Marietta's Pov
All my life, I've always believed the Moon Goddess.
And all those times, she's never answered my prayers.
Not once.
But tonight would be different.
Tonight was my mating ceremony and the night my sufferings would end.
I trailed my fingers over the fabric of my dress, smoothing out the visible creases as I stood before the mirror.
The gown wasn't new. It was something I had altered from an old gown. But it was the only nicest thing I owned. The dress was soft blue with slightly worn lace at the edges. It wasn't much but it made me feel… pretty.
For the first time in my life, I allowed myself to dream.
My mate would take one look at me and whisk me away from this terrible pack, from father's cold stares, from the whispers of “daughter of a whore”
My heart thundered in my chest as I stepped out of my tiny room in the attic and into the night.
The ceremony was about to begin.
The venue was more beautiful then I had imagined it to be — decorated with golden lanterns, pines and burning wood wafted in the air, and laughter buzzing around me.
Despite the excitement in the atmosphere, I kept my head low. No one was here for me.
Well, not until tonight.
I clutched the pendant around my neck — a tiny crescent moon, the only thing my mother had left behind before she disappeared.
I used to hate it.
Now, I felt hope.
Hope that the Moon Goddess will finally answer my prayers.
A sharp dig in my side snapped me out of my thoughts and I turned to see Faye, grinning at me as if she had discovered a juicy secret.
“Why are you so excited, Marietta?” She chuckled, tossing her blonde curls over her shoulder. “Do you actually think the Goddess will pair you with someone decent?”
I clenched my fists, ignoring her. She wasn't worth my time.
I spun around to leave when I felt it —
A pull, like an invisible string tugging at my chest.
My wolf stirred inside me for the first time in years and I gasped.
My mate was here.
My breath hitched as my eyes scanned the crowd for him.
Where are you?
I caught a glimpse of his silhouette and he turned.
Then I saw him.
He was whom I never expected. Not by a long shot.
My mate was Hunter, the son of the Alpha King.
The man I had secretly loved for years.
The man every she-wolf, including Faye, wanted.
And HE was looking right at me.
My heart did a flip in my chest. The mate the Goddess had chosen for me was Hunter.
At long last.
Before I knew it, my body began to move on autopilot. My lips parted to speak, to say something, anything, but he beat me to it with the coldest glare I'd ever seen.
“You!” he hissed, the chill in his voice making the hair on my arms stand.
The crowd grew quiet now.
All eyes were on us.
Hunter walked up to me, towering over me with that commanding presence only an Alpha's heir should have. His blue eyes, usually warm, were filled with pure, unfettered disgust.
“No!” He declared flatly.
I blinked. “Wait — What?”
“No!” He repeated harshly.
And then in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear, he said. “I, Hunter Greywood, reject you, Marietta Drayton, as my mate.”
Those words were a slap to the face.
I barely registered the gasps and murmurs around us.
My chest tightened, and my wolf howled in pain.
This couldn't be happening.
This couldn't be real.
Hunter was rejecting me!
And in front of everyone!
“No…” I whispered, shaking my head. “This — This has to be a mistake.”
Hunter scoffed. A mistake? You actually think the Moon Goddess will pair me with someone like you?”
My throat went dry. “Hunter, please —”
“Shut up!” He roared, the loudness of his voice sending a chill down my spine. “You're nothing but the daughter of a whore. Just like your mother, would do anything to a powerful man and leave him when you're done.”
What?
The crowd erupted into cruel laughs and harsh murmurs.
I heard them all loud and clear.
“How can the daughter of a whore think she's worthy of a revered Alpha?”
“How pathetic!”
“Eww. She's just like her mother.”
Those words stabbed me like knives — twisted so deep I bled.
I wanted to cry.
I wanted to scream.
Instead I did one thing I had always done — I ran.
My feet pounded against the marble floor as I pushed past the laughing faces and the sneers and the cruel whispers. I was too tired. I wanted to stop. I couldn't.
I escaped into the woods and it swallowed me whole.
My chest ached, my breath ragged, but I kept running.
Away from Hunter.
Away from the rejection.
Away from the fact that one thing I had hoped for was gone.
I tripped over a root and crashed onto the damp earth.
A pathetic sob ripped from my throat as I curled into myself.
The Moon Goddess was a goddamn liar.
She wasn't kind like the books said she was. She'd never answer my prayers. She was too cruel.
I had spent years believing that one day, my mate would be my salvation. I had been under the illusion that he would see me and love me and take me away from this hell.
But NO!
The Moon Goddess had given me Hunter Greywood.
And Hunter Greywood had shattered me.
I laid there for what felt like hours, my fingers digging into the soil as I cried my heart out. My heart felt like it'd been ripped from my chest, torn to pieces and handed back to me — irreplaceable and useless.
Something rustled in the bustle, breaking into my reverie.
I froze instantly.
What was that?
I turned, still asking myself mental questions.
Was it a wild animal?
Or had the pack sent someone after me to humiliate me even more?
Or was it a —
I heard a deep growl from the bushes and my stomach sank.
Holding my breath, I slowly turned my head towards the direction of the noise.
And what I saw made my blood run cold.
A pair of glowing red eyes were staring back at me in the darkness.
Marietta's PovThe second the door shut behind me, I collapsed onto my bed.My body ached all over and my back burned from the whips. I buried my face in my pillows, biting down in the soft pillowcase as sobs racked through me.Why does it always end like this?I had wanted to see father and for what?For this? For him to look at me like I wasn't worth asking what had happened to me. For him to regard me like I was nothing.It was clear now.I had no one.No one except myself.I forced myself to sit up and the movement sent a sharp pain through my back and I hissed.My dress was still sticking to my wounds.I shuffled to the small mirror on my dresser and whipped out a white cloth. I dampened it in water and wiped off the dried blood. Each stung, each aching pulse, only made my anger burn hotter. I stared at my reflection, my breath shaky.I looked pathetic but this feeling brewing in the pit of my stomach wasn't weakness anymore.It was pure rage.They thought I was nothing.The
Marietta's PovI woke up to my own scream. Icy water drenched my entire body, seeping into my torn dress and clinging to my trembling body. For a brief, blissful moment, I thought I was dreaming until reality came crashing down on me like a meteor.The pain in my back, The stench of damp stone and iron,And the distant sounds of chains rattling reminded me exactly where I was.I groaned, lifting my face off the cold floor. Nice reminder.A deep, low voice interrupted the quiet. “Morning, little wolf.” The voice sent a shiver down her spine and I forced myself to sit up. There he was.Again.The dark-haired monster who had ordered me to be whipped last night. He was sitting on a wooden chair like he owned the world, legs spread lazily, fingers drumming against the armrest.A torch on the wall flickered, casting shadows over his dangerously handsome face. I hated that he looked so perfect while I looked like a half-drowned rat.“You really enjoy watching people suffer, don't you
Marietta’s PovPain.Deep, excruciating pain.It was the first thing I felt when I woke up.The pain was a throbbing ache that pulse through my skull like a child had cracked it open and glued it back together with baby hands.I winced, forcing my eyes open, which was a terrible idea.A blinding light stabbed through my skull, making my head pounded even harder.Oh my freaking God.I squeezed my eyes shut and took a shaky breath.My body felt… so wrong. My wrist ached, my arms were stiff, and there was a dull sting at the back of my head. And where the hell was I?I threw my eyes open again, this time slower, and warm, yellow, lights flooded my vision. Only the light wasn't from the sun. It was from the torches flickering against stone walls — cracked, worn, and ominously, damp walls.I stiffened and a strange smell hit me next.Sweat. Blood.Mold.Oh, that was never a good combination.I tried to sit up, but a rattling sound pierced through my brain. I couldn't move my hands. T
Marietta's Pov30 minutes earlierI don't know how long I ran.The cold air burnt my lungs as I ran and my feet stung from.scraping against the rough forest floor but I didn't stop. I couldn't.If I did, the weight of everything that happened tonight would crash down on me, and I wasn't ready for another break down. But my body betrayed me.At some point, my legs gave out, and I collapsed onto the damp earth. The world around me spun and the sound of crickets filled the night air. The scent of pine and soul surrounded me but all I could smell was shame and humiliation exuding from my own body.Before I knew it, tears filled my eyes and a broken sob rumbled from my throat.I pressed my forehead to the ground, my fingers curling in the dirt. Why?Why did it have to HIM?!I had spent my entire life dreaming of my mate. I had endured years of insults, cruelty and cold glares, thinking that one day — just one day — that my mate would come and save me.But the Moon Goddess had given me
Marietta's PovAll my life, I've always believed the Moon Goddess.And all those times, she's never answered my prayers. Not once.But tonight would be different. Tonight was my mating ceremony and the night my sufferings would end.I trailed my fingers over the fabric of my dress, smoothing out the visible creases as I stood before the mirror. The gown wasn't new. It was something I had altered from an old gown. But it was the only nicest thing I owned. The dress was soft blue with slightly worn lace at the edges. It wasn't much but it made me feel… pretty. For the first time in my life, I allowed myself to dream. My mate would take one look at me and whisk me away from this terrible pack, from father's cold stares, from the whispers of “daughter of a whore”My heart thundered in my chest as I stepped out of my tiny room in the attic and into the night. The ceremony was about to begin.The venue was more beautiful then I had imagined it to be — decorated with golden lanterns, p