Chapter 2

Reya

The fairy tale did not even last until midnight. The very second our carriage pulled up to the Oakwood estate, the illusion shattered into a million pieces. We barely made it through the front doors before the first heavy crystal vase came flying across the grand parlor, smashing directly into the mahogany wall right next to my head. Shards of glass rained down onto the carpet.

"I won't do it! I absolutely won't do it! I will not let that plain, useless loser have him!" Bernice shrieked at the top of her lungs. Her perfect golden curls bounced frantically around her face as she stomped her feet like a toddler having a tantrum. Her cheeks were bright red, and tears of pure rage were smudging her makeup. "Alpha Skylar belongs to me! He is supposed to be mine!"

I stayed near the doorway, casually brushing a stray piece of glass off the sleeve of my green dress. I kept my hands inside my pockets so nobody could see how hard I was clenching my fists. "He doesn't belong to you, Bernice. The Moon Goddess literally chose him for me. You were standing right there. You saw the sparks."

"Shut up! Just shut your stupid mouth, Reya!" Bernice screamed, throwing a velvet couch cushion across the room. She turned to our parents, her voice turning into a pathetic, high-pitched whine. "Mother! Father! Do something! His territory controls the richest trade routes in the entire world! He is incredibly wealthy and handsome! I am the pure white wolf of this pack! I am the one who deserves a king, not this boring, invisible nobody!"

Our father, Alpha Thomas, sat down on the leather sofa and rubbed his temples. He looked incredibly stressed, but he did not look at Bernice with anger. He looked at her with pure panic because she was his favorite asset. "Bernice, sweetheart, please calm down and stop throwing things. You know the mate bond is a divine decree. We cannot just ignore the will of the goddess."

"I don't care about the goddess!" Bernice roared, slamming her hand down on a side table. "I am supposed to sign the arranged mating contract with Alpha Killian Blackwood tomorrow morning! Killian is a complete monster! Everyone knows he is covered in horrific battle scars, his pack is stuck in those freezing, miserable northern mountains, and they are constantly fighting bloody border wars with savages! I will freeze to death up there, or he will butcher me in one of his psycho rages! You promised me a life of luxury and safety!"

Our mother, Eleanor, rushed over to Bernice and wrapped her arms around her, rocking her back and forth. "I know, baby, I know. Killian Blackwood is terrifying. The whole world knows he is a ruthless executioner."

"Exactly!" Bernice sobbed, wiping her nose on her expensive silk sleeve. She dropped to her knees in front of our father and grabbed his hands. "Please, Father. If Reya goes to the Southern Valley, she will be a queen. She will have everything, and I will have nothing but snow and blood. She is a defect! She does not even have a proper alpha or luna aura! She can't even shift into a rare wolf like me! Use the old clan laws. Switch our names on the contracts before the morning. Skylar is a businessman, not a romantic. He doesn't care about a stupid bond. He cares about status. If you offer him a bigger dowry and a pure white wolf, he will take me instead."

I marched into the center of the room, my blood boiling. "Are you guys actually insane? You are talking about committing treason against a fated bond. You can't just swap names on a legal treaty like you are trading cattle."

Our father finally snapped his head up to look at me. His eyes were completely cold, totally empty of any love. "Keep your mouth shut, Reya. Your sister is talking, and she is right. You do not have the presence or the wolf to lead a major territory like the Southern Valley. You would embarrass us."

"I am his fated mate!" I yelled, dropping my usual sarcasm because the sheer injustice of it was choking me. "Skylar chose me! He held my hand in front of hundreds of people!"

"And he can drop your hand just as fast if the price is right," a smooth, arrogant voice said from the doorway.

I spun around. My heart completely stopped. Alpha Skylar Raver walked right into our private parlor. He had bypassed our guards entirely. He did not look like the enchanted gentleman who had smiled at me on the dance floor a couple of hours ago. His hazel eyes were sharp, greedy, and they were locked directly onto Bernice’s kneeling form.

"Alpha Skylar," my father muttered, quickly standing up from the couch. "You came here secretly? You heard what we were discussing?"

Skylar shrugged his broad shoulders, a confident smirk spreading across his face. He adjusted his polished leather armor. "I am a businessman, Alpha Thomas. When I felt the fated bond tonight, I was captivated by Reya’s scent, sure. It was a nice physical rush. But a fated bond does not pay for new weapons, and it does not secure my borders. A pure white wolf as my Luna brings immense prestige to the Southern Valley. It makes my pack look blessed and untouchable. If you are truly willing to increase the dowry by forty percent to ensure your favorite daughter's happiness, then I am highly interested."

Skylar walked right past me. He did not even look at me. He acted like I was a ghost. He stopped right in front of Bernice, extending his hand to her. Bernice looked up at him, her tears vanishing instantly as her face twisted into a triumphant, evil grin. She took his hand and stood up, leaning her body against his side.

"You are making a massive mistake," I whispered, staring directly at Skylar. The fated bond was still humming painfully in my chest, but looking at his greedy face made me feel physically sick. "The goddess will punish you for this."

Skylar laughed, a cold, mocking sound. "No hard feelings, sweetheart. You are a pretty girl, but your sister is a trophy that will elevate my status. You will do just fine in the North. Killian Blackwood likes his women quiet, plain, and broken anyway. You two are a perfect match."

My parents did not waste a single second. My father immediately called the pack lawyer into the room and pulled out the ancient clan ledger. There was an old, dark loophole in our pack laws that allowed a family to swap daughters in political contracts before the formal binding ceremony at the High Council. They spent the next two hours scratching out Bernice's name from the Northern treaty and forcing my details onto the parchment instead. They added the forty percent dowry bonus to Skylar's contract, and both Alphas signed the new documents right in front of me.

When the ink was dry, my father picked up the finalized papers, binding me to the ruthless Northern Alpha. He walked over to me, holding a pen out.

"Sign it, Reya," my father commanded, his voice firm and unyielding. "Do not make a scene. Your suitcase is already packed and waiting by the back door. You leave for the Blackwood territory tonight."

Bernice smirked, leaning her head on Skylar's shoulder. "Go on, sister. Go to your monster. Let's see how long you survive in the freezing mud before he snaps your neck."

They all stared at me, waiting for the breakdown. They expected me to fall to my knees, cry, and beg them not to send me away to a man who was famous for executing people. They wanted to see me broken.

I took a deep breath, and inside my chest, the ancient shadow magic began to coil tightly. It felt cold, powerful, and absolutely deadly. I suppressed it, keeping it hidden from their greedy eyes, but the energy gave me a spine of solid steel. I snatched the pen from my father's hand.

I did not shed a single tear. I did not raise my voice. I signed my name on the contract with a perfectly steady hand.

I dropped the pen onto the table and looked up, glaring at my mother, my father, my sister, and the fated mate who had sold me out for cash. My amber eyes flashed with a dangerous light in the dim room.

"You think you just stole my destiny," I said, my voice completely flat, vibrating with a terrifying quietness that made Skylar take a half-step back in surprise. "But you have absolutely no idea what kind of nightmare you just unleashed into the North. Enjoy your stolen crown, Bernice. Sleep with one eye open, Skylar. Because when your perfect little world shatters into pieces, I will be the one holding the hammer, and I promise you will deeply regret the day you put me on that carriage.”