But Alpha Luther had awakened his wolf earlier than expected, just like my sister, Victoria. She was always stronger, always more special, even in death. Luther had made it clear to everyone that he believed his true mate, his beloved Victoria, was dead and that today would bring him nothing but a hollow reminder of what he’d lost.
I stood in the shadows of the grand hall, my hands shaking as I arranged the silver platters. The guests were arriving, their laughter echoing through the room as they gathered to celebrate their beloved Alpha.
“Move faster, slave!” One of the pack members hissed at me, shoving me aside as they passed.
I bit my lip and kept my head down. I could feel their eyes on me, the way they all looked at me with disgust as if I were something vile, something unworthy of even existing. I had grown used to it, the cold glares, the whispered insults. It is my daily reality now. But today… today felt different.
As the full moon rose, casting its pale light over the gathering, the ceremony began. Luther stood at the center of the room, his presence commanding, his dark eyes scanning the crowd with that same cold, detached expression he’d worn since the day Victoria died.
I forced myself to breathe as I approached the table to serve the dishes. My heart pounded in my chest, the air thick with tension, and the scent of wolves on the cusp of something monumental.
And then it happened.
The moment Alpha Luther officially turned eighteen, the atmosphere shifted. Something crackled in the air, a tangible force that made every wolf in the room tense with anticipation. I felt it too, the electric pull in my chest, the undeniable connection that snapped into place like a taut wire. My breath hitched as a scent hit me—something rich and earthy like pine and cedarwood mixed with the fresh scent of rain on the forest floor. It wrapped around me, filling my senses, and I knew without a doubt that this was the scent of my mate.
But that couldn’t be…
I looked up, and my eyes met Luther’s. His expression was no longer cold but stunned; his gaze locked onto me with an intensity that made my heart stop. For a moment, the world narrowed down to just the two of us, the mate bond pulling us together with a force neither of us could ignore.
But then, as quickly as the shock came, it was replaced by fury.