Iris POV
The burning smell hit my nose first, then the screaming started.
I bolted upright in my tiny bed, my heart pounding against my ribs. Smoke was pouring under the door of the servants' rooms, thick and black like a monster trying to crawl inside. Other omega girls were crying and running around in their nightgowns, but I couldn't move.
Today was my eighteenth birthday. Today was meant to change everything.
Instead, the pack house was on fire.
"Iris! Get up!" Sarah grabbed my arm, pulling me toward the door. "The kitchen is burning!"
The kitchen. My kitchen. The place where I'd spent every day for the past three years, cleaning pots and serving food to wolves who never even looked at me. Now it was gone.
We stumbled outside with the other workers, coughing and shaking. The whole east wing was covered in orange flames that licked at the sky like giant tongues. Alpha Damon and his sons were already outside, shouting directions to the pack warriors who were forming water lines.
That's when I saw her.
Celeste Blackwood stood near the main entry, her perfect blonde hair shining in the firelight. She wasn't helping fight the fire. She wasn't even scared. She was happy.
A cold, mean smile that made my stomach twist.
"Poor little omega," she said when she saw me looking. "No more cooking job for you. I guess you'll have to find somewhere else to hide."
Before I could ask what she meant, Elder Marcus ran up to Alpha Damon. "The fire started in the kitchen storage room," he panted. "Someone left candles burning near the grain sacks."
My blood turned to ice. I had worked late last night, cleaning up after the pack's dinner. I always blew out the lights before leaving. Always. But as I tried to remember, my mind felt fuzzy and strange.
"Who was the last person in the kitchen?" Alpha Damon's voice cut through the confusion like a sword.
Everyone turned to look at me.
"I... I was," I whispered. "But I put out all the lights. I swear I did."
Celeste stepped closer, her blue eyes sparkling. "Are you sure, Iris? You seemed pretty distracted yesterday. Daydreaming about your birthday, maybe? About finding your mate?"
The way she said the word 'mate' made it sound like a dirty joke. Heat crawled up my neck and face, but not from the fire.
"I put them out," I said louder. "I would never leave candles burning."
"Mistakes happen," Alpha Damon said, but his golden eyes were cold when they looked at me. "Especially when young wolves get excited about important days."
My chest felt like it was caving in. The whole pack was looking at me like I was some kind of criminal. Like I had burned down their home on purpose.
"Clean up this mess," Alpha Damon told the warriors. "We'll rebuild the kitchen. As for you," his eyes found mine again, "we'll talk your punishment after the birthday ceremony."
Punishment. On my eighteenth birthday.
I wanted to sink into the ground. This was supposed to be the day I finally found my mate and started my real life. Instead, everyone thought I was a careless freak who burned down their kitchen.
The next few hours passed in a blur of smoke and shame. The fire was put out, but the damage was terrible. Half the kitchen was black and damaged. The staff worked together to set up a temporary cooking area in the dining hall, but I wasn't allowed to help.
"You've done enough," Sarah said softly, but even she looked at me with doubt in her eyes.
By the time the sun was high in the sky, I felt like crawling under a rock and staying there forever. But the birthday celebration couldn't be postponed. Pack law said all eighteen-year-olds had to be publicly recognized as adults, even disgraced ones who burned down kitchens.
I put on my only good dress - a simple blue thing that Sarah had given me last year - and walked to the wedding hall with dragging feet. My stomach was empty because there was no food, thanks to the fire. My head was hurting from breathing smoke. And my heart felt like it was breaking into tiny pieces.
The ceremony hall was packed with pack members, all talking and pointing when they saw me. I took a seat in the back row with the other omegas, trying to make myself unnoticeable.
That's when I saw them.
The Alpha's triplet sons sat in the front row like three golden gods. Kieran, the oldest, looked serious and strong. Asher, the middle one, was laughing with some troops. Zane, the youngest, sat quietly but his strange golden eyes seemed to see everything.
They were the most beautiful, powerful guys in the pack. And in a few hours, one of them would choose Celeste as their mate and future Luna.
While I would be lucky if any omega boy wanted a mate who burned down pack buildings.
Alpha Damon stood up to begin the rite. "Today we welcome our young adults into full pack membership," he stated. "May the Moon Goddess bless them with strength, wisdom, and worthy mates."
As his words echoed through the hall, something strange happened. The air around me started to shimmer like heat waves rising from summer pavement. A tingling feeling crawled up my spine, making all the hair on my arms stand up.
I looked around uncomfortably, but no one else seemed to notice anything weird.
The feeling got stronger, spreading through my whole body like electricity. My skin felt hot and cold at the same time. My vision started to blur at the edges.
What was happening to me?
Alpha Damon called my name. "Iris Moon, step forward for your adult blessing."
I stood on shaky legs and walked toward the front of the hall. Every step made the strange feeling stronger. By the time I reached Alpha Damon, my whole body was buzzing like a guitar string.
He put his hands on my head and began the traditional words. "By the power of our ancestors and the gift of the Moon Goddess, I welcome you into adulthood. May you find your true mate and serve the pack with honor."
The moment he said the word 'mate,' the world burst.
Three golden threads of light shot out from my chest like arrows, linking me to the Alpha's sons in the front row. The threads pulsed with power so intense it drove me to my knees.
All three brothers jerked like they'd been hit by lightning.
All three of them turned to stare at me with identical looks of shock.
And I realized with horror that the mate bond had just linked me to all three of them at the same time.
The hall erupted in chaos, but all I could hear was Elder Sage's voice cutting through the noise like a knife: "The prophecy has started. The Silver Wolf has woken, and she will either save us all... or destroy everything we hold dear."