Mate

Neralda

Seven years.

That was how long it had been since I pulled Sabastain from that freezing water, only to watch my younger sister, Zara, steal the credit.

Tonight was the Ascension Rite. Sabastain wasn’t just turning twenty-one; he was officially taking the title of Alpha of the Northridge pack. The massive ballroom of the pack manor was hot, packed with every high-ranking wolf in the territory. Crystal chandeliers sparkled above, but all I cared about was how much my feet ached inside my cheap, scuffed flats.

"Neralda! Are you sleeping standing up?"

I jumped, nearly dropping the tray of glasses. My stepmother, Martha, stood there, glaring at me with utter disgust.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled.

"You don't get to breathe until the ceremony is over," Martha hissed, her perfectly manicured nails digging into my arm. "The elders are about to announce the matchmaking. Sabastain and Zara will finally be officially betrothed tonight. If you do anything to ruin your sister's moment, I will personally lock you in the cellar for a month. Now, take these glasses to the podium. Move!"

She shoved me forward. I stumbled, gripping the tray tight to keep the glasses from shattering.

As I approached the grand staircase leading up to the Alpha's podium, Zara stepped into my path. She looked breathtaking.

I looked down at my own reflection in the mirrored wall. I was nineteen now, still fat, still wolfless, and wearing an oversized, dull grey maid's uniform. We looked like we belonged to two entirely different species.

"Well, well," Zara sneered, blocking the steps. "Look at the little servant rat trying to blend in."

"Please, Zara. Martha told me to bring this to the Alpha..."

"Take a good look around, Neralda. Everyone is waiting for me. Sabastain is waiting for me. He’s obsessed with me. We are inseparable, and tonight, I become his Luna."

"I know," I whispered, my chest tightening with that familiar, dull ache. I had loved him in secret for years.

Zara laughed. "You see, I'm the perfect wolf after all. And you? You're just a worthless, wolfless, fat pig. But hey, at least you were finally useful enough to get me close to the Alpha.” 

"Now," Zara ordered, flicking a piece of lint off my uniform. "Take the servings up to my Alpha. And don't spill a single drop, you clumsy idiot. You're so slow it's pathetic."

She turned on her heel and walked gracefully up the stairs, the crowd parting for her like royalty.

I took a deep breath and followed.

Sabastain stood at the center of the podium. He looked incredibly imposing, exuding raw, terrifying dominance. When Zara approached him, his cold expression softened slightly. He wrapped a possessive arm around her waist.

My heart broke right there on the top step.

"Drinks, Alpha," I said softly, keeping my head bowed as I extended the tray.

"You're too slow," Zara snapped loudly, making sure the nearby elders heard her. "Just give it here."

Sabastain didn't even look at me. He reached out to grab a glass of champagne.

As he pulled it from the tray, his knuckles brushed against my bare wrist.

Zap.

A violent, electric shock shot up my arm, so intense I gasped aloud. The tray slipped from my fingers, crashing onto the podium. Champagne splashed everywhere.

But I didn't care. I couldn't move.

The most intoxicating scent slammed into my senses. Dark chocolate, rain, and pine. It surrounded me, drowning out the music, the crowd, everything.

Mate.

Sabastain froze completely. The glass he was holding slipped from his hand and shattered next to mine.

Slowly, agonizingly, the future Alpha of the Northridge pack turned his head to look at me.

"Mate," Sabastain growled.

The entire ballroom went dead silent. Hundreds of wolves stopped breathing.

Zara looked horrified. Her face drained of all color as she stared at Sabastain, then at me. "No," she whispered, her voice trembling. "No, Sabastain, look at me. She's nobody. She's a wolfless freak!"

But Sabastain couldn't look away from me. He took a step forward, the mate bond pulling him in against his will. He looked furious. He looked disgusted. But his wolf was completely submitted to the bond.

"What the hell is going on here!?"

Martha's screech pierced the silence. She rushed the podium, grabbing me by the ear with brutal force.

"Ow!" I cried out.

"This worthless girl instigated everything!" Martha screamed to the crowd, twisting my ear tighter. "She must be using some kind of dark trick! Apologies, Alpha Sabastain!"

Before Sabastain could react, Martha dragged me violently down the stairs and pushed me through the doors of the VIP lounge behind the stage.

Her hand cracked across my cheek so hard I saw stars. I collapsed onto the carpet, my face burning.

"You stupid, selfish bitch!" Martha spat, standing over me. "How did you do it? How did you mess with the bond? You ruined everything!"

"I didn't do anything!" I cried, holding my face. "I swear!"

The door opened.

Martha immediately stopped yelling. Zara walked in, her face twisted in absolute rage. She locked the door behind her.

"Leave us, mother," Harper commanded, her voice terrifyingly calm.

Martha hesitated, then nodded and slipped out through the side exit, leaving me completely alone with my sister.

Zara slowly walked toward me. She didn't scream. She didn't yell. That made it so much worse.

"All my life," Zara whispered, crouching down to my level. "All my life, you've always wanted to steal everything that's mine, right?"

"Zara, I didn't plan this. You know I can't control the mate bond."

"The bond means nothing!" she suddenly shrieked, her calm facade shattering. She grabbed a fistful of my hair and yanked my head back. "He loves me! He has been obsessed with me since I saved him from that river!"

"I saved him!" I finally screamed back, the truth bursting out of me. "I pulled him out! You just stood on the bank and cried! You've been living a lie for seven years!"

Zara stared at me. Then, a slow, dark, wicked smile spread across her lips. She let go of my hair and stood up, dusting off her hands. She started laughing. It was a cold, cruel laugh that sent shivers down my spine.

"You think he's going to believe you?" Zara mocked, walking toward the grand spiral staircase that led up to the indoor balcony of the VIP lounge. "You think he wants a fat, wolfless mate? Sabastain is an egoistic king. He wants perfection. He wants me."

"He's my mate, Zara."

"Not for long," she said smoothly.

Zara reached the top of the staircase. She turned around to face me, looking down with malice in her eyes.

"Let's see him want you after this, sister," she whispered.

Zara gripped the top railing, leaned backward, and deliberately threw herself down the flight of stairs.

"No!" I screamed.

She tumbled violently, her body slamming against the edges over and over again with sickening crunches. She landed in a broken, twisted heap at the bottom of the stairs, blood pooling instantly on the carpet.

The side doors burst open.

Sabastain rushed in, followed by Kratvak and a dozen guards.

Sebastian froze, staring at Zara’s broken body, and then slowly raised his furious, pitch-black eyes up to me, standing frozen at the top of the stairs.