CHAPTER ONE

“Why are you so adamant?” Dad snapped, his voice ringing loudly in the room.

 He stood right in front of me, his veins standing out on his forehead like thick ropes. 

I stared back at him, with passionate anger burning inside me. It felt like fire crawling under my skin.

“I already made myself clear, Samien,” he growled. His eyes remained on me for a few seconds. 

That glare — I had never seen something like it from him or anyone else.

“It’s not clear, Dad,” I shot back, my voice cracking as tears gathered in my eyes.

 “I refuse to accept it. Why can’t I be the next alpha of the pack? Why?” My chest tightened painfully as the words escaped. I hated how small my voice sounded, but I could not hold it back.

“You know how strong I am,” I continued, my voice shaking. “You know I love this pack. 

I want nothing but the best for us. If you can be Alpha, why can’t I be Alpha too?”

He shook his head slowly, disappointment filling his eyes. “I know you are competent. I know you are capable.

 But my decision stands. This pack has never had a female Alpha. It has never happened, and I will not allow it to start with me.”

“Dad…” I whispered, tightening my throat. Pain shot fiercely through me, leaving me panting hard.

“Enough,” he cut me off sharply. His face was tense and cold.

 “You are twenty one years old, Samien. You should concern yourself with finding your mate and getting married, not trying to become the Alpha.”

“I don’t want to get married,” I said softly, but the firmness in my tone was clear.

His eyes flew wide open. Shock rushed across his face quickly, and then pure rage followed. It frightened me. He had never looked at me like that before. Never.

“Are you mad?” he shouted, his voice resounding like thunder through the entire room.

I froze. My heart dropped to the floor. My father had never spoken to me that way. Not even once. I could hardly believe what I had just heard. At first, I thought I was imagining, but it wasn’t. 

It was my reality, and those words truly had come from him. 

“I’m sure you’re not in your right senses,” he spat. “By next week, you’ll be heading to the Harten Rose. You will stay there for the next three months.”

“The Harten Rose? For what?” I screamed, completely stunned. This was shocking. Just too shocking. First, he had yelled at me, and now he was threatening to have me leave the house for some godforsaken place.

“Do you need to ask?” he frowned deeply. “Or should I remind you that you are a young woman who will be married soon? At the Harten Rose, you will get proper training that will prepare you for marriage.”

“I am not going to the Harten Rose,” I fired back. “I am not going anywhere.” The words echoed through the room, and was immediately filled with silence. 

“I never told you that you have a choice,” he replied coldly. “You are going, and that is final.”

My whole body went numb. I stared at him, unable to speak. I felt like something inside me had cracked. Without thinking, I turned and stormed out of the room, my tears falling freely.

Everything felt wrong. Everything felt unfair. The anger inside me mixed with sadness until I could barely breathe. This was crazy and infuriating as well. 

 How could he still hold on to such useless traditions? I thought he was better than this. He had seen the world. He had learned so much. Yet he still believed a woman’s only role was marriage. My hands tightened into fists even as blood coursed freely through my veins.

Loud sobs escaped my lips. “I am going nowhere,” I shouted at no one, my voice breaking. I ran up the stairs and into my room, slamming the door shut behind me.

I threw myself onto my bed and curled into a ball. The tears kept flowing. I could not stop them. I did not want to stop them. My entire world had come crashing before my eyes and there was nothing I could do about it.

I had barely closed my eyes when a knock echoed on my door. I ignored it like a fierce plague. . I did not want to talk, and neither did I want to explain anything. I was tired. My heart hurt too much to even feel numb.

The knock came again. It was heavy and more intense this time. I glared at it and ignored it just as earlier. 

“Samien!” someone called, the voice forcing my eyes open. I turned around and saw my sister standing beside the bed with a soft smile on her face. 

This girl never ceased to amuse me. No… Amuse was an understatement. She always left me stunned.

I exhaled and sat up slowly. She climbed onto the bed without waiting for permission and leaned close. She wrapped her arm around me and had a wide grin perch on her face.

“You startled me,” I muttered, pressing my lips together, still upset. “Why did you come through the window?”

“You refused to open the door,” she shrugged. “So I had no choice.”

Silence fell between us. Then she took my hand gently. Her touch was warm. It calmed my shaky breath a little.

“Let me guess,” she said in a soft voice. “Your conversation with Dad didn’t go well, right?”

“That’s right,” I whispered, my voice weak and tired. I wiped my eyes, but the tears kept rolling down my cheeks and soaking into the sheets. I couldn’t keep my emotions in check, not even for a second.

 “He said he would never let a girl take over from him as the Alpha even though he knows what I can do. He knows my strength. He knows everything.”

“I see,” Rose said softly. She leaned closer, her eyes locked on mine like she was trying to read my soul. “So what do you plan on doing now? Are you just going to accept what he says?”

“Of course not,” I snapped, shaking my head hard. “That is the very last thing I will ever do. Especially when he wants to send me to the Harten Rose.”

“The Harten Rose?” She burst into laughter before she could stop herself. Her laughter irritated me so much that I glared at her with all the anger I could muster. Heat ran through my veins as I stared hard at her. How could she laugh at me now?

“I am sorry,” she said quickly. “I did not mean to laugh. I just… I imagined you wearing those long white gowns with a tray in your hand, trying to serve your husband.” She laughed again, this time, it was louder and more intense than anything I had heard in a while.

“Arghh…” I cringed and squeezed my face. “Spare me that image, please.” My disdain was visible, boldly written on my face. 

Rose’s eyes softened out of the blues. She became more serious and warm. “Well, I have a plan. And I am sure you are going to love it.”

My brow drew together in excitement. Curiosity began to grow inside me. “What plan? Tell me.”

She moved closer until our shoulders almost touched. She looked around the room like someone could be hiding behind the walls. My heart beat faster as I waited, and somehow, it felt like forever.

“The Wolf’s Academy is recruiting new trainees,” she whispered. “The registration ends in two days.”

My eyes widened. “But that is a boy’s academy. All the academies are for boys. They do not accept females.”

The words slipped through my lips in ‌quick procession. This was intriguing and scary at the same time.

Rose tilted her head and gave me a playful smirk. “Has anyone ever told you that you look like a boy?” she murmured.

I froze. Her words sank slowly into my mind. Then, all at once, everything clicked. My eyes shot wide open. 

“No way…” I gasped, my jaw dropping. This was totally unbelievable. 

“Yes way,” she giggled, winking at me. “I already made all the arrangements. I had a strong feeling Father would say no.” She sounded quite confident in her words, and her face — bold and daunting. 

“Rose!” I squealed as I threw my arms around her. “You are the best. What would I have done without you?”

“Absolutely nothing,” she replied proudly. “And that is why I am here. Look over there.”

She pointed to the corner of my room. I got up at once and walked toward it. Sitting there was a large bag. I bent and picked it up.

“What’s this?” I asked and slowly unzipped it.

My mouth hung open. It remained open for a few more seconds even as I ogled at it.

The bag was filled with men’s clothes. Shirts, trousers, boots, undergarments. Everything.

 All I could think of that would be needed by a man was in the bag.

“I wasn’t sure if you would like them,” she said with a shy smile. “But I made sure they are all your size. With these, hiding your identity should not be hard.”

I pressed the clothes to my chest as more tears spilled from my eyes. “Thank you. I appreciate this so much. I do not even know how to thank you.”

Words failed me, and I could do nothing but stare. 

She smiled at me warmly. “Start by getting ready to leave before someone finds out. You know exactly what it means if someone finds out about our plans. Father is going to skin ‌both of us alive.”

I nodded quickly and rushed to gather a few other things. My comb. My soap. My fragrance bottle. I packed everything as fast as I could.

 Soon, I was ready, the big bag hanging from my hand.

“I am going to miss you,” Rose said with a shaky laugh. “Father will be so mad when he notices you are gone.”

“I wish I could see his face when he finds out,” I chuckled. “Not like he has any choice, anyway.”

We both burst into loud laughter. It echoed around the room until she suddenly placed a finger on her lips.

“Hush. Someone might hear us.”

I nodded and kept quiet. She led me to the window, the same way she came in before. She peeked outside, her eyes darting left and right. Then she nodded.

“The coast is clear.”

She jumped out first, then I followed. I landed on my butt so hard that pain shot straight through me. I hissed but quickly scrambled to my feet. 

“Hope you’re not so hurt?” Her voice dripped with sarcasm, one that somehow left me with a smile. I nodded in response, pleased with the sister that had been given to me. I truly couldn’t have asked for anyone better than Rose.

Quickly, we ran together toward the bus station, praying not to be seen by anyone who recognises us.

“Call me when you get there,” she whispered as I climbed onto the bus.

“I will,” I said with a small smile, excited for the journey ahead. 

An hour later, I stood before the huge gates of the Wolf’s Academy. The buildings towered above me, tall and frightening. My heart raced with fear and excitement both.

I took a deep breath. A slow smile spread across my face.

Queen Samien of the Wolf’s Academy.

Not a bad idea, and a perfect name for the girl who was about to dominate the entire academy. I had no doubt about that, not even an iota.