Chapter 5 The Moment I Dread

Chapter 4

SERENA POV

THREE YEARS LATER

It has been three years since I rejected Jayden.

Three long years of agony, suffering, pain, and heartbreak.

There isn't a single day that passes without me feeling the weight of that decision. The pain never truly faded. It still feels fresh, sharp, as if it happened only yesterday. I cannot forget him. I cannot forget the memories we shared, no matter how hard I try.

Now, I am the Alpha of my pack.

At least, that is what the title says.

In truth, I am nothing more than an acting Alpha, an empty position with no real authority. My parents still hold the power. They always have.

I never wanted this role. I never asked for it.

The pack pretends to accept me. They bow their heads, show respect, and call me Alpha, but behind their eyes, I see doubt. Mockery. Disbelief. They do not truly see me as their leader.

Artemis would bristle inside me, sensing the unease hidden behind their polite bows. My pack, my own people, trying to deceive me, the anger that surged through my chest felt primal, like claws raking at my ribs."

Still, none of them dare voice their opinions.

Not because they believe in me, but because they fear me.

Despite their underestimation, none of them can defeat me. They know it. I know it. And that alone keeps their mouths shut.

My parents are careful. They never disrespect me in public. To the outside world, they present the image of supportive parents who raised a powerful female Alpha. They believe family matters and their true opinions should remain behind closed doors.

They fear that if others discover how much they despise female Alphas, it could cause unrest. Worse, it could invite outsiders to challenge our authority, using the excuse that we have no male heir.

So they play their roles well.

People from other packs envy me. They whisper about how lucky I am to have parents who "support" a female Alpha. Some even wish they were me.

If only they knew the truth.

I was trained to be strong. Brutal, even. Relentless.

Not out of love but out of necessity.

Artemis had taught me to survive, to read danger before it arrived, to anticipate threats. Every harsh word, every cutting look from my parents triggered instincts honed in my wolf form, to fight, to flee, to endure, to assert dominance when threatened. My body remembered even when my mind wanted to forget.

I have no friends. "We don't need them," Artemis suddenly said in my mind. "You alone is enough for me"

People think I am arrogant. Cold. Too prideful to associate with others. But the truth is far simpler and far crueler.

My parents never allowed me to form friendships freely. They only approved connections with people of status, Alpha daughters, council elders' children, princesses of allied kingdoms.

But I disliked most of them.

They were rude. Selfish. Arrogant. Wearing false smiles and hidden intentions. I never fit into their world, no matter how hard I tried.

Being the only daughter of Alpha Asher and Luna Lily of the Crescent Moon Pack has never been easy.

Especially when they believe female Alphas are weak.

Especially when they despise what I was born to be.

From the moment I entered this world, my fate was sealed.

I was not raised as a child.

I was raised as a political chess piece.

I was forced to train relentlessly. No freedom. No affection. No warmth.

Since childhood, I have endured verbal and emotional abuse.

"A daughter will ruin us."

"We never wanted her."

"She is a burden."

Words like those cut deeper than claws.

They never laid a hand on me, but sometimes I wish they had. Physical pain fades. Emotional wounds linger, festering in silence. They destroyed my self-esteem and carved trauma deep into my soul.

Some of that pain eased when I shifted at sixteen.

When Artemis awakened.

She became the best thing that ever happened to me.

She is me. My other half. My strength.

From that moment, Artemis was never silent. She breathed alongside me, hunted alongside, felt danger before I did, and roared when I needed courage. My senses sharpened, fur on my arms and spine rising with alertness, nostrils flaring at the faintest scent of deceit, ears tuning into whispers no human should hear.

The moment I awakened her, I was no longer alone. She became my confidant, my protector, my anchor. She knows my thoughts before I voice them, feels my pain before I admit it.

She encourages me. Grounds me. Gives me confidence when I have none left.

Without her, I don't know how I would have survived.

The sound of the office door opening pulled me from my thoughts.

I looked up.

My parents walked in.

I was seated behind my desk, surrounded by pack documents and official reports, pretending, as always, that I was in control.

Their expressions were bright, excited, almost glowing with satisfaction.

"Mom, Dad, good afternoon," I said, rising slightly from my chair. "Why are you here? I hope everything is fine."

"Good afternoon, my dear," my mother said warmly. "Everything is perfectly fine. In fact, the moment we have been waiting for, anticipating for years, is finally here."

Her excitement was unmistakable.

My chest tightened.

"What do you mean?" I asked slowly. "What moment, Mom?"

She clasped her hands together, unable to hide her delight. "It has been announced," she said, practically glowing. "The King's Choosing Ceremony will commence in one month's time. The Alpha King has finally decided to choose his mate."

For a moment, the world went silent.

My mind went blank.

One month.

So this was it.

Artemis stiffened inside me, muscles coiled and senses flaring. Every smell, every shift of the air, every tremor in the floor beneath us screamed tension and anticipation. My body reacted before my mind could process the threat, a low, rumbling growl rolled through me, warning of the storm yet to come.

The moment I had dreaded for years. The moment that had been hovering over my life like a shadow I could never escape. The moment when I would finally become useful to them.

No wonder they were happy.

No wonder they looked so pleased and spoke nicely to me.

My heart sank heavily into my chest as the weight of her words settled in. Every suppressed fear I had buried over the past three years clawed its way back to the surface.

"Don't you think this is a joyous event?" my mother continued cheerfully. "Not just for us, but for our pack as well."

Joyous.

The word echoed bitterly in my head.

To them, this was a victory. A reward. Proof that all their planning, control, and sacrifice, my sacrifice, had been worth it.

To me, it felt like a sentence being passed. I wish to roar at them, and tell how I feel.

I forced my face to remain calm, neutral, the way I had been trained to do since childhood. I didn't let them see the storm raging inside me. I didn't let them see how my hands trembled slightly at my sides.

I clenched my fists, nails digging into my palms, suppressing the urge to leap, bare my teeth, or roar. Artemis snarled faintly, frustrated at my restraint, claws scraping the edges of my mind, wanting to strike, wanting to protect, wanting to hunt the deceit and control that reeked from my parents.

"Yes," I said quietly after a pause. "It is joyous."

Artemis stirred uneasily inside me, her presence tense and alert.

This was it.

The path had been decided long ago.

And now, it is finally closing in.