“This must be a sick kind of joke,” Nero snarled. “Mates or not, she is my son’s betrothed.”
Rogue growls rang through the room. The magic of mates was the most sacred of all Wolf magic. The only thing that superseded King Nero’s power was that of the Goddess herself. He sneered at his pack, promising trouble to whoever questioned him, and his followers fell in line, their snarls dropping back to murmurs. But even his most loyal wouldn’t be fully cowed.
The King’s gaze slid to mine, and the moon rose higher as if in response. His brow arched at me, and I could see him contemplating it: replacing me with Briar as if swapping shoes and not living people.
The light crept down the aisle until it shone upon the entire room. The moment that sacred light touched the back of my hand, gooseflesh rippled across my skin. Like a punch to the chest, the air whooshed out of my lungs. The muscles in my stomach clenched until the building intensity of magic threatened to burst out of me. Immense pressure built behind my eyes, making me screw them shut. The Gold Wolf inside me growled, a snarling deep sound. I gritted my elongating teeth as I struggled to regain control, half-shifting from the force within me.
I heard Grae shout my name as footsteps raced over to me. I somehow knew they belonged to him.
His glowing golden eyes beamed down at me, his stare crashing into me like a tumbling wave. I could hear his heartbeat, I could see the thin slits of his golden eyes dilate as he watched me, and his smoky earth scent carved into my bones.
Howls broke out around us, human and wolf alike, as the moonlight refracted through the hall. They all felt it, this magic that overcame us.
“Calla?” A panting, breathless voice was in my head. His voice.
And I knew instantly what it was, this magic that bound us inextricably together. It felt like a burning rope tied around my rib cage, pulling me toward the low thunder of that voice.
“Two matches on the same night?” the full moon priest asked, his soft, awed voice too loud to my sensitive ears. “After decades with none.”
“It’s impossible,” King Nero spat.
“Songs will be sung of this moment and this moon for centuries to come,” the priest said and the noise of the crowd swelled in response. “The Goddess smiles brighter than ever down upon us.”
“Curse this fickle moon,” King Nero barked in reply and the gossiping voices of the crowd hushed again. I looked up through squinting, pained eyes as he leered down at me. “Perhaps there is a use for you after all, girl.”
Every heightened sense overwhelmed me, nausea roiling in my gut. The whispers were deafening and the flickering candlelight blinding. Sweat beaded on my brow as I peered at my sister through bleary eyes. Briar stood stock-still, staring at Maez.
A figure to my left took another step toward me and I knew without looking it was Grae. I could sense it was him, as if a part of me existed within his body. That keen awareness tipped me over the edge of panic.
Without another thought, I turned and dashed down the aisle, fleeing the ceremony and the judging eyes of the Silver Wolf pack. I heard Grae’s voice calling my name again and I shoved away the sound, pushing him out of my head. I darted for the nearest doorway and stumbled into the moonlight. Fresh air hit my lungs, but I didn’t stop. I raced toward the back gate, darting past open-mouthed guards and into the woods. I bolted as if the Moon herself chased me.
Ten
My lungs burned as I pushed my aching legs higher and higher toward the snowcapped peaks in the distance. Whatever joy and freedom I thought I’d feel in this forest evaporated during that ceremony. I couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe.
Grae was my mate.
As I dashed through the filtered beams of moonlight, my Wolf howled inside me until I couldn’t take it anymore. The only thing I needed to do was stop denying the change and it began. The sharp twist of pain racked through me as my bones twisted and hair grew. A building strain, like a seized muscle, increased more and more until it vanished with a pop. Bone and sinew settled back into place. I swished my rust-colored tail.
The breeze blew through my copper red fur and I pawed the mossy earth. Even in my Wolf form, I was different from Briar. She was a stunning golden Wolf, from her molten ore eyes to the tip of her gilded tail, whereas I was a shade of faded bronze . . . just another way I didn’t belong.
I peered far into the distance of the shadowed forest, spotting a trail my human eyes hadn’t seen. Shredded clothes lay discarded beside me, along with my dagger. The only thing that had remained intact was the amber stone still around my neck. I released a frustrated breath. I should’ve remembered to take them off. Now the chain dug into my fur, an ever-present collar that reminded me of him: my mate.