No Past, No Pain, No Return Chapter 07

No Past, No Pain, No Return Chapter 07

**POV:** Serena Moore

I’ve been on a remote island in neutral Lycan territory for six months.

The cancer was a misdiagnosis.

But those two months of fear were real.

I didn’t want them to worry. I carried it alone.

Every day, I thought about what I needed to do before I died. So they wouldn’t be too sad.

Funny. I was just being dramatic.

Someone took the book off my face. Sunlight hit my eyes.

When I saw who it was, I sat up.

“You didn’t say you were coming this weekend.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Not happy to see me? I’ll leave?”

I couldn’t answer. So I changed the subject.

“Have you eaten?”

He sighed. “No. I’m hungry. Make me some pasta.”

I nodded and went to the kitchen.

He lay down in my spot and read my book.

Theo Ashford. My former junior colleague.

I worked with him for two years before I found out he was the Ashford Family heir.

The Ashford Family owns the biggest Lycan business empire on the continent.

Theo hid his identity. He just wanted to work.

Then, at my mating ceremony, he gave me a five-hundred-thousand-dollar gift.

I was shocked. “You made that much in two years of work?”

He grinned.

“You always took care of me. Getting some money from my family is the least I can do.”

When I transferred to the northern border, he insisted on coming.

“I don’t care. I’m following you.”

When my stomach hurt, he scheduled the exam. He drove me to the hospital.

When the healer said it might be cancer, he went red-eyed before I could react.

“Serena, why do you work so hard?”

“I’ll use every resource of the Ashford Family. I’ll find the best healer in the world for you.”

I couldn’t pretend anymore.

I looked at him. “Theo. I’m mated.”

He smiled bitterly.

“I know. I was at your ceremony. You and your fated mate have been together since you were sixteen. Deep feelings. You just see me as a little brother. I’m not even qualified to be the other man.”

I laughed.

Before he could find a healer, Vanessa went into early labor.

I rushed back to Silvercrest Pack. I found out Vanessa’s mystery boyfriend was my mate.

My mother, to protect her adopted daughter, told everyone her biological daughter—me, Serena Moore—had died at twelve.

When I watched her video, my stomach hurt so badly I thought I’d die.

Theo called.

“Where are you? Are you okay?”

He heard something was wrong. He came and got me. He brought me to neutral Lycan territory.

This remote island was Ashford Family property.

He told me to rest. Then he left in a hurry.

The next morning, he came back with a medical team. The best healers on the continent, he said.

They ran tests. After multiple rounds, the results came back. The cancer diagnosis was wrong.

Theo took a deep breath. He was quiet for a long time.

Then he hugged me. He buried his face in my shoulder and cried like a pup.

“That day, I don’t know why. My heart started racing. I knew something was wrong. So I called.”

“The Moon Goddess must have told me. Otherwise, you never would have asked for help, would you?”

No.

If he hadn’t shown up, I might have chosen a different way out.

I walked through death’s door and came back. The hatred faded. The betrayal stopped hurting.

Theo saved me. No doubt about it.

I didn’t know how to thank him. I just did whatever he asked.

When I finished making the pasta, I went to get him. He was already asleep.

Dark circles under his eyes.

I let him sleep. When he woke up, I made a fresh batch.

He wolfed it down.

“Sorry. I’ve been so busy lately.”

Watching his tired smile, I felt a pang of pity.

Then he seemed to make up his mind. He tried to sound casual.

“Caleb Calloway came to see me. He seems sure I know where you are. Probably because of the fated bond.”

My heart sank. I thought for a moment.

“I’ll go back with you.”

“I’m going to sever the bond.”