Chapter 4: The Mark of Another

I grabbed my silk robe and tied it swiftly.

"And why shall we postpone our mating ceremony?" I asked sternly, crossing my arms.

Erik was dressing with such speed you’d think the room was on fire. "Baby, please understand. Rose is sick. She has Moonshade disease. Have you ever heard of it?" His voice was thick with pity.

I did not flinch. "I have. But I don’t see the connection. How does his sister’s illness stop our mating ceremony?"

Erik looked at me with those pleading puppy eyes. In the past, that gaze would melt my heart and make me agree to anything. Today, it felt like lead.

"The disease is lethal unless she is marked. She needs a mate to strengthen her health through the bond."

He paused as if gathering his courage. I raised a brow, silent, letting him continue. "I need to reject you and mark Rose. After one year, when she is stronger, I’ll reject her and complete our bond with you. I promise I won't mate with her, Leona—only mark her."

The air left my lungs. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

The words felt like physical shards of glass tearing through my throat. My wolf, Alma, whimpered in the back of my mind, a sound so broken it made my knees weak. He was talking about a mark—the sacred brand of a mate—as if he were lending her a jacket. He wasn't just asking for time; he was asking me to let him stain his soul with another woman’s scent while I watched from the sidelines.

"Are you serious right now?"

"Leona, she’s dying. Please, have some mercy. You know my heart belongs to you."

His words made my blood boil; I saw red. I stepped forward, poking a finger into his chest. "Are you seriously planning to abandon your fated mate for your so-called sister? To lose me? To lose the Northern throne?"

"Don't be dramatic," he said casually, as if it were a light matter. "We aren't breaking up. We’re just postponing the ceremony."

"Making me the laughingstock of the werewolf realm? Rejected after an official engagement, waiting in the shadows for empty promises? Why on earth do you need to mark her? Any werewolf can do it. She can pick a chosen mate."

His eyes widened. "Leona, stop being so vicious! Marking is not a joke. How could she trust a stranger? I owe her so much—her parents died saving me from rogues."

"Her parents were Betas! It was their duty to save the Alpha heir. Your parents took her in and treated her like their own; you owe her nothing."

Erik’s face turned scarlet. He trembled with fury. "When did you become so unreasonable? So jealous?"

"Maybe when my fated mate promised me the stars, took my heart and my virginity, and discarded me like used goods the moment his first love appeared on the horizon!" I spat angrily.

"Leona, you don't mean that. Cool off," he snapped, storming out of my room.

My hands were shaking. All my plans, my dreams, and my happiness were shattering like fragile glass. I felt the walls closing in. I threw open the window and jumped, shifting mid-air. I darted toward the forest to ease the agony.

I ran for hours until I was exhausted. Shifting back in the middle of the woods, I fell to my knees, finally letting the tears fall. I allowed myself to grieve for my broken heart. I spent the entire night there, curled in a ball in my wolf form. When the first rays of sun appeared, I headed back to the packhouse.

I dressed in an oversized t-shirt from a basket at the forest's edge.

"Leona," a soft voice exclaimed as I entered.

Luna Mia. She had always been gentle with me, more than Renata ever was. She looked at me apologetically. "I know this situation is difficult and puts you in a hard spot, but please, support Erik. Rose is sick, and he is doing what any caring brother would do."

I blinked. She was actually trying to justify this farce. I smiled bitterly. "Luna Mia, with all due respect, let’s call a spade a spade. Brothers do not mark their sisters. Lovers do. By proposing this, your son has shown me exactly how little he cares for me. Excuse me, I need to freshen up."

I strode upstairs, not giving her a chance to reply. But before reaching my room, I froze. Familiar voices were coming from Erik’s study.

"Do you really think Leona won't leave you?" Erik’s best friend asked.

"She wouldn't dare," Erik replied coldly, and my heart plummeted. "Leona loves me too much. Besides, the engagement was announced, and she’s already given herself to me. No Alpha wolf will mate with her after that."

I didn't recognize him. Was I really so blind to his true colours?

"What about Rose? Do you still love her?"

"I thought I was over her," Erik sighed. "But it looks like true feelings never die. They are so different. Leona is sharp, passionate, and fierce... but Rose has that soft, feminine energy I crave. She needs me. She loves me purely. And me? I want them both."

The entitlement in his voice was poison. He didn't see me as a partner or a future queen; I was a trophy he had already won and stashed on a shelf. He assumed my love was a cage that would keep me trapped no matter how many times he kicked me. He wanted the warrior to protect his borders and the angel to warm his bed, never realizing that a fighter’s first instinct was to destroy a traitor.

I couldn't bear another word. I walked to my room, cursing my own foolishness, and began to pack my bags.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

Loud alarms and screams erupted outside. I ran to the window. Warriors were sprinting across the grounds. Alpha Caleb looked stressed, barking orders as Omegas ran with packed bags.

The air grew heavy with the scent of blood and wood smoke. Something was happening—and my gut feeling was suggesting it was nothing good.