Chapter 0146


    “You don’t have to do this,” he says softly, as if finally realizing the finality of this moment.


    “I know. I want to.”


    He steps back, giving me space to walk away. For a second, our eyes meet, and in that moment, I see


    a flicker of the man I once knew, the man I once thought was changing for the better. But it’s toote for


    that now.


    I turn away, and without another word, I make my way into the station. I hand my ticket over to the


    attendant and find my way onto the train, settling into a seat that offers a clear view of the tform.


    Karl’s there, standing in the same spot, watching me with his hands in his pockets. Our eyes meet one


    shrinking outline of past mistakes and broken trust, until he''s just a blur in the distance.


    I lean back in my seat, close my eyes, and exhale a breath I didn’t know I was holding. I don’t know


    whates next, but one thing’s for certain: I can’t let Karl in again. Not now, not ever. And honestly,


    it’s my fault that I ever let him back in to begin with.


    The train lurches forward, gaining momentum as it pulls away from the tform. I can’t help but nce


    out of the window onest time. Karl still stands there, his figure bing a mere speck in the


    distance. A twinge of guilt tugs at me, but I push it aside. This is the path I’ve chosen; there’s no turning


    back now.


    Just as I’m settling into that thought, a sudden rush of sensation floods me—a pulse of energy, a primal


    awareness that jolts my senses alive.


    My wolf. After all these years, she’s back.


    “What the hell are you doing?” I can feel her thoughts meshing with mine, both familiar and foreign after


    all this time.


    I’m too shocked to formte a coherent response. “You… You’ve been dormant for years, and now you


    decide to show up? Why?”


    “I was heartbroken,” she replies. “When you chose to move forward without me, without us, I retreated.


    But I never lost hope. I thought maybe one day the two of you would work it out, and we could be whole


    again.”


    Her words areced with a bitterness that stings. “And you chose toe back now? When I’m leaving


    Karl?”


    “Exactly. You’re leaving our fated mate, Abby. Do you not realize what you’re doing right now?”


    “Karl hasn’t been our mate for years. And besides, that ship has sailed. I thought that there might be


    the tiniest chance of us working things out, but not now. Not after what he did.”


    My wolf lets out a low growl. “And what exactly did he do that’spletely unforgivable?”


    “He manipted my life, bribed someone into leaving me. He tried to control me, just like old times.”


    For a moment, there''s silence. Then she snarls, a ripple of anger that races through me, electrifying


    and terrifying all at once. “So you’re giving up. You’re not giving him a chance to exin?”


    “There’s nothing to exin,” I say, stifling a scoff as I stare out the window at the passing scenery. “He


    meddled in my life. He lied.”


    “You’re making a mistake, Abby. A huge mistake.”


    “And what?” I ask. “You’re the authority in my life now? You’ve been gone, remember?”


    “Yes, and maybe that was a mistake too. But I can’t be a part of this. I can’t be a part of a life where we


    make decisions that break us, that shatter the bonds meant to sustain us.”


    “So what are you saying?”


    “I’m saying goodbye, Abby. Again.”


    And just like that, she’s gone. The sensations, the heightened awareness, all of it fades away like a


    dream upon waking.


    I’m left sitting there, hollow, like a vital piece of me has been carved out, leaving only an empty cavity.