#Chapter Three: Fated at Midnight

Sarah’s POV

I felt energy surge over my skin like a tidal wave of power crashing against every weakness inside me. My bones stopped aching instantly, and my muscles flexed. My strength was returning.

Andrew's blood was a siren’s call to a primal part of my soul. I couldn’t resist another drink. There in the back of my mind, I heard a distant cry, and I pulled back. Madison returned to the room.

I licked Andrew's wound on instinct, closing the wound with my saliva. As soon as I realized what I had done, I felt disgusted by my own instincts and stepped back. I dropped my hands to my side, making fists.

Andrew recoiled in shock, pausing for a moment to run a finger over the no longer existing wound.

Madison sneered, taking Andrew’s hand to inspect it.

“Filthy vampire. You can think you’re different from those vampires in the forest from that day, but you're not. You’re cruel by nature. That's why they let you live. Like attracts like, Andrew, lock Sarah up. She’s dangerous.”

Andrew stood, running his fingers through his disheveled hair and sweeping the shaggy hair back once more. His dark gaze swept down at Madison, his hand still in hers. His lips pressed.

“Guards,” he called down the hall. Two large men in black leather armor entered the room. “Take her to the whipping post in the servant’s courtyard and tie her up,” he said, walking out the door. Madison’s arm draped through his. “She will be flogged ten times. It is the only way to make her learn her lesson.”

Anger rose like a lion inside of me, and another small piece of me that once cared for this man broke off and ground to dust. The large guards had to forcibly drag me past them now that I had regained some of my strength from Andrew’s blood. Ten floggings would be uncomfortable, but manageable. The wounds would at least heal if the skin were to be split, and that was something.

My fangs slid down, and I snapped my jaw several times when I came near Madison, who immediately pretended to be scared, clinging to Andrew. I saw a flash of a victorious smile. I rolled my eyes, being shoved forward by the guards.

“Sarah will no longer serve others. She will only serve me,” Andrew said. I turned my head back, thinking I had heard something wrong. Why would Andrew want me to serve him?

Madison crowned. “But why?”

“As you said. She is dangerous.”

Andrew's POV

The mate ball was lively with music, laughter, and chatter from all sides, with many werewolves finding their mates or excited to, but my mate had yet to appear. There was no scent in the room that overpowered me, making me act out of character. I grew tired of the wait. I swallowed my remaining whiskey as my eye was once more drawn to Sarah. I tossed my glass onto a tray as a servant passed.

I began weaving through the crowds of people along the edge of the ballroom to retrieve another drink to suppress the frustration growing inside me. Sarah consumed my focus, and I didn’t know why. I had never taken notice of her before, as I did tonight. It was a compulsion.

She was serving drinks in the far corner of the ballroom. The plain black long-sleeved, floor-length gown hugged her body in a way that made my groin ache. She shifted uncomfortably, pulling at the back of her dress. No doubt there were wounds from the flogging she received prior to the ball. Yet, she didn’t appear as fragile as before. I held up my hand for a moment. Had my blood given her strength? The idea was exciting and disgusting at once.

As I moved around members of the pack, my gaze kept drifting to her, unable to help but take in her figure over and over. It was driving me mad. I would get a drink from her, I told myself, and check on her.

In truth, Sarah was beautiful. Her stunning green eyes reflected every emotion she held, the dark brown waves of hair blanketed her shoulders, and her smooth, pale skin lured me toward her like moonlight. I growled low. These feelings didn’t make sense.

She was a different kind of beauty than my mother wolf. I shook my head, feeling as though I was in some sort of trance. I knew deep down, Sarah was a monster—she was a vampire, an enemy of werewolves, and had gotten my mother killed. I couldn’t forgive her for that. Yet I yearned to be near her.

When I first met Sarah, she was a cute little girl full of energy and the will of a warrior, ready for anything, and I was immediately drawn to her. I was so enamored with her that I persuaded my soft-hearted mother, Margaret, to take Sarah in and adopt her.

I regretted that decision deeply. If I hadn’t done that, my mother would be here, sitting at the Luna table, watching the dancing with enthusiasm. She loved to dance. Having not found my mate, I knew she would have danced the night away with me, hoping to cheer me up. I missed her smile and how she always saw the bright side to things. My chest ached for her.

Halfway to Sarah, Madison detained me. She clamped onto my arm, stopping my progress and interrupting my thoughts. She pulled me closer to the wall, wanting privacy. “I have been looking forward to this day, to becoming your mate.”

I peered down at her hand on my arm and then back to her. I pulled in a deep breath, knowing where the conversation would lead, recalling the promise I made to Madison over a year ago. If I didn’t find my fated mate by the end of the night, I would mark her and make her my Luna.

“Shall we open champagne early to celebrate the special midnight moment?”

The clock on the wall showed ten minutes until midnight. I studied the females slowly in the room. None held any sway over me. I peered down at Madison. She, too, held no sway over my wolf.

In fact, my wolf rejected Madison adamantly as a mate, never saying why. My wolf wanted to wait for his true mate.

I pulled in a breath, unsure of what would happen to Madison and my relationship if I broke the promise. I was not a man to break promises, but a mate was forever, and it wasn’t to be taken lightly.

The lights around them began to dim and then fluttered on and off, with the surge of energy moving through the room from many who would find their fated mate.

“Please, Andrew, you must mark me. It is expected.”

Resolved to do the right thing, I lowered my head to mark Madison. I had thought about this moment many times growing up—what I wanted it to mean, how I wanted to do it, and what it would look like once I had. The magic of the mate bond was different for everyone. All the marks were meaningful to the couple.

About to mark Madison’s neck, my wolf stirred anxiously in my mind. A slow-growing thread reached out from the center of my wolf’s chest. I raised my head. I, too, sensed the mate bond forming. My mate was in the room.

Madison shrieked as I stood. She reached up to force my head back down. “Please, Andrew, we must be together.”

I ignored her plea. The scent of fear surrounded her and burned my nostrils. She squeezed my arm and pulled me to look at her. Her petite figure was no match for my power and strength. I gazed out at the crowd.

I waited in the dark, not moving a muscle, as did many others. All were waiting for the scent of their mates to reach them. Hope flared in my chest—a true mate.