pack duties.
Violette remembered that when she was sick, Hans had only sent a healer to check on her, but had still gone to oversee pack operations.
When he received the message that Irene had a fever, he immediately rushed to her quarters and stayed the whole night, his mind-link stone turned off.
It was very clear how differently Hans treated the people he loved.
Violette had had enough of all this. She was going to disappear from Hans's life.
She backed away and turned to run, but bumped into a healer carrying food for a patient, making a loud noise that drew attention.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry...."
Hans came out of the den-suite and was surprised to see Violette sitting on the floor.
Violette quickly wiped her tears and tried to smile.
"Vio?" He frowned and knelt to help her up. "Why are you here? Why are you wearing a healing gown?"
"I'm being treated here."
"Are you seriously injured?" His face turned panicked and anxious when he saw the blood flowing from Violette's wrist because she had forcibly pulled out her infusion tube. "Why didn't you tell me?! You're bleeding!"
Violette stared at her wrist. Only a single drop of blood had come out, but it was enough to make Hans's cold face turn fearful and panicked.
He was a man who never flinched when a rival pack bared their fangs at the border, who sneered when pushed to the brink of death. But now he was panicking and anxious just from seeing a single drop of blood on Violette's hand.
But all of that was just a facade.
Violette's heart was tired.
"I'm sorry, I was so focused on Damien that I forgot you were hurt."
"It's okay. I know Damien is more important because he is the heir to the Blackthorn Pack." Violette smiled widely. However, her heart was crying for the child she had lost.
Hans looked at Violette's smile, sensing that something was different about her, and it made him uncomfortable. Something in her scent had shifted. The lavender was there, the rain-washed stone, but the moonflower was gone. Just gone. As if the part of her that bloomed had closed itself off.
"I'm sorry..." That was all he could say, then he realized Violette wasn't wearing shoes.
"Why did you forget to wear your shoes? Who took care of you at the Healing Hall?"
"There is a groundskeeper. But I've already sent him home."
Without saying anything, Hans carried Violette bridal style.
"Hans..." Irene came out of Damien's chamber and froze when she saw Hans carrying Violette.
"Damien is looking for you. His wound hurts again and he scratched it until it bled. Please persuade him to stop scratching his wound."
"Sorry, Irene. I have to take Violette to her chamber first."
For the first time, Hans refused Irene's request and walked away.
Violette watched Irene's face darken behind Hans's back.
Hans put Violette to bed and called the healer to check on her.
Violette had already told all the healers and servants to keep quiet about her miscarriage.
"Luna Blackthorn fell, and on top of that, she's malnourished and very weak." As he said this, the healer looked at Hans strangely and muttered, "How can Luna Blackthorn be malnourished?"
A look of embarrassment flashed across Hans's eyes. "It's because she's on a restricted regimen. I've told her repeatedly to stop."
Violette stared at him expressionlessly, seeing the lie he was telling to cover up his embarrassment.
The healer nodded in understanding and left.
Hans held Violette's hand gently. "Vio, I'm sorry. My behavior was outrageous. If you had apologized to Irene, this wouldn't have happened." He was still blaming Violette for what had happened.
"Just forget it. Irene has forgiven you, as long as you are nice to her, she will forget about this problem."
"Then please thank her for me," Violette replied with a fake sweet smile. Inside, she was gritting her teeth.
Since she would be leaving soon, Violette knew it was better not to waste her energy arguing with him.
Hans smiled softly and stroked her cheek. "As long as you behave yourself, everything will go back to the way it was. You will always be Luna Blackthorn." Hans pulled the blanket up around Violette and kissed her forehead. Violette turned her face away, avoiding his kiss.
"Vio..." Before Hans could ask her anything, his attention was diverted by the pulse of his mind-link stone.
It was a message from Irene.
"Sorry, I have to go check on Damien," he said and walked out of the chamber.
He didn't even stay long to keep her company.
Violette lay in bed and closed her eyes. Tears streamed from the corners of her eyes. She cried until her eyes were puffy and her voice was hoarse. Her wolf lay flat inside her chest, not howling, not whimpering. Just breathing. Shallow and thin.
To make up for his mistake, Hans changed his attitude and treated Violette as he had before. He gave her many gifts and arranged for Violette's favorite dishes to be sent from the finest kitchens to her chamber at the Healing Hall every day until she recovered.
A few days later. While waiting for Hans to pick her up, Violette walked around the Healing Hall. She sighed enviously as she watched a pregnant she-wolf being taken for an examination by her mate, his hand resting on the small of her back, their bond-scent mingling in the corridor like something whole.
She rubbed her stomach, and the pain stabbed her again. Her child was gone. She still remembered the pain when the pup was removed from her body.
Violette took a deep breath and turned to return to her chamber, but bumped into someone who had just come out of the birthing chamber.
"Ouch!"
Violette froze when she saw who was coming out of the birthing chamber.
"What a coincidence to run into you, Violette!" Irene smiled. "Why are you here?"
Violette looked around for Hans, but only Irene was there. This was unusual because Hans was always by Irene's side.
"I should be the one asking why you're here alone and out of the birthing chamber..." Violette's breath caught slightly when she looked toward the birthing chamber.
Irene followed Violette's gaze and smiled proudly. "As you can see, I'm having my pregnancy examined."
Then she picked up the parchments that had fallen on the floor when Violette bumped into her.
"Look, these are my moon charts. I'm three moon cycles along." She pointed to the scrying imprint and stroked her stomach. "This is my pup with... Hans. Isn't it beautiful? Hans always wanted a cute little daughter. He hopes this pup is a little girl."
Violette's eyes were fixed on the scrying imprint in her hand. It was painful to see that, while she had just lost her pup.
Irene was very shameless. She was carrying the pup of the Blackthorn siblings. Violette looked at her with disgust.
Irene watched her, as if waiting for a devastated reaction on Violette's face.
But Violette was indifferent, refusing to give her the satisfaction of seeing her pain.
"Oh."
"Oh?" Irene followed Violette's words in disbelief. "You should be sensible and sever your bond with Hans!"
"Why don't you ask Hans to sever the bond with me?" Violette shook her head in derision. "If it's Hans's pup, he will definitely take responsibility for you," she continued indifferently, then walked past Irene.
Irene followed her quickly.
"Violette, don't be arrogant just because the packs praise you for Hans's devotion to the world. It's all fake and solely to maintain the alliance between the Ashwood and Blackthorn Packs because they have to keep a barren wolf like you." She then continued, smiling victoriously.
"Did you know that Damien is Hans's biological son?"
Violette didn't stop walking and considered Irene's words to be nothing more than the buzzing of insects.
It wasn't that she had never suspected it, but she was too afraid to request a scent-test on Damien and Hans.
But now she didn't care about that anymore because in two days she would leave everything behind and disappear from Hans Blackthorn's life.
"You don't believe me? I'll prove it to you at the Blackthorn pack gathering tomorrow. Oh, I forgot to tell you that Camila didn't invite you." After saying that, Irene bumped Violette's shoulder and walked past her with her chin raised.
Violette stared coldly at her back.
