Chapter 5
Bella s POV
The idea that he would step in, that he‘ d take my side against Jacob, leaves me both touched and confused. Lucas had always been protective, ever since I was left in his care after my parents‘ death. But this was something else, something deeper.
Mandy clutches Jacob‘ s arm, her face pale, eyes wide. “Alpha, what‘ s going on?” she whispers, fear etched across her face. She holds onto him as though he’s her anchor, her shield against the uncertainty brewing around her.
Jacob wraps an arm around her, his
expression dark. He looks in the direction Lucas left with a bitter scowl. “They‘ re all the same,” he mutters under his breath. “They’ll do whatever they have to, take
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whatever they want, but don’t worry, Mandy. I’ll protect you.”
Watching Lucas leave, unease coils in my stomach. What did he mean by “secrets” ? Did he know more than he was letting on about Jacob and Mandy? About everything?
Following at a distance, I watch as Lucas, his shoulders tense with anxiety, pulls out his phone again. He’s typing, and I catch a glimpse of my name on his screen.
“Come on, Bella. Pick up. I’m worried,” he murmurs in frustration. He kicks a rock across the dirt, his face clouded with worry and guilt. “I should‘ ve kept you close when I had the chance…”
Night settled in, wrapping everything in shadows. I could see the full moon casting its
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silver light through the trees, lighting up the
clearing outside the village. But inside, the atmosphere was anything but peaceful.
Jacob came home, exhaustion written all over his face. The house was still empty, just like my heart. I watched as he tossed his jacket onto the chair, annoyance radiating off him like heat from a fire.
He pulled out his phone and opened my chat thread, his fingers hovering over the screen like they were carrying the weight of the world. The last message he’d sent me this morning felt like a dagger in my chest:
“Bella, you should stop messing around. Do you know that Lucas blamed me today?”
I wanted to reach out and shake him, to make him understand that I hadn’t just
disappeared; I was stuck in a place between
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life and death, watching him.
“Are you proud that the beta is fighting me over you?” he typed, his fingers tapping angrily. His words cut deep, but it was the last part that hurt the most: “If you don’t come back, then never come back.”
Watching him struggle made me laugh, a bitter sound echoing in the silence. I used to worry about his fights with the beta, always trying to keep the peace and taking the blame. But now? He was grasping at straws. If Lucas ever found out what happened to me, things would get ugly. Jacob had no idea what was coming.
Not getting a response, he tossed his phone aside, frustration boiling over. I wished I could speak to him, to tell him it wasn’t too
late to change but all I could do was watch
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late to change, but all I could do was watch.
Jacob sank onto the sofa, brow creased, clutching his head. “Bella, I have a headache. Bring me the medicine,” he muttered, desperation creeping into his voice. I could feel the weight of his loneliness pressing down on him, suffocating him.
Suddenly, his eyes snapped open. The room was still dark, and reality crashed back
around him. He stood, defeated, and shuffled toward the medicine cabinet. I followed him. He searched the living room, but the familiar comforts I once provided were gone.
In the past, I would‘ ve known what he needed. The moment he frowned, I
would‘ ve rushed to his side, knowing just what to do. I remembered when cooking for him was an act of love, a way to keep him
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Chapter 5
happy. But now, I was nothing but a lingering ghost in his life.
When he reached the master bedroom, I watched him rummage through the bedside table, desperate. His frustration grew as he pulled out a handful of medicine. He flipped through it like it held the key to fixing everything. But in a fit of anger, he hurled the medications across the room, watching them scatter like fallen leaves.
He was in rage, and I couldn’t stop it.
“Bella!” he yelled, as if my name could bring me back from the shadows. “Why are you doing this?!”
He threw our photo against the wall. The frame shattered, glass exploding everywhere, shards glinting like stars on the floor. I
winced, feeling his pain echoing through me.
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The Alpha was breaking apart, and I could only watch.
Still unsatisfied, he grabbed his phone again. and tried calling me. The line went dead, static filling the silence. Frustrated, he typed another message: “Bella, I’ll give you one last chance. If you don’t come back, I will exile you from the pack and reject you as my mate! I will make Mandy as my Luna!”
I could feel the tension rising in the air, a storm brewing inside him. I wanted to scream, to tell him that he was the one pushing me away, that his betrayal was driving the knife deeper into my heart.
But then, something shifted. I sensed it before I saw it–a flicker of movement outside
the window. My breath caught in my throat as
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I saw a figure lurking in the darkness, hidden beneath the trees.
Lucas.
He wasn’t supposed to be here. My heart raced. What was he doing? Was he looking for me?
As Jacob continued his anger, Lucas stepped closer, drawn by the tension radiating from the house. I could see the look of concern on his face, mixed with anger.
He knocked on the door, startling Jacob, who quickly wiped away his tears. He was crying.
“What do you want, Lucas?” Jacob snapped when he opened the door.
Lucas pushed the door wide open, and I could feel the shift in the air. He stepped in,
determination in his eyes. “I’m here to get
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Bella back. You‘ ve messed things up enough, Alpha. I can’t keep your secret anymore that you‘ re willing to be with Mandy and let Bella. Everyone knows Bella is your mate.”
“Don’t you dare come here and lecture me,” Jacob shot back, his voice low and threatening.
I wanted to scream, to tell them both to stop. This wasn’t just about them; it was about me, too. But the words wouldn’t come.
Lucas squared his shoulders and stepped forward. “You think you can push her away? You think I’ll let you walk away from this? You‘ re a fool if you think you can break the bond between a wolf and its mate.”
Jacob’s face become serious. The truth hung
Chapter 5
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away:
You think I’ll let you walk away from this? You‘ re a fool if you think you can break the bond between a wolf and its mate.”
Jacob‘ s face become serious. The truth hung heavy in the air. “What do you know about bonds? You think you can swoop in and take her away from me?”
“What if I will?” Chapter
