A wave of exhaustion washed over me, pulling down every part of my spirit. “I will, Jax,” I whispered, my voice steadier than I felt. “I’m done. After everything, I… I can’t hold onto this bond any longer. It’s killing me.”
Jaxon looked down, his shoulders still tense, but he let out a long, controlled breath. “Then let me help you, Jas. Let’s get you out of here. You don’t deserve to watch him care for her when he’s abandoned you.”
I tore my gaze away from Cale, the man who’d once been my everything. He laughed softly as he brushed a hand over Cali’s shoulder, a gesture so gentle it felt like a final blow. It was then I knew, down to my bones, that this chapter of my life was over. I had given him every ounce of loyalty, of trust. But he had ripped that bond apart, and nothing could piece it back together.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and nodded to Jaxon. “Let's go. I can’t bear to watch any longer.”
He wrapped a protective arm around my shoulders as we turned to leave, his presence solid and grounding beside me. Every step felt like a release, like chains slipping off with each footfall. I was leaving Cale behind—leaving the pain, the betrayal, and the broken dreams. And with each step, I found strength I didn’t know I had. This was it, my moment to reclaim myself, to build a life without the shadows he’d left hanging over me.
We walked back through the quiet night, but something felt lighter in the air, almost freeing. Jaxon glanced down at me, his gaze softened back to its usual warmth, but there was a fierceness there, too—a promise that I wouldn’t be walking this path alone.
I might be broken, but I wasn’t defeated. And as I walked away from the hospital, from the man who had betrayed me, I made a silent vow. My life would no longer be defined by the ruins of his love. I would forge something stronger, something unbreakable, not for him, but for myself and the life I carried within me.
The council’s stony faces were lined with disbelief as I announced my decision. “I’m divorcing Alpha Cale,” I declared, my voice unwavering, even as their expressions turned skeptical, some even offended. They couldn’t fathom it, couldn’t process how I could break away from the Alpha of our pack while carrying his heir.
One elder’s brow furrowed as he shook his head. “Luna Jasmine, you bear the next Alpha. You can’t—”