"It's my friend who's leaving," I told Ryder, keeping my voice steady.

He studied my face for a few seconds as if searching for a tell, and in the end, he just nodded.

Ryder's behavior made reality impossible to ignore over the next two days.

Two days before I left, he showed up with a stack of pictures. Those were the pre-ceremony photos of him and Isabelle.

He opened his laptop right in front of me, video-called her, and asked, "What do you think of these?"

On the screen, Isabelle had on my white gown, and happiness was written all over her face. She ran a hand over her belly. Her eyes were soft with maternal warmth.

"Ryder, these photos are gorgeous," she cooed into the camera. "Wearing the gown feels so special. It's like we're actually having a bonding ceremony."

"You'd look beautiful in anything," Ryder said. His voice was so tender that it made me gag.

I sat at the far end of the couch, as if I didn't exist. As I watched their saccharine display, something inside me simply died.

"Ryder, I want to place these photos at our families' ancestral shrine, so our forebearers can see our pup," Isabelle said.

Ryder agreed at once. "Good idea."

Their families' ancestral shrine? Their pup?

They spoke with such ease, as if I, Ryder's real mate, had never existed.

Ryder shot me a look after the call. My calm put him on edge.

He frowned. "You've been really quiet lately."

"What's there to say?" I asked.

He said nothing. He kept at his work as if I were nothing but air.

…

The day before I left, I went to the infirmary for my last dose of the toxin suppressant. Silverblood had crept to the edges of my heart, and every breath cut like a blade.

Even so, I held myself together, refusing to let anyone see a crack.

I ran into Ryder and Isabelle at the entrance. She'd just finished her prenatal checkup.

She spotted me and came running. Her eyes were brimming with tears. "Lyra! I've been meaning to apologize."

Isabelle seized my hand. She sounded choked up. "I know I've hurt you, but I had no choice. The healers say I have no more than three months left, and my only wish is to have Ryder's pup."

I watched her act and felt nothing.

"I know," I said evenly, already drawing my hand back to leave.

Isabelle went on sobbing. "Please forgive me, Lyra! I never meant to take what's yours!"

"It's fine," I repeated.

She saw my indifference, and annoyance flickered in her eyes. But she slipped back into that pitiful, helpless act almost at once.

She let go of my hand. "Thanks for understanding. I should head back. My stomach feels a little off."

I turned to leave, and as I set foot on the steps, Isabelle came up behind me.

"Lyra, wait!"

I turned. The sweet mask she'd worn was gone, leaving nothing but naked malice.

Isabelle sneered. "You think keeping your cool gets you anywhere? You just stand there while your mate has a pup with someone else and pretend you don't care. You're a pathetic excuse for a mate."

"Are you finished?" I asked.

She went on, taunting, "You'll never be Luna. Ryder's heart is with me and our pup now. You're just someone who doesn't matter."

I looked at her twisted expression and felt a flicker of pity.

"If saying that makes you feel better, then keep saying it," I said, turning to leave.

"You!" Isabelle spat, pissed at how calm I was, and shoved me hard.

I shifted aside and caught her by the arm without thinking to keep her from falling.

Right then, she let her wolf kick in and threw herself off balance on purpose, pitching backward. I tried to catch her, but it was too late.

"Help!" she screamed as she tumbled down the stairs.

Footsteps hammered the hall. Ryder was sprinting over from the far end. He saw me reaching for Isabelle as she was falling.

Time seemed to stall.

The moment she hit the floor, she clutched her belly. Real fear flooded her eyes. She hadn't expected the fall to be that hard.

"My pup…" she whispered, trembling.

Ryder's face went livid. The look he threw me was all fury and disappointment.

He bellowed, "Lyra! How could you do this? Isabelle's carrying a pup! How dare you? Apologize to her right now!"

I kept my voice even and met Ryder's eyes. "Check the security cameras. You'll see what actually happened."

Ryder scooped Isabelle up, worry blotting out everything else. "Not now! We've got to get her to the healers now!"

The healers rushed over and whisked her into the emergency room.

I stood in the hallway, watching Ryder pace outside the door.

He made call after call, calling in every top healer he could reach. I'd never heard that kind of panic in his voice.

Three hours later, a healer finally stepped out. "The pup's safe, but the mother needs strict bed rest."

Ryder let out a long breath and turned to me. Anger flared in his eyes again. His voice went cold. "Care to explain now? Why did you push Isabelle?"

"I didn't push her. She—"

"Enough!" Ryder snapped, cutting me off. "Spare me the excuses. Isabelle's carrying a pup. As Luna, you should be protecting her, instead of hurting her!"

I looked at him, the one who once swore he'd lay down his life for me. Now his eyes held nothing but suspicion and reproach.

"You don't trust me."

Ryder's voice grew colder. "The facts are right in front of us. What else do you want me to believe? Lyra, I'm disappointed in you."

"Then let's end this."

Ryder went still, as if he'd misheard. "What did you just say?"

"Let's end this," I said, my voice still steady. "If you think I'd harm an expectant mother, if you don't trust me, then there's no reason for us to go on."

Ryder frowned. "What are you even saying? Our bonding ceremony is tomorrow. And you want to break our bond now?"

I sneered. "Bonding ceremony? You mean the one you didn't lift a finger to plan, the one you told me to keep it simple and left me to handle alone?"

Ryder's expression tightened. "Lyra, I know you're emotional over Isabelle, but—"

"I'm not emotional." I cut him off. "I'm clear-headed. I know you care more for Isabelle and her pup than for me. And I know that, to you, I'm dispensable."

Ryder bellowed, "You're being unreasonable! As the Alpha's mate, you should see the bigger picture!"

I let out a mirthless laugh. "The bigger picture? So the 'big picture' means I'm expected to accept my mate fathering a pup with another she-wolf?"

Ryder was left speechless.

Then his phone rang. It was Isabelle.

He shot me a look before answering. "Isabelle, how do you feel? Don't be afraid. I'm on my way. Alright, get some rest. I'll stay with you."

After he ended the call, he said, "Isabelle needs someone to look after her. I'm going to stay with her."

"Just go," I said.

"The ceremony will still be held tomorrow. Don't worry about it."

When I didn't answer, Ryder frowned. He studied me for a beat and said, "Don't be late."

Then, he turned and left without looking back.

I stayed in the empty hallway, listening until his footsteps were gone.

…

Back home, I went to the calendar and picked up a pen.

"I reject you, Ryder Blackwood," I said into the empty room.

Then, I slashed a line through the date circled in red.

…

At dawn, I dragged my suitcases out of the house I'd called home for five years and caught a flight to the town on the coast.

Meanwhile, Ryder, who was unaware, was on his way to the bonding ceremony.

The church stood empty. He waited at the altar for ten minutes, then another ten, until a full hour had passed. Growing restless, he was about to go to the pack elders for answers.

The Chief Elder stepped forward. His face was grave. "Alpha Ryder, there's something you need to know."

"What is it? Where's Lyra? Why isn't she here yet?" Ryder asked. His voice was rough with impatience.

The elder's voice was grave. "The bonding ceremony was canceled two weeks ago. Lyra sent word by messenger. She rejected the mate bond."

Ryder went white. "She canceled the ceremony? That's impossible!"

"Her exact words were, 'I reject you, Ryder Blackwood.'"

Ryder stood in the empty church. His voice cut through the silence. "What? No way!"

Outside, hundreds of guests crowded the doors. A low murmur was building as they waited for an explanation.

Bluemoon Group executives exchanged uneasy looks. No one spoke up.

Elena was there too. She alone knew the truth. Remembering what I'd been through, she decided Ryder needed to hear exactly how wrong he was.

She stepped right up to him. Her voice was tight with fury. "She got a terminal diagnosis last month. She's dying, and you had no idea! You're too wrapped up in another she-wolf and her pup!

"You're unfit to be Lyra's mate. No wonder she rejected you!"

Elena's words hit hard, and pity threaded through each one.

Upon hearing I was dying, Ryder stilled. The floor fell away beneath him.