Chapter 4

I called Frannie that night.

"I need to go," I said. "To the palace. The Royal Guard program."

Silence. Then: "Mel. You have a fated mate mark on your neck."

"I know."

"This is a crime, Mel! You can't go! If they catch you — "

"Then I deal with it." I pressed my forehead against the wall. "Fran, this is the only chance I'm ever going to get. If I don't go, my father wins. Stephanie wins. I spend the rest of my life married to whatever garbage man they pick for me, popping out pups in a house I hate."

"You're going to get yourself killed."

"I'm going to get myself a career."

Frannie was quiet for a long time. I could hear her tapping her fingernail against something — the way she did when she was running calculations.

"Two weeks," she sighed through her teeth, "Give me two weeks and I'll have a potion to cover your Mark completely.But if someone gets close, if the mark activates near your mate—"

"It won't. I don't even know who he is."

"Famous last words."she said,"Half a month. That's all I need.Now go pack, you lunatic."

...

Three days later, I stood in the palace square with a crowd of other candidates.

I always knew that more men were taken for the Royal Guards than women, but I didn't think the disparity would be this much. I tried not to turn up my nose at the few women who were here…most were dressed like they were aiming to be a royal consort, not a guard.

I folded my arms and looked the other way.

“Can I have your attention, please,” a voice called. “My name is Vincent, and I am Prince Kai’s Beta.” Betas were the right-hand men of those in high positions. The fact that he was the right-hand to the King’s air was a big deal.

He also had the look of someone who made people cry on a regular basis. And he was our instructor. Fantastic.

“If I call your name, please step forward.”

From the look on his face, I didn't think being called forward would be a good thing. My stomach clenched.

Soon, all of the trainees dressed in their finest array stood in front of the Beta.

My name didn't come.

He glared at them, spite clear on his face. “You all are dismissed,” he told those before him.

An angry ripple went through the crowd. “Training hasn't even started!” one of the men, dressed more like he was going to a party than to training, called. “What have we done?”

“Yeah!” another woman yelled. “We deserve an explanation!”

Deserve? I had to fight not to roll my eyes. As the daughter of an Alpha, I knew what privilege looked like firsthand. Whoever chose these recruits couldn't have judged them based on their skill.

This was nepotism.

The Beta eyed them all coldly. “There has been a change,” he said. “The training of the Royal Guard is no longer under Prince Niko’s purview. All training has been transferred to Prince Kai, and he doesn’t allow back doors for recruits.”

Ah, so it was nepotism. It felt good to have someone call it out. Obviously, Prince Niko’s crew hadn’t been running a tight ship, so they were passing things over to Prince Kai.

The Beta looked to the rest of us. “If you have ill intentions, it would be wise for you to leave now. The Royal Guards is not a chance to trip into a royal bed.” His eyes landed on me for a moment, seemed to take me in, and then moved away. “If you’re not here to work the hardest you’ve ever worked in your life, go now.”

“This is bullshit,” someone spat. My eyes landed on a man whose face was turning the most fascinating shade of red. “My father will hear-”

“Guards,” Vincent barked, and the man was suddenly surrounded by Royal Guards. “Take him away.”

We all watched, horrified, as the Guards dragged the man away, kicking and screaming all the while. The Beta looked at all of us, as if challenging any of us to kick up a similar fuss.

Looking around, my eyes landed on another woman who looked…capable. Her golden hair had been plaited back, leaving her pretty face bare. With a little effort, she would be absolutely stunning, but as it was, she looked like she was ready to tear throats with her teeth.

As if she could sense my eyes on her, she looked my way. I tried to give her an encouraging look, but she frowned, as if she could read something on my face that was utterly unlikable.

God, could you be any more paranoid? I didn’t even know that girl, and she certainly didn’t know me. We were all just jittery today.

~Kai~

I wish I could say that I had never woken up in a field before…but when I cracked my eyes open and saw wispy clouds above me, all I could do was groan.

The wind blew, carrying the lightest trace of a scent, her scent, to my nose, and I sat up. The girl, my Fated Mate, was gone. The trampled earth beside me let me know that what happened wasn’t a fever dream.

Where did she go?

I hadn’t even gotten her name.

Fuck, I couldn’t even remember what she looked like.

The only thing I had was that scent—sweet and tempting—coating the inside of my nose.

I had to find her again. I had to have her again. There was nothing else to be done.

Getting up felt like running straight into a wall of bricks. But I forced myself to move and found Vincent waiting for me a few miles away. “Cancel the blind date banquet,” I told him. Not that I wanted to go anyway; the whole farce had been my stepmother’s idea. “I found my Fated Mate.”

Vincent choked and looked around, as if she was going to pop out of thin air. “Where is she? How did you meet?”

I relayed how she had literally walked into his life, like she was some kind of sweet-smelling angel who had poofed into existence. “Gone,” I said, “but we’ll find her.”

My Beta jumped to write down everything that I could remember, so we could issue a notice.

I would find her. She was my mate, chosen by the Moon Goddess herself.

She would be the Luna Queen. The only one.