Rowan stepped into the room carrying several bags filled with fruit and food.
Everything inside had once been my favorite.
He placed them on the table, shrugged off his coat, and walked straight to my bedside.
“Why are you asking to transfer hospitals?” he asked quietly. “You're still recovering. You shouldn't be moving around.”
I said nothing.
I simply looked at him.
Like always, he gently wiped my hands and feet with a warm towel before peeling an apple with practiced care. After cutting it into small pieces, he lifted one toward my mouth.
“Eat a little,” he coaxed. “You haven't had anything since yesterday.”
I remained perfectly still.
A helpless sigh escaped him.
“Lillian... don't do this. Your body needs food if you want to heal. Don't make me worry.”
He set the fruit aside, scooped up a spoonful of soup, blew on it until it cooled, then held it out again.
“Just one bite.”
His patience never wavered.
His kindness hadn't changed.
And somehow...
That hurt the most.
Because I knew the truth now.
He treated Celeste with that same tenderness.
No...
He treated her even better.
Whenever they shared a meal, he always placed the best portions on her plate first.
“This piece is sweeter,” I'd once heard him tell her with a smile. “You should eat this one.”
He would kneel beside her bed for long stretches of time, resting his ear against her stomach.
“In a few more months,” he'd whisper excitedly, “our little pup will start kicking. I can't wait.”
After I fell asleep each night, he quietly slipped out of my room.
Back then, I could only guess where he went.
Now I no longer had to wonder.
I had seen him.
I watched him disappear into Celeste's room after dark.
I saw the lingering glances they exchanged.
The way his fingers naturally found hers.
The intimate marks on their skin that neither of them bothered hiding anymore.
During the day, he introduced her openly to everyone they met.
“This is my mate,” he'd say proudly. “Our Luna.”
“She'll be giving birth soon, so please take good care of her.”
Never once...
Did he introduce me that way.
I watched everything in silence.
No accusations.
No tears.
No questions.
There was no reason anymore.
When someone has truly decided to leave...
They don't waste time saying goodbye.
...
The days passed one after another.
Each one colder than the last.
Whenever Rowan stayed with Celeste, I quietly made another phone call.
“It's me,” I'd whisper. “How much longer?”
The agent's reassuring voice always answered.
“We're almost finished, Ms. Brightman. Just a little more time.”
So I waited.
Then the morning of my discharge finally arrived.
A message appeared on my phone.
Ms. Brightman, your new documents will be completed the morning after tomorrow.
I stared at the screen for a long time.
Then...
Without realizing it...
I smiled.
It was the first genuine smile I'd worn in what felt like forever.
Finally.
I was leaving.
Rowan happened to notice.
One arm was still wrapped protectively around Celeste when he turned toward me.
His expression filled with surprise.
“You're smiling,” he said softly. “Did something good happen?”
I quietly shook my head.
“Nothing important.”
“I just... feel a little lighter today.”
Before I could step away, he pulled me into his arms.
“That's better,” he murmured against my hair. “You should smile more often. Don't carry everything by yourself. I'm here for you.”
“I'll always be here.”
Always.
The word almost made me laugh.
Gently, I eased myself out of his embrace.
“I'm alright.”
He studied me for a moment, something uncertain passing through his eyes.
Then he bent down and kissed my forehead.
“If you're sure... let's go home.”
The drive back was unusually quiet.
Every few minutes, Rowan glanced in my direction.
“Are you certain you're okay?” he asked again. “You've barely spoken. If something's bothering you, tell me.”
I kept my eyes on the scenery beyond the window.
“There isn't anything left to say.”
His brows knit together.
He slowly reached across the seat, intending to take my hand.
Before he could...
“Rowan!”
Celeste suddenly screamed.
“Look out!”
A deafening crash exploded around us.
A black SUV barreled straight into our vehicle without warning.
Metal twisted.
Glass shattered.
The world spun violently.
...
Then everything disappeared.
I dreamed.
Or perhaps...
I remembered.
Five years earlier.
Back when I could still see.
I had loved wandering alone through the mountains, exploring the outer edges of the pack's territory.
That was where I found him.
A man lying unconscious among the rocks in a lifeless mountain range.
His leg was badly broken.
His body burned with fever.
An Alpha...
Alone...
And dying.
I remembered kneeling beside him, frightened.
“Can you hear me?” I'd asked while gently shaking his shoulder. “Don't die, okay? There's no way I can carry a dead Alpha down this mountain.”
He never answered.
So I stayed.
I shared every bit of food and water I had.
Used all of my medicine on him.
For three straight days, I barely slept while caring for a complete stranger.
On the third morning...
He finally opened his eyes.
The relief hit me so hard that I collapsed almost immediately afterward.
When I regained consciousness again, everything had changed.
This time...
He was the one taking care of me.
His wrist had been cut open.
Warm Alpha blood touched my lips.
“Drink,” he ordered hoarsely.
“You're not dying after saving me.”
I weakly pushed his hand away.
“Have you lost your mind?” I whispered. “You'll weaken yourself.”
He simply shook his head.
“I'll recover.”
His eyes never left mine.
“But you won't... unless you drink.”
He kept feeding me his blood until rescuers finally found us.
From that day forward, he refused to let me disappear from his life.
Whenever I tried to leave, he'd smile and repeat the same words.
“We survived that mountain together.”
“That kind of miracle doesn't happen twice.”
“It has to mean something.”
“Call it fate... destiny... whatever you like.”
“But I'm never letting you go, Lillian.”
Back then...
I believed every word.
Then the dream changed.
The mountains vanished.
Everything blurred into darkness.
Suddenly...
It wasn't the Rowan I knew anymore.
I watched him shove me toward a pack of savage beasts.
His face was cold.
His eyes never left Celeste.
He chose her...
Without hesitation.
“No!”
I screamed.
My eyes flew open.
My head throbbed violently.
My entire body felt unbearably heavy.
My wrists and ankles were tightly bound.
Something rough covered my eyes, plunging me back into darkness.
“Where... am I?”
My voice barely came out.
Someone laughed.
“Well, well... Alpha Ashcroft.”
The unfamiliar man sounded amused.
“You've got nerve.”
“You destroyed my pack, stole our territory, and left us with nothing.”
“Did you really think I'd simply forget?”
Rowan's voice answered immediately.
Cold.
Deadly.
“Darius Crowe.”
“The rogue Alpha.”
“You kidnapped me?”
A low growl escaped him.
“You've just signed your own death sentence.”
Darius burst into laughter.
“Death?” he sneered.
“I've already lost everything.”
“If I'm going down, you're coming with me.”
“But killing you immediately would be boring.”
Rough hands grabbed me.
I was dragged across uneven ground.
Sharp stones tore into my back, but I bit my lip to keep from crying out.
Nearby...
I heard Celeste sobbing.
“Please... let me go...”
Moments later, both of us were thrown onto the ground.
“Release them,” Rowan demanded.
“This is between you and me.”
“Leave them out of it.”
Darius ignored him completely.
His laughter carried through the darkness.
“How about we play a little game instead?”
“You like games, don't you, Alpha?”
“I've prepared several.”
“All you have to do... is decide who suffers.”
My heart sank.
“No,” Rowan said immediately.
“You want territory? Money? Power?”
“You can have it.”
“Just let them go.”
Darius clicked his tongue impatiently.
“Enough bargaining.”
“Let's begin.”
Chains rattled somewhere nearby.
Then came low...
Hungry...
Growls.
“The first game,” Darius announced cheerfully, “is called Blood Bait.”
Ice spread through my veins.
“One of your women will be covered in fresh blood...”
“Then dropped into a pit filled with starving rogue wolves.”
“They'll chase.”
“They'll hunt.”
“Don't worry.”
“I'll pull her out before she dies.”
“Probably.”
Rowan's breathing became uneven.
“You're insane.”
“Choose.”
Silence answered.
Without warning, someone seized me.
A cold, sticky liquid splashed across my body.
The unmistakable scent hit me instantly.
Blood.
“No!”
The ground suddenly vanished beneath my feet.
I fell into the darkness.
