Sera’s POV:"Sera."

Cade said my name low and sad, like he was already mourning something, and I felt the space around us clear as everyone stepped back because newly mated pairs needed room, needed privacy, needed protection until they'd claimed each other. Somewhere far away I heard Dad and Alpha Kieran laughing as they congratulated each other but the sound felt wrong, felt like it was coming from underwater.

"Cade." My voice came out barely above a whisper.

He took a few steps toward me and I couldn't move, couldn't look away from his eyes because they were telling me something I didn't want to hear, something that was making my stomach twist tighter and tighter until I thought I might break apart right there in front of everyone.

"Ser, I'm sorry but I can't."

Each word hit like a fist to the chest. The pack went silent, so silent I could hear my own heartbeat thundering in my ears, and for a second I wished he'd just hit me instead because at least then I could pass out or die or anything except stand here while the one person who was supposed to love me above all others tore me apart.

"I will become Alpha one day." Cade kept talking like he didn't know he was killing me. "I need a strong Luna and Ser, you don't have a wolf. Even if you get one we all know it will be weak. I love you, I do, but my duty is to the pack and this pack deserves a strong Luna."

The silence stretched so long it felt like the world had stopped turning. My first instinct was to beg, to tell him I could change, I could be anything he wanted, but that stubborn part of me that made Mom sigh and complain held my mouth shut because begging wouldn't change what I was and what I wasn't.

"Son." Alpha Kieran's voice came out gentle and careful. "You don't need to do this now."

"It would be cruel to give her hope." Cade's jaw was set hard. "I won't do that to her."

"You need to think this through. This is not the place or time." Warning threaded through the Alpha's words but Cade just shook his head.

"I won't change my mind."

Mom's arm came around my waist and I hadn't even noticed her moving but now she was there holding me up because my legs felt like they might give out any second.

"Cade, think about what you're doing." Dad's voice had gone cold and sharp. "You're mates. The gods decided you complete each other."

"I'm sorry." That was all Cade said, just those two words like they could fix anything.

"You won't be able to join the games."

Dad's words dropped like stones into water and a murmur rippled through the pack because everyone knew what that meant. The games determined influence and voting power at the yearly pack summit and breaking a mate bond counted as a mental wound that needed three months to heal before the council would clear you for competition. The games were in a month.

Cade's face shifted, his certainty flickering for just a second, and hope flared so bright in my chest it hurt because I knew how much he and Ash had been looking forward to the games, how hard we'd all trained.

"So be it." His voice came out hard and determined. "I will sit this year out and join the next ones."

The last bit of hope died.

"Mom, I can't be here anymore." I mindlinked her and heard the soft whimper that escaped her throat as she pulled me tight against her side, putting herself between me and Cade, leading me away through the pack that parted like water around us.

I was numb from the pain radiating through every inch of my body but I still saw the looks, still felt the pity burning into my skin as we passed. Some of them reached out to touch my arms as we walked by, a sign of comfort and support that didn't help at all because Uncle Luca had promised only hours before that he'd beat any male who thought me weak but I guess that didn't apply when the male was your best friend's son and the future Alpha.

The bitterness of that thought made the first sob break free from my chest. We were almost home by then, far enough from the pack that I didn't have to hold it together anymore, and Mom tightened her hold on me making soft cooing sounds that reminded me of childhood, of scraped knees and small hurts that could be kissed away.

"Let's sit on the couch for a while," she said when we got inside but I just shook my head because I wanted to crawl into bed and never come out again.

"Okay, sweetie." She didn't push, just took me upstairs and helped me out of my clothes and into my sleep shirt before tucking me into bed like I was five years old again.

I curled up tight, knees to chest and arms wrapped around them, my back to her as she sat on the edge of the bed and stroked my hair while humming old lullabies. The tears came then, silent and hot rolling down my face while my body shook from the force of emotions I couldn't name, couldn't control, couldn't stop.

The front door opened and closed. Dad's scent drifted up the stairs, pine and safety and home, and I felt the bed dip as he sat down next to Mom. His hand settled heavy on my leg and nobody spoke but the silence felt full, felt like they were trying to hold me together with just their presence.

I don't know how long we stayed like that. Could have been hours or minutes. Somewhere along the way I stopped crying and my body went still but the pain didn't lessen, didn't fade, just settled into my bones like it planned to stay forever.

And through it all I noticed one thing, one person missing. Ash. My brother had chosen Cade over me and that hurt almost as much as the rejection because I'd thought we were close, thought he'd always have my back, but apparently I'd been wrong about that too.

A knock came at the front door. Dad left. I knew I shouldn't eavesdrop but I didn't care anymore because this was about me anyway, wasn't it? Everything was about me and how broken I was.

"How is she doing?" Alpha Kieran's voice drifted up from Dad's study.

"How do you think she's doing?" The anger in Dad's voice shocked me because I'd never heard him speak to anyone like that, especially not his Alpha and best friend. "She hasn't spoken since your son ripped her heart out."

"I'm sorry, John." The Alpha sounded honest but sorry didn't fix anything.

"His mind is made up?"

"It is."

"What will you do?" Dad asked, his voice going low and dangerous.

"What do you mean?"

"Do you expect my daughter to live in the same pack as the male that destroyed her in front of everyone?" Dad's words came out tight with barely controlled rage. "You know our rules about breaking the mate bond without good reason."

"John, you can't think I'd make Cade leave. Banish my only son from the pack he was born to lead?"

"Why not? No one is above the law and the law protects the innocent victim. Sera is the victim here."

"What Cade did, he didn't handle it correctly but John, he has a good reason."

I almost gasped out loud but caught myself just in time because I didn't want Mom to know I was listening.

"What the fuck are you saying?" Dad spit out the words like they tasted bad.

"She will have a weak wolf if she gets one at all. Cade had good reason to reject her."

"That is my baby girl you're talking about." Dad's voice dropped into a growl that sent chills down my spine.

"You know I love her like a daughter but we can't hide from the truth."

"The truth being that her wolf will come when it's ready and she is perfect the way she is. Because that's what you've been telling her for two years, Kieran."

"That doesn't mean she's suitable to be Luna. You know the responsibilities that come with that position."

I waited for Dad to say something, to argue, to defend me the way he always did.

A knock came at my bedroom door instead.