Chapter 1

13 years ago.

Romy’s POV

“Heavens, Romy! You either pick that doll up or I swear, I'll rip its head off its poorly invested neck!” My mother screamed, filled with a fury I had come accustomed to over the years.

I flinched, and the doll slipped from my fingers and hit the floor with a dull thud. One of her glass eyes caught the light and stared up at me like she was just as startled.

Mother was already moving. She always moved when she was angry, like every step announced to everyone how angry she was.

“Your birth alone has cost us enough,” she said, and this time her voice wavered. “Must you always remind me of it?”

But the thing was, I wasn't waving it. I never did.

Still, my hand went to the back of my neck, fingers pressing against the place that was always too warm. The skin there throbbed faintly, like it had its own heartbeat.

“Pick up that doll this instant and make this room presentable. You will not ruin your sister’s day the way you have ruined our lives!”

“Belly, enough!” Father’s voice came from the doorway. Low, and probably tired from all the constant yelling he had to endure.

“Mom?” Alina followed close behind father.

My mother stopped and turned towards her.

For a moment, nobody spoke. She turned away from me first, as she always did, with my father directly behind her, and the door closed a little while later.

My shoulder sagged in disappointment. I always wondered why she hated me so much for something I had no control over. I let out a deep sigh, my eyes glued to the floor as my eyes became watery.

Alina crossed the room and knelt in front of me, giving me a small, weary smile. “She didn’t mean it,” she said gently, picking up my doll and brushing imaginary dust from its dress. “Tomorrow is a big day. And mother is just… overwhelmed.”

I forced a smile back.

Over the years, I’d learned why Mother looked at me the way she did.

They’d tried to keep it quiet, but pack members talked. That was how I learned that the day I was born, my mother lost the ability to have more children.

Even worse was Father.

Once, he had been the Pack’s Beta and commander of the Rogue Soldiers. The night I was born, he lost his wolf. And after, he lost everything else.

Then there was Alina, my beloved sister, the only one who never looked at me and saw a curse. She was past eighteen and still hadn't shifted.

It wasn’t until recently that her boyfriend scented her out, I heard some of the adults talking about it.

The house had felt different all week. Even the servants spoke in whispers, as if they were afraid of jinxing the ceremony scheduled for the next day.

“I’m fine, Alina,” I said, my voice steadier than I felt.

She reached out, tousling my red hair with a grin. “You’re too smart for your own good, Rom.”

Sometimes I wonder if you’re actually the eldest and I’m just the little sister.”

I laughed again, throwing my arms around Alina just as the door opened and my mother entered again, her eyes red from crying as she walked over to me.

She crouched in front of me and adjusted my collar, pulling it higher to cover the mark. Her fingers trembled when they brushed my skin. “Cover that up well, Romy. We can't let the outsider see that.”

She cupped my face suddenly and pressed a kiss to my forehead. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I shouldn’t say all those mean things, it’s not your fault.”

I smiled back.

The mark burned hot against my skin. I wished I could scrub it away…. But I couldn’t.

I leaned into her hand before I could stop myself. “It’s okay, Mommy,” I whispered.

It was easier to forgive her than to wonder if she meant it. But even as I said it, the mark burned a little hotter. Like it didn’t like being hidden. Like it wanted to be seen.

Alina stepped in, her hand warm on my shoulder as she pulled me up. “Hey, enough of this. Let’s go to my room. Rom, I bet I can find a hiding spot you’ll never guess.”

I looked at her, my eyes lighting up. “Hide and seek? Now?”

“Best way to pass the time,” Alina winked, tugging me toward the stairs.

I nodded, clutching my doll tight to my chest as we ran towards her room.

Once the bedroom door clicked shut behind us, the heavy air of the house vanished.

“Alina?” I whispered, my voice barely a thread in the dark. “Are you scared about tomorrow?”

I felt her shift beside me, her shoulder bumping mine. “The ceremony? A little. It’s a lot of pressure, Rom. Everyone is going to be watching the future Luna, waiting for her wolf to finally show up.”

“She’ll come out,” I said softly, “she has to.”

Alina sighed, a soft, shaky sound. “I hope so. A wolf-less Luna… the Pack wouldn't let me hear the end of it. They already whisper about our family enough.”

She went quiet for a moment, then reached out and took my little hands in hers, squeezing them gently. I squeezed back, the thought of her leaving tightening my chest.

I didn’t ask what she meant, I just knew. It was one of the main reasons mom had been so constantly on edge, terrified of the harsh spotlight it put on our family.

“Can I come live with you?” I blurted out, the words catching in my throat. “After the wedding? I could help you with the pack house. I could be… useful.”

I couldn’t see her face, but I felt the sadness in the way her hand tightened on mine. “Oh, Rom,” she murmured, her voice thick with affection. “The Alpha’s estate… It's not like here. It’s full of warriors and Elders. With that mark… it wouldn’t be safe for you there.”

I looked down at my hands. Even in my imagination, the mark came with me.  “But I’ll be alone here,” I whispered, the tears I’d been holding back finally stinging my eyes.

 “You won’t be alone,” she promised, leaning her head against mine. “I’ll come visiting. Every week, maybe more. I’ll bring you stories from the pack house and those honey cakes you like from the village. I’m not leaving you behind, little raven. I’m just moving a few miles away.”

I nodded, wiping the tears away, standing up alongside Alina. “So, where am I hiding?” I asked.

Alina turned to me. She smiled, her mouth opening to answer my question, when a heavy, violent crash erupted from downstairs.

The sound was jarring enough to rattle the floorboards, snatching the words right out of Alina's mouth. She straightened instantly, her face snapping toward the door before she looked back at me in total confusion.

"What was that?" I asked, my eyes darting to the door as well.

“No idea," Alina murmured, her posture going rigid. "Wait here, I'll go check." She turned on her heel, walking quickly out of the room.

I climbed onto the bed, pulling my doll into my lap. I played with its frayed hair for a while, waiting for Alina to come back and tell me Mother had just dropped something heavy in the kitchen.

Minutes passed. Or maybe it was longer. Time felt thick, like it had slowed down on purpose.

My eyes grew heavy. The mattress dipped where Alina had been sitting earlier. I lay down in her spot and pulled the doll to my chest, breathing in the faint lavender smell from her sheets.

I must have drifted, because the next thing I knew—The door flew open so hard it struck the wall.

I jolted upright just as Alina rushed in, and she didn’t look like herself at all. Her hair was loose from its braid. Her face was pale, her eyes panicked.

She reached me in three strides and grabbed my shoulders. “Alina, did you—”

Alina was right in front of me, her face white. Her hand covered my mouth so tightly I couldn’t breathe.

And for the first time in my life, my sister looked terrified of something.