Page 22 of The Alpha's Shattered Bonds

I undressed and stepped into the spray of hot water, closing my eyes and willing the water to wash away my guilt and longing for Tyler, something that still echoed through me despite the bond being gone.

Thankfully, I ducked out of the house without seeing him. I rushed through my morning, feeling strangely robotic as if on autopilot—a pattern that continued daily. Each dawn, I leaped into my work, brewing teas to fend off the illness that was still holding the Silver Moon warriors in its grip, losing myself in the world of herbs and healing.

Despite doing everything I could to help the ill Silver Moon packmates, the pack’s resentment remained as entrenched as ever. One morning, as I hurried through the crisp morning air on my way to the infirmary, I spotted a pair of Silver Moon warriors—Justin and Hudson—changing shifts for their patrol. Their hackles rose in unison as they passed, casting me icy glares that sent a shiver racing down my spine. Such reminders that I was still an outsider, shunned by most, were constant.

Yet, as I came into the infirmary, a chipper voice reminded me that not everyone was the same. “Morning, Seraphina!”

“Hey, Tara,” I replied with a smile. The young warrior of just eighteen sat at Neave’s bedside, one of the patients still afflicted by the illness. My heart lightened as she beamed at me.

She’d been dropping in to visit the Silver Moon warriors regularly. She was part of the patrol, one of only two females along with Neave, whose strength and training had been honed to the point where she was a valued member of the warrior wolves.

Tara had told me that Neave’s encouragement had led her to aspire to the patrol. I knew Tara had moved in with Neave and Ollie when she’d been orphaned at a very young age. Tara was like family to them, I supposed, in a similar way I was to Tyler. I knew she empathized with me in a way that hardly anyone else could, having experienced losing both parents, too.

“Would you let me practice a new hairstyle on you?” Tara asked, her eyes filled with friendliness.

The request caught me off guard, but warmth blossomed in my chest. Over the last couple of years, I had cherished the moments spent with Selina, who would brush and braid my hair, a common pastime for females of any pack, mimicking the grooming rituals of our wolves. And before Selina, it hadn’t been since my mom brushed my hair that I’d experienced that kind of bond.

“Sure, I’d love that,” I managed, a smile breaking through the fog of my lingering sadness.

Late that afternoon, another friendly face dropped into the infirmary to see me.

Elder Carl entered with a smile for me. “That new texts we requested from Silver Moon University have arrived, Seraphina.”

In addition to my work in the infirmary, I’d been spending most evenings in the library, hoping to find a long-term herbal remedy that might cure the pack of this illness. Elder Carl had been helping me request books. I was still affiliated with Silver Moon University, but it was only elders and alphas who could request the more ancient texts that I suspected were where a cure might be found.

A thrill shot through me. “Amazing. Thank you, Carl.”

Carl waved my thanks aside with a hand. “You’re the one who should be thanked, my dear,” he said, a twinkle lighting his aged blue eyes, his wrinkled and weather-mottled face, making me think of the old books and their worn parchment I couldn’t wait to see.

Elder Carl joined me, and we swiftly navigated our way to the library. The scent of aged paper greeted me like an old friend, igniting memories of my teenage years spent pouring over the books housed in our pack’s modest library. The glow from the soft green library lamps illuminated the pages cursive script as we poured over the books together.

Hours passed in a blur of study, my gaze drinking in the lines of ancient herbal wisdom. Finally, I came across an account detailing a herb that had cured an illness spread with dark magic in a shifter community in the nineteenth century. Hope pounded through me. I looked at the picture of the herb more carefully and felt a prickle of recognition, remembering a trek that Mom and I had taken up the Nuvuja Mountains in my childhood. This rare plant, known as jedra, grew on the forested slopes of our mountain.

“I found something!” I exclaimed, elation ringing in my voice.

But my celebration was short-lived as I looked up to catch sight of Logan—his hulking form lurching out of the stacks at my exclamation. He glowered at me, his scrutiny stark against this newfound hopefulness in my chest.

I could see from Logan’s alert body language that, as usual, he suspected I was up to no good. No doubt, he’d want to follow me. With that thought in mind, I excused myself from Carl loudly. “I better go tell Tyler about this.”

As I hurried back through the snow, thoughts of going off and handling this by myself took root. I could pick up some supplies and slip off to the mountains before anyone missed me. The night was only just falling, and I knew I could pick up my harvesting stuff, pack it away in the bag Selina gifted me, and take off in wolf form up the mountain. I was returning earlier than usual, and with any luck, Tyler would still be out on pack duties, too.

But, opening the door, Tyler was seated at the kitchen table, a steaming mug warming his hands while he scribbled in a notebook. His bright blue eyes widened in surprise, and he shot to his feet.

“Are you all right?” he blurted out, worry quickly blanketing his handsome face.

He’d gotten so used to me returning late that he assumed only trouble would bring me back early. A mixture of frustration and guilt washed through me.

“Everything’s fine,” I assured him.

He looked at me quizzically, his gaze brushing over me, and I knew there was no way I was going to be able to slip out with my bag of supplies without an explanation.

I forced myself to explain, “I’ve had a good breakthrough in the library. Elder Carl requested some texts to research herbs that might contain more long-term curatives for the Silver Moon warriors. We think we’ve found a potential herb.” I swallowed hard, my pulse quickening under his watchful gaze. “Jedra—it grows on the mountains. It’s rare, but I’ve found it in the forested peaks with my mom years ago.”

Tyler’s expression transformed, determination igniting in his cerulean eyes. “That’s great news! If we set out soon, we should make base camp before midnight,” he declared, his steps and movements already purposeful as he carried his mug to the sink.

Alarm bells rang in my mind. I didn’t want him to come with me. “I’d like to search for the herb alone. I only came back to grab my harvesting supplies,” I insisted, striving to hold onto my resolve.

Tyler’s expression went rigid as he turned around to face me. “Absolutely not.” His voice was firm and unwavering. “I’m going with you, Seraphina.”

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