Reana fought for her pack’s pride and freedom and that, her pack got.
After her shocking victory, Markkus lent his residence to Tamara, where she would receive treatnt from their own healer, who ca with them.
Reana refused to treat them as guests, nor allowed any help from her side to reach them. Not even a single drop of water.
The Dark Snow Pack mbers have retreated to Markkus’s residence for now, but Reana and her pack mbers knew it was far from over.
anwhile, Reana, herself, after fighting, didn’t head straight for treatnt. Instead, rushed to her quarters, hoping to find Ryder lying on her bed but when she entered, the room was cold, devoid of his warmth, his scent, his presence.
Reana trembled and dropped to her knees beside the bed.
Finally, the truth dawned on her.
Ryder was gone.
Not dead, no!
She still refused to accept it.
She sat there on her knees, ti ticking away, her injuries closing up, yet the thick stench of blood on her cloak didn’t fade.
It clung to her—like the fear.
Like the grief.
The room was silent, but her heartbeat thundered in her ears. Loud. Violent. Desperate.
She curled her fingers into the cold sheets of the bed, gripping it so tight that her knuckles turned white, willing herself not to fall apart—but how could she not?
She missed him. She never thought she could miss him this much. Every day without him. Every breath without his scent was driving her to the edge.
Her nights didn’t go by without dreams of him being beside her. Touching her in places where he knew her best. Whispering sweet nothings into her ears. Clinging to her like a pup would its mother. Protecting her from her own self.
God! She missed him.
She missed everything about him. The way he annoyed her, the way he got on her nerves, the way he broke her molded her....
"Ryder, please, co back to ." She whimpered, voice cracking under the weight of raw pain. "Please, I beg you."
....
Flowers.
A bed of lavender stretched as far as the eyes could see. From the starting point, stood a cabin. Behind the cabin, a long stretch of bamboo forest.
The air was fresh and the wind was soft, carrying with it the gentle hum of bees and butterflies and the faint rustle of bamboo leaves swaying in rhythm.
It was a quiet paradise.
Filled with the laughter coming from inside the cabin.
Suddenly, a woman bolted out, running into the bed of lavender. Her joyful laughter echoed like a lody. And then, a man with long, flowing, red hair followed, chasing her into the fields.
Ryder chased Reana down the field, chest bare, shorts made from leaves around his waist.
Reana too, had a short skirt and bra made from leaves, and her hair was loose, wild, cascading down her back like a waterfall of midnight. Her skin glowed under the sun, kissed golden by its warmth, and her eyes shimred with mischief as she glanced back at him.
"Catch if you can, slowpoke!" she giggled, dodging behind a lavender bush, the flowers brushing against her thighs as she darted away.
Ryder growled playfully. "You’ve got nowhere to run, my wildflower!"
"Oh no?" she teased, disappearing behind the cabin, into the bamboo forest. Not longer had she thought she was faster, he appeared in front of her, grinning from ear to ear.
She shrieked, trying to turn left, but he reached out, sweeping her into his strong chest. "I won, again, wildflower."
"No, you cheated!" she purred, but he laughed, so hard his chest vibrated against hers.
"Cheat too, if you can."
Her eyes flashed as she locked her hands behind his neck, pulling him down, lips curled into a mischievous smile.
"Don’t regret it later." Her lips drew closer. So close her breath fanned his face. Just as they were about to kiss. He heard that voice...again. That plea.
’Ryder, please co back to .’
The sound struck his core like lightning.
Ryder froze.
Reana blinked, confused. "What’s wrong?"
He didn’t answer.
His smile faltered, brows knitting slightly.
’Please, I beg you.’
The voice ca again. This ti, it cracked with grief. Ryder’s heart clenched for so reason. He didn’t know who that voice belonged to. He didn’t know why he heard that voice or why he felt an aching pain in his chest, but he did know that whenever the voice called out to him, cried, he felt it. And for so reason, it bothered him.
"Slowpoke," Reana frowned, her hands combing to rest on his cheeks as he turned his attention back to her. "What’s wrong?"
"I hear a woman’s voice," he murmured, brows furrowed, eyes distant. "She’s crying... begging to co back."
Reana’s fingers stilled on his cheeks. Her playful smile faded. "What woman?"
"I don’t know," Ryder whispered. "But... she sounds familiar. Like... like I should know her." He shook his head, frustrated. "I don’t even know my own na in this place. But that voice... it breaks sothing inside every ti I hear it."
Reana watched him quietly, her thumb tracing a slow line across his cheekbone. "You’ve been hearing her often?"
He nodded. "Every ti I’m about to kiss you... she calls . And when she cries —damn it, Wildflower, it hurts."
She stared into his eyes, and sothing flickered behind hers. "It’s an imagination, Slowpoke. It’s because your heart longs for soone other than ." She frowned. "Your heart is cheating on , my love."
Ryder blinked at her words.
"Cheating?" he echoed, stunned by the accusation... by the quiet pain behind it.
Reana pulled away slightly, arms slipping from his neck, her fingers brushing his toned arms.
"You say you don’t know her," she said softly. "But your heart does. And it listens to her more than it listens to ."
"That’s not true," Ryder replied, stepping closer, reaching for her wrist. "I don’t even know who she is. I don’t know who I am. This...this is the only place that makes sense. You are the only one that makes sense."
"But you’re not whole here," she whispered, voice trembling. "I might lose you again."
He stared at her. Her eyes, still wild and beautiful, glistened with pain and sadness.
That look in her eyes stirred sothing deep within him.
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