CHAPTER TWO

ISABEL

Silence settled over the courtyard. For a long moment, no one spoke as I looked at Alpha Rowan, convinced I had heard him wrong. Future Luna? Me? Confused murmurs spread through the crowd.

"What did he just say?"

"Future Luna?"

"I thought she was being sent to Fireclaw because of the treaty."

"So... she's not going there as a servant?"

My mother stared at Alpha Rowan in disbelief. Father frowned, and even Vivian looked confused.

Alpha Rowan glanced around the courtyard before speaking again. "I assume the details of the treaty were never shared with you." No one answered, and he continued, his voice calm. "The peace treaty between Fireclaw and Rivercrest is more than an agreement to end a war. It is an alliance."

More whispers spread through the crowd.

"My son, Asher Rowan, heir to the Fireclaw Pack, has accepted the treaty." He turned slightly toward the young man standing beside him. Only then did I look at him again. He stood quietly beside his father, his expression unreadable. "The daughter sent by Rivercrest will become his mate." 

My heart skipped. Mate? 

"The union joins our bloodlines and strengthens the peace between our packs." Alpha Rowan's gaze returned to me. "From this day forward, Isabel of Rivercrest is the future Luna of Fireclaw."

The words echoed inside my head. Future Luna. Mate. None of it felt real. No one had told me. Not Father. Not Mother. Judging from the expressions around me, they were just as confused as I was.

The whispers around me grew louder.

"So that's why she was chosen."

"I thought Fireclaw was taking her as payment."

"She's marrying the heir?"

"The future Alpha?"

I stood frozen as everything I thought I knew about today changed within a few moments. Slowly, I turned toward Vivian. She wasn't looking at me; her eyes remained fixed on Asher before drifting back to me. The pity she had shown me only moments ago disappeared, and her lips pressed into a thin line. Without saying a word, she turned sharply and walked away.

As she brushed past a young omega carrying a silver tray filled with cups, she thrust her elbow into it. Crash! The silver cups scattered across the stone floor as dark red wine splashed over the stones. The young omega immediately dropped to his knees. "I-I'm sorry, Miss Vivian." She didn't even spare him a glance.

"My daughter..." Mother murmured, quickly hurrying after Vivian and disappearing into the pack house.

The courtyard remained unusually quiet. Alpha Rowan looked back at me. "Are you ready to leave?"

The question caught me off guard. Leave? Already? I looked toward Father, who for the first time that morning seemed just as unsettled as everyone else. He remained silent for several moments before speaking. "You should gather whatever belongings you wish to take."

My fingers curled against my dress as I nodded quietly. "Yes, Father."

I turned and began walking toward the pack house while behind me, the whispers continued.

"I never imagined Fireclaw would choose her as a future Luna."

I kept walking, every step feeling heavier than the last. Just that morning, I believed I was being sent away to serve my enemies, but now they were calling me the future Luna of Fireclaw. Nothing made sense anymore.

As I reached the entrance of the pack house, raised voices drifted into the corridor, and I stopped. Vivian was shouting.

I slowed my steps as the voices grew louder the farther I walked into the corridor.

"...You knew!" Vivian's voice shook with anger. "You knew all along!"

"I didn't," Mother replied. "I swear I didn't."

"Then how could this happen?"

I stopped outside the sitting room where the door wasn't fully closed.

"I spent years listening to everyone praise me," Vivian said, her breathing uneven. "They all said I'd be the first to find a mate. And now..." She laughed bitterly. "Now Isabel is leaving before me."

"It isn't what you think."

"Isn't it?" Vivian snapped. "The entire pack watched Alpha Rowan call her Fireclaw's future Luna."

I lowered my head as none of this felt real.

"I don't understand," Mother whispered. "Your father never told me the treaty was a marriage alliance."

Before Vivian could answer, footsteps echoed behind me. Father walked past me without a word and pushed the door open, causing the room to fall silent.

"Enough," he said.

Vivian turned to face him. "Father."

"I don't want to hear another word."

Her eyes filled with tears. "You expect me to accept this?"

"The treaty has been agreed upon."

"But why Isabel, why is she chosen as a bride?" she demanded.

Vivian covered her mouth as tears slipped down her cheeks. I didn't want to hear any more, wanting only to collect my things and leave.

As I turned the corner, hurried footsteps echoed behind me.

"Isabel."

I froze as Vivian stood only a few steps away, her eyes red as she stared at me without saying a word. Before I could speak—

Slap!

The force of it sent my head to one side as my cheek burned. I slowly lifted a hand to my face. "Vivian..."

"So you're going to be mated before me." Her voice trembled.

I looked at her, confused. "I didn't know anything about this."

She laughed, a cold, bitter laugh. "Of course you don't, you sly girl.”

"It's the truth."

"You've always pretended to be innocent."

I shook my head. "I never asked for any of this."

She stepped closer. "Neither did I."

For a moment, neither of us spoke. Then—

Slap!

The second blow landed harder than the first, making my eyes sting.

"You'll regret this," her words came out quietly, too quietly. "I don't know how. I don't know when. But I'll make sure you regret it."

She held my gaze for one last second before brushing past me. I remained where I was, one hand pressed against my burning cheek, listening to her footsteps disappear down the corridor.  Leaving Rivercrest no longer frightened me as much as the hatred I had just seen in my own sister's eyes.