Before taking the skybound griffin that would carry me away, I had one final place to visit. One last knot to sever, clean and without mercy. Ending a bond did not always come with kindness. Sometimes it came like a blade, cold, sharp and silent. That was the severing bond I chose.
Selene.
She was still staying inside the Healer Sanctum of the Mooncrown, said to be “recovering.” I doubted most of it. With her, pain was often exaggerated, shaped to draw pity. She had always known how to twist truth until it cried.
I walked through the stone passageway of the sanctum, the sound of my boots echoing with each step. It felt like a countdown. Every pace brought me closer to freedom. My hand tightened around what I carried, a bundle wrapped in dark cloth, the flowers inside as black as night.
Black roses.
They fit perfectly.
Flowers of parting. Of endings. Not death of flesh, but death of bonds, lies and the past I once believed in.
When I reached her chamber, the door was slightly open.
I looked inside and everything became clear.
Selene was not resting in bed as the Alpha and Beta claimed. She was not bound by healing charms or lying weak. She stood before a mirror, humming softly, swaying as if listening to her own tune. Her healer’s robe slipped from one shoulder. Bare feet touched the floor lightly.
She was dancing.
I allowed myself a small smile before knocking once and pushing the door open.
She turned, startled, her face twisting when she saw me.
“What are you here?” she demanded, her voice cold and uneasy.
I stepped inside calmly. “I came to leave something behind.”
I held out the black roses. Under the lantern glow, they looked almost unreal.
“I heard you were in pain. Yet you seem quite well.”
Her eyes dropped to the flowers, narrowing. “Black roses? Are you mocking me?”
“I thought they suited the moment,” I replied lightly. “And your act.”
She scoffed. “You’ve lost your mind.”
“No,” I said, moving closer. “I finally opened my eyes. I used to think I was the one seeking attention. But it was never me. It was always you.”
She crossed her arms, the robe slipping lower. “So what? They chose me. You can’t accept that.”
There it was. Her truth. Simple and cruel.
“You envy me,” she said.
“Once, perhaps,” I answered without flinching. “Not now. I didn’t come to argue. I came to say farewell.”
Her brow twitched. “Farewell?”