Chapter 1

Ruby's POV

The ceremonial hall was beautifully decorated in red and white drapes. Each table had lovely arrangements of rose flowers.

I couldn't help but stare!

Of course, I also had to ignore the hostile stares of my pack members. This was hard as their gazes seemed to burn holes into my bruised skin.

I ignored them and slinked in, spying my name beside my parents' seat. For a moment, I considered switching seats with someone, but that would mean I'd have to sit with a pack member, and I didn't want to.

Someone bumped into me on my way to my seat. It was Melissa Parker, Dominic's younger sister. I rolled my eyes at her childish antics as she stood before me, arms akimbo.

Melissa had disliked me since we were little children, and it became worse after Ryan's death. You see, she really liked Ryan, my little brother, and hated me for taking him away from her. I ignored her too and continued towards my seat.

Thankfully, I got there without any other accidents and sat on the chair provided.

My twin sister, Rose and her mate, Dominic, were already seated and were smiling softly, quietly talking to each other. Rose beamed at me and waved.

I waved back at her, happy to see the joy on her beaming face. It was her mating ceremony and I couldn't be any happier.

My happiness evaporated as our parents arrived. I seized up, too scared to move an inch.

They took their seats, with my mother sitting next to me and my father, beside her. She immediately turned to scrutinise me to make sure I wasn't dressed extravagantly.

"I see you followed our instructions for once in your life." She sniffed disdainfully.

"Yes, Luna," I replied carefully.

"Good! Then you may go to your room after the ceremony." She said, a tight smile stretching her thin lips.

"Thank you, Luna," I said, relieved as she turned back to face my father.

Despite being my parents, they had insisted I call them Alpha and Luna six years ago. I was fine with that if it made them hurt me less. My father completely ignored me as if I wasn't even there at all.

Although I was used to this, it still hurt. My mood plummeted completely, and my shoulders slumped. Tears threatened to fall, and I dropped my hands beneath the long table to tightly grip my thighs and pinch.

The pain distracted me from crying, and I took a deep silent breath.

"You'll be okay, Ruby," I whispered.

My father stood up to make a toast, clinking his fork against his wine glass. The hubbub of voices slowly died down as everyone focused on their Alpha's words.

Not me, though. My mind drifted as he droned on about the virtues of the pack and the reason for the ceremony. I thought about my wolf.

For some reason, my wolf didn't show up when I was eighteen years old, the normal age people get their wolves. This has made me even more lonely and depressed.

I sighed heavily, thinking that perhaps, this was the Moon Goddess's way of punishing me for killing my brother.

"And now, I'll make a toast to my daughter's new life." My father's voice came into focus as he raised his glass.

"To love and happiness."

We all raised our glasses too and echoed;

"To love and happiness!"

My father toasted the happy couple and sat. Lively conversation continued as people wined and dined.

I took a deep breath and gulped my wine. My mother shot me a disapproving look as I drained my glass, but right now, I didn't care. I needed something strong for the long night.

A few minutes into the ceremony, I couldn't take it anymore. I stood up, leaving my food untouched and sneaked off into the garden, ignoring the stares and whispers.

It was already dark outside, and the breeze had gotten more chilly. It suited my mood perfectly. I felt frozen inside as if I had no warmth left, no joy left.

Truly, I was happy for my sister but it was hard not to slightly be jealous of her at the same time. Here I was at age 22, still wolfless and mateless. And to top it off, I was hated by my parents and the pack.

"My life sucks!" I muttered despondently, strolling down the path in the middle of the garden.

I leaned against a tree and gazed up through the trees at the full moon shining brightly in the sky. I've always loved moon-gazing ever since I was a child.

I sighed contentedly, happy to be outside, alone. Inside would have been too much, listening to voices but having no one to talk to; all alone in the teeming crowd.

I sighed again, listening to the sound of silence broken only by the crickets chirping occasionally.

Suddenly, a sharp pain in my midsection made me bend over. I gripped my stomach, blaming myself for not eating anything before drinking all that wine.

The pain got worse and I fell to my knees, still clutching my stomach.

"I need help!" I thought desperately.

But I was in too much pain to stand or even crawl back to the ceremonial hall.

The pain intensified and I let out a blood-curdling scream. I was too far away from the pack for them to hear me. And because I was wolfless, I could not mind-link anyone.

Even if I could, I wasn't sure anyone would help me.

Helpless tears dripped down my scrunched-up face as I curled into a foetal position in hopes of reducing the pain.

I lost count of time as I waited for the pain to pass. It didn't, and I could feel myself becoming weaker.

Somewhere close by, a tree branch crunched under someone's foot, and I heard voices. But I was too weak to call out to them and could only hope they got to me in time.

"Is she dead yet?" A familiar female voice questioned impatiently.

"Not yet, my love. But soon, she will be." A deep male voice replied in excitement.

"What is going on?" I panicked.

"Were they talking about me?"

"Why are they trying to kill me?"

Several thoughts raced across my mind as I realised that this was planned. I was not going to be saved.

I had been poisoned!

But who did this?

As if in answer to my question, a face appeared above me. It was quite hazy because my eyes were almost closed due to the pain.

"Better!" The female voice gloated, satisfaction dripping in her voice.

"Now we've taken out two of them!" She crowed happily.

"But knock her out to speed up the process. I need to get back to the party."

"Of course, my love." He said, and I heard him move closer to me.

"Two of us?" I wondered, deathly scared.

"What were they talking about?"

I desperately tried to open my eyes to see my killers. I merely got a glimpse of his booted foot rapidly moving towards my face.

I shuddered as his boot connected with my face, and an unbearable blinding pain shot through me. Everything went dark, and as I took my last breath, my final thought was;

“I’ll be back.”