After work, Cameran and I walk back to the pack house together, the gravel path crunching softly beneath our shoes as dusk settles over the territory. The air is cool, heavy with the scent of pine and earth, and somewhere in the distance a wolf howls—low and lingering.
Cam, as usual, doesn't notice any of it.
She's going on and on about the ball tomorrow night, hands flying as she talks. Apparently, they're hosting it tomorrow instead of tonight because it falls on a full moon. The Alpha council doesn't want a ballroom full of unmated wolves whipped into a frenzy by lunar pull and hormones.
"Can you imagine?" Cam laughs. "One wrong song and half the room would be rutting in the corners."
I snort despite myself.
Then—inevitably—she turns to me with that look.
She tries to convince me, again, to attempt shifting tonight under the moon. Says it might help. Says maybe it'll be different this time.
I deflect immediately, hiding behind the excuse that I'm too tired. She knows I'm lying. I know she knows. But she lets it drop—for now.
The truth is, I can't bring myself to do it.
The trauma of shifting. Losing my parents the same night. The heat, the fear, the screams—it all tangles together in my chest until it feels impossible to breathe.
It's just… too much.
I know my wolf understands me. I can feel it sometimes, like a tight coil of energy pressed against the back of my mind. She's always waiting and watching but never pushes me to shift, as if she too is burdened by the weight of the past. Although if given the choice she would shift, the problem is me,not her.
We head to my room together and get ready for dinner. Usually, we eat in our rooms—quiet, safe—but earlier we got a mindlink saying the Alpha wanted to make an announcement.
That means mandatory attendance.
Most pack members live in their own houses scattered across the pack lands. The Alpha family and high-ranking wolves—Betas, Gammas, their families—live in the pack house itself.
The bottom level, all the way in the back, is reserved for staff.
That's where I live.
Luna Vasti likes to remind me how lucky I am to even be allowed to stay in the pack house, considering I'm not family and—her favorite word—weak.
No matter.
It gives me space. And privacy. No one bothers me back there. The staff mostly ignores me, or treats me with cautious respect. The older generation remembers my parents and their sacrifice. Some of them still tell me how much they admired them.
Apparently, they were considered leaders among the lower-ranked wolves.
Don't let the higher-ups hear that.
They hate anyone who draws loyalty away from them.
My room isn't huge, but it's cozy—perfect for me. A bed, a dresser, a desk, and a bookshelf. Everything decorated exactly how I like it. Lavender curtains and bedsheets. The shelf packed tight with trashy romance novels shoved between heavy medical tomes.
Like I said– it isn't completely horrible. Others have it worse.
'You are in denial,' Emma says. 'You defend them too much'
Ignoring her.
They don't beat me. Don't make me scrub floors with a toothbrush like some twisted Cinderella story.
But I am expected to serve in exchange for being "taken care of."
I once asked to move off pack lands. I even offered to pay for it myself.
They laughed. All the money I get is from extra shifts in the human hospital. They don't even pay me to 'serve' them like the other staff members.
After showering, I pull on a plain white T-shirt and join Cam as we head upstairs to the main floor, where the pack dining hall is. The pack house is large enough to hold the entire pack if needed—that's why it's called a pack house.
The higher-ups just like to turn it into a status symbol. Only the "worthy." Only the "strong."
Bastards.
As we walk toward the dining hall, the low murmur of voices grows louder. The pack is buzzing—excited. I assume it's about the ball tomorrow. All those packs, all that territory overlap, all those unmated wolves hoping for love.
What a messed-up fairy tale.
The dining room opens up before us—huge and elegant. Over a dozen round tables arranged neatly across polished floors. At the far end, a raised dais with a long table where the high-ranking members sit, literally looking down on everyone else.
Crystal chandeliers hang overhead, casting warm light across pearl curtains that frame the floor-to-ceiling glass doors leading out to the gardens. This room hosts everything—feasts, balls, celebrations.
The pack house really is a beautiful mansion.
And to their credit, the pack is wealthy, somehow we still have a section of low ranking wolves fighting poverty and hunger. Many of the high ranking wolves like to remind others that they have more, claiming the Moon Goddess favors them.
Right before Cam and I step fully inside, something hard slams into my shoulder.
I stumble forward with a startled gasp.
Cam's hand shoots out, catching me just in time.
"Watch it, loser."
Seraphina.
Her voice is sharp and venomous as she strides past me into the room.
"You bumped into her, psycho," Cam snaps immediately. "How about you apologize?"
I touch Cam's arm—a silent plea. Let it go.
"Excuse me?" Seraphina turns, eyes glittering. "I'm a future Luna. I do what I want. Especially to a wolfless wannabe."
Two of her groupies step up beside her, smirking.
Heat crawls up my neck as people nearby start to notice. Heads turn. Whispers ripple.
"Seraphina," Cam says coolly, "you're not a Luna yet. And you won't be Luna of this pack. And Sam does have a wolf—you know that. We can all feel her spirit. Stop spreading lies."
Goddess bless Cam.
"Let's just go inside and forget this happened, okay?" I say quickly, forcing calm into my voice. I don't want this. Not today. Not with so many eyes watching.
"Anyways," I add before I can stop myself, "once you're mated, you won't have to bother with us losers anymore. Wouldn't that be nice?" Sarcasm seeping out through each word.
Why?
Why did I say that?
Seraphina's lips curl into a slow, knowing smile.
The kind that makes my stomach twist.
Something's wrong.
Emma stirs, a low growl vibrating through my chest.
"Oh, dear SamanTHA," Seraphina drawls, exaggerating the last syllable of my name.
I roll my eyes.
"You haven't heard?" she continues sweetly. "My father and the Alpha of the Herculean Pack are letting me bring a handful of people with me. Permanently. To tend to me. To SERVE me"
Her groupies all smile.
Cam's hand tightens on my arm.
"I told Father…" Seraphina says softly, eyes locking on mine.
"I want you."
And just like that—
The room feels very, very small.