nce-violent clash between Mary and the prince of the werewolves had finally subsided, leaving only the sound of their labored breathing in the aftermath. Luke stood a few paces away from Mary, h

pression hard, almost unreadable. Her hair was wild from the battle, and her clothes were torn, bloodstained, but her eyes... those eyes were still as fierce as ever. They locked with his, and for a moment, he thought he saw something shift. Something vulnerable. But just as quickly as it appeared, it was gone, buried beneath a mask of indifference. "Why did you come back?" she asked, her voice softer than before, but still holding an edge of something Luke couldn't quite place. Luke swallowed, his throat dry, and stepped closer, though he kept his distance. "You were losing. I couldn't just leave you there," he said, his voice steady despite the conflict swirling inside him. "You needed me." A brief silence followed, stretching between them, thick with unspoken words. Mary didn't respond immediately. Instead, she wiped the blood from her hands, her gaze never leaving his. When she finally spoke, her tone was colder than before, almost distant. "I didn't need saving," she said sharply, her jaw set. "I never have." Luke nodded, even though a part of him wanted to argue. But he knew better than to press her when she was like this. She wasn't a damsel to be saved. She was a force of nature, a woman shaped by the darkest of circumstances. And though he wanted to hold her, to tell her that he would always fight for her, he knew that right now, she didn't need that. She needed something different. Something he wasn't sure he could give her. "Then why did you fight so hard?" Luke asked, his voice softer now, probing. "Why keep pushing if it wasn't for the cause?" Mary's gaze flickered for a second, and Luke saw the vulnerability in her eyes again. She closed her eyes for a moment, as though trying to banish the emotions that threatened to spill over. "I fight because there's nothing else left for me," she said quietly, almost to herself. "I fight because if I stop, if I let myself feel what I'm really going through... then I'll lose everything. I can't afford that." Luke's heart ached. He wanted t