Chapter 2

I walked down the stairs and noticed that everyone had already left for the ritual. I sighed and followed alone, finding Alyssa when I arrived. She smiled at me, her warm brown eyes sparkling with excitement. My best friend, always optimistic,dreamed of the day of her own ritual. And I tried not to cast a shadow over her dreams.

The ceremony began, and the Alpha raised his voice, proudly declaring that his son Maxim would be a great leader alongside Isabela. Applause echoed through the clearing, but Alyssa and I exchanged knowing looks, stifling laughter. Isabela was many things, but a great leader wasn't one of them.

The green flame was summoned, and a chill swept across my skin. It always happened. I could feel the ancestors in the air, in the ground, in the very breath of the wind. Isabela smiled at Maxim, confident. One by one, the other young women were presented to the flame, but none of them possessed a true bond. Then it was Isabela’s turn.

The fire crackled, dancing under the moonlight. The silence was almost tangible. Then, an ancestral voice, rough and resolute, emerged from the flames.

“No. She has no mate.”

The impact of the words was devastating. Isabela’s smile froze on her face. The murmurs grew. Maxim took a step back, as if he’d been punched in the chest. The Alpha’s brow furrowed, and some of the older women exchanged looks of pure shock.

“This… this can’t be right!” Isabela’s voice wavered, desperately trying to mask her panic.

But the flame didn’t flicker. The fate was sealed. Alyssa gripped my arm, and for the first time, Isabela had no answer at all.

The silence still hung over the clearing like an invisible weight. The Alpha, his expression tight, stepped forward, his jaw clenched hard. He looked into the green flame as if he could bend it to his will by sheer presence.

“This is a mistake,” he said, his voice deep with disbelief. “My son has a destined mate.”

The flame hissed, emerald tones rippling like laughter in the face of his defiance. And then, that same ancient, raspy voice replied:

“Yes, Maxim Blackwood has a mate.”

The words pierced the air like arrows. Murmurs spread among the villagers—at first hesitant, then swelling like a storm ready to break. Alyssa gasped beside me, her fingers digging into my wrist like she needed something solid to hold on to.

Maxim, who had remained still until now, frowned. His dark eyes, always intense and unreadable, gleamed under the firelight. He tilted his face slightly forward, as if daring the answer he already feared.

“Then who is she?”

The flame flickered. The wind swept through the trees, rustling dry leaves and carrying the earthy scent of the forest. Suddenly, the fire collapsed, turning into a swirling, glowing smoke. The pulsing energy danced in the air, floating above the villagers’ heads. Time seemed to slow as the smoke spun, drifting as though searching for something.

Everyone held their breath when the spectral glow descended coming straight toward me. My body tensed. I took a step back, as if I could somehow avoid the inevitable. But the smoke followed, curling around me like serpents of light. My heart pounded against my chest, the pulse roaring in my ears.

And then, the ancestral voice whispered unyielding.

“Her.”

The air was ripped from everyone’s lungs at once.

“Aiyana Moon is your mate.”

The ground felt like it crumbled beneath my feet.

“Your only mate.”

Shock rippled through the crowd like a tidal wave. Isabela gasped audibly, eyes wide, unable to accept the truth unfolding before her. Maxim remained still, but his fists clenched involuntarily, muscles tense beneath his skin. His breathing grew heavier, his expression hardened by a storm of conflicting emotions.

Alyssa, beside me, couldn’t speak. The weight of all their stares fell on me, as if I were an impostor in the midst of this revelation. My fingers tingled, my mind spun.

This couldn’t be happening.