(Soraya’s POV)

The false heiress,Merryn Wildbriar,had always loved her little‘games.’

On the day of my mating ceremony with Jareth Wolfhart,she switched my moon blossom bouquet with grave chrysanthemums and replaced my Moonstone mating ring with a pull tab from a spirit drink can.

My face turned cold at once,and I decided to report her to the Pack Guard.

But Jareth caught my hand and spoke in a low voice only I could hear,“Merryn was only acting like a pup,Sora.She doesn't know any better.”

Merryn did not look worried at all.She lifted her chin,a smug smile on her lips.

“Oh my dear,Soraya Clawson,it was only a joke.Can't you take a joke?”

“When Jareth and I were sharing the same den,you were still living somewhere in the outer territories!”

That was the seventh time my mating ceremony had been ruined.

Two weeks later,secret files from a major murder case I was investigating for the Moon Council were leaked across the realm.

The whole kingdom exploded with outrage.People called me shameless and accused me of selling justice for gold.

And once again,it was only another one of her careless little‘games.’

“Jareth,if you protect her again this time,we're finished.”

But his voice stayed calm,almost indifferent.

“Merryn is only having fun.She never means any harm.She only hates you because you took everything from her.Can't you give her a little?”

Something bitter rose in my throat and stayed there.

This time,I pushed him away and called the Pack Guard without hesitation.

You're wrong,Jareth.Why should I give her anything?

Everything the Wildbriar Clan owned belonged to me from the beginning.

And as for you,Jareth,I would leave you behind in Blackmoor City along with every piece of the seven winters I wasted loving you.

***

Inside the Pack Guard Hall,a settlement agreement sat on the table before me.I looked at it and said three words.

“I won't sign.”

Merryn rushed forward and shoved me.Her sharp voice echoed through the hall.

“Sora,it was only a prank!Do you really have to make such a huge issue out of it?!”

“Or is it because nobody cares about you that you have to come after me to feel important?!”

My heart tightened.

Meanwhile,Jareth watched me silently,his expression impossible to read.

Then he grabbed Merryn's arm and spoke softly,“Merryn,enough.This time you were wrong.”

That only made her louder.

“What did I do wrong,Jareth?!She's the one who stole everything from me!She's the reason we can't be together!”

I looked at Jareth.The last bit of light in my eyes faded away.

Seven winters,and in the end,I became the villain who separated two destined mates.

The hall doors opened.

A man stormed inside and slapped me so hard that my head snapped to the side.

“Soraya,have you lost your senses?!Dragging your own sister to the Pack Guard Hall!”

“She doesn't know any better,but what's your excuse?!”

I pressed a hand against my burning cheek.The pain reached much deeper than flesh.

He was not a stranger,but my biological father,Cairos Wildbriar.

Unfortunately,he treated me like I was the stranger.Always.

I was kidnapped when I was five years old.He brought Merryn home afterward,raised her as his daughter,and never once searched for me.

When I turned twenty,I was working at a tavern in the outer territories when I accidentally met my biological mother,Marisel Silverhart,and we finally found each other again.

Yet even after that,Cairos never sent Merryn away.

Instead,he gave her the identity of my twin sister and continued treating me like an unwanted burden.

No matter how much I thought about it,I could never understand why.

“Father,let me ask you something.What if one day her'not knowing better'gets me killed?”

Outside the hall,reporters from across the Blackmoor City had gathered.

They had eyes.They could see the truth.

Yet everyone here still chose her side.

Cairos stayed silent.The anger on his face never changed.

The Pack Guard officer looked between us and spoke,“Lady Soraya Clawson,are you choosing to press charges?”

“Yes.”

The moment the word left my mouth,Jareth grabbed my arm.His grip was so tight it hurt.

“Sora!You can't press charges.It'll ruin her!”

Cairos struck his cane against the stone floor.“Soraya,do you even hear yourself?!”

I lowered my eyes and stayed silent.

Then Merryn suddenly cried out.

“Jareth,my chest hurts!My heart is acting up again!Please take me to the Healer's Hall!I don't want to stay here!”

Jareth released me immediately and rushed to her side,then he lifted Merryn into his arms.

I stepped forward.This would be the last time I tried to hold on to him.

“Jareth,if you walk out that door with her,we're ending our mating bond.”

He glanced back with a frown.

“Sora,stop this.This isn't the time.You know Merryn has a weak heart.Stop making trouble.”

Whether Merryn truly had a heart condition,I could not say.But I knew this always happened.

Whenever Jareth and I planned time together,Merryn would grab her chest and force him to run back to her.

On my moon-born day,she would call from the Healer's Hall and pull him away.

Not once had he refused.

Maybe what existed between us was never truly love.

I stood there,unable to move or think.

Suddenly,Cairos walked over and stopped beside me.He was smiling.

“Jareth has been close to Merryn since they were young pups.If you had never returned,nobody would have needed to separate them.”

“Soraya,sometimes pretending not to know is the easiest way to live.”

Everyone kept saying I was the one who tore them apart.

But what Jareth and I shared was real.I loved him first,and I gave him my whole heart.Even if I had never returned to the Wilbdriar Clan,Jareth and I should have stayed together.

I finished the documents and walked out of the Pack Guard Hall.

Suddenly,a wave of dizziness struck me.

The world darkened.I collapsed onto the ground.And the last thing I heard was someone shouting in panic.

“Lady Soraya!”

(Soraya’s POV)

When I opened my eyes,I was lying in a room at the Healer's Hall.

A healer stood beside me,his expression serious and concerned.

“Lady Soraya,you're carrying a pup.You collapsed because of severe emotional strain.You must take better care of yourself from now on.”

“We tried contacting your mate,but we couldn't reach him.He should be paying more attention to you.”

I forced a small smile and replied quietly,“He's busy with pack matters.”

The door closed behind him.

I rested a hand over my stomach and whispered softly,“Little one,this isn't the best time.But I'm taking you with me.”

I picked up the payment slip from the table and headed toward the front desk.

As I walked through the corridor,I overheard two healers talking and stopped.

“Did you see that earlier?The famous pack attorney in this city,Jareth Wolfhart,rushed in carrying his mate.”

“Of course I saw it.The whole hall was in chaos.He even summoned all the senior healers to examine her.That's what true love looks like.”

“I know,right?I heard they grew up together.Childhood sweethearts who became mates.How lucky.”

I clenched the payment slip until it wrinkled in my hand.Bitterness filled my chest.

When I was eighteen and suffering from a terrible fever,Jareth had treated me the same way.He had carried me through heavy rain all the way to the Healer's Hall.

But later,when I became so sick I could barely stay awake,all I received was a single message.

[If you're sick,go see a healer.I'm busy with pack work too.]

I once thought he had changed.

The truth was that he had not.His love had simply gone to someone else.

A few steps later,I ran into them.

Merryn looked me over from head to toe and laughed coldly.

“Sora,did you come here to see whether I was dead yet?Sorry to disappoint you.”

I could not care less.

“Move.”

Before Merryn could answer,Jareth stepped in front of her.

“Sora,Merryn has a heart condition.She can't handle stress.Stop provoking her.There is a limit to how unreasonable you can be.”

I looked into his cold eyes.I wanted to ask him what exactly I had done to provoke her.

If I were truly as unreasonable as he claimed,I would have torn her apart long ago for everything she had done to me.

“Jareth,do you love her that much?Fine.I'll move aside so the two of you can be together.”

A cold laugh escaped my lips.

His face darkened and his brows pulled together tightly.

“Sora,what nonsense are you saying?I only care for her as a sister.I've never crossed any boundaries.”

Right.

Never crossed any boundaries,he said.

But he forgot our moon anniversary only to take her across the northern kingdoms to watch the Moon Lights dance across the sky.

He also ignored my moon-born day to travel with her to the eastern territories and watch the first winter snowfall.

He did everything a mate would do.

Then he told me he had never crossed any boundaries?

Meanwhile,all I ever received was:“Too troublesome.Maybe next time.”

Merryn wrapped her arm around his casually.

“Seriously,you're so sensitive,Sora.Jareth and I grew up together.We've always been close.Do you really need to make a problem out of every little thing?”

My communication crystal suddenly lit up.

It was the pack law firm.

I had no time to waste on either of them.

“Attorney Clawson,please get back here immediately.The Chief Pack Attorney is furious!”

I turned and walked away without another word,but Jareth grabbed my wrist.

“Where are you going?”

“To die.Is that good enough for you,Jareth?”

He immediately released me.Looking embarrassed,he said nothing.

When I returned to the law firm,reporters had completely surrounded the entrance.

I could barely get through the crowd.

“Pack Attorney Soraya Clawson,as Blackmoor City's second ranked legal advocate,you've rejected many clients before.Why are you defending an accused killer now?”

“Were you responsible for leaking the case files?Or is this some scheme for attention?Would you care to answer?”

The crowd pushed closer and closer.

I could hardly breathe.

Suddenly,someone stepped in front of me.His voice was sharp and commanding.

“Unless you have proof,I suggest you stop spreading lies.Otherwise,I will personally file a lawsuit against every one of you for defamation.”

I looked up.

It was Jareth.

For a brief moment,something stirred inside the heart I thought had already gone cold.The feeling disappeared just as quickly.

He leaned close and whispered into my ear.

“Don't say anything bad about Merryn.These reporters are ruthless.She won't be able to handle them.”

That was how it always felt when someone did not love you.They hurt you without even realizing it.

Ding!

A message appeared on my communication crystal.

My heart instantly tightened.

Making sure Jareth could not see,I opened it.

[Lady Soraya Clawson,your entry request to the Ironcrest Kingdom has been denied.Your mating bond status was recorded incorrectly.]

[We conducted a verification on your behalf.Official records show that you have never completed a registered mating bond.]

[As for Jareth Wolfhart,his legally registered mate is Lady Merryn Wildbriar.]

A wave of grief crashed into me.

I felt as though I were drowning.I could not breathe.

The man standing beside me…the man who protected another she wolf again and again…

Now I finally understood why.They were the true mated pair all along.

I was the fool.

A complete fool.

The mating ceremony never happened and the bond registration was fake.How much of what we shared had ever been real?

I swallowed the pain,turned away from him,and typed a single message.

[Restart the application process.Transfer to the Ravenvale Moon Kingdom.As quickly as possible.]

(Soraya’s POV)

Jareth did not come inside.He remained outside the door.

I walked into the pack law firm.

The Chief Pack Attorney,Eldran Evergrove,was furious.Documents were scattered across the floor where he had thrown them.

Seeing me,he pointed at me and barked,“Soraya,have you completely lost your senses?!Leaking files this important?You're suspended from the Moon Council Law Firm effective immediately.”

I let out a slow breath,keeping my voice calm.

“Chief Eldran,I'm officially resigning.”

Shock flashed across his face.He crossed the room quickly and stopped in front of me.

“I just said suspended,Soraya.Once this storm passes,you'll come back.There is no reason to resign.You have an incredible future ahead of you.”

“Besides,you and Jareth fought harder than anyone to enter this firm together.Are you really willing to walk away from him?”

Back when we graduated from the Royal Moon Academy,Jareth and I had been full of dreams and ambition.

We fought our way into this prestigious law firm together.And over many winters,we built a reputation throughout the Blackmoor City.

Whenever people heard our names,they paid attention.During those times,we had spent countless nights working on the same cases.We sat through each other's hearings just to offer support.

But now,it was over.

When Eldran realized my decision would not change,he patted my shoulder.

“No matter where you go,you'll achieve great things,Soraya.”

“I'll gather everyone together and give you a proper farewell.”

“And don't worry.I won't tell Jareth.Mating bonds break all the time.Just take care of yourself.”

I was carrying my belongings out of the office when Jareth stopped me.A trace of panic flickered across his face.

“The Chief Attorney suspended you over something this small?I'll speak with him.”

My voice came out soft,“I'm taking some time away.I'm going to the Ravenvale Moon Kingdom to clear my mind.”

At that moment,I wanted him to hear the words I left unsaid.I wanted him to ask me not to leave.

He didn't.

The panic faded from Jareth's face.

In its place was calm indifference.

“What happened this time was too much.Merryn went too far.”

“When you come back,I'll take you to the northern kingdoms to watch the Moon Lights.”

“I've been busy with pack matters.I still owe you a mating journey.I'll make it up to you.”

There was no need.I was never coming back.

He did not see me off.

To him,the reason was obvious.

Merryn had another appointment at the Healer's Hall.

I watched him walk away.Then I sent two messages.

[I'm in.I'll come to Ravenvale and become your partner.]

[Devris,I agree to become your mate.But I have one condition.Help me move every Wildbriar Clan asset overseas.]

Jareth…it was over between us.

On the journey home,a large transport wagon suddenly crashed into my carriage.

The impact was violent.I became trapped beneath the wreckage.

Blood spread beneath me.A sharp pain tore through my abdomen.I could barely breathe.

My communication crystal had been thrown several feet away.

Using every bit of strength I had left,I dragged myself toward it and called Jareth.

“Jareth,help me...I've been in an accident.”

His voice instantly became urgent.

“Where are you?I'm coming right now.Don't move.”

The connection suddenly ended.

Before I could say another word,the call was cut off.My hands trembled as I called again.

This time,Jareth sounded annoyed.

“Sora,enough!I'm at Merryn's follow up examination and I'm busy.”

“Stop playing these games.You're not a young pup anymore.”

“If you've been in an accident,contact the Pack Guard,or call the emergency line.”

Then he ended the call once more.

Two men dressed in black leaped down from the transport wagon and walked toward me.

Their voices were cold as winter ice.

The words they spoke made my blood freeze.