Chapter 2

Emeryville's standpoint.

My fist pounded against the door, each impact echoing the frantic beating of my heart. “Sera! Sera, are you home? Please, I need you!” The weight of Damien's rejection threatened to crush what remained of my spirit.

An eternity passed before the door creaked open. Seraphina stood there, golden hair disheveled, eyes wide. As they met mine, something flickered in their depths—was it guilt?

“Em? What's wrong? Aren't you supposed to be getting ready for the—”

I pushed past her, the torrent of emotions finally breaking free. “It's over, Sera. The wedding, everything. Damien, he…" The words lodged in my throat, choking me.

Seraphina's arms encircled me, but something felt off. Her embrace lacked its usual warmth, her body tense against mine. “Shh, Em. Take a deep breath. Tell me what happened.”

I pulled back, searching her face for the comfort I craved. What I found made my blood run cold. Guilt—it was written across her features, from her averted gaze to the nervous twitch of her fingers.

“Sera?” I whispered, taking a step back. “What's going on?”

She bit her lip—a childhood habit that usually endeared her to me. Now, it only heightened my suspicion. “Em, I… I think you should sit down.”

My heart raced as I sank onto her worn couch. How many nights had we spent here, sharing secrets and dreams? Now, it felt like a stranger's home. “Damien said he found his fated mate,” I blurted out, watching her reaction closely.

She flinched as if I'd struck her. In that moment, the truth crystallized, shattering my world anew.

“It's you,” I breathed, my voice barely audible. “You're his fated mate.”

The silence that followed was deafening. Her eyes filled with tears, confirming my worst fears without a word spoken.

“How could you?” The words tore from my throat, raw and agonized. “You're supposed to be my best friend, my sister!”

She reached for me, her face contorted with anguish. “Em, please. You have to believe me, I never wanted this to happen. We can't control the mate bond, you know that.”

I jerked away from her touch, bile rising in my throat. “Don't. Don't you dare try to justify this.” A thought struck me, twisting the knife deeper. “How long have you known?”

She hesitated, and I saw the answer in her eyes before she spoke. “A… a week. But Em, I swear, I tried to fight it. I told Damien we couldn't—”

“A week?” My voice rose hysterically. “You've known for a week and you didn't tell me? You let me go on planning my wedding, picking out flowers and writing my vows, when you knew it was all for nothing?”

Seraphina's tears flowed freely now. “I'm so sorry, Em. We didn't know how to tell you. We thought maybe if we ignored it—”

“We?” I spat the word like poison. “So you and Damien have been what, sneaking around behind my back? Planning your future while pretending to support mine?”

“No!” She cried, reaching for me again. “It wasn't like that, I swear. We were trying to figure out how to handle this without hurting you.”

A bitter laugh escaped me. “Well, a bang-up job you did there. I'm not hurt at all. I'm just losing my mate, my best friend, and my entire pack in one day. No big deal, right?”

Her face paled. “What do you mean, losing your pack?”

The pain in my chest intensified as I repeated Damien's cold words. “He's banishing me, Sera. Said it would be ‘easier for everyone’ if I just left.”

“He can't do that,” she whispered, horror etched across her face. “Em, I'll talk to him. We'll figure something out. You can't become a rogue, it's too dangerous.”

Her concern, which once would have warmed my heart, now felt like acid on an open wound. “Oh, now you care? Where was this concern when you were sneaking around with my fiancé?”

“That's not fair!” Seraphina snapped, her own temper finally flaring. “Do you think this has been easy for me? Realizing I'm mated to the man my best friend loves? Knowing that regardless of what I do, I'm going to hurt someone I care about?”

The rational part of me knew she had a point. Fated mates were rare and sacred in our world. Fighting the bond was nearly impossible and often led to physical and emotional agony for both parties. But the wounded, betrayed part of me couldn't accept it.

“You could have told me,” I hissed, my fists clenching at my sides. “You could have given me time to prepare, to brace myself. Instead, you let me walk into that room like a lamb to slaughter.”

Her eyes flashed. “And what good would that have done? Would it have hurt any less if you'd known a few days earlier? Would you have graciously stepped aside and wished us well?”

"I deserved the chance to try!” I shouted, my control finally snapping. Before I realized what I was doing, my hands were on Seraphina's shoulders. I shoved her hard.

She stumbled backward, her eyes wide with shock. But instead of stopping, she tripped over the edge of the rug. I watched in horror as she fell, her head connecting with the corner of the coffee table with a sickening thud.

For a moment, everything was silent. She lay motionless on the floor, a thin trickle of blood running from her head. The sight twisted my stomach in knots.

“Sera?” I whispered, taking a shaky step forward. “Sera, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—”

The door burst open with a bang, making me jump. Damien stood in the doorway, his eyes wild and his chest heaving. He must have felt Seraphina's pain through their new bond.