Chapter 264

Serena’s POV

His eyes flickered, then narrowed into something small and feral. For a heartbeat we were two people shaped by the same past, different as knife and glass. Then he swallowed, and something like fear, or calculation, crossed his features.

I let go of Aeson’s collar and stepped back, my chest heaving as though I had sprinted through a storm. The air around us felt thin, too sharp, too charged to breathe. My palms tingled from the sting of impact I had slapped him, and the sound still echoed faintly in the courtyard like an unending accusation.

Aeson’s jaw tightened as he adjusted his ruined shirt, fingers trembling slightly though he tried to hide it behind a composed mask. When his eyes lifted to meet mine, they carried a faint, unreadable softness that made my stomach twist.

“I guess… this is it, right?” he said at last, his voice carrying both defeat and something I couldn’t name. For a second, he just stood there, silent, then with a hesitant nod he whispered the words I had been waiting for.

“Serena, I… accept your rejection.”

The words hit me like a silent bell. My heart clenched sharply, a brief squeeze of pain before it loosened and left behind a wave of quiet relief. I felt the bond snap — cleanly, completely — like a string pulled too tight finally breaking. A shiver ran through me.

“God,” I breathed, pressing a hand over my chest, “finally… thank you.”

He didn’t respond, only gave a small, bitter smile before turning away. His gait was light, almost casual, pretending that nothing extraordinary had just happened. I watched him walk toward the doorway, the morning light cutting across his figure — tall, proud, fading from view. But then, before stepping in, he hesitated. His head turned slightly… not toward me, but toward someone behind me before he went in.

My pulse stumbled. I turned around, and saw Hades standing there.

He was just a few steps away, half-shadowed beneath the veranda’s arch, his dark hair tousled by the wind, his blue eyes fixed on me. The sunlight caught the faint line of his jaw, the quiet tension in his posture. He looked every bit the man I had tried so hard not to miss and failed miserably at forgetting.

I took a step forward, then another, the sound of my heartbeat drowning the distant rustle of leaves. I didn’t even know what I was supposed to say. An apology? An explanation? My throat felt dry.

“Hades…” I whispered, voice trembling despite the thousand times I had rehearsed this moment in my head.

He didn’t move, not yet. The space between us buzzed with unspoken things. I could feel my guilt rise, thick and suffocating — how I had shut him out, blocked his number, never giving him the chance to speak.

“I am…” The words stumbled out half-broken. “I’m sorry. I should’ve—”

He crossed the distance in a blur of movement and caught my face in his hands. Before I could breathe again, his lips were on mine.

The kiss stole every thought, every regret, and replaced it with fire. My eyes widened in shock, then fluttered shut as he deepened the kiss, rough and desperate, his thumb brushing along my jawline. The world tilted, gasps from the nearby pack members blurred into the background, but he didn’t care. He kissed me like I was the only truth he wanted to prove.

When he finally broke away, his forehead rested against mine. His breath was unsteady, warm against my lips.

“Don’t ever apologize,” he murmured. “Just… listen.”

I opened my eyes. He looked straight into me, his gaze holding that familiar depth, the one that always stripped me bare.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered instead, unable to hold it in. “For not trusting you, Hades.”

He nodded slowly. “And I’m sorry I gave you a reason to doubt.”

“Huh?”

His hand moved from my cheek to my shoulder, fingers gentle. “I should’ve told you about Zoey sooner. I should’ve showed up after you pushed me away . But after that night, I wasn’t avoiding you — I was finding her mother, so she could stand here and prove the truth herself.”

My chest tightened. The sincerity in his tone hit deeper than I expected. “You did all that… for me?”

“For us,” he corrected softly. Then he smiled faintly, the first real one I’d seen in weeks. “And maybe for the truth.”

I let out a shaky breath. The corners of my lips trembled. When he pulled me into his arms, I didn’t resist. The familiar scent of pine and smoke filled my lungs — comforting, maddening, real.

“I missed you,” I murmured against his chest.

“I know,” he said, brushing a kiss against my temple. “I missed me too — with you.”

I almost laughed through the tears threatening to spill. My fingers clutched the fabric of his shirt as though afraid he’d fade away again.

His hand caressed my back, steady and sure, and for a moment, the world stilled. Then something caught my attention.

From the terrace above, I saw a faint movement, a shadow. My gaze lifted, and there stood Aeson. He was staring at us, his expression flickering between heartbreak, regret, and the cold emptiness of someone realizing he’d lost everything. Our eyes met only for a second before he turned away and disappeared behind the railing.

A part of me felt a strange ache, but only for what could’ve been, not for him, but for the innocence that had died in the mess he created.

A week later, the air in the packhouse felt lighter, as though all the hidden storms had finally passed. I stood in my room, folding the last of my clothes into the brown suitcase lying open on the bed. The faint scent of rain drifted through the open window, mixing with the hum of life outside — laughter, distant chatter, the occasional bark of a wandering wolf.

We were leaving the pack today.

I should’ve felt nostalgic, but mostly I felt ready. Ready to breathe somewhere new, start over, away from the lies that had once burned this place.

I considered telling Aeson we were leaving, but since the day I confronted him in the courtyard, he had vanished. Jace, his Beta, had told me vaguely that Aeson was away on a business trip. Maybe it was true. Maybe it was not. Either way, I didn’t bother looking for him again.

When I tried visiting his mother to tell her about our soon departure since she's currently Luna, she refused to see me. Not surprising — perhaps she thought I came to question her son. If only she knew I just wanted to pay a last respect to her on behalf of my family.

Aurora, on the other hand, was everywhere. The soon-to-be Luna had moved into the packhouse yesterday, her presence filling every corridor with perfume and pride.

By the time I came downstairs, my parents were already seated in the back of the black SUV that Hades had sent. Matt stood near the car door, phone in hand, waiting for my signal.

I realized I’d left my necklace upstairs, so I dashed back to retrieve it. When I returned, breathless, I caught sight of Aurora at the edge of the driveway.

She was wearing a ridiculously tiny dress, all shimmer and skin, her lips painted red like a warning sign. Her eyes followed me with a catlike amusement as I approached.

“Leaving already?” she said, a smirk curling her mouth.

I didn’t respond, taking a step towards the car.

She stepped forward, heels clicking on the concrete. “Hey, don’t ignore me. Relax, I’m not going to kidnap you again,” she added with mock sweetness.

A dry laugh escaped me. “You don’t scare me, bug.”

Her smirk faltered, then she crossed her arms. “Oh, I’m not trying to. I just wanted to say—” she tilted her head toward the car— “thanks for saving me the trouble. After my wedding to Aeson, I was planning to send your family away anyway.”

I met her gaze coolly. “Guess I made your job easier.”

“Good riddance,” she said, waving her manicured fingers before strutting off like she owned the air around her.

I smiled faintly, not the kind of smile that hides pain, but the kind that says, I’ve already won where it matters.

Matt opened the front passenger door for me. “Ready, Luna?” he teased.

I chuckled softly and was about to step in when another car pulled up behind ours.

It was Aeson’s.