I Choose Him

Katherine’s POV

FIVE YEARS EARLIER…

"Are you okay, Miss Katherine?"

That voice. I turned so fast I almost fell, my lungs burning as I gasped for air.

I lurched forward, my knees buckling as I grabbed the edge of a vanity table. I was gasping, my lungs burning as if they were still filling with blood, my throat screaming from the memory of the silver blade.

I stared at my hands. They were clean. No dirt. No blood. No scars.

"Miss?"

I looked up and froze. Standing there, holding a fresh lace shawl, was Francisca.

"Francisca!" I sobbed her name, lunging forward to throw my arms around her. I held her so tight I could feel her heart beating against mine.

She was warm. She was breathing.

In my last life, Sofia had her killed—murdered her for a "mistake" she never committed just to break my spirit. 

I had watched them drag her lifeless body across the stone floor, and now, she was standing here, smelling of starch and lavender.

"Miss... I can’t breathe... what’s the matter?" she gasped, trying to pull away gently, her eyes wide with confusion.

I let her go, my hands trembling as I touched her face, her hair, her shoulders. She’s alive. I’m alive. The Moon Goddess didn't just hear my curse—she granted it.

"You must have had a truly terrible nightmare," Francisca said, smoothing her apron as she gave me a worried smile. "But you need to pull yourself together. Are you ready for the banquet tonight? The night you finally choose your Alpha?"

"My Alpha?" The words felt like poison on my tongue. The memories flooded back—the banquet where Nikolai had smiled at me, the night my parents sold me to a murderer.

"Yes!" Francisca giggled, oblivious to the war raging inside me. "Alpha Nikolai has been waiting for this moment for months. Everyone says it's a done deal. You're going to be the Luna of the Blood Moon tonight."

I stared at the girl in the mirror. She looked eighteen, soft-skinned and untouched, but I could still feel the phantom itch of the silver blade against my throat.

My family were the pillars of the Blood Moon Pack—my father, the loyal Beta; my mother, a high-ranking Elder’s sister. To the world, we were elite. 

To me, they were the people who sat and watched my execution without blinking.

The prophecy was a curse disguised as a gift. The eighty-year-old Seer had promised that once I turned eighteen, I would marry a Grey brother and birth the ultimate heir. 

Five years ago—in that first, pathetic life—I was terrified of the rumors. I had heard of Alexander Grey, the Alpha of the Feral Pack, a man who conquered territories with blood and left only ashes in his wake.

So, like a fool looking for a sanctuary that didn't exist, I chose the kind one. I chose Nikolai. I chose the man who would eventually hold my hair back while he slit my throat.

"Miss... are you sure about that dress?" Francisca’s voice broke through my thoughts. She was staring at my daring, blood-red gown. It clung to me like a second skin, bold and defiant—a dress for a woman who was done hiding.

The old Katherine would have worn virginal white. This Katherine wanted them to see the color of the blood they were going to spill.

"It’s perfect," I said, my voice cold and sharp as a whetstone. "Let’s go."

I swept out of the room, my heels clicking against the marble like a countdown. As I stepped onto the grand balcony overlooking the banquet, the music didn't just fade—it died.

The pack members stopped dancing. The laughter curdled in their throats. They stared at me as if I had committed a crime just by breathing. 

I felt the weight of their judgment, the same judgment they had used to condemn me to death. My heart was beating so fast, it was a painful reminder that I was still human, still fragile, still hurting.

But then I saw them.

In the center of the crowd, two pairs of glowing red-gold eyes locked onto mine.

On the left stood Nikolai, his smiling face already twisted in confusion at my defiance. And on the right, standing in the shadows, was Alexander.

My breath hitched. The last time I saw him, he was screaming for them to stop. 

I was still wolf-less. In this world, that made me useless. The pack didn't see me as a person; they saw me as a prize to be won and a body to be used. 

They believed the Seer’s prophecy—that I would marry a Grey brother and give birth to a powerful heir.

As I walked down the stairs, I felt their eyes crawling over my body. They were looking at my curves, judging my worth. 

In my first life, I was shy and afraid. But I wasn't that girl anymore.

If I stay weak, I will die again.

My sister, Sofia, walked toward me. She wore a fake, sweet smile. She gasped when she saw my daring, blood-red dress.

"Oh my god, Katherine," she whispered, pretending to be worried. "What are you wearing?"

I didn't answer. I just walked past her. I could smell the jealousy on her skin.

At the front of the hall stood the old Alpha King, Jonathan Grey. His voice boomed across the room. "Tonight, we celebrate! My son, Nikolai, will become the Alpha of the Blood Moon Pack. And his brother, Alpha from the Feral Pack, Alexander, has returned from the north to join us."

The air in the room grew cold.

My mother grabbed my arm, her nails digging into my skin. "How dare you dress like this?" she hissed. "Fix your hair. It’s time to announce your engagement to Nikolai. The whole pack is waiting."

"No," I said. It was a short word, but it felt like a slap.

My mother froze. "What?"

"I said no." I turned to look at her. My eyes were so cold that she stepped back in shock.

The room went silent. Every wolf stopped moving. Nikolai stood there, looking perfect and kind. He held out his hand to me, waiting for me to take it. He thought he had already won.

But I didn't even look at him.

Instead, I raised my finger slowly. I pointed at the man standing in the darkest corner of the room.

"Him," I said. My voice was loud and clear. "I choose him..."

"HIM?! Are you out of your mind?!" My mom couldn't help but scream at me in terror.

The entire pack gasped. Some people even dropped their glasses.