Chapter 2

The next morning, I went to the hair salon in our pack town.

The stylist parted the uneven hair on the left side of my head and examined it for a long time.

“Extensions won’t work. Whoever did this cut almost against the nape of your neck, and the inner layers are uneven too. The only option is to cut all of it short.”

I looked at myself in the mirror and nodded.

“Cut it.”

The scissors kept closing, and the hair I had spent seven years growing soon covered the floor around my feet.

Rowan had once promised that on the day of our marking ceremony, he would place the moonstone crown on my head himself. I had believed him, so I had not cut my hair for seven years.

Now, as I watched it fall to the floor, I realized I was not as reluctant to let it go as I had imagined.

When I returned home, the living room was empty. My mother had clearly said the night before that once I finished at the salon, we would all go to the Thanksgiving parade together.

I was about to call her when I saw that Lily had posted a new set of photos on Instagram.

She stood between our parents, while Rowan stood beside my father. All four of them were smiling at the camera. The caption contained only two words:

[Everyone’s here.]

I stared at the photo for a long time. Lily had not forgotten anyone. In her eyes, the four people in that picture were already a complete family.

Half an hour later, the front door finally opened.

My mother walked inside and looked me up and down.

“Why did you cut it so short? That stylist did a terrible job. Your marking ceremony is coming up. How are you supposed to style your hair now?”

She spoke as if the stylist, rather than Lily, had been the one who ruined my hair.

“Why didn’t you wait for me before going to the parade?”

“Lily said it would get crowded later, so we went ahead.” My mother avoided my eyes. “You were at the salon anyway. We can always go together next year.”

My father changed his shoes and added impatiently, “It was only a parade. It’s not as if there won’t be another one next year.”

Lily had already run upstairs to her room. When she came back down, a blue moonstone hair clip had appeared in her hair.

Rowan had given it to me for my birthday the year before. He said the stone matched the color of my wolf’s eyes, so I had always kept it safely inside my jewelry box.

I walked over to Lily.

“That’s my hair clip.”

She adjusted it while looking in the mirror.

“I know. You can’t wear it right now, so I’m borrowing it for a few days.”

“Give it back.”

Lily’s expression immediately darkened, and my mother quickly stepped between us.

“What are you doing? Lily is only wearing it for a little while. You can’t use it right now, and it would only gather dust in a drawer.”

My father frowned as well.

“It’s one hair clip. Is it really worth fighting with your sister over?”

I turned to Rowan. He stared at the clip in Lily’s hair for several seconds, looking confused.

“What hair clip?”

“The one you gave me for my birthday last year.”

Only then did Rowan remember.

“Oh, that one.”

He did not tell Lily to return it. Instead, he smiled and said, “Let her wear it for a few days. It matches her dress today.”

Lily tossed her hair smugly.

“Rowan said I could.”

He had given that hair clip to me, yet he had already forgotten why he chose it. Even so, he still believed he had the right to decide who should have it.

I withdrew my hand and stopped asking for it back.

That evening, the Icefield Wolf Core Research Center sent me the official transfer documents. The contract would last ten years, and I was expected to report for duty in three days.

The Pack Council also confirmed that it had received my transfer application. Once Northwatch Pack completed my identity review, my pack link to Blood Moon Pack would be forcibly severed.

I signed the documents and began packing.

When my mother pushed open my bedroom door, I was placing my winter clothes into a suitcase. She paused in the doorway.

“Why are you packing so early?”

I did not answer, but she quickly found an explanation of her own.

“I almost forgot. You and Rowan are holding your marking ceremony this winter. You might as well move into his place early so you won’t be rushing when the time comes.”

Then she casually took an unworn beige coat from my closet, its tags still attached.

“You’ve never worn this, have you? Give it to Lily. She needs a coat in this color.”

I looked at her and suddenly smiled.

“Let her have it.”

My mother’s expression immediately softened.

“That’s more like it. You’re sisters. Stop being so petty over every little thing.”

She carried the coat out of my room.

Even when the door closed behind her, she never stopped to ask why, if I was only preparing to move into Rowan’s house, my suitcase contained my passport, identification documents, pack records, and every piece of clothing I owned for all four seasons.