Unclaimed By Fate

Chapter 2- The Poisoned CrownAURELIA POVAs my father’s heiress and future leader of our pack, I had stood in this same courtroom my entire life. I knew the outlay of it like I knew my name. Never once did I imagine I would be standing in it, in this manner. In the middle. Alone. Shocked. Confused. “Poison?” “During the council? That is a death warrant.” The murmurs poured from all sides of me, condemnation dripping in the air silently. They only fueled my confusion. I stood there unbound, but it felt like I was chained down as every leader murmured behind the palms of their hands, loathsome stares directed at me.My father, the Alpha of Bloodmoon Pack stood in a crisp black suit ahead, shoulders so broad they could snap the fabric at the seams, and tension radiating through him like an unwanted spell. He didn’t look at me. Not when panic tore through that ballroom as the elder died in my arms. Not when people went to him and whispered into his ear, not even when Mom sobbed by h

Chapter 3- The Enemy I CuddledAURELIA POVThe holding cell was murky. Cold. The luxurious ballgown I wore felt like useless armor that only crushed me down with its weight. The earrings I carefully picked some time this morning were somewhere on the floor. The hum of festivities continuing above my head made the walls of the cell vibrate. I sat there, my head leaning against the wall, my mind replaying the events over and over and over in my head. Like a broken record. It all didn’t make sense. None of it did. Not the death of Ol’ Vale. Not how he died. Not my sister testifying against me and vowing on her soul that she saw me commit the heinous crime. Not Ronan being mute to my ambush. Everything had been going so well. So fucking well I had no idea where the clusterfuck began. Was it when I finally moved to the ballroom?Was I supposed to have stayed outside the entire time? Doing what?Questions. So many fucking questions and they were driving me to insanity. I was on the e

Chapter 6- The Princess They KilledAURELIA POVThe doors of the courtroom echoed loudly as they were pushed open. Too loud. With a finality I refused to accept. I walked in on my own, the two warriors on either side of me, a safe and respectful distance apart. There were no chains, no force. I walked in there like I owned the place. Ronan walked in front of me like a ruthless commander he was, shoulders squared with tension radiating from every inch of his thick, bulky body before reclaiming his position by father’s throne.The courtroom was more packed than it was yesterday. More people. More eyes. Silently judging, loudly hating. The air was heady with their condemnation. And I knew they were not here to observe. No. They were here to watch my fall from grace. I stood my ground, stood right in the middle of the courtroom, and faced the front. I may have grown up knowing how to defend myself. And that pep-talk I had with myself last night may have riled me up to stand proud and t

Chapter 8- MINEMALRIK POVThe full moon was the bane of my existence.The source of my misery and all the hell it came with it. But this one felt different. This one felt sharper. I knew I had to get to the cellar before the moon reached its peak. Otherwise shit was going to hit the fan really quickly. So I did just that. I skated through the dark walls of my castle as I left the main rooms, climbing down the stone stairs that led to a dingy cellar underneath the foundation of the castle. The only place I ran to when things got too much. I reached just in time as a wave of uncontrollable heat washed over me. Like molten lava was injected into my blood. An annoyed growl ripped through my lips as my beast surged forward. Shit. I needed to get restrained. I opened the cellar before stopping in the middle, eyeing the chains that hung on the stone walls, blackened by a thousand years of use. I walked to the side and gripped the first set, then started cuffing my own ankles. My wolf

Chapter 10- The One Who Tames BeastsAZRAEL POVI hated full moon nights. I mean, hate was milder. I loathed them. I abhorred the dread that came before them. The guilt that clung to my skin after them. The humbling, unbearable helplessness that came with standing while my brother fought battles inside himself that no one could touch. Full moons were sacred for most shifters. They were a blessing. A cause for celebration. But for me? For us?They were a reminder. They were guilt wrapped in shiny moonlight. A reminder of how I didn’t get the shitty end of the stick. The reminder of how everything else fell onto my brother and he carried the heavier burden of it all. And to make matters worse, he had gone feral. I could count a few times when his beast had gone feral. And a few of those times I had been there to help him come back. Help him gain control over his beast. Except for this one time I was caught by my own demons and then he ran to dine on seven tourists who were so unfort