جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 10

Sera “Don’t scream.” The words are a whisper against my ear, but my heartbeat hammers in my chest. Kellan’s hand covers my mouth as he pulls me into the storage room behind the Founder’s Hall. My heart continues to race not from fear, but from anticipation. In less than an hour, he’ll claim me in front of everyone. “Kellan, what—” “Listen to me carefully.” His deep velvety voice sounds strange. It doesn’t have the richness that sends shivers to my spine. “I need you to understand something before we go in there.” I smile, reaching for his hand. “I know. You’re nervous. But it’s going to be fine. Once you claim me, we can finally—” “I’m not claiming you, Sera.” The words don’t make sense at first. They hang in the air between us like a stormy cloud. “What?” “I can’t do this.” He says as he steps back, looking at me squarely. “I thought I could, but I can’t. You have to understand, the pack would never accept it. My family would disown me. Your scent alone—” “You promised,” My

SeraI thought the conversation with Aeron would make things die down.After his shocking confession of him waiting to claim me, I refused to be sucked into any fantasy. So I firmly told him to leave me alone.I was relieved until the gifts started arriving.The first time, it was flowers left on the doorstep. Simple wildflowers tied with twine, no note attached. My aunt frowned at them, and my cousins exchanged confused glances.“Who would send you flowers?” Leah asked, her tone dripping with disbelief.I didn’t answer. But I knew.The next day, it was chocolates. Expensive ones, wrapped in gold foil. Then more flowers. Then a scarf.“These keep showing up,” Aunt Mirelda said one morning, holding up a box. “No name. Nothing.”My cousins didn’t wait for answers. They simply took what they wanted. The scarf, most of the chocolates and the flowers. They didn’t ask. They just claimed them as their own, as if they’d been meant for them all along.I let them. It was easier than arguing.At

SeraThe news spreads like wildfire through the pack.Aeron Nightborne is betrothed to Aspyn Vaelor. The wedding will take place in one week.My cousins discuss it over breakfast, their voices deliberately loud.“Finally, a proper match for him,” Aliya says, smirking in my direction. “Someone who actually belongs at his side.”“Poor Sera,” Leah adds with mock sympathy. “Did you really think you had a chance?”I stand up from the table without a word, my appetite gone.The news follows me everywhere. Laughter that cuts short when I pass. Knowing looks from people who’d watched me fall for the impossible.At work, it’s worse. The silence is deafening. Conversations die when I approach. Someone brushes past me and mutters, “Flew too close, didn’t she?”I keep my head down and scrub counters harder than necessary.I was so stupid. So incredibly foolish.Just days ago, I’d been preparing to tell Aeron the good news that I’d start healer school in two weeks. And then the rumors started sprea

Sera Kellan's words don't fade when I walk away from them. They follow me through the back corridor of the restaurant, down the dim streets of Nightbane that evening, through the front door of my family’s house and into the quiet of my room. I drop down on the edge of my bed long after the house falls silent, staring at the thin crack running down the opposite wall. Candlelight flickers across it, making the shadow shift like something alive. Low chants drift from the ceremonial grounds beyond the trees and the scent of incense thickens the night air. It was an indication that the pack was still in mourning. I could feel the throat-itching smoke of ash and myrrh pressing against my lungs as a thought slowly dawned on me. Tomorrow will end the official mourning period and soon, Aeron will become the pack's Alpha. I sigh, looking down at my trembling hands. Jaw tight, I lace my fingers together in a bid to still them, pressing hard enough that my knuckles ache. It didn't stop. W

Sera I walk out of the shower, towel wrapped around my body as I try detangling my hair. The smell from the dirty water thrown on me still lingers, muted by the floral scent of my hair conditioner. I curse under my breath, applying more in a bid to get rid of it completely. Through the mirror my eyes catch the faint glint of the Alpha's insignia on my table. The letter. I still haven't read it yet and seeing it now, my curiosity only grows. Biting down on my lip, I drop down my hair brush and pick up the paper. Clutching it tight, I make my way to my bed and drop down on the edge. Water drips down from my hair, running along my neck and falling onto the envelope in my hand. The drop stains the envelope as more follow, but I don't even bother wiping or stopping it. I just sit there, staring at it with my jaw tight, unable to move. I already know who it's from and I already know what it probably says. But as I study the crest embedded on the paper, I feel my heart beating wild