Chapter 1 | Rebirth

Charlotte

My back is pressed against the cool tiles in our shower and my mate, Cassian, stands before me with a primal look in his eyes. He brings his head down to my neck and lightly bites on my mark, causing me to release a breathy moan.

I can feel him smirk against my skin, happy to be a part of my undoing. But his body tenses as the door to our room opens and then the door to our bathroom. Maddox, my other mate and Cassian’s twin brother, grumbles, “We need to talk.”

Cassian’s face falls onto my chest and he nips at my nipple before responding, “Kind of busy at the moment.”

Maddox’s voice is stern as he says, “Now, Cassian.”

Cassian’s eyes darken, showing his wolf’s presence, and I breathe out as he steps out of the shower. I glance up at Maddox and he nods to me in acknowledgement. Even though my whole body is on display, he respects me and Cassian enough to not linger. It’s Cassian’s day with me and he’s trying his best to respect that.

But he and I both know that tomorrow, when it’s his day with me, he’ll be doing everything in his power to make me forget about his brother, even if it’s only for a moment.

He turns to leave and I breathe out as I turn off the shower.

I can’t help but wonder what they’re going to argue about this time. Every day it’s the same thing; something will happen that pisses one of them off and then they argue.

Everyone around me thinks I’m lucky. They think I’m blessed. I have not one, but two mates, and they’re the infamous Alpha Stark twins. The moment I knew they were my mates, I was set for life!

They would provide for me, they love and cherish me, and everything should be great.

At least, that’s what it was supposed to be like.

But it’s not.

Cassian and Maddox might be the most gorgeous men in existence. They’re strong, clever, charismatic, and they’re incredible Alphas. When I’m with just one of them, everything is great… but when it’s the three of us together, it is nonstop arguing.

The boys have never gotten along. Don’t ask me why, because I honestly don’t know. Anytime I’ve ever tried to ask them about the other one, I’m told, “I want to enjoy my time with you. Let’s not think about him.”

It’s been two years dealing with their shit. Here is just another day of dealing with their incessant arguments.

My opinion doesn’t matter. My voice gets trampled over by their demands.

We live in two separate packs that are connected to one another and every night I change who I live with and every day they argue about different things. Most of the time, their arguments are over me and how they want more time with me.

I huff as I get out of the shower and quickly dry myself off.

My arousal is long gone as I throw on a pair of sweats and a t-shirt and rush to find where my mates have gone. When they fight for too long by themselves, things can go bad.

As I run through the hallways, I can’t help the exhaustion that passes through me. I’m tired of living like this. There are days I wish I never met them or that I wish I was dead. How am I supposed to live the rest of my life with their constant arguments? How much worse will it be whenever we have a baby?

Their arguments, frustration, and anger cloud any good times I could possibly have with either of them. I just want to go to one of the houses and go to sleep.

I finally find them outside and their fight is already tense.

Cassian must’ve pissed Maddox off because Maddox is in his face and there are patches of fur sprouting from his body. He’s on the verge of shifting.

Fuck, anytime the two of them get into a wolf fight, it is always deadly.

I rush over to them, hoping to avoid a nasty fight as I say, “Hey, we should all take a deep breath!”

Cassian shoves me behind him to block me from his brother and he snaps, “Stay out of it, Charlotte!”

I push myself forward so that I stand in front of him, blocking him from Maddox as I say his name in a firm tone, “Maddox!”

Cassian grabs my arm, yanking me as he tries to pull me away from my mate. Maddox shifts into his mammoth sized wolf, and his wolf is furious that Cassian would try to hide me away from him.

Cassian held onto my arm and Maddox bites onto my shirt and it’s like the two of them are playing tug of war with me and I’m the rope.

Suddenly, it’s like for a split second I’m flying. But my head collides with the trunk of a tree and there’s blinding pain and my world went dark. The last thing I heard was Maddox’s panicked voice as he cried out, “Lottie!”

Everything is pitch black. I’ve never experienced this type of darkness before. I can’t make anything out.

But I can hear a voice, but it’s muffled. I think it’s one of the boys. Whoever it is, it sounds like they’re saying, “Please, I’ll do whatever I need to.”

An unknown voice responds, “Time will be different.”

He screams back, “I don’t care!”

Dizziness floods through my head and makes me want to hurl. My body feels so hot, I think I might actually be steaming. The feeling seems like it lasts for hours and I wish someone would just kill me and put me out of my misery.

A voice erupts from the silence, “It’s time to wake up, Charlotte!”

Wake up? I’m so tired and my head hurts. Wait, that voice, I know it! But… no, it can’t be. It’s impossible.

“Charlotte!” The voice calls me again. I force my eyes open and my headache seems to get worse as I see the light around me. Sebastian, my best friend, sits on the edge of my bed and says, “Hey, are you okay?”

I look at him, bewildered, as I realize this is real. He’s actually here in front of me. He isn’t dead.

Am I dead? Surely, that’s the only way I’d be able to see him, right? This must be the afterlife.

He looks at me with his head tilted to the side as he asks, “Are you okay, Char? You hit your head pretty hard yesterday. But the doctor said even though you don’t have your wolf yet that you should be okay.”

What is he talking about? How is he talking?

He’s supposed to be dead. He has been for over a year now.

I sit up and realize that I’m in my old room. The room I lived in ever since I moved into the Lightning Pack when I was 8 years old. I stayed in this room all the way until I met my mates on my 18^th birthday.

But… if I’m in here and Sebastian is alive… I’m not 18 yet.

My mind is racing as it tries to process everything going on and Sebastian puts his hand on my leg as he asks, “Do you need me to cover your chores today?”

My eyes meet his and my memory flashes back the image of his dead body. His body was pale, it had been a ghostly white because he had no blood running through him, his eyes vacant, and his face in shock.

I breathe out, trying to force the memory from my brain and I say, “No, no, I can do it.”

“Are you sure?” He questions, “How are you feeling?”

I force a smile, “I have a small headache, but it’s nothing that I can’t handle.”

He ruffles my hair and says, “If you say so, Char. I need to get to training, but if you need anything, just come and find me.”

I nod my head and watch as he leaves the room. Once the door is shut, I scramble out of my bed and rush to the bathroom, ignoring the headache that begs me to stay in bed.

I stare at the mirror. My body is smaller and doesn’t have any defined muscles. This is the way I looked before I met Cassian and Maddox. Back when I wasn’t forced to train, and I didn’t have as much access to food.

My dirty blonde hair is short right above my chin. Meanwhile, two years from now, it flowed below my breasts and I normally kept it tied up in a braid or a bun to keep it out of the way. There were no marks from my mates on my neck, and there were no circles under my eyes or wrinkles on my skin.

I’m a teenager again.

I walk out of the bathroom and find a calendar hanging on the wall. In three days, it’s supposed to be my 18^th birthday.

The moon goddess must’ve given me a second chance.

I know what’s supposed to happen over the next two years. I’m supposed to see Maddox and Cassian for the first time on my 18^th birthday and then I get immediately thrusted in with them and their petty rivalry. Their jealousy is what caused my only friend Sebastian’s death. I grow to resent them and I hate them for their constant fighting.

Thinking about it now, this is the first moment of peace and silence that I have experienced in a long time. I forgot how nice it was to have time to myself!

The moon goddess gave me a second chance and I’m going to use it to the fullest. I can’t allow myself to get trapped in that never-ending tornado of fighting and misery.

I will save Sebastian’s life, I will be happy, and more importantly… I will be free.

I breathe out as I make up my mind.

I’m sorry Cassian and Maddox. I know you will go your whole lives searching for me, but you did this to yourselves. You made me miserable. You are responsible for Sebastian’s death.

You don’t deserve me. And I will make damn sure that you never get the opportunity to drag me down in your misery again.