Losing Ashley felt like my soul was torn apart.
The moment that silver bond—our link—snapped completely on the altar at the Pack Council Hall, the pain was unbearable. It was like a thousand rusty blades slicing through my insides. My wolf howled, this heart-wrenching, gut-deep cry of despair that swallowed me whole. I couldn't even breathe properly. Every single breath I managed to drag in burned like fire tearing through my lungs.
God, this pain was going to kill me.
After the ceremony, I stumbled back to the dim study in Blackwood Manor and locked the door behind me. The darker the room got, the brighter the memories of Ashley came crashing back, each one clearer and more vivid than the last.
The way she used to prepare breakfast for me in the morning sunlight, her gentle
