The Heartbroken Luna's Choice Banish Love novel Chapter 12

**Where Soft Light Shines, Darkness Fades From Tired Hearts by Evan Holt Crane**
**Chapter 12**

**Trista’s POV**

Once I had completed the discharge paperwork, I found myself standing beside my mother, waiting for the elevator to arrive. The sterile scent of the hospital lingered in the air, mingling with the faint sound of distant conversations.

At last, the elevator doors slid open with a metallic sigh, parting the throng of anxious visitors and patients like a curtain.

And then I saw him.

Cassian was positioned at an angle, his body partially turned, as if instinctively shielding Samantha from the chaos around them. His arm formed a protective barrier, a sturdy arc that kept her safe from the jostling crowd.

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In that instant, I felt the familiar stir of the mating bond deep within me—a gentle tremor, like the brush of a feather against my ribs—before it sank back into the cold abyss of my heart.

Our eyes locked for a brief, electrifying moment across the sea of faces, and I felt the weight of unspoken words hanging in the air between us.

With a sudden rush of urgency, I turned away and pressed the ‘Call’ button for the other elevator. “It’s too crowded,” I murmured to my parents, my voice barely above a whisper.

It had been days since I had set foot in the Healing Center or the pack territory.

The day I fled from the shopping center, I had switched off my comm-stone, retreating into the depths of the Shadow Forest, seeking solitude.

The wind whispered secrets, carrying the earthy scent of moss and damp wood. Yet, the pain within me was unbearable, as if my very essence was being torn apart, inch by inch, behind my ribs.

I craved clarity, but the agony was relentless, making it impossible to reign in my wolf.

Finally, I found myself next to an ancient tree root, and in a moment of surrender, I allowed my wolf to emerge fully, shedding my human form.

My bones stretched and reshaped themselves, igniting my nerves with fiery sparks. I dashed through the lowlands under the moonlit sky, my pheromones trailing like a flicker of light amidst the shadows.

Every breath felt like inhaling through a wound, each gasp sending a shiver through my body. My wolf emitted a mournful moan from deep within, a sound that echoed the pain I was trying to suppress. I fought against the urge to howl, knowing that this place was far from the safety of our borders. Any sound could draw unwanted attention.

Yet, that night, fate had other plans, and I encountered a rogue.

It wasn’t an Alpha or a beta. Its scent was a mixture of dried blood and the dust of a life spent wandering aimlessly.

It circled me cautiously, then lunged into my blind spot, catching me off guard.

As I dodged its attack, I felt the weakness of my wolf, the remnants of the broken mating bond weighing me down. My nerves faltered, and my claw barely managed to graze its throat, but its powerful hind legs sent me crashing into the bushes.

In the next round, I unleashed my aura, but the rogue charged right through the pressure I had exerted.

In the third round, the moonlight illuminated its eyes, revealing a creature devoid of pack, vow, or bond. Yet, I felt an invisible string pulling me back, as if every heartbeat was tethered to something lost.

With a surge of determination, I bit into its shoulder, forcing it to retreat. But in doing so, I inflicted two deep gashes on my own back ribs.

The metallic scent of blood filled the air, and I chased it to the edge of the riverbank, kicking it into the water with all my strength.

When it emerged, the rogue had lost its will to fight and vanished into the darkness, leaving me alone.

I stumbled to the edge of Mirror Lake, collapsing onto the cold, damp grass. My pheromones had all but faded, leaving me vulnerable and exposed.

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