#Chapter1 - The Withering

Raven

Twenty years old, five foot nine, and only eighty-eight pounds…

No matter how thin I was, no matter how many of my ribs I could count, it was never enough in my father’s eyes. To him, I was a vile, gluttonous child whose body would never appeal to an alpha. That was my sole purpose, after all: ensuring an alpha would choose me as his Luna.

Every day I was trapped between the hunger pangs in my belly and the skin-crawling anxiety that if I took just one bite too many, my father would take the cane to my mother again.

And her pain was worse than anything he could have done to me.

My stomach felt as though it was caving in on itself. My hands shook with the effort of eating, but I knew this would be my only real meal for the day.

It was a struggle just to lift the spoon to my chapped lips, my body was so weak.

I heard my father snap his fingers. I didn’t dare take another spoonful as a servant came and took the bowl from me. Every extra sip would be taken out on my mother.

“Disgusting girl, slurping soup like that,” my father sneered. “She’s about to outgrow her dress for the mating ball tonight, and still she stuffs her face.”

I stayed silent, staring at the dining room table.

“You’re too strict with her, Father,” my half-sister Lexi said, voice so artificially sweet it could cause cavities. “You can’t expect someone like her to care as much about her body as you do. That’s like asking a cow to fly – it’s just not in their nature.”

“Oh sweetheart,” he cooed. “You’ve got such a soft and loving heart. But you must remember, I have to be strict with your sister, or she’ll end up being a sinner, just like her mother.”

My teeth snapped shut when he lied about her like that. I fought to hide my snarl, though. It wouldn’t do her any good to be punished because I couldn’t keep my feelings under control.

He’d loved her once. They’d been fated mates, and my mother had been so certain they’d share a lifetime of bliss, especially when they’d had me.

That was until he’d had the affair with Trisha.

She’d been my mother’s best friend. At least, that’s what my mother had thought – she must have not cared an ounce for my mother, though, if she’d had an affair with my mother’s mate. If she’d had a baby with my mother’s mate.

It had broken my mother. Most mornings those first years, she’d confined herself to bed, heart aching too much to summon the will to rise

Somehow, those were the good years. Everything changed when Trisha died of a mysterious illness.

My father had taken it harder than if his fated mate had died. His kindness withered, and in its place, a cold shell of a man remained. A man who believed his mate, the scorned wife, had done something to get rid of his mistress.

His sorrow was a heavy burden forced onto my mother and I’s shoulders. My mother had done no wrong, but he refused to believe that. He would spend the rest of his life punishing us for his loss.

“Go get changed,” my father ordered. “And you’d best hope you haven’t stuffed yourself so much that you can’t fit into that dress.”

I hurried to my room, glad to be away from them.

As I put on the gown he’d selected for me, I prayed to the Goddess. I begged her to let me meet my mate at the ball tonight. I couldn’t go on like this – my body was crumbling, and my heart couldn’t bear watching my mother suffer his wrath any longer.

I longed for someone to take us away, to let me whisk her away to somewhere she’d be safe and happy, to let me be free from my father’s iron grasp. Finding my fated mate was the only way out.

Tonight was my last chance. My father had already selected several suitors who would attend the ball tonight, alphas as old as he was, to marry me. If the Goddess didn’t answer my prayers, I’d be given to one of them like a prized dog sold to the highest bidder.

The ballgown was gaudy and pink, and I pulled the corset so tight, my breathing was more like wheezing. I was lightheaded after just a moment of wearing it.

Please, please honorable Goddess…free me tonight. Don’t let him punish us anymore.

When I went back downstairs, my father looked me up and down, scoffing.

“I knew I shouldn’t have let you eat. You look like you’re going to burst the seams of that dress any minute now.”

My mother was in the foyer as well, hands laced in front of her and head bowed. She glanced up at me, eyes dull.

I went to her, eager to embrace her, but my father grabbed my arm and dragged me to the car before I could even say a word to her.

When we arrived at the ball, Lexi cried out in delight. It was bigger than any of the other balls we’d attended. A crystal chandelier glittered from the ceiling, and every table was filled with candles and exquisite vases of peonies and roses.

Alphas from every pack were in attendance. I’d never seen so many gathered in one place.

“Frank!” one of them cried cheerily as we entered, clasping hands with my father. “I can’t believe you actually showed up! Since Alpha Marcus will be in attendance, I was sure you’d steer clear.”

Alpha Marcus Hayes: the one person my father hated more than me or my mother. Ever since Alpha Marcus had beaten him in a wolf brawl, my father had despised the man. Just the mention of the name would send him flying into a rage for a week.

They never attended the same events. My father must have been desperate to be willing to come here tonight if Alpha Marcus would be here.

“Yes, well, I have to find my daughter an Alpha tonight,” my father explained. “Much longer and she won’t be worth anything.”

I didn’t pay attention to the conversation as they continued. I hunted, searching for any sign of my mate’s scent in the air.

Nothing. I could smell a hundred different men, but none of them were my mate.

My father dragged me through the ball all night, introducing me to different men and forcing me to dance. They were all the same: wrinkly, smelling of cardboard, and holding a perverse twinkle in their eyes.

Please Goddess, help me!

No answer came.

The ball was a blur until it neared its end and the hope I’d carried turned to dust.

“Raven,” my father said, pulling me close as other wolves began to leave, “I’d like you to meet Alpha Horace. He has agreed to marry you.”

Those words forced my mind to snap into focus. One of the men I’d danced with tonight stood before me. His shoulder-length hair was greasy and graying, and his teeth were yellow and crooked.

His eyes, though, made me shrivel. I didn’t know what he imagined doing to my body as he slowly looked me up and down, but whatever is was made my skin crawl.

“Raven,” he said, bowing slightly. “A lovely name for a lovely girl.”

This was it. The Goddess hadn’t listened. I was doomed to let this man do whatever he wanted to me.

I was going to be trapped forever.

Wait! My wolf, Lunar, rasped in my head. She spoke so rarely, I nearly jumped when I heard her voice. There – that scent – he’s here!

My heart fluttered. Could it really be true? Had the Goddess heard my prayers at last?

“Go get Alpha Horace some wine,” my father ordered, lips tugged into a smug smile.

“Of course Father,” I murmured, pulling away towards the servers. I looked over my shoulders once, seeing the two men shaking hands. This was my chance!

Before either could notice me, I slipped away from the ballroom to follow the scent of my mate.

I quickly paced the hallways, walking past every doorway, hope budding inside of me once again. He was here; Lunar just had to find him.

This one! She finally called to me as I walked by one of them. I glanced down the hallway where I’d come from, then turned the doorknob and walked in.

The scent in the room was so strong, it was like I’d walked into a wall. My knees buckled.

That’s him, Lunar whimpered. Our mate…he’s in heat!