Stolen Mate

The fire had died to embers by dawn, its warmth replaced by a brittle silence. Rylan's confession hung between us like a blade—sharp, unmoving. He'd fallen into a fitful sleep hours ago, his back turned to me, while I stared at the cave's moss-streaked walls. Trust, once broken, left splinters in its wake. 

When the storm finally spent itself, we left the cave without a word. The forest dripped with rainwater, the air thick with the scent of pine and decay. My lavender lingered too, a fragile thread that Kieran's wolves—or Lila's—might follow. 

Rylan walked three paces ahead, his posture rigid, as if distance could erase the vulnerability he'd shown. I matched his silence, my thoughts a tempest. 

*He loved her once. Could he again?* 

A twig snapped. 

Rylan froze, hand flying to his dagger. "Stay close." 

We crept forward, the mud sucking at our boots. The trees thinned, revealing a clearing choked with brambles. My pulse quickened—this was Silvermoon's old hunting ground, a place Kieran and I had once gathered herbs. 

Lila stepped into the light, her crimson ribbons stark against the green. Six Nightshade warriors flanked her, their eyes feral. 

"Predictable," she sighed. "Knew you'd skulk back here, chasing nostalgia." 

Rylan shoved me behind him. "Keep the vial safe." 

The vial of Kieran's blood—the ritual's final piece—burned against my hip. 

Lila's gaze raked over Rylan, her smile venomous. "Still her guard dog? Pathetic. You used to have *ambition*." 

"And you used to have a soul," he shot back. 

Her laugh was brittle. "Souls don't survive Nightshade. You, of all people, know that." 

I stepped forward, defiance clawing up my throat. "You stole my life to save yours. That's not survival—it's cowardice." 

Her amber eyes flashed. "You think I wanted this?" She ripped open her sleeve, revealing a jagged brand—Darius's mark. "I was *twelve* when they promised me to him. Twelve when I learned what it meant to be Alpha's pet. Your scent was my only escape." 

The raw hate in her voice stunned me. "You could've asked for help—" 

"From *you*?" She spat. "The pack's darling healer, blind to anything but her herbs and her *noble* heart? No. I took my freedom. And I'd burn a thousand bonds to keep it." 

She nodded to the warriors. They lunged. 

Rylan met them mid-charge, his blade a silver blur. I ducked a swipe of claws, scrambling for the vial. *Finish the ritual. End this.* 

Lila tackled me, her dagger pricking my throat. "Give. It. *Up*." 

I kneed her ribs, rolling free. "You'll never be Luna!" 

She slashed, the blade grazing my arm. "And you'll never be *anything*!" 

Rylan roared, breaking free of the warriors. He seized Lila's wrist, twisting until bone cracked. She screamed, collapsing. 

"Run!" He hurled me toward the trees. 

But the warriors closed in, their snarls drowning Rylan's labored breaths. Blood slicked his tunic, his movements slowing. 

Lila staggered up, cradling her mangled hand. "Kill him! The girl's mine!" 

A warrior lunged for Rylan's throat. I hurled the vial. 

It shattered at Lila's feet, Kieran's blood seeping into the soil. Her stolen lavender scent curdled, warping into something rancid. 

She gagged. "What have you done?!" 

"The truth," I hissed. 

Kieran's howl tore through the forest—close, primal, *enraged*. 

Lila paled. "No—*no*!" 

Rylan grabbed my hand, dragging me into the underbrush. Behind us, Kieran's snarls mingled with Lila's shrieks. 

We ran, the forest swallowing us whole.