“So exciting,” Beatrice squealed, looping her arm into mine.
As we left and walked down the sidewalk, I thought about my grandmother’s words.Be yourself. That sounded good in theory, but for me, that might be theworstthing I could do.
2
JUNIPER
I’d allowed Beatrice to do her best work on me. She’d taken me to get my hair done, and we went shopping for a new outfit for the ceremony. Even though we would all be bundled up in coats and jackets, everyone dressed well for the festivities, not only because they’d be paired with the person they’d spend the rest of their lives with, but also because there was a party afterward—music, food, dancing, the whole nine yards. It made the ceremony a highlight of the year even for thosenotbeing paired.
She’d spent the entire day gushing over how great it was going to be, and I’d done my best to play along, even though an impending sense of doom had settled in my gut. What if I was paired with someone who was mean, or one of the people who despised me because I couldn’t shift?
Now, as we stood in the town center the next evening, huddled in scarves and gloves against the winter chill, my stomach roiled with butterflies. I clenched Beatrice’s hand, wondering if she could feel how clammy and sweaty it was. Probably.
In the center of Idlewild, a raised concrete platform stood, used for Fourth of July concerts by local bands and children’sChristmas carol performances, but tonight, four men and three graced the stage. The elders, the oldest members of the pack, sat on folding chairs, placidly waiting for the ceremony to begin. I peered at each face, willing myself to find some sort of innate telepathic ability to read their minds, to seewhoI was about to be paired with. All I managed to do, however, was stare at them each with what probably looked like a manic glare.
“Calm down,” Beatrice whispered.
“I can’t. How the hell are you this calm?” I hissed, tearing my eyes away from the elders.
“Well for one, they do this every year, and it almost always turns out fine. Plus, the huge party after. We can all blow off some steam.”
“Right there. You said italmostalways turns out fine. You and I both know there’s a chance it won’t.”
“Ugh.” Beatrice rolled her eyes. “It’s been, like, five years since anyone has been rejected. The odds are ridiculously low.”
“But not zero,” I added.
Douglas Carter, the lead elder, rose from his chair and approached the microphone at the center of the stage, tapping it to ensure it was working. A faint squeal echoed from the speakers, and he grinned.
“Sorry, everyone. Are we all ready to begin?”
There was a faint murmur of assent from the crowd. I remained silent, forcing myself not to crush Beatrice’s hand while I watched, my heart thudding like a war drum.
“This year, we have quite a few names to be paired. Is everyone excited to hear these mating matches?” he asked, raising his voice like some kind of game show host.
The crowd erupted in a loud cheer. Across the city square, my grandparents stood on the sidewalk outside their store, watching eagerly. Gran spotted me and waved. I forced myself to smile and wave back before returning my attention to the stage.
Grinning, Douglas held up an envelope. “I have the matches right here. I know we usually do this alphabetically, and this year, that actually works out quite well. Alpha Anders Burnell is set to be paired. Exciting, isn’t it?”
There was a smattering of applause around the square, and I sent a little prayer to whatever gods made these things happen, that Beatrice wouldn’t end up paired with Anders. That would be devastating. To have my best friend mated to a man who despised me would possibly end our friendship. The tension would be too much to overcome.
At least I didn’t have to worry about being his mate. There was nowaythe alpha would be paired with a shifter who had no wolf. If I had to guess, Anders would end up with one of the women from a powerful family like Beatrice’s. I crossed my fingers for my friend to end up withanyoneelse.
Douglas tore open the envelope, and an expectant hush fell over the crowd. The old man pulled a small card from within, then held it against his chest before reading.
“Anders?” he called, glancing around the crowd. “Come on up here, son.”
A wave of movement trickled through the crowd near the stage to my right. Anders held a hand up as he walked toward the stairs. The onlookers parted quickly, allowing our alpha to move toward the stairs. He was all smiles, shaking hands and patting shoulders as he went. From what I could see, every person was grinning and smiling at him as he made his way up to the stage.
It was strange to see, since most weren’t his biggest fans. Nearly all the respect he garnered was from intimidation and fear. He was the strongest of us, sure, but had little in the way of people skills. Some liked him, of course, but they were outnumbered by the ones who simply tolerated him and accepted him due to his strength.
He strode across the stage and shook Douglas’s hand. “How are we doing, Idlewild?”
This time the cheer was deafening. I clapped politely. Maybe not everyone was happy with our new alpha, but at least they were able to pretend. I couldn’t bring myself to shout and whistle for the guy like many in the crowd did. Of course, they hadn’t spent most of their lives being looked down upon by him. If they had, they’d have been less likely to be so falsely boisterous.
“Without further ado, let’s find out which lucky lady will be the alpha’s mate,” Douglas said. “As you all know, the process of selecting mates is done in secret, and many different tools are used to ensure the perfect pairings are created. Our success rate over the last two hundred years has been nearly ninety percent.”
I frowned. Why was he saying this? I’d never heard him give an additional speech before. Most years he simply read off the names. Others must have noticed as well, because whispered conversations erupted through the crowd. On stage, Anders frowned at the man and glanced at the other elders, as if they could give a reason for the delay.
