Chapter 86 Chapter 86

Chapter 86 Chapter 86
~NYRA~

The first thing I did after Josie left me in the woods was shift into my wolf and charge deeper into the trees. I kept running for hours; the wind slapped across my body. The leaves made a rustling sound and the croaking of frogs echoed from the nearby pond.

How could he do this to me?

What sort of manipulation had he deployed?

The forest blurred into streaks of green and shadow, my breath tearing through my lungs like glass. Roots rose beneath my feet, catching, pulling — but I kept going. Pain was better than thinking. Pain was better than remembering the look on his face.

Mikael.

A broken sound ripped from my throat, something between a laugh and a sob. I shoved forward, harder, feet slamming against damp earth.

Hours passed — or maybe minutes. Time had lost meaning.

When my legs finally gave out, I stumbled into a clearing and fell to my knees. The impact sent a jolt through my bones, but I barely reacted. My hands sank into the dirt, fingers curling tight as if I could strangle the earth itself.

A scream built in my chest.

I let out a grievous howl. "I am so stupid!" I muttered internally, dreading every single time I had opened my heart to him. I had shown him my most vulnerable sides.

I couldn't shake the thought of him making fun of me behind the scenes.

My shoulders trembled. "How… how could he?" The question dissolved into the empty woods.

I hated how easily his words had manipulated me. Lies that sounded like love — lies I had believed.

My nails dug deeper into the soil. "I let you in, Mikael! Trusted you with my whole life — and this is how you repay me?"

It was all my fault.

My chest tightened, anger rising fast and suffocating. It burned through my veins, hotter than any wound.

The trees stood silent, witnessing my breaking point.

I didn't return home immediately. By the time I did, the sky was already bleeding into dusk. The first thing I did when I returned to the pack was go to my daughter; I couldn't bring myself to set foot in the healer's hut. After all, those incidents had happened because of me.

If I hadn't blindly believed Mikael, I wouldn't have lost my wolf or lied about being pregnant. Olive was already asleep; I traced her face with my fingers before placing a bracelet I had nearby on her wrist.

As I stepped out of her chambers, I met Natalie. Her gaze lit up when she saw me. "I was worried about you," she said.

"I just needed to be alone for a while," I answered, hoping she wouldn't notice anything was wrong.

"You look tired — can we talk after you've rested?" she inquired. I shook my head slowly, taking her hands.

"I am fine, Talie. I just need a favor from you," I paused.

She was surprised but didn't say anything.

"I want you to protect my daughter, Olive, for a while," I requested.

Natalie withdrew her hands. "Are you going somewhere? Are you leaving?"

I really can't tell you, Natalie. You won't let me go.

"It's not that. I just don't trust anyone in this pack — wasn't it under my own roof that poison was laced in my food, and the person who might have known who did it was killed? I am scared," a tear escaped from my eyes.

It hurt to talk about this, but to survive I needed to fight this battle on my own.

She touched my shoulder. "I understand. I promise with my life that I will take care of your child."

I took her words to heart, because I trusted Olive with her.

"Thank you — I will never forget the kindness you've shown me. Never!" And with that, I walked out of the building.

The pack house loomed ahead, familiar and suffocating all at once. I paused at the edge of the clearing, my gaze flickering over it as if seeing it for the first time.

Or perhaps for what it truly was.

A cage.

My jaw tightened.

Inside, everything felt… normal. Too normal. Voices drifted faintly through the halls, laughter echoing somewhere distant.

It made my stomach turn.

The lie I had been living. Oh, Mikael — I swear to the heavens, for the pain you've caused me, I am going to repay it a hundredfold.

For the longest time I had depended on men for power. It was time to change that and make the tides turn in my favor.

\~~~

The forest welcomed me back as if it knew I belonged there more than anywhere else. Darkness had settled now, thick and heavy.

The air was colder, quieter, and that seemed to suit me as I walked with no direction in mind.

"I need power!" I muttered. "I need something — anything — and I don't care where it comes from."

Being weak was useless!

I had been scorned!

Looked down on and treated with disrespect for decades, even as I wore leadership like a mere crown.

Twice I had become Luna, and twice I had been insulted.

Emilia stirred restlessly inside me. I clenched my jaw at the discomfort.

"What does it mean to have the anti-celestial mark? How special am I? Or should I say — how useless?" I pondered, gritting my teeth.

How about confronting Mikael? A thought crept into my head.

My steps faltered, followed by a bitter laugh. So he can lie again? Twist everything until I am the one apologizing? My hands curled into fists. "No."

I was about to move when I caught a shadow nearby. My heart skipped a beat, wondering if it was a rogue wolf. I scanned around for somewhere to hide, and before I could take a step, something burst from the woods and pounced on me.

I screamed, trying to push the large wolf away.

No one was going to save me if it decided to shred me to pieces.

I needed to survive!

"Nyra?" The wolf called out. All the blood in my body froze as I recognized who it was.