Chapter 5: The Man I Left Behind

The Royal Castle carriage reached the capital’s northern gate just after sunrise.

From there, Princess Helena’s convoy would travel directly toward the Pinehaven Pack and the mountains surrounding Highmoor.

I sat quietly by the window, watching the familiar streets disappear behind us.

I thought I would feel heartbroken.

Instead, I felt strangely calm.

Perhaps six years of disappointment had already exhausted all the tears I had left.

The royal courier returned from the Mercer estate before we reached the mountain road.

He handed me a small envelope.

“Miss Langford, the Mercer family has received your papers.”

I took the envelope but didn’t open it.

“Did Gavin say anything?”

The courier hesitated.

“Mr. Mercer asked where you were going.”

I smiled faintly.

“And what did you tell him?”

“That you were traveling with Princess Helena to Highmoor.”

My fingers tightened around the envelope.

For six years, Gavin had always assumed I would be waiting whenever he finally decided to turn back.

This time, he would have to discover that I was no longer there.

A few hours later, the carriage stopped at a royal station where the other nine women selected for the program were waiting.

Some were daughters of influential Alphas. Others came from smaller Packs and had spent years working in local relief programs.

I introduced myself quietly and took a seat near the back.

None of them knew me personally, but they had all heard the rumors.

One young woman glanced at my left hand and then quickly looked away.

I almost laughed.

Even without my engagement ring, everyone knew who I was.

The woman beside her whispered, “Isn’t she Gavin Mercer’s fiancée?”

“Ex-fiancée,” another corrected.

I pretended not to hear them.

Then the carriage door opened.

Princess Helena stepped inside.

The entire cabin immediately fell silent.

She was younger than I had expected, but there was nothing fragile about her presence. Her silver-gray eyes moved across the carriage before settling on each of us.

“For the next three years, you will not be guests of the Royal Castle,” she said. “You will be servants of the Packs.”

“There will be no special treatment. There will be no private escapes to the capital whenever you miss home. You will work, learn, and live alongside people who need your help.”

Her gaze stopped on me for a moment longer than the others.

“If anyone believes they cannot endure this, you may leave now.”

No one moved.

Princess Helena nodded.

“Good. Then let us begin.”

The journey to Highmoor took nearly two days.

As the mountains rose around us, the air became colder and cleaner.

For the first time in years, no one was asking me to understand Evelyn.

No one was telling me to wait for Gavin.

No one was reminding me that I was a sister before I was a woman.

I realized I had forgotten what it felt like to belong only to myself.

When we finally reached the Sanctuary, I stepped out of the carriage and looked up at the ancient stone buildings hidden among the pine trees.

Highmoor was nothing like the luxurious estates of the capital.

There were no glittering chandeliers or extravagant banquets.

There were only mountains, snow-covered rooftops, quiet courtyards, and hundreds of years of peace records preserved inside the Sanctuary’s archives.

Princess Helena handed me my assignment.

“Celia Langford. Peace archive division.”

I looked at the document.

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

She studied me for a moment.

“You’re the one who dissolved her engagement before entering the Sanctuary.”

My heart gave a small twist.

“Yes.”

“Do you regret it?”

I looked toward the distant mountains.

“Not yet.”

A faint smile appeared on her face.

“Good answer.”

That evening, I unpacked the few belongings I had brought with me.

There was no wedding dress.

No engagement ring.

No box of Gavin’s gifts.

I had left all of it behind.

I opened my window and let the cold mountain air into the room.

My wolf stretched lazily inside me, unusually peaceful.

For the first time in years, she wasn’t restless whenever Gavin was far away.

She didn’t seem to be waiting for him either.

I touched the place where my engagement ring had once rested.

Then I whispered, “We’re free.”

Far away in the capital, Gavin Mercer was probably still expecting me to come back.

But the girl who had spent six years waiting for him had already disappeared somewhere on the road to Highmoor.