Chapter 2

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The doors close behind me with a quiet finality. I take deep breaths, trying to calm the storm inside my chest.

“This way, my lady?” Two guards lead the way. I pause after a few steps and turn, and as expected, Beta Silas is at the upper balcony, a silent threat that reminds me that one wrong move will cost me my life.

They lead me through the grand arches and toward the manicured garden.

I have heard how breathtaking the royal garden of Valtheris is, especially at night, but tonight, it feels like a graveyard.

My breath hitches behind the cold surface of the mask. The silk of Lady Victoria’s gown feels heavy, like a shroud rather than a royal garment.

The blood moon hangs low, its crimson glow casting over the white roses, staining them in shadows that crawl. And in every flicker, I see them again, those thin, ghostly fingers, stretching out from my nightmares to claim me, like they claimed my parents.

I close my eyes, taking deep breaths to calm down. When I open my eyes, I see him standing by the fountain.

My heart somersaults in my chest. I nearly buckle.

Goddess.

Alpha Kieran is exactly as the rumors described, but the stories failed to mention the sheer gravity he exerts on the space around him.

He stands with his back to me, his silhouette framed by the glowing garden lamps, dark hair resting on shoulders broad enough to carry the weight of the throne he reclaimed in blood.

He looks like a creature from another world, someone who has walked through fire and comes out harder for it. He doesn't turn, yet the space around him feels… wrong. Heavy. Like the garden itself is holding its breath. The very crickets go silent in his presence.

My steps slow. Careful. Measured. Each one feels louder than it should against the stone path. Every step I take toward the fountain is a gamble.

I stop several feet behind him, afraid to get any closer.

“You’re late, Lady Victoria.” His voice is low, smooth, and controlled. But beneath it, something sharp enough to cut. “I hope for your sake that the face behind that mask is worth the insult of my time.”

How does he know I'm wearing a mask when he hasn't looked at me yet?

He begins to turn, a slow, predatory movement.

I realize with a surge of terror that I haven't practiced my curtsy. The gold of my mask feels heavy, a gilded cage for a lie that is about to be exposed. If he sees the tremor in my hands, he will know.

And if he knows, I won't live to see the dawn.

The silence of the garden is deafening as Prince Kieran finally faces me. I should lower my gaze; even as a noble, looking at an Alpha is a breach of etiquette, but goddess…

I can't help it.

He is not just powerful. He is… precise.

Every feature is carved with intention. His eyes are dark and unreadable, yet they hold something dangerous beneath the surface. Not wild. Controlled. And that is worse.

He looks like a man who has seen the end of the world… and survived it.

His gaze settles on me as he studies me, like I am a puzzle that does not fit.

I drop into a clumsy curtsy, praying my body remembers what my mind does not, hoping he doesn't hear the frantic rhythm of my pulse in my throat.

“My apologies, Alpha. For keeping you waiting.” I say softly, my trembling fingers gripping my dress as I keep my head bowed.

“Interesting. For a woman raised in privilege,” he says slowly, “you carry yourself… strangely.”

My heart skips a loud beat. Does he know? Oh, goddess, can he tell? My palms grow damp inside the silk.

“Forgive me, Alpha. I am merely nervous,” I whisper, my voice barely audible. I remember Silas’s warning: if she speaks, she dies.

But silence now would be an admission of guilt.

“Of me?” he asks.

“Yes, Alpha.” That, at least, is true.

A quiet hum leaves him. Thoughtful. Unconvinced.

Alpha Kieran takes a step forward. The sound of his boots on the gravel is like a countdown, closing the distance between us with the predatory grace of a hunter.

He stops inches away from me. I can feel the heat radiating from his body, a primal energy that makes the hair on my arms stand up.

“Look at me.” The command is soft, but it is not a request.

I slowly lift my head, my heart hammering against my ribs. I expect to see the cold, murderous gaze of a tyrant.

Instead, I find myself drowning in eyes that hold the depth of a midnight sea. They are piercing and intelligent, searching my face for a flicker of the woman he was told to expect.

Then, it happens.

It's sudden.

Violent.

A pull slams into my chest, stealing the air from my lungs.

My fingers twitch as I hold them together in front of me, my heart racing wildly.

What…? I fight to keep my expression steady. Don't react or break. I don't let him see.

Maybe he can't feel it. I’m a nameless servant, a proxy for a girl who is currently tangled in the sheets with guards. He is the King of Valtheris.

Alpha Kieran's eyes narrow slightly as he takes a step closer, too close.

My body tenses.

Take a step back, my mind screams. But my body is locked.

Then he reaches out. His hand, adorned with dark ink that snakes up his arm, comes toward mine, like he already knows what will happen when he does.

When his fingers brush against my skin, the world shatters.

It isn't just a touch. It is an explosion.

A bolt of pure, white-hot energy surges through the point of contact, racing up my arm and settling in the center of my soul, ripping a gasp from my throat as something deep inside my chest snaps awake.

My wolf, who has been a silent, huddled shadow for three years, suddenly throws her head back and howls as the bond screams in recognition.

Mine.

Kieran freezes. The irritation in his expression vanishes, replaced by a shock so profound it makes him look human for a fleeting second.

His pupils dilate, swallowing the silver of his irises until his eyes are almost entirely black. He doesn't pull away. If anything, his grip on my hand tightens, his thumb tracing the sensitive skin of my wrist.

“Mate,” he breathes. The word is not soft; it's shaken. Like something impossible has just taken shape in his hands.

My blood runs cold.

No. No, this can't be happening. Not to me. Not like this. I've been looking forward to finding my mate to finally leave these palace walls. Live a quiet and peaceful life, but this… This would get me killed.

Because I'm not Lady Victoria. I'm a lie. And when the Alpha of Valtheris discovers the truth…

He will not claim me.

He will destroy me.