Chapter 348
Third Person’s POV
The moment Cassian stepped out of the car, his comm-stone vibrated again.
Fred hopped out of his sports car and scanned the tension radiating off the couple. He chimed in, “Look, if you’re dead set on ending this today, Cassian, go handle the mess at the pack. I’ll take Trista to the Altar and wait with her p>
Cassian gave Trista one long, heavy look. “I’ll get there as fast as I can,” he rasped.
He spun the car around and headed back to deal with the internal revolt started by the old guard.
Fred and Isaiah, meanwhile, escorted Trista to the Altar.
“I can wait by myself. You guys should go,” Trista said, standing on the ancient stone steps. Clutching her suitcase, she looked small and a bit fragile in the shadows of the massive pillars.
Isaiah wanted to stick around, but Fred hauled him back into the car.
“Fred, she’s gonna be miserable waiting there all alone,” Isaiah said, looking out the window, genuinely worried. “Let me go keep her company p>
Fred adjusted the rearview mirror, his expression grim. “Trista is only doing this because she’s been hurt too deep. But she put more heart into Cassian over the years than you realize. It’s the final hour-let her have some peace p>
9:50 AM, Cassian had just barely put down the border riot when the core elders made their move.
Even though he’d secured the hunting grounds, his rush to leave meant giving up some territory that cut into the old men’s profits.
The elders were using their bloodline seniority to bark at him. Cassian’s gold pupils were flickering with pure annoyance.
Just as one elder started yelling about stripping him of his Alpha status, Cassian wordlessly tossed a file on the table. It was a detailed list of their corruption-he’d accurately targeted the ringleaders and exposed the deputies working with rival packs.
That was a total execution.
The room went dead silent. The aggressive posturing vanished instantly.
By the time he finished cleaning up the mess, it was after ten.
Cassian collapsed into his stone chair, leaning his head back with his eyes closed.
“What time is it?” he asked Humphrey.
“10:30, Alpha Cassian p>
“Get the car. We’re going to the Moonlight Altar p>
Humphrey couldn’t help but chime in. “Alpha Cassian, it’s peak morning traffic. It’ll take at least fifty minutes to get across town. The Priestess takes a break at noon and the Altar closes for a few hours. Should I tell Luna Trista to meet you in the afternoon instead p>
Cassian opened his eyes. There was no room for debate. “Get the car p>
Trista had actually chosen to trust him one last time. He wasn’t going to let her wait for nothing.
Trista had been sitting on the stone bench for over two hours.
The young werewolves flowing in and out of the hall were radiating sweet, harmonized pheromones; the girls were blushing, ready to swear their lives
lives away to the Moon Goddess.
But the ones there for the severance reeked of broken souls.
She saw one she-wolf collapse onto the floor in a heap of desperate sobs the moment the Priestess declared her bond void.
Another young girl was full of pure hate, getting into a violent aura standoff with her ex-mate in public.
Others just looked numb, their eyes as hollow as if their souls had been surgically removed.
This was the price of choosing the wrong mate.
Trista checked the clock. Twenty minutes until the Altar closed for the afternoon.
Her anxiety spiked. She walked out of the pillared hall and stood by the curb, staring at every passing car.
The scene felt like a twisted mirror of her mating day.
She had waited at these same gates back then, buzzing with excitement, her head full of dreams.
When Cassian had stepped out of his car with a bouquet of deep red roses, she’d lunged into his arms like a bird returning to its nest.
That was the first time he’d ever given her red roses.
He had held her hand as they swore their vows before the Council and the Moon Goddess.
When they walked out, fingers interlocked, she’d stared at their bond scroll and truly believed it was forever.
That was the first time he’d kissed her like he meant it, gently rubbing her hair and laughing at her for being a “silly pup p>
Her eyes stung. Trista tilted her head back.
Behind her, another bitter couple walked down the steps, screaming curses at each other.
She snapped out of it just as she saw Cassian’s black SUV pull up.
She ran to meet him, pulling the door open herself.
Cassian stepped down, his intense gaze immediately locking onto her red-rimmed eyes.
His heart tightened. He reached out, his rough thumb gently brushing the moisture from her cheek.
“Hurry,” Trista said, batting his hand away. Her voice was frantic. “We can still make it before they close p>
When Cassian didn’t move, she grabbed his sleeve to pull him along.
Cassian caught her wrist, his palm burning hot. His voice was a heavy rasp. “Trista… do you remember what you promised me p>
“Cassian, the moment this is over, I
promise will give Samantha
everything I’ve got as a healer.” She was talking a mile a minute, her
voice trembling
the fear of p>
missing the window.
Cassian gripped her hand. His aura was a mess of uncoordinated
energy. “I agreeing to the
severance partly so you can find the truth about Samantha, yeah. But the real reason is you. Because you want to leave-and because I want to start over and win you back as a completely different man p>