Bonds

-Maya's POV-

Have you ever gotten to that point in your life where it feels like everything you built, everything you held dear, just crumbled around you, leaving nothing but a pile of smoking ruins? I shouldn't have asked because I know the answer. At some point, everyone has felt that way but I didn't think it would ever get to this point. Except, that's exactly where I stood, tears blurring my vision as I stared at the wreckage before me.

Except, it wasn't just the building or the blood on the concrete. It was... well, everything else. It was everything that had imploded in the aftermath of that stupid, impulsive kiss with Alex. I wouldn't lie and say I didn't know why I did it. Natalia had spelled it out for me an hour ago, calling me a selfish bitch after she told me she didn't ever want to ever see me again.

Nothing, not a single thing, not the rejection, not when my father told me he hated me, had hurt me more than the moment those words left her lips and she turned her back on me. The worst part? I deserved it. Every ounce of her anger, every bit of her hurt, I had earned it all. And it was all because of him.

Here I stood, lost and confused, with no idea where to even begin to pick up the pieces. Maybe, I thought, I should rewind. Go back to that moment before everything spiraled out of control. Go back to the beginning. Right after the kiss.

In that single, stolen moment, all I could think about was how strangely perfect it felt. Our lips were fused, and it was like his whole being was pouring into mine. I never wanted to let go, to disconnect from that feeling. But then, slowly, the reality of the situation started to seep in, and with a jolt, I pushed him away.

We stared at each other, both panting for breath. "Amaya," he whispered, his voice thick with something I couldn't decipher. "I-"

But I didn't want to hear it. I didn't want to hear whatever excuse or apology he was about to offer. So I did what I do best - I ran. I was a master at running away from my problems, a hypocrite through and through. And that's exactly what I did. Iran.

That was the beginning of the end.

I tried reaching out to Ivan again, desperate for some kind of reassurance, some validation that maybe I wasn't the horrible person I felt like. But he was still out of reach, his phone going straight to voicemail.

Two days later, the first blow landed. Pictures. Pictures of me and Alex, locked in that damning kiss, plastered all over my computer screen. I'd made plenty of mistakes in my life, but as I realized then, pushing whoever was behind the blackmail to the back of my mind had been a colossal error in judgement.

The threats only escalated from there. This person, whoever they were, was relentless. They were determined to destroy everything - my marriage, my reputation, my life. I naively thought that was the worst it could get. But oh, how wrong I was.

One week later, the world went into a frenzy. The news broke, splattered across every screen and headline imaginable. It wasn't about me, thank Goddess but it was way worse. It was a video. A video of a man, a stranger, someone I'd never met and would never get the chance to meet because he was shot dead right after it happened. Shot dead right after he transformed. Transformed. Into a werewolf.

I was at Natalia's house when the news broke. She was the only one left who I could turn to. I needed her help, needed a plan to stop this blackmailer before they destroyed my life. But the news changed everything. The world knew.

The entire goddamn world knew that werewolves existed.

The world went nuts after that. Humans started hunting us down like monsters in the night, calling us all sorts of names. Riots erupted everywhere. Every unsolved death, every unexplained attack from the past few years, they were all getting pinned on us now. Werewolves were scrambling to disappear, to find somewhere safe to hide.

Nobody was safe.

The fear in the humans was like a rabid dog, driving them to do crazy things. Buildings were burning, shops getting looted. It was complete and utter pandemonium. For the first time ever, my father actually spoke to me without spitting fire. He even went so far as to assign some wolves from the pack for my protection and let the twins stay at the house with my mother saying it would be safer for them there.

I didn't understand what had gotten into him but it was something I chose to worry about later.

Ivan was still a ghost, unreachable. The worry was eating me alive, making me want to tear my hair out. Alex? Nobody had heard a peep from him until the biggest bomb of all hit the media. It spread like wildfire - faster than anything I'd ever seen. Every headline screamed the same thing:ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

Alex Thorne: The Billionaire Werewolf.

It wasn't even a full day before the riots started. People were swarming his hotels, his restaurants, his company headquarters - setting everything on fire, smashing windows, tearing it all down.

And then, like a fool, I went and made the biggest mistake of my entire life. I had to know he was okay. My wolf surged with adrenaline, and just like Chapter 121

always, I ran straight into the fire. Natalia begged me not to go, warned me about the dangers of venturing out with crazed humans rampaging through the city. But I didn't listen. I just bolted, straight for his company building.

What I didn't know was that Nate had followed me. He must have seen me take off and decided to come after me. He was still my best friend afterall. The next thing I knew, I was pushing through a throng of bodies, the air thick with tension and smoke, when someone attacked me from behind.

Nate. He reacted instinctively, shoving me aside and shifting right there to protect me. A gunshot rang out, sharp and sudden. It hit him. Nate. The bullet tore through him, and he crumpled to the ground.

I'd never forget the look of pure terror in Natalia's eyes when she arrived at that exact moment just as Nate's body hit the ground. We bothO M ve scrambled to his side, the world tilting on its axis. He was bleeding out, fast. I reached out a hand, desperate to touch him, to do something, anything. But Natalia shoved me back, her face a mask of fury.

Tears streamed down my face as the scene replayed on a loop in my head. "You just don't know when to stop, do you?" she screamed, her voice raw with a mixture of grief and rage. "Are you happy now?"

"Natalia, I-

"Shut up! Shut up, Amaya! Just shut the hell up!" Her voice broke, her words a torrent of pain. "Are you happy? You just couldn't leave Alex alone, and look what happened! I told you not to come out here. He came after you because of you, and now he's dying!"

I looked down at Nate, his lifeblood staining the concrete. My own tears mixed with hers, blurring my vision.

He coughed, a spray of blood crupting from his mouth. Natalia cradled him in her arms, her own tears flowing freely. “Shh, it's okay,” she whispered, her voice thick with love. "Everything's going to be fine. Hold on for me."

I sat there on the ground, numb, watching as a car rushed them away. My body felt like lead, my mind a tangled mess. Natalia's voice, laced with venom, echoed in the now-silent street. She was going off on everything I'd done wrong, everything that led to this moment. But all I could do was cry, a choked sob escaping my lips every few seconds.

Just before the car disappeared, she stood before me, her eyes red-rimmed and filled with pain so intense it took my breath away. "You are a selfish bitch, Amaya," she spat, her voice trembling. "And I never want to see you again."

Her words hung in the air, a heavy weight settling on my chest. The world spun, the accusations swirling around me like a dark storm.

I was alone.

Completely and utterly alone.

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