Chapter One

“Aria.”

The voice was soft, so soft it almost disappeared under the noise coming from below. Laughter. Cheers. The sound of wolves celebrating together.

I lifted my head, startled. For a second, I thought it was Leah calling me. But the voice wasn’t hers. It was something else, low and strange, like a breath on my ear.

The oak door groaned open, and my father stood there, tall and broad, his shadow blocking the hall light. His face looked carved from stone—calm, cold, and already tired of me. Behind him, Cassie leaned against the frame. My perfect older sister. Her lips curled into a smirk, sharp and cruel.

“Come downstairs,” Father said. His tone was firm, flat. He wasn’t asking.

I pulled my knees tighter to my chest, burying my chin. “They don’t want me there.”

Cassie laughed. It wasn’t a real laugh—it was short and bitter, a sound made to cut. Her gaze swept over me, from my tangled red hair to the blanket clutched in my hands. “She’s right. Imagine her walking in with the rest of us. The pack would choke on their drinks.”

“Cassie,” Father warned. But his voice lacked weight.

I forced myself to meet his eyes. “Theo is my twin. Why shouldn’t I celebrate with him?”

Father’s jaw tightened. For a moment, I thought he might soften, might remember I was his daughter too. Instead, his shoulders dropped with a heavy sigh. “Because your presence would remind them of what we lack. Of what the Moon Goddess withheld.”

The words stung worse than a slap. “So I’m… what? A mistake?”

His silence was louder than any answer.

Cassie gave a mocking tilt of her head. “Don’t be so dramatic, Aria. You’re not a mistake. You’re just… unnecessary.”

“Enough,” Father snapped, though his eyes never left mine. They carried no anger, only shame. “Stay here. That’s best for everyone.”

At the far end of the hall, my mother stood in her silver gown. Her gaze slid past me as if I were invisible. She turned away before I could speak her name.

The door shut. Their footsteps faded.

And I was alone again.

The attic pressed down on me, heavy with dust and silence. It was never meant for living. Boxes were stacked in corners, old furniture sagged with cobwebs. The moonlight spilled through cracks, cutting pale lines across the floorboards. The thin blanket around my shoulders couldn’t block the draft sneaking through the roof. I was just another forgotten thing shoved into storage.

My father’s voice carried from below, loud and proud. My mother’s laugh followed, warm and bright. Their joy was whole. Mine was hollow.

Theo had shifted tonight. My twin. My other half. He had howled his first howl, and the pack had lifted their voices in honor. He was the chosen son. And I was… nothing.

A knock came at the door, gentle.

“Aria?”

Leah.

“Come in,” I whispered.

She slipped inside with a small tray of food balanced in her hands. Her dark hair was pulled back, her face soft with pity. She set the tray beside me and lowered herself onto the floor.

“You didn’t eat last night.”

“I wasn’t hungry.” The lie fell flat.

Leah tilted her head, her eyes steady on mine. “Don’t do that. Don’t pretend. I know this hurts.”

I gave a short laugh, bitter and sharp. “Hurts? That doesn’t even cover it. My own father told me I bring shame. My mother couldn’t even look at me. My sister—” My voice cracked. “And Theo… he doesn’t even notice I exist anymore.”

Leah’s fingers brushed mine. “You’re still his twin. Nothing changes that.”

“Everything changed.” My chest burned. “He has a wolf. I don’t. He’s their pride. I’m their curse. What do I even have?”

Leah’s grip tightened. “You have me.”

Her words were soft, but steady. She meant them.

Still, I pulled my hand away. “You don’t know what it’s like to be empty, Leah. To feel nothing inside you when everyone else carries a piece of the Goddess.”

Her lips pressed together, as if holding back words. Finally, she whispered, “Empty doesn’t mean worthless. You don’t need a wolf to matter.”

“Tell that to my father.” My laugh broke halfway. “He doesn’t see a daughter. He sees a reminder that I failed.”

Leah looked down, her lashes shadowing her face. She had no answer.

A sound split through the night.

A howl.

Deep, powerful, alive.

Theo.

I froze, breath trapped in my chest. His voice rolled through the walls, the floor, my very bones. Then more howls joined him, a chorus of loyalty. The pack lifted their voices to honor their new wolf.

Leah’s eyes flicked toward me, but I couldn’t move. I pressed my palms to my ears, but the sound clawed through anyway. It filled the hollow where my wolf should have been. The space that was forever empty.

My throat closed. My eyes stung.

Why not me?

We were born together. We had shared a heartbeat, a life. The Moon Goddess gave him everything. She left me nothing.

I stumbled to the window, shoving it open. Cold night air brushed my skin, carrying the echo of the howls. The forest stretched silver under the moonlight, beautiful and cruel.

“Why didn’t you choose me?” My voice was raw, trembling. “Why did you leave me like this?”

No answer came. Only the wild celebration below.

Until—

A whisper.

Low. Close.

“Soon.”

My breath hitched. I spun, scanning the shadows of the attic. Nothing. Only the old chair in the corner, the dust drifting through moonlight.

But I knew what I’d heard.

The attic was colder now, the silence pressing tight around me. My heart pounded against my ribs as I backed toward the mattress.

Leah touched my arm gently. “Aria? What is it?”

I swallowed, my voice shaking. “Did you… hear that?”

“Hear what?”

I looked again, but the corners of the attic held only silence.

“Nothing,” I whispered, though the word felt like a lie.

Downstairs, my pack howled their joy.

Up here, something else had answered me.