After speaking with her brother a little longer, Rosalie finally withdrew from the mindlink.
The room fell silent once more.
She lowered her gaze to the Moon Healer's parchment resting on the table beside her. After a long moment, she folded it with great care and tucked it away in a wooden chest, as though hiding it from sight could somehow postpone the fate written upon it.
Cassian returned to the Ironclaw Pack a week later.
He did not return alone.
He brought Arabella back with him and settled her in the manor beside theirs—a residence that had once been Evander's mating gift to Rosalie. Although the estate had belonged to her ever since her wedding, she had never moved into it, sending only servants from time to time to keep it clean.
Now, another woman would be living there.
In all the years she had been Cassian's mate, Rosalie had rarely opposed him. Whenever disagreements arose, she was always the first to yield, believing that preserving peace was worth more than winning an argument.
For the first time, however, she wanted to ask him whether he truly believed this was appropriate.
The question rose to her lips...
...only to fade away before it could be spoken.
She had already decided to leave.
What purpose would those words serve now?
Turning away from him, she resumed placing the books from the shelves into neatly stacked wooden crates.
Perhaps noticing the distance in her eyes, Cassian spoke after a long silence.
"It is only until Arabella recovers. The Moon Healers asked that she remain close while they continue treating her. It will be easier for everyone."
Rosalie smiled faintly, though there was little warmth in it.
"She is welcome to stay," she replied without looking at him. "Just let her know that I intend to put the manor up for transfer. Elders from neighboring packs have already expressed interest in the land, so there may be visitors from time to time."
Cassian frowned.
"Why would you give it away? Have you fallen into difficulty?"
She placed another book into the crate before answering.
"No. It was a mating gift from my brother, yet it has stood empty for years. It deserves an owner who will actually live in it."
Cassian studied her quietly.
Between the wealth of the Nightshade and Ironclaw Packs, countless estates lay unused across their territories. He knew perfectly well that the manor was not the real reason.
Still, when he saw the calm expression on her face, he understood she had no desire to continue the conversation.
As he turned to leave, his attention drifted toward the wooden crates.
"I thought you were only cleaning. Why are you packing your books?"
Rosalie closed the lid of one crate before answering.
"They have gathered dust. I thought I'd leave them beneath the moonlight for a few nights."
Cassian accepted the explanation with a nod before another thought occurred to him.
"I almost forgot. How did your visit to the Moon Healer go? Everything happened so suddenly that day. I never had the chance to ask."
For the briefest moment, Rosalie's hand tightened against the edge of the crate.
The healer's warning returned to her with painful clarity.
The darkness spreading through her wolf...
The ritual that could no longer wait...
The mate who had never come.
She lowered her eyes and gently shook her head.
"It was nothing serious."
Cassian gave a quiet hum, accepting her answer without question.
"Arabella's injuries are worse than we first believed. Her wolf is unstable, and she has been frightened ever since the attack. I'll be spending most of my time at the neighboring manor until she recovers."
Rosalie simply nodded.
"Then take good care of her."
There was no accusation in her voice, no resentment, not even disappointment.
Her indifference unsettled him far more than anger would have.
Yet Cassian said nothing else before walking away.
Rosalie remained where she was, watching through the window as his figure disappeared toward the neighboring estate.
A faint, bitter smile curved across her lips while tears slowly clouded her vision.
Every corner of the Alpha Manor held traces of the future she had once imagined for them. The carved furniture in the great hall, the curtains that danced with every mountain breeze, the paintings adorning the stone walls, even the spare cloak and boots waiting beside the entrance had all been chosen by her own hands, each carrying a quiet hope that they would someday build a warm home together.
Now those memories mocked her more cruelly than any enemy ever could.
After sealing the last crate, Rosalie reached for the communication crystal resting on the table, intending to contact Freya and ask her to share the evening meal.
Before she could channel her wolf's aura into it, however, the crystal glowed with Freya's presence.
"Rosalie," Freya's anxious voice echoed through the link. "You need to listen to the pack's whispers."
Rosalie closed her eyes and extended her senses toward the territory's shared mindlink.
The gossip spreading through the pack struck her almost immediately.
Everyone was saying the same thing.
Alpha Cassian Ironclaw and Arabella Voss had rekindled the love they had once shared.
