Une épouse pour mon frère

The old dress barely fits my slender figure, but at least it covers all the scars, though my light brown hair, which cascades down to my hips, also helps. Father would never allow the pack to see the truth about his mistreatment of his legitimate daughter, much less on the night of the new Alpha’s coronation.

Fate has chosen Darius to lead our pack, and tonight the goddess will also grant him the grace of meeting his Luna. The priests have foretold it.

I do my best to make my mother’s old, yellowed dress, one of the few belongings my stepmother didn’t throw away, look better on me, but it’s impossible. I turn slightly in front of the mirror to see if I can do anything with the fabric. Maybe by gathering it up a little…

The door opens, and Diana walks in without knocking. I see her look of contempt through the mirror, and then a mocking smile appears on her ugly lips, which look like poorly prepared sausage.

“And here I thought you couldn’t look any worse yet, every day you outdo yourself, Sabina. Why do you even bother trying to look good? You’ll never look good, no matter how hard you try.” Her unpleasant, shrill laugh echoed in my ears, hurting me. I ignore her. Not today.

“Don’t tell me…” She covered her mouth with a show of decorum. “Do you really think Darius will notice you? Alpha Darius would never notice you.” Her look of contempt deepened, and her forced smile turned into a sneer. “You’re nothing but a stupid servant. How dare you even think that?”

I continued to ignore her as I put on the few pieces of inherited jewelry I’d managed to keep hidden away: the necklace with the teardrop shaped pendant and the matching earrings.

She flew into a rage and yanked me by the arm, shaking me. “How dare you ignore me, you little slut!” She tries to rip the necklace off me, but I struggle with her. Just then, a loud crash is heard. Father had just burst in, slamming the door against the wall.

“What the hell is going on here?” he asked in that tone of voice that seemed calm but only served to signal the pent-up rage that could erupt at any moment.

“Daddy, Sabina wants to steal Darius from me! She’s dressed up for him.” Diana’s tantrum “with stomping and flailing” never goes unnoticed.

“What’s this all about, Sabina?” His voice is full of threats directed at me. This time, I have the perfect excuse to break free.

“What do you think the pack will say when they see your legitimate daughter in old rags, disheveled and covered in scars, without even a single piece of jewelry to adorn her?”

The pallor that washes over his face gives me the answer I want. He’s been favoring a stranger for years, while humiliating and mistreating his legitimate daughter.

“You dare threaten me?” he asks in a restrained growl. “A mere Omega, threatening the pack’s Beta. An wolfless Omega. No one in this pack would defend you.”

“How about we find out, Father?” He didn’t expect my response, but he doesn’t say anything else either. His look of hatred and contempt doesn’t faze me.

“Diana, go get ready and leave her alone. You won’t bother her today, he orders without taking his eyes off me.”

“But, Daddy…!”

“That’s an order!”

They both leave the small room, and I finally feel like I can breathe again. I won’t have to put up with this anymore. Not after tonight.

The time for the ceremony is approaching, and everyone present at the pack’s sacred site is anxious, waiting for the coronation of the new Alpha. No one cares about the mud under their feet after days of spring rain, the only thing that matters is the great moment we’re experiencing tonight. The energy courses through every member of the pack, even me, who doesn’t have a wolf.

In the center, in front of the sacred bonfire, the Alpha couple, Marius and Elisse, wait patiently for their son, Darius, to arrive and make his way to the ceremonial center. The moment has come. This isn’t just his night.

Darius finally appears at the entrance, after his journey across the world, the final requirement his father set for him to assume the position. He enters the sacred site with his back straight, shirtless, revealing his slender body, yet defined by muscles that flex with every step. The tattoos that adorn him are evidence of his journey to leave his immaturity behind and understand what it means to bear the weight of the world on his shoulders.

The light of the torches bathes him as if in adoration, lending his rugged yet attractive features and his dark hair and eyes an air of mystery, and he, in all his glory, stands before his parents.

“Father, Mother, I have returned home, he says, bowing to show the respect he has for them as their son and heir.”

“My son, you’ve become a great man. What a joy to see you and to know that you’ve returned as the Alpha this pack deserves. Stand up and let your mother see you.” Luna Elisse steps closer and takes him by the shoulders, so he’ll look up and see her. “Look at the handsome man you’ve become.”

“Stop fawning over him. All those months of introspection and learning will go to waste if you keep this up.” Alpha Marius gently scolds her, and Luna smiles and steps aside. “It’s time, Darius.”

Darius straightens up and nods.

“Are you sure you want to take on this great responsibility?” Marius asks, though it’s obvious he’s convinced his son is worthy of becoming Alpha.

“Yes, Father. I’m completely sure, Darius replies, very proud and with his head held high.”

“Then take the oath before the pack and offer your blood to the sacred fire, so that this oath may be sealed.”

Marius nods and turns toward us. For a moment, his gaze rests on me, standing at the front, next to my father on the left, as the legitimate daughter of the first Beta, and an electric spark courses through my entire body, but his gaze quickly shifts away, sweeping across the forest clearing and everyone in it.

“I, Darius Stein, son of Alpha Marius Stein, swear absolute loyalty and protection to my pack and surrender my life and my free will to the service of all of you, as Alpha. May the goddess grant me many years of reign, to rule…” He seemed to pause on that last word. “…and protect the Silver River pack, forever.”

Cheers erupted immediately, especially when he turned around and the Alpha handed him the ceremonial dagger. Darius approached the sacred bonfire and cut the palm of his hand, closing it and then letting the blood flow onto the fire, which sizzled and flared up, as if trying to consume all the oxygen around it. A sign that the new Alpha is strong.

At that moment, the spark I felt a few moments ago intensifies, and a sensation of heat floods my entire body.

Alpha Darius turned toward the pack, growling, his face contorted by the onset of a transformation.

I couldn’t help but curl up into a ball as the spark turned into a searing fire that consumed me from within. I hear gasps of surprise, and with what little strength I can muster, I recover and look up again to see Alpha Darius approaching.

The inner fire consumes me, and I realize that the pack’s priests were right. The goddess has granted her Luna to Alpha Darius on the very night of his coronation.

It’s me!

Darius gasped, his face contorting as his inner wolf pushed against his skin. My knees trembled as a wave of intoxicating scent, cedarwood and rain, flooded my senses. The inner fire consumed me, and the realization hit me like a physical blow.

Alongside the inner fire that consumes me, I feel hope begin to shine, and I watch with anticipation as he approaches me, gazing at me with desire.

When he’s finally just a step away from me, the joy I feel is beyond compare, but I remember that I’ve never felt true joy, or at least, I don’t remember it.

However, it all comes to an end when I see the furtive glance Alpha Darius casts at Diana and the small, satisfied smile on the pumple lips of that treacherous she-wolf.

When his gaze returns to me, I no longer see the desire and devotion a mate should feel; instead, there’s only contempt. A second later, his hand grabs me by the neck and squeezes.

“How dare you even expect me to accept you?” he says before giving a squeeze that leaves me gasping for air and makes my throat ache. “I, Alpha Darius Stein of the Silver River pack, reject Sabina Bator and swear never to take her as my mate or Luna.”

The pain feels like a stab in my chest and then spreads throughout my body, replacing the searing fire that had previously consumed me.

It only gets worse when Darius roughly throws me onto the muddy ground, forcing the little air left in my lungs out and preventing me from getting up because of the excruciating pain and shortness of breath.