Fragments of a Vow

The extended period of neglect by Caelum made Rayna feel threatened, so she revealed her true colors.

Early the next morning, Seraphina saw message after taunting message Rayna had sent the previous night through a maid upon waking up.

"Seraphina, I know you saw everything. So? How does it feel watching your mate kiss another she-wolf while your pup helps cover for him?"

"Caelum loves it when I cry. He says my tears give him a special kind of satisfaction, especially in bed."

"Every time I cry, he gets rougher in bed. My voice becomes hoarse from sobbing so much, but he still won't stop. He says he wishes he could be with me 24 hours a day. He's never treated you like that, has he?"

"Even your pup likes being with me. He says he feels relaxed around me. Once, he thought I was asleep and called me Mom."

"You're a complete failure as a Luna."

Staring at the barrage of provocations, Seraphina forced down the storm of emotions inside her and calmly took screenshots of everything.

Only three days remained before she would leave this world. This would be part of her final gift to Caelum and Liam.

That morning, she requested to be discharged from the healer's sanctuary. The healer informed Caelum, and soon she received a call from him.

His tone was apologetic as he said, "I'm busy with pack affairs right now, so I can't leave. I'll have someone take you home. I'll take care of Liam. Rest well at home."

She knew they were with Rayna. So, she just said a perfunctory "okay" and hung up.

Three days before her departure from this world, Seraphina returned to their mansion. She instructed the maids to gather all her belongings and burn them.

A maid asked in confusion, "Luna Seraphina, are you replacing them with new ones?"

She nodded and answered, "Yes."

They didn't know that not only the belongings would be replaced, but the lady of the house as well.

Two days before departure, Seraphina opened the secret chamber that only she, Caelum, and Liam could enter.

Various hunting trophies accumulated over the last ten years hung densely on the walls. There were also the family tapestries made each year since Liam's birth.

Over ten years, the people captured in those tapestries went from being youthful to looking mature and serious. In the beginning, there were only two people. Then, it became three.

But now, one face would disappear.

Seraphina retrieved a ceremonial dagger and spent the entire day cutting her own likeness out of every tapestry, leaving only Caelum and Liam behind.

Then, she retrieved the bloodstone from their mate-bonding ceremony that Caelum had solemnly locked in the safe five years ago. Upon opening the stone, she was surprised to find the vow he had written for the ceremony tucked inside.

He had written, "Sera, you are my entire world. Thanks to you, my world is filled with light again. I will love you and protect you forever. I believe we will grow old together. We'll love each other for the rest of our lives."

Seraphina read each line slowly.

The piece of paper held 19-year-old Caelum's deep, youthful devotion.

When she reached the end, she smiled in silence as moisture pooled in the corners of her eyes.

She placed the vow back beside the bloodstone and carried both, along with the pieces of tapestry she had cut, into the garden. There, she lit them all on fire.

Wordlessly, she watched as the tapestries and the bloodstone turned into a handful of ash.

One day before departure, Seraphina printed out the screenshots of Rayna's messages and the photos she sent over the past few days.

There were photos of Caelum shirtless and holding Rayna, whose neck was covered in kiss marks. In some photos, Liam leaned against Rayna, gazing at her with admiration, as she read him a bedtime story. Some even showed the three of them wearing matching cartoon headbands at an amusement park.

Seraphina thought her heart would break all over again. But when she looked at the photos, all she felt was calm.

She placed every printed photo into a folder. Then, she removed the ring symbolizing her status as Luna and put it inside as well.

On the day she was set to leave, it happened to be the seventh anniversary of her becoming Caelum's mate.

Caelum and Liam, whom she hadn't seen in days, returned early that morning.

Caelum was holding a heart-shaped cake. "Sera, the pack affairs have kept me busy lately. I'm sorry about that. Today is our mate-bonding anniversary. Liam and I won't go anywhere. We'll spend the whole day with you."

Liam raised his little fist and vowed, "Mom, I swear Dad has been busy with pack work every day. And I never forgot my duty to help you keep an eye on him!"

Seraphina looked impassively at the two of them as they enthusiastically made all those fake promises.

She asked softly, "Are you tired?"

They were running back and forth between her and Rayna while pretending to be the devoted mate and pup in front of her. Weren't they exhausted?