There’s a part of me that wishes I hadn’t become so vulnerable, but I couldn’t help it. In that moment, I’d become so overwhelmed by feeling cared for that I didn’t know how to react.
On the other hand, Elias keeps proving that he isn’t remotely interested in me like he was the night I was in heat. I can’t shake off the feeling that I’m being used, even after he assured me that he’d protect me now that I’m his mate.
I’ll have to keep my guard up, especially tonight, as I stare at the full moon illuminating the sky with its silver glow, shedding light on the significance of tonight.
A yearning for my grandmother seeps from one eye, and I have to fight the urge to let it all out and sob because I’m doing this all alone. Ever since she died seven years ago, leaving behind an outcast teen to the hostility of this pack, I’ve had to do everything on my own. From picking up duties in the pack cafeteria to navigating the dread of my delayed wolf and later realizing that the legends of the tribe’s witches were true, I’ve faced it all by myself.
Tonight, the weight of that ostracization hangs heavy on my shoulders, adding weight to the feather-light fabric of thewhite dress that covers my body. I glance down, raking my eyes from my fuller chest to my toes, and sigh.
In less than an hour, I will be bound to the Alpha of The Snehvolk Pack through a sacred ceremony under the full moon. My nerves are shot, my palms are sweaty as I wring my hands together and turn toward the full-length mirror in the corner.
As I stare into the doleful eyes reflected back to me, I try to find a semblance of hope just as the carillon bell outside the pack den is struck to signal the start of the fire. The high-pitched chiming that follows bleats through my eardrums, joining the ringing of trepidation that was already present the moment I began dressing for tonight’s ceremony.
Feeling pathetic as I make my way out of Elias’s house, I keep my gaze pressed to the ground, following the blood-red carpet laid out across the snow in a path toward the field at the back of the den. Unable to find the strength to face the pack members who will be present at the ceremony, I reach back to lift the built-in hood on my collar and cover my head. Like a cloak that resembles the ones the alphas and elders wear for the sacred ceremonies, my dress was custom-made by one of the older she-wolves in the pack.
Just as shocked as she was when she was brought to the alpha’s house to take my measurements the other night, I can imagine that the others struggle to come to terms with this union. It takes mustering up every ounce of courage I can find within myself to walk down the carpet and present myself to the Snehvolk Pack when all I want to do is creep into a cave and hide.
“Aurora…there you are…”
I’m greeted by Elias’s soft tone, a hand offered out to me. As soon as I look up and meet the glowing depths of his radiant honey-golden eyes, I sigh with relief.
But that relief is short-lived when I place my hand in his and become aware of the rest of the pack gathered around the fire. The placement of the mobile altar means we’ll have to walk between the pack members, and heat fills my cheeks as I try to keep my gaze lowered until we’re at the front.
I’m not sure if it’s the remnants of past horrors that have me hearing vile words like “fat pig” or “useless mutt” as we head through, but Elias doesn’t seem to notice as he leads me to the altar where his grandfather, Elder Silas, waits for us with the Snehvolk relic between his palms.
I try focusing all my attention on the hairless ivory skull of the pack’s ancestor—a werewolf named Boris. Though the pack history hasn’t interested me before, I realize that I’ll have to learn about it if I’m meant to be their luna.
Oh no…
There it comes again…
That dreadful feeling of overwhelm settles in the pit of my belly and churns my gut, heightening when Elder Silas begins the announcement that this ceremony is meant to bind Alpha Elias and me in a mate bond.
“By the light and grace of the Moon Goddess, we gather here today to witness the union of Alpha Elias McGruff to Omega Aurora Sinclair,” he continues as he looks around the field at all the werewolves gathered around. The reminder that the others are present is a bitter taste that I can barely swallow, even when I gulp hard.
I might be breaking out in a sweat, but I’m too anxious to lift a hand to my brow to check. I want to remain as inconspicuous as possible, even if I can feel everyone’s eyes boring into my back while I’m standing beside Elias.
“Psst…Aurora…”
Elias’s hushed whisper almost falls on deaf ears while I’m trying to stay focused on ignoring the fact that the pack is gathered here to witness our union. I already know what they think of me; that’s why I flinch at the slightest sound that comes from behind.
The one that comes from beside me isn’t as horrifying as the others, but still, I’m too tense to meet his eyes.
It’s because of him that I’m in this mess in the first place. I hate being the center of attention at a gathering of werewolves who despise me. Huffing my irritation, my eyes remain fixed on Elder Silas as he proceeds to warm the skull over the fire before climbing back to the altar.
“Aurora,” Elias whispers again, this time with a gentle, nudging squeeze on my hand.
“What?” I grate coldly through the metal bars of my gritted teeth.
“Boris’s skull, huh?” he chuckles under his breath, discreetly so his grandfather doesn’t catch him. “You know that it’s only a myth that it holds any powers. I bet he’s not even resting in peace with part of his remains out here in the cold.”
Frowning, I look up to find Elias smirking coyly, his chest puffed out as if he’s proud of his dry joke. I shake my head and return to watching Elder Silas place the skull on a stake before holding it over the fire toward Elias and me.
Elias places one hand on the top of the skull and nods at me to do the same. It’s warm to the touch from being cast in the fire, and a small flicker of energy sparks beneath my palm.
“It’s as cold as the rest of his remains,” Elias whispers just as Elder Silas focuses measured eyes on him. He clears his throat and straightens up before his grandfather.
“Now, Alpha Elias, you may swear your oath to the Moon Goddess, and to the ancestors of this pack.”
