In the video,Ryder was carefully applying a Pack-Healer’s salve to a small,insignificant scrape on Lyra’s knee.The caption read something that shattered Elara’s last sliver of hope.
[Thank you,Alpha,for securing the perimeter so quickly.Thankfully,it was only a minor territorial skirmish from a low-ranking Beta pup!]
Elara stared at the insignificant injury and,to her own shock,let out a loud,hysterical laugh.
But as the laughter died in her throat,tears—hot,silent tears of final grief—began to fall.
Finally,Elara understood the unwritten Pack law.Ryder had made it ruthlessly clear that Lyra’s minor problems were always critical emergencies,while anything involving his Claimed Mate could wait—even the health of her Alpha Father.
Ryder,if he knew she came home to officially announce their separation,would he regret this dereliction?Would his Alpha core even feel the shame?She no longer expected an answer.
Just then,her comm-link pulsed.It was Elder Weston.Their relationship had grown stronger—a transactional bond forged in the cold,legal truth of her severance.