The Lunar Curse: A Second Chance With Alpha Draven Chapter 512: Understanding Required Space

The moment Draven took another step further away, the mate bond reacted.

It wasn’t pain this time, it was pressure.

Meredith felt it first—a sudden tightness in her chest that forced the breath from her lungs. She staggered back a step, fingers curling into the fabric of her dress as her knees weakened.

Inside her, Valmora surged in alert, guarded. "

Meanwhile, across the clearing, Draven slowed abruptly. His spine stiffened, breath hitching as a sharp, unfamiliar tension wrapped around his ribs—as if an invisible thread had been pulled too tight, too fast.

Rhovan bristled inside him, hackles raised, instinct screaming warning without explanation.

Draven pressed a hand briefly to his chest, brows furrowing. "What in the—"

Neither of them, Meredith or Draven, turned back. Neither of them understood it yet.

But the bond, newly strained by withheld truths and unspoken hurt, had begun to push back. However, it wasn’t to punish them, but to demand resolution.

Meredith swallowed hard, steadying herself against the nearest tree, heart racing as the sensation slowly eased.

It wasn’t pain that hit her; this was what unsettled her most.

she whispered aloud this time.

Inside her, the wolf stirred slowly. Valmora said calmly,

Meredith swallowed. Her throat felt dry

The word landed like a stone.

Meredith’s breath caught. she echoed.

Valmora cut in firmly.

Meredith slid down until she was sitting at the base of the tree, arms wrapping around herself without realizing it. Her fingers trembled.

she said quietly.

Valmora’s presence pressed closer, steady and anchoring.

she explained.

Meredith closed her eyes.

Valmora finished.

Her heart pounded harder.

Meredith’s chest constricted.

The confirmation made something twist sharply inside her. Guilt surged, hot and suffocating.

Meredith said hoarsely.

Valmora did not soften her voice. she continued.

Silence stretched for a moment as Meredith’s eyes burned.

Valmora said, quieter now.

Meredith dragged a hand down her face.

Valmora paused, as if considering something ancient.

Meredith’s breath stuttered.

Her head snapped up.

Valmora met her fear without flinching. she said.

Meredith’s shoulders sagged as the weight of everything pressed down on her at once.

she said, her voice breaking despite her effort to keep it steady.

Her fingers clenched in her skirts.

Valmora remained still within her, listening.

Meredith continued, her breath hitching. Her voice dropped to a whisper.

For the first time since the bond reaction, Valmora’s presence softened. she said firmly.

Meredith shook her head.

Valmora corrected.

Meredith’s breath slowed slightly.

Valmora continued,

Meredith swallowed hard.

Valmora admitted.

Meredith’s lips trembled.

For a long moment, Valmora said nothing. Then—

Meredith frowned. "

Valmora replied.

Meredith’s pulse spiked.

The words struck like thunder.

Meredith stiffened.

Valmora interrupted calmly.

Meredith stood abruptly

Valmora said quietly,

Meredith’s chest tightened painfully.

Valmora said. It wasn’t a question.

Meredith hesitated. Then, slowly, she nodded.

Valmora’s presence shifted—detaching, stretching, moving through the bond in a way Meredith had never felt before. Purposeful.

Valmora said as she withdrew.

Meredith stood alone among the trees, heart racing, as the last echo of her wolf slipped away, heading toward Draven.

Then, she released a long, unsteady breath. The silence that followed felt heavier than before.

She stood there for a moment, unmoving, her chest rising and falling as restlessness gnawed at her from the inside.

Staying still felt unbearable, and thinking felt worse. So, she turned and walked deeper into the woods.

The trees thinned gradually, the ground sloping downward until the sound of water reached her ears.