“Fifteen more days,”Ryder answered without thought.It was clear he had been counting down every single cycle.
Elara looked outside at the sharp sunlight cutting through the trees and whispered,“Then it will be nearly simultaneous.”
“What will be?”Ryder was puzzled,failing to follow the subtle shift in her meaning.
“Nothing,”Elara replied.
She smiled faintly—a ghost of her former self—and said no more.
Just then,Ryder’s personal comm-link vibrated.The same Alpha who had ignored Elara’s seventeen missed calls immediately answered,his voice dropping to a velvet whisper of deep concern.
“Hello,Lyra?”
On the other end,Lyra’s voice was strained and wet with tears.“Ryder…I feel so exposed being alone in this territory den…”
“Do not be afraid,my dear.I will be back to reinforce your scent barriers soon,”Ryder reassured her,oblivious to the fact that his eyes had flickered towards Elara,gauging her reaction.
Elara watched quietly.She no longer felt the sharp sting of disappointment,only a cold,clinical understanding.So,this was the truth of the Alpha King’s priorities.
When Lyra was with him,Ryder ignored his comm-link because he knew Elara’s presence wasn't important enough to disrupt their private alliance.But when Lyra was absent,he was terrified of missing a single word from her.After hanging up,Ryder hesitated.
It might have been guilt.Or,it might have been the chilling echo of Elara’s phrase:‘A man who violates the sanctity of the claim is worse than a rogue’.For once,he didn’t rush to leave.
“Return to your Alpha duties,”Elara said first,dismissing him.“Do not let the Pack’s logs pile up.”
Ryder looked relieved,the pressure lifting from his shoulders.“When will you be cleared by the Healers?Send me a chime,and I will personally collect you.”
With that,he left the private Den without even a backward glance.
A moon cycle later,Elara packed her sparse suitcase,preparing to leave the Healer’s den for good.She called Ryder three times.No answer.
At the same time,Lyra’s latest video log was trending across the Clan networks,boasting over 100,000 positive scent markings(likes).
In the video,Lyra proudly displayed the‘Alpha’s efforts’:limited-edition human trophies(handbags),enormous financial transfers(money),pictures of her global scent-marking travels,and close-ups of Ryder performing mundane human tasks—cooking,washing dishes,and massaging her feet.