Chapter 8 A Painful Farewell

The moon was full in the nighttime sky, casting a soft, pale glow on the Bloodfang territory. Jessie stood at the edges of the pack's borders, her heart heavy with the decision she had made. The cool night air was sinking its teeth into her skin, but she barely noticed. All she could feel was the ache in her chest, the pressure of leaving everything she had come to care about.

Bloodfang had become her home, Lucas her second chance at happiness. But now that happiness was tainted with the looming shadow of Cade. He was coming, and no matter how much Lucas reassured her that they could fight him off, Jessie knew the truth. Cade wasn't just coming for Bloodfang. He was coming for her. And if she stayed, the pack would suffer. People would die because of her.

She couldn't live with that.

With a heavy sigh, Jessie readjusted the small pack slung over her shoulder. Lightly packed, there were only essentials: clothes, a few personal items, and one photo of her and Lucas taken only weeks ago. Now, the smile on her face in that photo was suddenly hazy, almost as though it was a moment of peace that she could no longer grasp onto.

I'm so sorry, Lucas," she whispered to herself, the words barely audible over the soft rustling of the trees. "But I simply cannot stay.".

Her eyes strayed to the distant packhouse, its windows black as the pack slept. For one moment, she considered returning, running to Lucas's arms and spilling all her fears out to him: telling him she couldn't stand the thought of Bloodfang's destruction on her behalf; telling him she cared for him too much to watch him wage a war of her making.

But she knew that Lucas would never let her go. He would fight for her, for the pack, until his last breath. And it was that thought which really terrified her.

Jessie gave one last look at the place she had grown to love, a place that had given her hope and a new beginning. Then, taking a deep breath, she turned and stepped across the border, leaving Bloodfang behind.

The human town was quiet as Jessie walked its streets, the echo of her footsteps caught between pavement and sky. She'd picked a town far from any werewolf territory, hoping to disappear among the humans-to fall into the background where no one would know who she was or what she'd been through. It was a small, unremarkable place-the kind of town where people went about their lives without concern for the supernatural world lurking just beyond their borders.

That was what Jessie needed now-anonymity. A life wherein she did not have to worry about being hunted by Cade or the dangers of pack politics. A place where, finally, she would be able to find some peace, at least, away from living among humans.

She found a small motel at the edge of the town, the sort of place that didn't ask questions. Its neon sign flickered weakly in the night, while the parking lot, save for a couple of old cars, was about empty. Jessie approached the front desk, a wearied smile upon her face as she asked for a room.

The clerk was a middle-aged man with graying hair and tired eyes. He hardly looked at her before he handed her a key. "Room twelve," he growled, his voice hoarse from years of cigarette smoke.

Jessie nodded her thanks and went down the dim hallway to her room. It wasn't much-a small bed, a worn chair, and a tiny bathroom-but it was enough. Enough for a person who wanted to disappear.

She threw her bag onto the bed, sat herself down in the chair; her hands were shaking as reality began to set in. She had left Bloodfang. She had left Lucas.

A single tear rolled down her cheek, and Jessie swiped at it quickly, forcing down the desperate sorrow building inside her until it threatened to overwhelm her. This was for the best, she reminded herself. She was leaving to protect them-to keep Lucas safe.

That didn't make it any easier.

Jessie leaned back in the chair, staring at the ceiling while her mind was racing with what was going to happen next. Cade would come for Bloodfang, and without her there, maybe-just maybe-he would lose interest. Maybe the pack would be spared. Maybe Lucas would be spared.

She closed her eyes, willing herself to cling to that tenuous hope. But deep down, she knew Cade too well. He would never give up. Not until he had her.

And that was why she needed to keep her existence hidden. Among the humans, far away from the world of werewolves, was where she needed to live-so Cade wouldn't find her. Where she could cease running.

But even as she told herself this was the right thing to do, a part of her heart remained tied to Bloodfang-to Lucas, to the life she'd started to build.

"Goodbye," she whispered into an empty room, voice breaking.

Jessie lay down on the bed, her exhaustion finally overtaking her as sleep dragged her down into the dark. But even in her dreams, she couldn't avoid the fact that she was leaving a part of herself.