Today was my eighteenth birthday-the day I was supposed to find my mate and finally claim my place as the First Heiress of the Blood Moon Pack. A day that should have been bursting with promise, hope, and the weight of legacy resting gently on my shoulders. But instead, all I felt was a hollow ache, an emptiness where joy and excitement should have been.

If my mother were alive, she would be so proud. I could almost hear her gentle voice whispering encouragement in my ear, see her warm smile lighting up the room like a beacon. But she was gone-taken from me too soon-leaving behind only memories and a red gown that now meant everything to me.

My maid entered quietly, her footsteps soft as a whisper. She was an elderly woman with kind eyes that reminded me so much of my mother's-eyes full of warmth and sorrow all at once. She carried the gown carefully, cradling it like a sacred treasure. "My princess," she said softly, her voice trembling just a little, "before your mother passed, she gave me this to give you today-on your eighteenth birthday."

Tears slipped down my cheeks before I could stop them. I clutched the gown to my chest, feeling the weight of her love and loss wrapped in the crimson fabric. The gown was deep, rich crimson-like the blood moon itself-fierce, bold, and beautiful. It was supposed to be my armor, my symbol of hope, my promise of a future.

But hope felt fragile here. So fragile.

As the maid helped me into the gown, smoothing the fabric over my shoulders with gentle hands, my mind drifted to the darkness that had crept into my life since my mother's death. My father had found a new mate-evil, cunning, and wicked. Her name was Victoria, but everyone whispered about her daughter, Kelly, a troublesome girl who seemed to thrive on stirring chaos wherever she went.

Kelly hated me. She wanted everything I had-my place, my future, even my happiness. She played the victim to everyone, weaving lies and stirring trouble like a spider spinning her web. I knew they weren't happy for me. They wanted the throne for themselves. Honestly? I didn't want the throne. All I ever wanted was to live freely, to love, to be happy without the crushing weight of expectations suffocating me.

I stared at myself in the mirror, the red gown glowing softly under the moonlight filtering through the window. For a brief moment, I allowed myself to imagine a future where I was free-free from the pack's demands, free from betrayal, free to be myself. Then the door slammed open.

"Well, well, well," Kelly's voice sliced through the room like a knife, sharp and cruel. She sauntered in, her smirk cutting deeper than any blade. "If it isn't my half-elder sister, all dressed up and hoping to sit on the throne tonight."

I turned to face her, my heart pounding so loudly I was sure she could hear it, but my voice was steady. "Kelly, I don't have time for your rubbish. What do you want?"

"Nothing much," she said, stepping closer, her eyes gleaming with malice. "Just so you know-you won't get that throne. I won't let it happen. Because I want it."

I clenched my fists, trying desperately to keep my temper in check. "Kelly, I don't need your trouble today. Why don't you stop pestering me and make yourself useful for once?"

Her expression shifted instantly, from venomous to innocent, as if flipping a switch. "I know you think I'm bad, Mira. But I'm not that bad. Today's your birthday-I won't trouble you. Here, have this juice. Think of it as a one-time good deed from your half-sister."

I recoiled, suspicion rising like a storm inside me. "I don't want it. Take your juice and get out."

She smiled-a smile that wasn't sweet but cold and calculating, the kind that made my feet freeze to the floor. "Really? So you won't have it? Just once, when your kid sister is trying to do something good?"

I was tired of her games. Tired of the lies, the manipulation, the poison she spread. I snatched the glass from her hand and drank the juice in one gulp, the bitter taste burning my tongue. "See? Done. Now go."

She left with a victorious glint in her eyes, leaving me alone with a growing unease that settled deep in my bones like a shadow I couldn't shake.

I paced my room, the red gown feeling heavier with every step, as if it carried not just my mother's love but the weight of my entire future. My phone buzzed-my boyfriend. We'd fought yesterday about the wolf and mate issue. I knew his pain; he hadn't found his mate either. I hoped, prayed even, that we were meant for each other. That we could be together.

I texted him, but no reply. I called-no answer. Panic gnawed at me, twisting my stomach into knots. I needed to see him before the party started at 9 pm. What if he was avoiding me? What if-

I couldn't wait. I slipped out of the gown, quickly changed into something simple and dark, and climbed out my window. The cool night air was a sharp contrast to the storm raging inside me as I made my way to his house.

I slipped inside through his window-the one we often used when sneaking out together. His large bedroom was dim, the moonlight casting long shadows on the walls. Memories flooded me-our whispered secrets, stolen kisses, shared dreams.

But then I saw them.

Him. And Kelly.

My heart shattered into a thousand pieces. The boy I loved, the one I was ready to reject my mate for, was wrapped around my half-sister. Their laughter echoed cruelly in the silence of the room, a betrayal so deep it burned like fire beneath my skin.

I stood frozen, the cold seeping through my skin as if the room itself had turned against me. The red gown, the throne, the promise of a future-all meaningless now.

I wanted to scream, to run, to disappear. But all I could do was watch as everything I believed in crumbled before my eyes.