Chapter 1

The brass key felt wrong in my hand—too cold, too heavy, as I stood outside the bedroom door, listening. Frozen. Heart stuck somewhere between a beat and a break.

Inside, someone laughed—high-pitched, too sweet, a she-wolf’s voice, mixed with a deeper, lazier male voice.

The male voice was familiar to me in a way that hurts. Griffin. My mate. My Alpha.

I wish I hadn’t been here.

“You could’ve rejected her by now,” the female wolf said. I knew who she was. Zoya. Griffin wasn’t trying to hide his interest towards her these days. Her words floated through the crack in the door, soft and sharp all at once. “What are you waiting for?”

Silence. Then a soft rustle—fabric shifting, maybe skin brushing skin.

“I didn’t want to rush this,” Griffin replied, voice low. Yet indifferent. “She wouldn’t be a bother anyway.”

Zoya scoffed, light but cutting. “She is, from what I feel.”

Something inside me folded.

“You deserve someone who moves with you, not someone still stuck in the past,” she murmured, and I heard it—the moment she leaned into him. The sound of comfort, claimed. “Someone who sees your future.”

A lump rose in my throat.

My fingers tightened on the key. Metal bit into skin. I slipped it into the lock, turned.

Click.

The sound cut through everything like a gunshot.

Inside, the room shifted. I felt it, even before I saw it. The air thickened. I pushed the door open.

There they were.

Griffin, my Alpha mate, perched at the edge of the bed like he owned the whole damn world. Zoya curled beside him, too close. His arm was around her like it had never been around me.

His eyes met mine. And for a second, I saw it. Guilt. Fear. Regret.

Then it vanished.

“Lyra,” he said, flat. Like I was a stranger. Like none of it had mattered. “Didn’t expect you back so soon.”

Back? Back to what? His betrayal?

I stepped in. The room airless.

“I left my charger,” I said, voice thin. “Top drawer.” My throat tightened. I didn’t clear it.

Zoya stood. She didn’t move away. Her hand slid around Griffin’s arm like it belonged there—like I never existed.

She smiled. Bright. Sharp. Hungry.

“Luna,” she said. “Feels like ages.”

I stared. At her. At him. My hands curled into fists. Nails pressed hard. I welcomed the sting.

“It has,” I said.

And just like that, I knew.

They were already rewriting the future. Without me.

I turned to leave, the door closing behind me with a quiet finality.

Seven days. I told myself.

That’s all I had left—before I walked away for good.

Before I became the one who let go.

…

Turning away, I headed for the kitchen, unwilling to let them see the cracks in my composure. There, two mugs sat side by side, untouched and gathering dust—a testament to what had once been a routine shared with Griffin. Now, just relics of a time when the Moon Goddess had smiled upon us.

I picked up one of the mugs, my fingers tracing its cold surface, and memories flooded back. A tide of emotions surged through me, and tears escaped despite my attempts to restrain them.

“What are you doing, Lyra?” Griffin’s voice cut through my reverie, startling me. I quickly brushed away my tears, meeting his gaze with as much strength as I could muster.

“Just reminiscing,” I replied softly.

His frown deepened, indifferent. “You need to let go of what’s past.”

His attention drifted back to Zoya, who was waiting in the living room, her gaze fixed on him with flirtatious confidence. The ache in my heart, the pain of a bond that should have been sacred, was as sharp as claws.

“Alpha Griffin, can we talk?” I ventured, the title a reminder of the power he wielded.

He exhaled, irritation evident in the tightness of his expression. “What is there to discuss, Luna?”

“Our mate bond—”

He cut me off, his voice rising with impatience. “Are we really going to go through this again?”

I bit my lip, determined to be heard. “I’m not trying to argue. I just think—”

“Enough!” Griffin’s voice rose sharply, his alpha tone striking like a whip. “Stop making a spectacle of yourself!”

His words were like ice, causing me to recoil. Zoya, ever the opportunist, stepped forward, her arm slipping around Griffin with a practised ease.

“Please, don’t be upset, Alpha. Maybe Lyra is just feeling a bit isolated,” she said with feigned concern, casting a sideways glance at me. “Why not join us, Luna? It might cheer you up.”

Their display was a cruel twist, salt in a wound that refused to heal. “No, thank you. I have duties to attend to.”

I turned to my sanctuary—my study—closing the door on them and their laughter. The solitude wrapped around me as I leaned against the door, allowing my tears to flow freely. Memories, once sweet, were now daggers, reminders of a bond that had been cast aside.

I wiped my cheeks, turning to my laptop, the glow of the screen illuminating my resolve. My research data filled the display, a testament to my dedication. I would ensure its protection before I left this place. A deadline imposed itself on my heart: seven days. Seven days to leave Griffin, to walk away from a mate bond that had shattered like glass.

Seven days until I reclaimed my future.