Chapter 2

I step back. He steps forward. Just one step, slow, like I'm a wild animal that might bolt.

"Can I come in?" His voice is rough. Careful.

I should say no. Should slam the door in his face. But I need answers. Need to know how he knows things he shouldn't.

I move aside. He walks in, and the cabin suddenly feels tiny. Kieran Ashford takes up space just by existing—all six-foot-three of him, built like the warrior he is. He smells like pine and night air and something distinctly him that makes my wolf whine.

I hate that she still wants him.

"Talk," I say, crossing my arms. "You've got five minutes before I kick you out."

He turns to face me, and up close, he looks worse. There are shadows under his eyes like he hasn't slept in days.

"The clearing," he starts. "The one by the frozen stream. You knelt in the snow. Your hands were shaking so bad you could barely hold the dagger." He swallows hard. "You said 'I'm sorry' three times. Then you—"

"Stop." My voice cracks. "How do you know that? How—"

"Because I found you twenty minutes later." His eyes are red now. Bright red. "I was tracking your scent. I thought you ran because of the Luna Ceremony, because you didn't want to watch, but then I found your cabin empty and—" He stops. Takes a breath. "I followed you. And I was too late."

My legs feel weak. I grab the back of my chair.

"You held me," I say quietly. "That's what you meant. You held me while I..."

"Died. Yeah." His jaw works. "You were already gone. Your eyes were open but you weren't—you weren't there anymore. And I just—I couldn't—"

He stops again. Turns away. His shoulders are shaking.

Kieran Ashford is about to cry in my living room.

"Three days later," he says, voice thick, "the witch confessed. Rowena Vex. She told the pack everything. How Seraphina paid her five million dollars to forge a mate bond. How the real bond was with some silver wolf Omega nobody even noticed." He laughs, but it's broken. "Some Omega. You. It was always you."

Three years into it, Kieran officially rejected the bond. Not that I was there for the ceremony—I heard about it from pack gossip. "The Alpha rejected some Omega nobody even knew about," they said, laughing. Like it was nothing. Like I was nothing. The pain hit me like a freight truck. I collapsed in my cabin, alone, choking on screams I couldn't let out because Omegas weren't supposed to make noise. Weren't supposed to exist.

"I spent three years dying," I tell him. My voice is flat. Dead. "Three years with Rejection Sickness tearing me apart from the inside. Do you know what that feels like? It's like your body's on fire and drowning at the same time. Every breath hurts. Every heartbeat hurts. And you—"

I stop. Breathe. My hands are shaking.

"You were right there. Every day. And you never noticed."

"I know." He faces me again. His eyes are wet. "I know, and I'm—"

"Don't say you're sorry." The words come out sharp. "Don't you dare."

"I'm not." He takes a step closer. "I'm not because sorry doesn't mean shit. Sorry doesn't give you back three years. Sorry doesn't—" His voice breaks. "Sorry doesn't bring you back from the snow."

We stand there. The silence is heavy. Crushing.

"You said you found me," I say finally. "Twenty minutes after. But that still doesn't explain how you're here now. How you know I came back."

His eyes meet mine. Hold.

"Because I came back too."

The words hang in the air.

"I held your body," he continues. "I carried you back to my car. I was going to bring you home, give you a proper burial, but then I just—I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. And all I could think was that I did this. I killed you. I rejected my own mate and let her die thinking she was nothing."

I remember the witch's confession. Crystal clear, like it happened yesterday. "Seraphina Blackwell paid me to forge the mate bond," Rowena Vex said, standing in chains before the pack. Her voice shook but her words were steady. "The spell made the Alpha believe she was his fated mate. But the real mate—a silver wolf Omega—she's been carrying the Rejection Sickness this whole time. Every pain, every illness meant for Miss Blackwell went to her instead."

I watched Kieran's face shatter. Watched the color drain from his skin. Watched him look around the crowd like he was searching for someone. For me.

But I wasn't there. I was already dying in the snow.

"I took your dagger," Kieran says. Quiet. "The one I gave you on your birthday. And I went back to that clearing. Same spot. Same snow." He closes his eyes. "I thought maybe if I died there too, wherever you were, I could—I don't know. Apologize. Explain. Something."

Oh god.

"You killed yourself." It's not a question.

"Yeah." He opens his eyes. "And then I woke up in my office. Three days ago. I was signing paperwork for the Luna Ceremony and suddenly I remembered everything. Every moment. Watching them drag the witch in. Hearing the truth. Finding your body. The dagger. All of it."

My head's spinning. This is insane. This is fucking insane.

"So you're telling me we both died and came back?"

"Yeah."

"That's impossible."

"Is it?" He gestures at me. At the room. "You're here. Three years in the past. You remember dying. How is that possible?"

I don't have an answer for that.

"You think knowing the truth NOW makes it okay?" The words explode out of me. "You chose her. Every single day for three years. You smiled at her. Protected her. Gave her everything while I was dying for you!"

"I know—"

"You used your Alpha's Life Bond on her!" I'm shaking. "When she got sick. You used the one thing that could've saved me to save HER!"

"I know!" He shouts it. Then softer: "I know. I was blind, stupid, and I destroyed the one person who—"

He stops. Chokes on the words.

"Don't." I step back. "Don't you dare make this about YOUR pain. You don't get to cry about losing me when you're the reason I was gone!"

"I'm not," he says. Desperate. "I'm not. I'm telling you this because you need to know. You need to understand why we can't waste time. Why we have to move now."

"What are you talking about?"

"Your mother. Elena." His eyes lock on mine. "She's in danger right now."

My heart stops.

"What?"

"Seraphina." He's moving toward me, urgent. "Last time, she had Elena kidnapped the night after the Luna Ceremony. Sold her to the underground omega trade. But this time—this time she's moving faster. I checked. There's already activity near your mother's apartment. Multiple vehicles. Unknown wolves."

No. No no no.

"I was going to get her tomorrow," I say. My voice sounds far away. "After the ceremony. I was going to—"

"We don't have until tomorrow." He's already pulling out his phone. "We need to leave. Now."

I look at my duffel bag. Half-packed. Useless.

"How do I know you're not lying?" My voice shakes. "How do I know this isn't some trick to—"

"I sent Caspian ahead." He shows me his phone. A text from someone labeled "Caspian Reed - Elite Guard": "Suspicious activity confirmed. Multiple hostiles. Awaiting orders."

The timestamp is from fifteen minutes ago.

My mom. My mom is in danger right now.

"Keys." I grab them off the counter. "Your car's faster than mine."

We're out the door in seconds. His SUV's still running, headlights cutting through the darkness. I throw myself in the passenger seat. He's already backing up, tires spitting gravel.

The cabin disappears behind us.

"How far?" I ask.

"Forty-five minutes." He takes a turn too fast. "Maybe less if I push it."

Forty-five minutes. Please let that be fast enough.

We hit the highway. The engine roars. Trees blur past in the darkness.

Neither of us speaks.

I can feel the mate bond humming under my skin. Weak. Damaged from the rejection. But there. Always there. My wolf recognizes him. Wants him. Even now. Even after everything.

I hate it.

I hate that dying didn't kill this feeling.

"I already sent Caspian ahead," Kieran says, breaking the silence. His hands are white-knuckled on the steering wheel. "He's good. Best I've got. But—"

He doesn't finish.

"But what?"

He glances at me. Just for a second.

"But we might be too late."