Chapter 4

Rhys had ended their eight-year bond with his own hands.

There was nothing of him left in the entire house. It was as if he had never been there.

Evelyn reached for a cigarette without thinking and lit it.

She didn't care about the pup right now.

Rhys had made her quit smoking years ago. She had quit, no argument.

But the smoke tasted bitter now. Completely bitter.

When the fog of exhaustion lifted, she remembered what the lawyer had said earlier.

"The document was taken by one of your students — the young man who was with you."

Evelyn moved fast. She went straight to Cade's apartment.

Before she knocked, she heard his voice through the door.

"So what? I made it all up and she believed every word."

"Sure, it was me and my friends who got jumped on that overseas trip. But I said it was Rhys, so it's Rhys's fault. Nobody will believe him anyway."

"Once that loser gives up, I'll be her mate. Officially."

Then he turned around.

And saw Evelyn standing in the doorway.

"Pro — Professor Whitmore? When did you get here?"

Cade dropped his phone. His voice stumbled.

Evelyn walked toward him slowly. Her face was dark and still.

"I heard everything you just said."

"So the attack had nothing to do with Rhys. Is that right?"

"Answer me."

Her voice rose.

Cade flinched. Then he forced himself to speak.

"It's — yes."

"Professor Whitmore, I just had a moment of panic. I wasn't thinking straight. I didn't mean to frame him..."

He pressed his hands over his eyes and started crying, trying to pull her sympathy in.

But Evelyn closed her eyes. She was close to breaking.

She had never imagined the boy she'd seen as open and genuine could be this calculated.

She thought back to the beginning. Cade had been working a part-time job at the Wolf's Den when she first noticed him. He reminded her of how Rhys had looked when he was young. That was how she'd gotten close.

She had draped her coat over the boy's shoulders. After a few drinks one night, she had told him about Rhys's past.

"Working here isn't something to be ashamed of. Let me help you find something better."

One thing led to another. Then one drunk night — Cade's shirt wet from the rain, his body visible through the fabric — she'd lost control.

She hadn't expected him to stand up at the Pack gathering and announce her pregnancy.

From that moment, everything had changed.

She had turned her back on Rhys. She'd let people hold him down and call him every name they could think of, and she had done nothing.

The thought of it broke her open. She grabbed Cade by the collar.

"This is your fault. Give him back to me."

He coughed, hard. She let go.

"Professor Whitmore — Evelyn — don't be angry. I did this for us. Rhys is someone who can't show his face in public. You were done with him anyway — isn't a clean break better for everyone?"

Evelyn's fist tightened.

"Say another word and see what happens."

"I chose to keep the bond secret because of my family. I never once looked down on him. You don't get to say that."

When she had told her family she wanted to mate with Rhys, nearly everyone had been against it. They objected to his past at the Wolf's Den.

Evelyn had told them she'd end things. And then she had bonded with him in secret.

She hadn't cared about the gossip. But she knew Rhys would. That was why she'd done it that way.

Cade, frustrated that she was defending Rhys, cried harder.

"Then what about me? Don't you love me? How could he possibly be better than me? You can't prefer someone older over someone young."

That broke something in her.

"You have no idea what Rhys and I went through to get here. You don't understand any of it."

"I'm having the pup removed. And after today, don't come near me again."

She turned and walked out. Cade shouted after her. She didn't look back.

In the car, Evelyn let out a slow breath. She typed a message to Rhys.

【Can we sit down and talk? Please.】

I got out of the Pack Hall and found the nearest clinic to get my wounds dressed.

The pain in my body was nothing compared to what was going on inside me.

But at least I was finally out of that bond.

Evelyn called me over and over. I didn't pick up once.

Maybe she wanted to demand an apology. Maybe she wanted to blame me for something. Maybe she just wanted to say goodbye properly.

I didn't want to hear any of it.

After I left the clinic, I called a contact overseas and made arrangements to go back to what I'd always wanted.

I had studied filmmaking at the Academy before everything fell apart. With no one to take care of but myself now, maybe it wasn't too late.

The moment I stepped onto the plane, something in me loosened. The tangled mess of the past eight years seemed to fall away.

I traveled everywhere, shooting and gathering material. I was busy in the best way.

I didn't expect to see a familiar face on a forest path in the highland territory.

Evelyn walked toward me slowly. She looked exhausted.

"Rhys, did you not get my message?"

I thought about it. I had gotten it.

I had deleted it.

I told her the truth. "I deleted it. We don't have anything left to talk about."

Evelyn pressed her lips together. She was quiet for a long time.

"I know how badly I failed you. I know you hate me."

"But we had eight years together. Give us both another chance. How many eight-year stretches does a person get?