Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1: The Mark That Wasn't

"You're the Princess."

The phone slips from my hand. It hits the floor. The screen cracks.

I stare at it. I didn't  move. My heart is beating too fast.

Princess. Me. The girl who grew up washing plates for foster parents. The woman who wakes up at five to bake cakes for a husband who looks through me like I am glass.

The cake sits on the counter. Red velvet. Darius's favorite. I made it fresh this morning. I wanted to tell him my news. The good news from the lawyer.

Now this.

I pick up the phone. The lawyer is still talking. His voice sounds far away.

"Mrs. Vane, are you there? You need to listen. The election is in fifteen days. If you want the crown, you need a husband. The law says a woman cannot rule alone. If you don't find one, your husband wins by default."

"I have a husband," I say. My voice sounds strange to me.

"Are you sure?"

The line goes dead.

I look at the cake. Seven years. Seven years of waiting for the Luna title. Darius always says the same thing. Wait until after the election. Wait until the pack is calm. Wait until his mother likes me.

His mother will never like me. I know this now.

Footsteps come from upstairs. Then a giggle. High. Familiar.

Lila.

My stepsister. The girl I fed when her mother died. The girl who lives in my house and wears my clothes and eats my food.

The giggle comes again. Then a moan. The kind of sound I make when Darius touches me. When he wants me. When he remembers I exist.

I walk up the stairs. My feet know the way. I have climbed these steps ten thousand times. To bring him coffee. To ask about his day. To wait for him to notice me.

The bedroom door is open.

I see them.

Darius is on top of Lila. Her legs are around him. His mouth is on her neck.

I see the mark.

White skin. Fresh bite. The sacred bond that ties wolf to mate forever. The thing he never gave me. The thing I begged for. The thing he said the council would not allow.

"Fina!" Darius sees me. He does not stop. He smiles. "Perfect timing."

Lila waves at me. She does not cover herself. "Hi, sis. Close the door when you leave."

I look at the cake knife in my hand. I think about using it. The thought is red and loud in my head. It would be easy. So easy.

"Seven years," I say. My voice comes from far away. "You said wait. You said the council blocked it. You said after the election."

"I lied." Darius stands up. He is naked. He is not ashamed. "I never wanted to mark you, Fina. You are useful to me. Good with the northern packs. Good for my image. Good in bed when I need you warm. But Lila," he touches her face, "she is my true mate. My choice. My love."

"And Marcus?" I ask. My son. My six year old boy. The one who calls me Mama in his sleep.

"Ours," Lila says. She smiles. She sits up. The sheet falls. She does not care. "My egg. Another woman carried him. But you did the work, Fina. The dirty diapers. The tears at night. So sweet. He calls you Mama, doesn't he? That is cute."

The room spins. I grab the doorframe. My son. My boy. The one who leaves drawings on my pillow. The one who holds my hand when he is scared.

"Give me the crown," Darius says. He moves closer to me. "The letter from the lawyer. The DNA proof. We will burn it together. You will go back to being my wife. My good wife. My obedient wife. No one gets hurt. No one needs to know."

"What crown?" I ask him.

He smiles. The same smile from this morning. From our wedding. From seven years of lies.

"I know you are the Princess," he says. "I found you first. Before anyone else could. I made sure you stayed small. Stayed grateful. Stayed mine."

I understand then. The room tilts. He knew. All this time. The orphan story. The foster care. The way he found me. He planted me. He controlled me. He made me nothing so I would never leave.

My phone buzzes in my hand.

I answer it. I do not look at the screen. "Hello?"

"Princess Seraphina." A man's voice. Deep. Hard. Like stones rubbing together. "My name is Kael. I know what you are looking at right now. I know what you just learned. I know you have fifteen days to find a husband or lose everything."

"Why are you calling me?" I ask.

"Your husband killed my sister. I hate him. You hate him. We can help each other."

Darius grabs for the phone. I move back. I keep the line open.

"Drive fast," Kael says. "He is calling the school right now. He wants the boy before you do. He wants to use him against you."

The line dies.

I run. Down the stairs. Out the door. The cake sits on the counter. Red velvet. Seven years of my life. Seven years of nothing.

Darius screams behind me. "You are nothing! You will always be nothing! You need me! You have nothing without me!"

I start the car. I drive to Marcus's school. Fast. Too fast. My hands shake on the wheel. My heart is in my throat.

I will get my son. My boy. The one thing that is truly mine.

Then I will meet this stranger. This enemy of my enemy.

The phone buzzes. A text.

Drive fast, Princess. He is already calling the school. They kn

ow your car. Take the back road. I will meet you at the north border.

I press the gas. The road blurs. Trees fly past. My eyes burn. I am not crying. I am done crying.

I am not nothing. I am King Alaric's daughter.

And I am done being small.