The sounds began to fade into a dull hum as Nathan collapsed into the dirt, shorn of his dignity. A single, hot tear welled in his eye and traced a path down his cheek. He touched the moisture, his fingers trembling. He had actually shed the tears of a broken wolf.
In the silence of his shame, the shards of Thea’s intention began to pierce his mind. He had once mocked her for her low-born origins, for her time begging on the bridge. Only today, under the weight of his own humiliation, did he realize how his casual cruelty had scarred her spirit.
He finally looked at the ghost of their relationship with clear eyes. His "superiority" was nothing but a superficial illusion granted by his sire’s status. Without the pack's protection, he was lesser than Thea. She had carried more integrity in
