CHAPTER TWO

Three days after my first shift, and the burning hasn't stopped. I sit cross-legged on my basement floor, sweat trickling down my spine despite the cool concrete beneath me. The circle of moonstones Mom laid out pulses with a soft blue light, but even their calming energy can't completely quiet the storm raging inside me.

"Focus, Alora," Dad commands from where he stands shirtless in the center of the room. His pack tattoos ripple across his shoulders as he moves – protection runes mixed with strength sigils. "Find your anchor."

Easy for him to say. He's not fighting both a blood-wolf and pre-heat urges. Another wave of warmth floods my core, making me shift uncomfortably in my training clothes. The black leggings and sports bra feel too constricting, too hot against my fevered skin.

"I'm trying," I grit out, closing my eyes. The mirrors surrounding us make it worse – I can feel my reflection a thousand times over, each one showing the slight red glow beneath my skin that we're trying to suppress.

"Try harder." His voice carries the edge of an Alpha command, making my wolf bristle even as my body instinctively wants to submit. "Find the wall between your human side and your wolf. Build it brick by brick."

I take a shuddering breath, trying to focus past the heat simmering in my blood. In my mind, I see the wall forming – pale silver bricks made of moonlight. One by one, I stack them between my consciousness and my wolf.

The first brick: control over my scent. The sweet notes of pre-heat that keep leaking through must be contained.

The second: mastery over my eyes, keeping them from flashing that telling crimson.

The third—

A male howl pierces the night, distant but clear. My wolf surges forward, slamming against the mental barriers I'm trying to build. The moonstone circle flares bright blue as my control slips, and I feel the change beginning – bones cracking, skin burning.

"Alora!" Dad's voice cracks like a whip. "Control it!"

"I can't!" The words come out as a growl, my canines already lengthening. "He's calling—"

"No one is calling you," Mom interjects sharply from the stairs. She rushes down with a new bundle of herbs, the sharp scent of wolfsbane making my nose burn. "It's just a regular patrol howl. Your heat is making you oversensitive."

She's right, I realize with burning shame. Every male voice, every howl, every scent sends my wolf into a frenzy. Three days of this, and it's only getting worse. The elders' daughters never mentioned this kind of desperate need during their first heats.

"Again," Dad orders, his own scent carefully neutral. "Build the wall. Stronger this time."

I close my eyes, forcing my breathing to steady. The brick wall rises in my mind again, but this time I imagine steel reinforcements between the stones. Each barrier represents a different aspect of my curse that needs to be contained.

The red fur. The healing ability I discovered yesterday when I accidentally cured Mom's headache with a kiss. The heat scent that makes unmated males lose control. The constant urge to submit to a mate I haven't met.

"Good," Dad murmurs as he feels my control strengthen. "Now, shift."

Terror spikes through me. "But—"

"You need to learn to control the change without losing the walls." His eyes soften slightly. "I know it hurts, baby girl. But pain is better than death."

He's right. I need to master this. Taking another deep breath, I let the change come – but slowly this time, fighting for control over every moment of it.

The shift ripples through me like a wave of fire. But this time, I keep my mental walls intact, focusing on containing my true nature even as my body transforms. When it's done, I open my eyes to see a regular brown wolf reflected in the mirrors.

"You did it," Mom breathes, tears in her eyes. "Look, Alora."

I turn my head, examining my reflection. The illusion is perfect – no trace of blood-red fur, no crimson glow in my eyes. I look... normal. Safe.

The victory lasts exactly three seconds before another wave of heat crashes through me. My control slips, and for just a moment, a flash of red ripples through my fur like a bloody wave.

"Enough." Dad steps forward, breaking the moonstone circle. The suppressant magic fades, letting me shift back to human form. He catches me as my legs give out, and I bite back a whimper at the contact. Even my father's innocent touch feels like fire against my oversensitive skin.

"The heat is getting stronger," Mom says quietly, draping a robe over my shoulders. "We need to decide—"

"Not yet," Dad cuts her off. "She's not ready."

"She'll never be ready for that," Mom snaps. "But if we wait too long..."

I know what they're not saying. If my heat fully manifests before I can control it, we'll have bigger problems than hiding my blood-wolf nature. Unmated males from every pack within a hundred miles will come hunting. And if they find me...

"Tomorrow," I manage to say, pulling myself to my feet despite my shaking legs. "We'll try again tomorrow."

Dad nods, pride mixing with worry in his eyes. "Rest tonight. You'll need your strength."

As they help me up the basement stairs, I catch a glimpse of myself in one of the mirrors. For a moment, my eyes flash crimson, and I see something in them that terrifies me more than the curse, more than the heat.

Hunger.

Not just for a mate, but for something more. Power. Freedom. Things my wolf shouldn't want – shouldn't need.

I slam the wall up in my mind again, burying those dangerous thoughts behind it. I can't afford to think about what I want. Not now. Not ever.

I have to focus on survival.

But as I lay in bed that night, sheets twisted around my overheated body, I can't help but wonder – what if there's an Alpha out there strong enough to handle both my curse and my heat?

What if he's already searching for me?

What if, despite everything, my wolf is waiting for him?

I push the thoughts away and rebuild my mental walls, brick by brick, until sleep finally claims me. But in my dreams, a pair of silver eyes haunts me, promising things I can't allow myself to want.