Chapter 3

The night before my next sealing ritual, a storm broke outside.

The wind hammered against the glass, but inside my room, the silence was so deep you could hear time itself ticking away.

I leaned against the headboard, calmly putting my affairs in order.

I opened the bottom drawer of my nightstand and took out a small velvet box. Inside lay a perfectly polished moonstone. Engraved deep into the stone were my name and Caleb's.

It was the most sacred token between werewolf mates.

I had been so excited to place it around Caleb's neck myself at our mating ceremony. Now, it would never see the light of day.

I traced the letters of his name, "Caleb," as a tear splashed onto the stone, a cold, silent betrayal of my resolve.

Taking a deep breath, I tucked it under my pillow along with the suicide note I’d already written.

Next, I picked up a photograph, a portrait of my family. In the picture, I was still healthy, my father tall and strong, my mother smiling warmly.

I took a pen and wrote a short sentence on the back:

"Father, Mother, I'm sorry. I'm just so tired."

With my final goodbye written, I opened a hidden compartment in the nightstand. Inside was a small, clear glass vial filled with a black liquid.

Wolfsbane. Caleb had dropped it in the couch cushions during his last visit.

I had secretly researched it. A poison with no known cure for werewolves. A small dose would only induce a deep coma. But a large enough dose would sever a werewolf's connection to life, allowing them to die silently.

There was no antidote. It was a guaranteed death.

I stared at the black liquid swirling in the vial without a trace of hesitation.

I was just so, so tired.

I didn't want to be a burden anymore, someone who needed help with everything. As long as I was alive, I would be a weight on my parents' hearts and a stain on Caleb's perfect life.

If I had to step aside, then let me step out of their world completely.

I clutched the vial of poison in my hand and stayed awake until dawn.

The morning of the ritual, the sun broke through the clouds, painfully bright.

The door opened. My parents and Caleb walked in, their faces etched with genuine concern.

"Seraphina, this is the last one. Be brave. You can do this," Caleb said, kissing my forehead affectionately.

"My good girl, just get through today, and everything will be okay," my mother said, forcing a smile as she smoothed my hair.

My father stood nearby, giving me a firm nod, his fists clenched.

I watched them calmly as they helped me into the white ritual robes and led me toward the cold, windowless chamber.

The vial of wolfsbane was empty.

In the second before they pushed me all the way in, I reached out through our mind-link, sending one final thought directly to them.

"Dad, Mom, I love you."

My father's eyes turned red. My mother froze, tears instantly spilling.

"We love you too, sweetheart."

I took one last, long look at them and was pushed into the chamber.