CHAPTER 1

HAZEL

THE DAY OF THE MATING BALL

Sparkling heels.

Freshly brushed hair. 

Just an hour ago, I'd been a shadow of myself. The woman who had stared back at me in the mirror was a stranger - lost, vulnerable, and achingly innocent. There was a purity about her, a kind of innocence that was far removed from the marital bliss I’d once known.

All that was missing tonight was the veil. The gauzy piece of flimsy bullshit that was meant to hide my face.

Energy hums through the air, causing the hairs along my arms to stand on end. ‘Fuck, deep breath, Hazel,’ I mutter to myself, trying hard to calm my nerves. ‘And whatever you do, don't fucking look up.’

Today marked the beginning of the wolf mating season. This annual event, typically occurring in late winter or early spring, is essential for the survival and growth of our wolf packs. By timing their reproduction with the availability of abundant food resources and favourable weather conditions, wolves increase the chances of their pups thriving during this period.

The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as I watched the wolves, silent and deadly, converge on the clearing from two opposite directions. The silver moon pack and the crimson dawn pack. 

The silver moon pack and the crimson dawn pack, once fierce rivals locked in a centuries-old feud, had agreed to a historic merger. The catalyst for this unexpected alliance? My mating betrothal to the crimson dawn pack's alpha's son.

The other females in my pack seemed envious of my good fortune. Our matings are predetermined, and I had been chosen to mate with this year's most promising male - a potential future leader. ‘An Alpha.’

And not just any Alpha, but the Alpha who will lead the union between our packs, with me by his side as the Luna.

I took another deep breath, my lungs expanding and contracting with a deliberate rhythm. It was a conscious effort to quell the tempest raging within me, to soothe my wolf that lurked beneath my skin. My knees ached from the kneeling, a constant reminder of the ritual's demands. I don't typically submit but this whole ceremony requires it. 

Just as it required me not to truly meet my inner animal until today. This day would mark a profound shift, where I would finally be connected with my most instinctive self.

Hence, I could feel her growing excitement.

I have never been allowed to shift. 

According to the tradition of both packs, females don't shift into their wolf form until their chosen mate summons them. This practice allows us to develop our human skills before embracing our wolf nature, ensuring we're fully prepared for the challenges ahead.

Females create life.

Males protect it.

Hence, females focus on preparing their mortal bodies for procreation. 

While the men learn how to fight in their strongest form - As wolves.

My heart's pounds with so much excitement and my stomach does a flip at the notion of finally meeting my animal. We have grown so close and bonded for so long! After tonight, she wouldn't be locked anymore, I can finally embrace her to the fullest. 

She is softer than my mind, but still fierce in her own way. I can sense her need to shift, her desire to run free in the woods on four paws instead of two uncomfortable feet. 

But I have denied her that for twenty very long years. 

Tonight, I told her. Tonight, we will run through the woods with our mate by our side. 

It would be his job to teach and show me how to function on four legs. To embrace my half self as an animal. To flourish in the trees beneath his protective gaze. 

My wolf snorts at the notion of someone else protecting her. She has claws and teeth for a reason. But it's how the males in our pack thrive. 

“We should let them think they are in charge,” my mother always says. “Our animals know the truth.” 

Females bear the children. That gives us a certain amount of power that no male can take from us. Even if they try to control us in certain ways. 

My mother ensured that I understood how the games are played in this world.

I know when to bow–such as now–and when to fight. All because my mother wanted me to know the truth about this world and how to survive it. 

I can feel her eyes on me now, watching my every slight move. She is anxious, It’s an irritation I sense against my skin.

The nerves of my pack making it very difficult for me to remain still because the crimson dawn Alpha and his son are approaching.

We have honestly met a few times to establish the requisites chemistry. Tonight is the final test—- a dance among our wolves. 

His imposing father, Alpha Arturo, finally clears his throat, his menacing gaze fixed upon them.

I don't move. I just breathe, keeping my shoulders relaxed and my eyes on the ground. 

My intended mate stops before me, his feet bare, just like my own. However, I can see the edge of his jeans flirting with his ankles. 

Unlike him, I've shed my clothes and heels, kneeling naked and ready. I await his call to release my wolf, to set my inner beast free. While some packs are blessed with magic that allows them to shift while clothed, my wolf-type doesn't possess that enchantment. Neither does he. So, he intends to strip after forcing my transformation.

I don't even mind.

All I really want is to feel my fur and strength out of my legs. 

‘And run,’ I think wistfully.

“History is being made today, we are all gathered here today to commemorate a historic milestone." Alpha Arturo says, his deep voice reverberating through the clearing like a rolling thunder.

Goosebumps prickled down my entire body in response, his power evident in that vibrating tone alone. Alpha Declan carries a similar presence, but not quite overwhelming. Perhaps because I have grown up near him. 

My father is his second in command, otherwise known as his beta. Which is one of the reasons why I have been given the honour of mating with Alpha Arturo’s son. The responsibility would have gone to Alpha Declan’s precious daughter, and it did, when he tried to strike a truce with the Shadow Moon pack.

And well, it didn't go as planned. 

The shadow Moon Alpha’s son had rejected her. 

No. 

He did worse than rejecting her. 

He brutally slaughtered her and sliced her into six pieces.

And then the shadow Moon Alpha responded by laughing and howling proudly.

'psychopath.' I thought with a slight shudder.

“The Silver moon pack and the Crimson dawn pack will unite today beneath a mating union.” Alpha Arturo continued. “One that both myself and Alpha Declan have blessed— the mating between my son, Cosmo, and the silver moon highest ranked eligible female, Beta Ricotta's daughter, Soni Hazel Tarrant.”

I don't react to him using my full name. Cosmo knows that I prefer to go by Hazel. That's the only thing that matters to me right now. 

“Together, we would build a more powerful territory and provide a united front against those who intrude on our land.” Alpha Arturo releases a low growl, the sound only makes my stomach twist more. “The shadow moon savages think they could keep attacking our people. No more. We would unite as the Silver-Crimson pack and show them that our wolves are superior to their beastly ways and not to be messed with!”

Howls took over the night, sending another shiver down my spine.

Our packs are uniting as one, the wolves are joining together in harmony as our ceremony officially begins. 

I’m not allowed to join in the howls; none of the female wolves are. Not that there are many in attendance tonight. Most are home, protecting their offspring with a few enforcers remaining behind. 

My mother was here because of me.

Just as Alpha Declan's mate is here to show her support of this union. 

The rest present are males, their animalistic aggression a hot wave in the chilly winter air. 

My wolf whines inside, begging to be released. I resist her, just as I have alw

ays done, the pain in my heart swirling through my veins and sending electric shocks to my fingertip. It's never felt natural to suppress her. But I do what I have to do for my pack. 

I do what I need to do____to survive.