Caleb's POV
Marriage? The word hits me like a slap to the face.
The memory of her death haunts me still, though I've never spoken about that day to anyone. The shame cuts too deep, the guilt too raw. She didn't simply die because I claimed her - she died because I became something monstrous, something that couldn't be controlled.
Her final moments replay in my mind like a broken record. The terror that filled her eyes as my wolf took over completely. I can barely recall the curve of her smile or the exact shade of her hair, but that look of pure fear before the light left her eyes? That's burned into my soul forever.
Sometimes I wonder if what I felt was genuine love or just the intoxicating idea of being accepted. She knew exactly what kind of beast I was, yet she stayed. She held onto me like I was her lifeline, as if letting go meant certain death.
In the end, she died while still clinging to me.
