Selena's POV:

Kael looked at Rejection on the table, and something dark settled in his eyes.

A tearing sound broke the silence. He snatched the Rejection I had signed, ripped it apart, and flung the pieces at me.

"This is my answer!" he snapped, a primal reaction to his Alpha authority being challenged.

"Selena, don't get ahead of yourself. You think something like this will get my attention?"

I didn't react. I simply watched him.

Before, I would have been shaken. I would have lowered my head, afraid to provoke him. Now, there was nothing left for me to fear. My wolf was already gone, and his pressure no longer meant anything.

"I'm not trying to get your attention." I looked straight at him and spoke in a calm voice. "Kael, I don't love you anymore. I'm leaving the pack. I'm leaving you."

He stopped. He clearly hadn't expected that the person who had followed him for three years would say something like that.

But the moment passed quickly. The surprise turned into anger.

He rushed forward, grabbed my throat, and slammed me hard against the cold wall.

He stood close, his breath falling against my face, yet all I felt was cold.

My head tilted back as I struggled to breathe, but I didn't resist. I kept looking at him, my eyes empty.

Something about that made him pause, and his grip loosened just a little. At that moment, his phone vibrated in his pocket.

Kael froze. He let go of me, took out his phone immediately, and his expression shifted from anger to tension. "Aria? What's wrong?"

Aria's voice broke through the call, unsteady, with noise behind her. There were screams and shouting. "Kael, help me. There are paparazzi and rogue wolves. They've surrounded the entrance. I'm scared. My heart won't calm down."

Kael went pale. That kind of panic had never appeared on him before.

"Stay calm, Aria," he said gently. "Find somewhere safe. Don't hang up. I'm on my way."

He moved toward the door, not sparing me a glance.

Right before leaving, he paused. Something crossed his mind, and he turned back, his gaze cold.

"Until you figure out how to atone for your sins, you are not going anywhere."

After that, he walked out.

The lock clicked. The door was secured from the outside.

From beyond it, his voice carried as he gave instructions. "Keep an eye on her. No one lets her leave the villa without my order."

Soon, the sound of the engine faded.

The house fell quiet again.

My eyes moved to the torn pieces scattered across the floor. Slowly, I crouched down and picked them up one by one.

My hands didn't stop shaking, yet no tears came.

Kael didn't realize it, but this time, I was truly done with him.

After gathering the pieces, I dropped them into the trash. Then I turned and walked toward the closet.

The clothes Kael had bought for me stayed untouched. The jewelry remained where it was.

Instead, I crouched down and pulled out a black duffel bag from the bottom. Inside were the few old clothes I had.

At last, I reached into the lining of the mattress and took out a black satellite phone.

It was something I had kept from my time as a bounty hunter.

In Kael's eyes, I was nothing more than a useless woman from the countryside. He would never imagine I had this.

Without hesitation, I dialed the number I had memorized.

A single beep sounded.

The call connected almost immediately.

"Selena?"

A low male voice came through, faint static in the background. It was Damon Walsh.

The Rogue King I had hunted countless times, who eventually became my closest friend. He was also the only person who knew the truth about my lost wolf.

"Damon," I said, keeping my voice steady. "You told me before that if I wanted to leave, you'd take me away."

"Now?" he asked, direct as always.

"Now. I'm at Kael's villa."

"I'll be there in ten minutes."

The call ended. I removed the ring from my finger and set it on the cabinet. It marked my place as Luna.

Kael believed a locked door could keep me here, but he was wrong.

I stepped out onto the rooftop terrace.

The wind pushed against me, yet for the first time, I felt free.

Selena's POV:

Violent gusts tore across the rooftop terrace, sending my skirt flying wildly around my legs.

Pressed against my chest, I held onto the battered black duffel bag. It carried only a handful of clothes.

This was all that remained of my three years with Kael.

From afar, the thundering chop of helicopter blades started to close in, shaking the air around me.

Through the darkness, a blinding beam of light sliced across the night sky. Above the villa, a massive black helicopter hovered with force, its presence heavy and threatening as it stirred chaos below.

Marked along its side was a blood-red wolf's head, bold and unmistakable. It was Damon's mark.

Sirens wailed across the villa without delay.

"State your identity!"

"We're under attack! Defend the villa!"

Guards flooded out in panic, stumbling over each other in confusion, but they were already too late.

From above, a rope ladder dropped down and landed right in front of me.

Without stopping to think, I secured the duffel bag tightly against my chest and reached for the ladder.

"Wait... isn't that the Luna?" one of the guards shouted from below, his voice breaking with fear. "The Luna's getting away! Stop her!"

"Start shooting! Bring that ladder down!"

"That's a Rogue helicopter! Don't let them take the Luna!"

The ladder jerked upward at once, pulling me off the ground.

Beneath me, the villa began to shrink. The walls that had held me captive for three long years faded into the distance, slowly slipping out of sight.

From the helicopter window, I cast a final glance at the place that had kept me trapped.

It ended here, Kael.

What we had, foolish and quiet as it was, ended here too.

Without another thought, I turned away and refused to look back again.

At the front, Damon handled the controls from the pilot's seat. A quick sideways look passed between us. He stayed quiet and simply threw a thick wool blanket toward me.

"If you're freezing, use that," he said. "I'm not dealing with someone dying on my aircraft. That kind of luck sticks."

Pulling the blanket around myself, I held it close. The faint trace of tobacco clung to the fabric, and for the first time in a long while, I felt safe.

Tears slipped down at last. They weren't from grief, but from the simple truth that I was finally free.

...

Kael's POV:

Inside the hospital room, everything felt still.

Aria lay unconscious.

According to the doctor, she had gone into shock, and her frail condition meant she needed complete rest.

Seated beside her, I watched her pale features, unable to settle the tension building inside me.

This feeling had been gnawing at me for the past two hours. Unease stirred within me as my wolf paced wildly in my mind, low growls echoing like something that belonged to me was being torn away.

"What's wrong, Kael?" Aria wasn't resting peacefully either. Her fingers tightened around my sleeve as if she didn't want to let go.

Gently, I slipped free from her grip and fixed the blanket over her. "It's nothing. Get some rest. I'll head back to the office."

Without lingering, I stepped out of the ward.

Instead of going where I said I would, I got in the car and drove recklessly. The speed climbed fast, pushing deep into the red.

Something pulled me back to the house.

I needed to see what Selena was doing. In my mind, she was probably still acting out, refusing to calm down.

Before leaving earlier, I had locked the door tight and reinforced it with an Alpha seal. She should've been stuck inside her room, breaking down in tears.

If she just gave in and apologized to Aria, maybe I could let this slide.

Three years together wasn't something I could ignore so easily.

The moment I reached the villa gate, everything in me went still.

The front gate was left wide open. Guards lay scattered across the ground, their faces drained and shaken.

"Alpha!" The captain rushed toward me the second he saw me, barely steady on his feet, his face completely drained of color. "A Rogue helicopter just came..."

"What?" I cut in with a frown, but before he could continue, a heavy sense of dread crashed over me.

I burst through the villa doors without slowing down.

"Selena?" I shouted into the silence.

Nothing came back.

An eerie stillness filled the house, broken only by the wind brushing against the curtains.

Selena's soft, familiar scent was fading fast. In its place lingered the unmistakable trace of another Alpha.

It was Damon!

My vision tightened, and my wolf surfaced before I could hold it back.

"Damon..."

His name came out through clenched teeth.

What connection did Selena have with that madman?

I took the stairs two at a time and slammed the master bedroom door open with a kick.

The clothes and jewelry I had given her remained untouched, yet a black duffel bag had disappeared.

Without wasting a second, I went back downstairs, my eyes locking onto the massive wedding portrait.

The picture had been ruined. A jagged slash split it apart, cutting straight between us.

Beneath it, resting on the cabinet, was the Luna diamond ring I had once slipped onto her finger. Now it sat there abandoned, marked with dirt.

My gaze shifted beside it, searching for the Rejection I had destroyed earlier, but it was no longer there.

Nothing remained except a single note.

Across it, one word had been scratched out, uneven and desperate, like she had used the last of her strength to write it. "Goodbye."

I tried to reach her through the mind link, but I failed.

"That can't be..." I whispered under my breath. "It doesn't make sense! She doesn't even have a wolf. Why would she leave me?"

One thought followed another. Maybe she was throwing a tantrum, or maybe she was doing this to get my attention.

Driven by panic, I bolted toward the garden.

Under the light, I saw a smear of darkened blood staining the dirt.

At that moment, it felt like everything beneath me collapsed.

With shaking hands, I pulled out my phone and dialed Selena's number. But the number was no longer in service.

She had disappeared.

She left, gathered what little belonged to her, and chose to follow another Alpha, disappearing from my life without a trace.

Selena's POV:

A full week had passed.

The underground black market auction was in full swing.

In this place, money erased all limits. If someone could afford it, they could walk away with anything, whether it was prohibited potions or even werewolves.

Standing before the mirror, I examined my reflection carefully. A deep crimson evening gown with a daring slit wrapped around me, paired with flawless makeup.

The fabric clung to my frame, tracing every line of my body.

A golden feather mask rested over the upper half of my face, hiding my identity while leaving my lips exposed.

"You set?" Damon asked, leaning casually against the doorframe as he held up two numbered paddles.

Dressed in a black tuxedo with the collar left slightly undone, he carried both refinement and danger in equal measure.

"I'm ready." I faced him and took a paddle from his hand. "The last item... is it really what you said?"

"It is." Damon's eyes turned serious. "The Moonlight Grass. It's the only thing that can hold back the silver poison inside you, even if it's just temporary. With that, you'll gain at least three more months."

Three more months. For someone already standing at death's edge, that kind of time was worth everything.

"Come on." I slipped my arm through his, letting him guide me inside the arena.

Inside, the auction hall stretched wide under low lighting. The moment we stepped in, attention shifted toward us from every direction.

Keeping my posture straight, I moved forward, the sharp click of my heels echoing with each step.

Back when I stood beside Kael, I never dared lift my head, always afraid I might make him look bad.

That version of me didn't exist anymore. Now, I didn't owe anyone anything.

With ease, Damon guided me upstairs to the VIP room on the second level. From there, the entire auction floor was laid out beneath us.

We had barely settled into our seats when the doors below swung open again.

A stir ran through the crowd almost instantly.

"Hey, who just came in?"

"That's Kael, isn't it? The Alpha of the strongest pack. I didn't expect him here!"

"Word is, he showed up because of that actress, Aria..."

Hearing her name made my grip tighten against the armrest before I could stop it.

Then Kael appeared, walking in with Aria wrapped around his arm, clinging close to him.

"They look perfect together," Damon murmured near my ear, his tone dripping with mockery.

Without reacting much, I lifted the glass of red wine from the table and took a slow sip. "They really do," I replied.

Across the hall, Kael's eyes moved steadily before settling on the glass case placed at the center of the stage.

Inside it sat the final item of the night—the Moonlight Grass.

From the look in Kael's eyes, it was clear he intended to claim it.

"So it's not going to be easy tonight," Damon murmured as he idly swirled the wine in his glass. "I heard Aria's condition wasn't great either. She needs that just as much."

Without delay, the auction began.

Several items were brought out one after another, but none of them caught my attention. That changed the moment the host pulled away the red cloth covering the final piece.

"Everyone, we've reached the highlight of the evening—the Moonlight Grass! We'll begin at ten million!"

"Twenty million!" Kael didn't even wait for the full announcement before lifting his paddle.

A hush fell over the hall. No one wanted to challenge an Alpha like him over a single herb.

Grinning, the host raised his gavel, his voice full of excitement. "Looks like the Moonlight Grass will be going to Mr. Brooks tonight. Let's all give our..."

"Fifty million." I lifted my paddle slowly, making sure every movement was deliberate.

At once, Kael's head jerked up.

Under the dim lighting, our eyes met across the distance for a brief second.

In that instant, confusion flickered through his gaze.

"Fifty-five million." Kael's voice stayed steady as he looked away and raised the bid without emotion.

"One hundred million." Without even pausing, I lifted my paddle again.

That number drained everything I had. It came from selling every piece of equipment I owned from my days of being a bounty hunter, along with the money Damon lent me.

I had placed my entire future on this one gamble.

For once, Kael didn't respond right away.

"Sold!"

The gavel struck, sealing the deal.

A slow breath left my lungs as I realized my hands were damp with sweat.

I had taken back my life from Kael.

Still, it wasn't going to end that easily.

Once the auction wrapped up, I stepped out of the VIP room, only to be stopped at a corner in the hallway.

"Miss, if you don't mind..." Mason Brown, Kael's chief aide, stood in my path with a polite smile. "The Alpha would like to speak with you."