SHANE BLACKTHORN

My head was spinning, rage clawing its way through my chest. I needed to release it, to tear something apart.

Shifting into Kygara, I took off into the forest at a terrifying speed, slaughtering anything foolish enough to cross my path.

I promised to kill her.

The thought echoed, a bitter taste on my tongue. Leah had been right - I should have acted that night, maybe it'll have been easier. Even now, I still found it hard to believe my attraction to Millie was nothing more than a spell.

When I found Millie in Lupinmere, that unbreakable connection between us as fierce as ever, l'd thought of doing it - just for a moment. To finally free myself of this cursed attraction

But once she was in my sights, any shred of resolve crumbled. That night, my frustration wasn't from hunting a stray or fearing her thirst for revenge. If anything, I wanted her to come for me - at least then we'd meet again.

I was losing my sanity with thoughts of her every day. She was so beautiful when she smiled - a sight l'd never seen directed at me, yet I was sure Caelum had.

I hated how she trusted him, how she let her guard down in his presence while always tensing around me. I couldn't blame her; I was the one who destroyed her life, who stole her peace, leaving only pain and shadows beneath her eyes.

In a twisted way, maybe killing her would be a mercy - a way to reunite her with her mother.

But Kygara scoffed within me, mocking, "As if you could do it." And he was right. I might be the powerful Alpha of Lupinmere, feared by everyone else, but in front of her, I was nothing more than a lovesick fool.

Maybe I could ask Verran to do it. I chuckled darkly at the thought - because the second he touched a hair on her head, I'd rip him apart without hesitation. Even Caelum, my friend since childhood - if he hurt her, I would end him without a second thought.

Esme's spell must be powerful indeed, to reduce me to this.

Leah had given me a choice: Millie or my people. I didn't fault her for it; she was right to worry about Lupinmere.

She could make the hard choices, but Millie? She had no idea Leah was sealing her fate.

Just the thought of it twisted something inside me, a sharp ache ripping through my chest. I couldn't imagine a world without her, and the realization felt like a raw wound that would never heal.

Now I understood Caelum's obsession after Silvia's death - why he haunted these woods, clinging to her memory. If Millie died, l'd probably end up just like him, waiting for death to take me.

The image of Millie collapsing, blood spilling from her mouth, hit me so vividly that I howled in anguish. My cries echoed, filling the forest with the agony I couldn't contain.

I couldn't deceive myself anymore. I couldn't hurt her, and I certainly couldn't let anyone else touch her. I'd had my chance that night-and I was still the same coward l'd always been.

When Leah asked why I still felt this connection, I had no answer. I'd heard of wolves who defied the mate pull and fell in love outside it.

It was rare, forbidden even - but possible. Maybe, just maybe, my feelings for Millie had grown into something real, beyond whatever spell Esme cast.

No, no - I had to be losing it. This was exactly what Esme wanted, wasn't it? But I couldn't understand her endgame. What did she gain by binding me to Millie? How would dampening my awakening benefit her?

And Millie... what was she? How could she draw runic circles with Aztec symbols? Had her father been a Celtic Druid? Then her magic should have surfaced long ago. Or was Millie hiding more than l'd ever realized?

Would killing her really solve anything? How would she react if she knew Leah wanted her dead?

Caelum knew more than he let on, of that I was certain. He wouldn't be involved otherwise.

Perhaps the best solution was to send her away, far from Lupinmere, where neither Leah nor I could reach her. Somewhere Caelum could take her and keep her safe.

I reached the edge of a cliff overlooking the Vale of Echoes. This was Rafael's territory now, but once, my family and I used to run here, racing and laughing, with them always letting me win.

Leah was right. I couldn't afford distractions. To protect Lupinmere and avenge my parents, I had to let Millie go. If I couldn't kill her, then l'd make sure she disappeared. I'd ask Caelum to take her far away and, if necessary, erase her memories of this place. Of everything - including me.

Once my mind was made up, I raised my head to the moon and howled, letting my grief and frustration pour out into the night. Memories flooded over me-our first meeting, the stolen glances, the café, the times I watched her from afar, our kiss...

Damn it.

I growled, unable to deny it any longer. As much as I wanted to fight it, to pretend this was all Esme's doing, I couldn't escape the truth.

I was madly, irrevocably in love with Millie Brown. And I'd always known, spell or not, that it would end this way.

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Hey guys, sorry this chapter is coming late. It's a short one too 😭 I'm so sorry about this guys. We will return to our normal length chapters tomorrow. Thank you for reading and don't forget to vote and comment. Still love y'all..........