3

“How foolish of you to think you can outrun me,” Ivy slurred, sinking her palm into my lush black hair, grabbing a fist full of it.

My heart ached as it pounded violently against the walls of my chest. The excruciating pain I got from her tugging the strands of my hair rooted deep into my skull

“Let me go,” I managed to say through clenched teeth as I weakly gripped her hand, trying to release her hold around my hair.

“Not until you get what you deserve,” she growled.

My eyes spun and my vision blurred as the poison traveled down my veins, turning my skin a light shade of green. My joints weakened and my stomach tied itself into knots.

“Say your last goodbye, and do not bother much about missing your Alpha because soon, he will join you to rot in hell,” she snarled before increasing her grip around my hair.

All the air left my lungs when she drew my head back and pushed it forward, dashing it against a small rock. A gasp flew out of my lips, and a ringing sound filled my ears as pain paralyzed me, encircling my eyes and traveling down my face, instantly rendering me blind by tossing me into an abyss.

My eyes fluttered shut, and again, a gust of wind filled my lungs before I felt my head jamming against the same rock for the second time.

My lips parted slightly as I felt her hand leaving my hair and hurling me to the other side of the woods. My body landed on the floor with a thud, submerged in granules of sand and leaves, not leaving the twigs out. My skin crawled when blood trickled down my head.

“I can perceive him,” she sounded distant, and my ears twitched. “Tyris is coming. What should I do? How did he get here?”

Pain froze my body to a spot, and my ears picked up the sound of distant thuds of feet running toward us.

“I knew he would come,” I said, forcing my eyes open to look at Ivy with my hazy vision.

A splitting headache stabbed me in the eye.

She scurried to her horse pulling a dagger from one of the bags sitting on the horse. Her eyes scanned the woods before she sucked in a sharp breath and began to slit her wrist.

“What are you doing?” I croaked, horror gripping me at the sight of her blood dripping down her hand.

She spun to meet my gaze, and the sides of her lips twitched into a psychotic smile as she said, “Watch me.” She dropped the knife on the floor and kicked it towards me.

Ivy pushed her hood down, revealing her messy brown hair, which she raked her fingers through, creating tangled arrays around her face. She crouched, palming some dirt and smearing it across her cheeks, nose, and forehead, giving herself a battered and bruised appearance.

What is she doing? I wondered, eyes widening in horror as I studied her.

With a fierce tug, she ripped the bottom of her dress, the sound echoing through the air. The once-beautiful fabric now hung in tatters, revealing her scraped and scratched legs.

Tyris' voice boomed through the clearing, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. My chest heaved as I struggled to breathe, my body paralyzed by the spreading poison. I was unable to move, my vision blurring.

Ivy limped towards Tyris, her fingers wrapped around her slit wrist, her eyes locked on his.

"Baby," she muttered under her breath, her voice trembling. She deliberately missed a step, launching herself towards the ground. Tyris caught her in his arms, his eyes filled with concern.

"Ivy, what happened to you?" He asked, his voice soft and gentle.

Ivy's body shook in his arms, her teeth chattering.

"I-I overheard Cari and a strange man planning your demise," she stammered, her voice barely audible.

What? My brows flew up. Was she trying to falsely accuse me?

"She collected wolfsbane from him to help their pack kill you." Her eyes locked onto Tyris', filled with a pleading expression, as if begging for his trust.

What a slimy bastard!

I parted my lips to speak, to defend myself, to tell Tyris about how much of a monster the woman he had been sleeping with was, but my tongue was glued to the roof of my mouth.

Tyris' face darkened, his eyes blazing with anger. "Where is Cari now?" He growled, his voice low and menacing.

Ivy's eyes darted around, as if searching for something or someone. "I-I don't know," she whispered, her voice trembling. "But we need to get out of here, Tyris. It's not safe.”

“Tyris!” I managed to say from behind the bush she had thrown me into.

“Cari?” Tyris’ brows creased into a frown as he chanced me a hurt look. “How could you?”

“It is-” I hesitated, feeling like I was breathing in broken pieces of glass when I spoke. My body trembled as my stomach clenched. “It is not true.”

"It's the truth," Ivy said, her voice laced with deceit. "She was tired of you, Tyris. She wanted him to take the throne and make her his queen, since you failed to show her the love she deserved." Her eyes locked onto Tyris', filled with a false sincerity.

I struggled to speak, my throat constricting as tears clouded my vision as I saw the conflicting emotions in his eyes.

"You know me, Tyris. You know I'd never harm you. I'm your Luna, your betrothed since birth. I've sacrificed everything for you, my wolf, our future. Why would I want to kill you?" My voice cracked as I gasped for air, my lungs burning from the spreading poison.

Ivy's lies flowed effortlessly, her words designed to manipulate. "She's lying, Tyris. They caught me spying and tried to kill me, but I fought back. I killed him and injected her with the wolfsbane." Her eyes never left Tyris', her gaze pleading for belief.

My vision blurred as I stretched out a shaky hand, pleading for help. "Tyris, please... the poison... it's killing me." My words were barely audible, my throat closing up, cutting off my air supply. My stomach churned, my body trembling as I fought to stay conscious.

Tyris attempted to move forward, but Ivy gripped his back and restrained him, her voice cold and unforgiving. "Let her die. We must not suffer a murderer to live."

My eyes blazed with anger, my voice low and menacing as my nostrils flared. "I am not a murderer, I am Tyris' mate and Luna of this kingdom. I order you to let go of my alpha."

But Tyris' response was laced with venom. "Not anymore," he spat, his eyes flashing with disgust and hate.

My throat ran dry as I directed my eyes to his face, desperately clinging to the last string of oxygen that I had.

“What do you mean by anymore?” I inquired, trying to sit up, but I felt a sharp pain in my stomach like the sharp edges of a sword piercing into it.

"I, Alpha Tyris of the Emerald pack, reject Cari Rythorn as my mate." His words were like a dagger to my heart, and I felt it stop beating for a moment. My lips parted in shock, and tears welled up in my gray eyes.

I was frozen in place, my mouth unable to form words, as I watched Tyris turn his back on me. He pivoted on his heels, Ivy cradled in his arms, and disappeared into the woods. The rejection and betrayal stung like a fresh wound, and I felt my world crumbling around me.

The loud thunder clap jerked me back to reality, and that was when I felt his words piercing through my heart like a double-edged sword. Shivers ran down my spine and tears glided down my cheek as violent balls of rain bucketed down my body, washing away the blood that stained my face.

Gripping my stomach, I squeezed my eyes shut and parted my lips to scream in agony. My joints weakened, and my heartbeat slowed down as death drew closer to me with each passing second.

Accepting my fate, I released my muscles, letting the throes of darkness snatch my soul.

I sacrificed my wolf for Tyris many years ago, and almost lost my sanity for him this year, and today… I sacrificed myself and my unborn child.