Chapter 19
Winter found herself utterly alone – her mother lost to grief, her father burying himself in pack business. Neither could bear to look at the daughter who lived because another had died.
Valdrin spiraled deeper into madness each day, refusing to accept Ravenna’s death as he searched desperately for any sign of her return. His obsession grew until his friends finally dragged him out to clear his mind.
That’s when her scent caught him- a figure beneath the moon’s light whose every movement held Ravenna’s essence. His wolf surged forward without thought, his friend’s grip barely containing him as vehicles roared past. When he looked again, the scent had vanished into the night air, leaving him to prowl the streets frantically, his wolf no longer caring if she was real or just another phantom of his grief.
In truth, Ravenna had become Cyrene, inhabiting a younger form. She waited in a neutral territory’s gathering den, preparing to meet her new Trial’s target – another pack’s heir whom the Moon Goddess had chosen as a gentler path. Before her intended could arrive, a familiar power signature shattered her carefully built walls.
“Ravenna!”
Raw emotion poured from Valdrin as he embraced her, weeks of longing breaking free. But Cyrene stiffened and pushed him away.
“I’m sorry, I don’t know you.”
She hadn’t seen him since her rebirth, hadn’t known how far the once–pristine Alpha had fallen. Now he stood before her disheveled, dark circles beneath red–rimmed eyes that held such desperate hope it startled her. The depth of his devastation surprised her shouldn’t he be happy with Winter?
“Sir, you’re mistaken. My name is Cyrene.”
Valdrin froze, staring at her unfamiliar expression. Impossible. Her mannerisms, her bearing, every small gesture screamed Ravenna.
But before he could speak, her pack guardians emerged from the shadows, their presence a wall between them as she retreated to her waiting den–car. “I belong to another pack now. Do not seek me again.”
In the safety of her car, Cyrene rubbed her temples. “How did he find me?”
The Alpha’s Substitute Luna:
Jaimed. A Soul Reborn
“He searches everywhere,” the Moon Goddess answered. “Pure chance brought you together.”
Cyrene sighed. Once, his devotion would have overjoyed her. Now his belated love meant less than
nothing.
Too late for regrets, Valdrin. Far too late.
