. The sight hit me like a blade twisting deep inside my chest. Parker-the boy who had promised me fo

. The ground beneath me seemed to crack open, swallowing my heart whole. I wanted to s

the deafening pounding of my heart. Tears blurred my vision, hot a

said, stepping toward me, but the warmth I once found in his voice

ng compared to the betrayal burning through my veins. His face twisted with anger, a f

, my voice cracking with pain. "Why? Why would y

stone. "Oh, please, Mira. Don't be so naive. He doesn't love y

, aching pain. Parker's panic was palpable as Kelly

ne, don't you? But don't worry-she's useless

to accept. "What do you mean?" I demanded, lunging toward he

was sharp, cutting th

bling, hands shaking. He was the

, empty. "I'm sorry,"

ing beneath me. I fled the room, each step heavier than the last

s runni

. I put on the crimson gown-my mother's gift, my legacy-and forced

and every eye was on me. I swallowed the lump in my throat and held

since mother's death. His grip was firm but cold as he too

oud, "my eldest daughter, Mira, turns eighteen today. Tonight

llow-like a shadow of myself, a ghost trapp

thirty minutes, the Moon Go

e night air. My heart pounded, each beat a desper

for the power, the warmth, the wolf s

othin

no wolf spirit answer

ery gaze-judgment, disappointment, scorn-p

d smiles, their triumph unbearable, the

orrow and anger, his disappointm

ruel and merciless: "The alpha

spilled freely now, hot and re

ice raw with pain. "Why have you forsaken me, M

ase the pain that consumed me, to hide me fro

fury and heartbreak. He took a s

just a ceremony.