Chapter 4

The snowcat crawled along the mountain road. By the time we reached the Moon Goddess Sanctuary on North Mountain, it was already afternoon. There were no elaborate rituals here, only a stone house where traveling werewolves could rest and tend their wounds, and an ancient birch tree in the center of the square.

Two years ago, when I first returned to Silver Ridge and everyone shunned me, the sanctuary's old guardian, Elias Ward, took me in. He treated the old wounds the hunters had left on me and taught me how to control the wolf inside me that refused to awaken. I slipped my final letter beneath the medicine chest he always used without alerting anyone. I had just passed through the corridor behind the stone house when Leah's familiar voice drifted from beneath the birch tree.

"I feel terrible about what happened yesterday. Erin was kneeling on those broken shards, bleeding everywhere."

Her voice was soft and remorseful, but her eyes betrayed a satisfaction she could barely contain. Yesterday's scene had gone too far, and some lower-ranking pack members had begun to whisper. Afraid of losing her reputation as the sweet, kindhearted sister, she had dragged all four men to the sanctuary to put on a show of praying for me. Leah cradled a moonstone amulet, her eyes rimmed with red.

"I asked my brothers to shift and bring me here as fast as they could so I could pray for Erin's safety myself. Once she sees this, she'll understand how much I care and stop being angry with us."

Victor sneered. "You're too kind. She tried to hurt you, and you're still praying for her. If she had half your sense, this family wouldn't be in constant turmoil." Ryan leaned against the tree, his tone mocking. "We should've left her to freeze on the mountain road for a few days. Once we grind down that ugly, stubborn temper, we can bring her back." Darian's face was grim. "As long as she behaves from now on and learns to make room for Leah, the Rosen family will give her everything she's owed, both status and resources."

Kyle turned the moonstone amulet over in his hands, his expression still cold.

"That temper of hers does need to be broken. She actually left without me this morning and came up the mountain alone. After the mating ceremony next full moon, I'll take her back to Moon Valley for a while. I'll close off every exit, cure her cold-moon sickness for good, and teach her how to be a proper mate."

He sounded so certain, almost amused.

"Erin's bloodline is incredibly strong. She's survived wolfsbane and silver wounds more times than I can count. That girl is too tough to die. She'll outlive every one of us. It's just that temper that needs reining in."

At the words "outlive every one of us," Leah's grip on the amulet tightened. She had schemed endlessly to monopolize everyone's attention, but she knew perfectly well that no matter how harshly these four men spoke of me, deep down they all assumed I would stay by their side forever. They had even mapped out my entire future without asking.

They had simply never asked whether any of it was what I wanted. Leah suddenly turned her head, pretending to have just noticed me behind a column at the end of the corridor.

"Erin?"

She gasped, tears clinging to her lashes, but the faintest smirk tugged at the corner of her lips.

"What took you so long? Kyle was so worried my wolf spirit would flare up that he shifted and carried me all the way up here on his back. He's incredibly fast in wolf form. Of course you couldn't keep up."

All four men turned at once. Relief flashed across Kyle's face when he saw me. Then he strode over and held out the moonstone amulet.

"Haven't you caused enough trouble?" His tone was stern, with the condescending patience of a man granting mercy. "Leah was worried about your injuries and insisted we all come pray for your recovery. Take the amulet. Next full moon, you'll go through with the mating ceremony without any fuss. And I'll let this morning's stunt slide."

The System's voice echoed in my mind.

[Countdown to death: one minute.]

Agony erupted deep in my bones and swept through my entire body. I looked into Kyle's eyes and pulled the wooden wolf fang from around my neck. He had carved it for me when we were twelve, a token of his promise.

He had told me that when I came of age, he would leave his mate mark on me and claim no one else for the rest of his life. I tightened my grip. The wooden fang snapped in two.

The snap was soft, barely audible.

But Kyle's expression froze. The next instant, fury erupted from him. A crushing burst of power rolled outward, shaking loose the snow around us.

"Erin, have you lost your mind? How dare you destroy our token!"

Victor's face darkened as well. "Ungrateful wretch. Kyle has given you chance after chance, and you still won't stop. Fine. Leave her on North Mountain alone. No one is to help her!" I looked at Kyle's furious face and parted my lips, wanting to tell him I didn't need his chances anymore. But the thick, metallic sweetness surged up my throat first.

I doubled over and vomited a mouthful of black blood. It splattered across Kyle's pristine gray overcoat with a sharp, rotten stench.

[Countdown: ten seconds. Soul extraction initiating.]

My legs gave out, and my body pitched forward. Kyle's pupils contracted sharply, and every trace of fury froze on his face. Instinctively, he reached out and caught me in his arms.

"Why is the blood black?"

His hands shook violently. He seized my wrist and forced his spiritual energy toward my heart. The System's concealment had lifted. Beneath his fingertips, there was no pulse. My wolf spirit had already begun to dissolve.

The color slowly drained from Kyle's face.

"Wolfsbane... Why is there so much wolfsbane in your body?"

I looked at Kyle, fear twisting every feature, then at my three brothers, who were finally beginning to panic. With the last of my strength, I forced a smile.

"Kyle... the prescription... was yours."