Chapter 2 The Son's Mask

The letter had since crumpled in her clenched hand as her horse thundered through the forest, the cold night air biting against her skin.

Behind her, Mooncrest slept, unaware of her departure but ahead of her waited the only chance she had left to claim the throne that should have been hers.

The council had laughed at her, mocked her and told her that the world did not allow women to rule.

Fine.

Then she would simply stop being one.

She rode harder and deeper in, branches wiping in her face.

Pretending to be Soren Vale and forging his identity into the Academy's records.

Risking exposure among the most powerful young Alphas in the Dominion.

It was madness.

She knew that.

But the council had already decided her future for her.

A future for marriage and a Luna's throne beside some man they chose.

If she truly wanted power, she would have to steal it.

The trees began thinning as the trail lead toward Blood Hollow territory.

The large iron gates loomed ahead of her.

Two guards stepped forward as she approached.

Then recognition flashed across their faces.

"My lady."

The gates opened immediately.

Serena swung down from her horse before it had fully stopped moving and tossed the reins toward a stable hand.

She was already moving toward the manor before the horse had even been led away.

She walked straight to the pack house and leaning against one of the pillars stood the one person she trusted more than anyone else in the world.

Cedric Vale.

Her uncle pushed himself upright with a laugh as he saw her approaching.

"Well now," he drawled, spreading his arms wide, "if it isn't Mooncrest's most troublesome she-wolf."

Serena didn't slow down a little as she crossed the steps in two strides and threw herself into his arms.

"Uncle."

For a moment she simply breathed, burying her face in his shoulder.

She finally let herself loosen up that tension that she's been harboring

Cedric chuckled, patting her back.

"You only ride to Blood Hollow at midnight when something has gone terribly wrong," he said. "So tell me...what disaster are you dragging behind you this time?"

Serena stepped back and pulled the letter from her jacket.

"I need to see Soren."

Cedric raised an eyebrow.

"Ah."

The understanding dawned across his face instantly, followed by a slow grin.

"That explains the rush..."

He jerked a thumb toward the house.

"Your cousin is upstairs. Either sleeping or pretending to be."

Serena didn't wait for another word.

She bolted inside the manor, her boots pounding against the wooden floors as she sprinted toward the staircase.

Then she kicked open the door to Soren's room.

Her cousin lay sprawled across his bed, lazily tossing a rubber ball into the air and catching it again.

He didn't even look up.

"State your business, intruder," he said dryly.

Serena threw the letter at his chest.

The ball bounced away as Soren caught the parchment.

He unfolded it casually.

Then his eyebrows shot upward and then even higher.

Then his entire expression transformed.

"You," he said slowly, sitting upright. "You actually did it."

His eyes flicked across the letter again.

"You got into the Alpha Dominion Academy."

Serena crossed her arms, her breath still heavy you from the ride.

"I told you I would."

Soren stood up so quickly the bed creaked behind him.

"Do you realize what this means?" he said, grabbing her shoulders. "You'll be training with the strongest future Alphas in the Dominion. Warriors. Leaders. Heirs to the most powerful packs alive."

"The same ones who think I don't belong there," Serena cut in sharply.

Soren's excitement faded.

She met his gaze steadily.

"They won't see Serena Vale," she said.

"They'll see you."

Soren blinked.

Then he groaned.

"Oh no."

Serena's smile turned sharp.

"Oh yes."

Soren ran a hand through his hair as his gaze swept over her.

Her shoulders, her breasts, her hips and the unmistakable scent that marked her as female.

"And how exactly," he asked slowly, "do you plan to hide all... that?"

Serena hesitated.

Because that was the one question she had not solved.

Before she could answer, Soren suddenly grabbed his coat.

"There might be someone who can help."

Serena frowned.

"Who?"

Soren's expression turned grim.

"You won't like her."

The trees grew more dense as they rode further into the Crescent Woods, well beyond where most of the wolves would venture. The air grew thicker and more charged with things that were dead.

As the shack appeared in sight, half-hidden by shadow and moss, Serena's skin crawled.

Smoke drifted from a leaning chimney, but no woodpile rested stacked outside.

Serena's wolf stirred uneasily.

"Tell me that's not a witch," she said.

Soren dismounted first, already moving.

"It's a witch."

Wonderful.

Serena followed him reluctantly.

He walked to the door and knocked once. Then twice. The door opened with an exaggerated groan.

The woman standing inside looked more like a shadow than a person.

Her hair spilled down her back like pale ash. Her skin was thin and colorless, stretched over sharp bones. But her eyes-

Her eyes glowed with cold moonlight.

"What have you brought me this time, wolf boy?" she rasped.

Her voice sounded like dry leaves scraping across stone.

Soren gestured toward Serena.

"My cousin needs concealment."

The witch's gaze drifted over Serena slowly.

Her eyes paused at Serena's chest, her hips, her face.

"You wish to walk among males unnoticed."

It wasn't a question.

Serena forced herself to meet the witch's glowing eyes.

"Yes."

The witch tilted her head slightly.

"It can be done."

Serena's pulse quickened.

"But," the witch continued softly, "magic always demands a price."

She stepped aside, allowing them inside.

The shack smelled of herbs, smoke, and something older... something that reminded Serena of damp earth and grave soil.

A black iron cauldron bubbled in the center of the room.

The witch circled Serena slowly.

"I can mask your scent," she said. "Alter your form. Even reshape the tone of your voice."

Serena's heart pounded.

"But the body always remembers its truth," the witch continued. "When the moon calls strongly enough, the spell will weaken."

Serena frowned.

"What does that mean?"

"During your monthly cycle," the witch said bluntly, "the magic will fail."

Heat rushed into Serena's face.

"And the longer you wear this disguise," the witch added, "the more the spell will take from you."

Serena didn't hesitate.

"I'll accept that."

The witch smiled slowly.

"The witch's cracked, propped lips curled into something like amusement. "Very well."

She hovered over the cauldron situated in the center of the shack, pouring the herbs into the roiling black liquid. The smoke spiraled around Serena wrapping her like fingers, soaking into her skin. Heat flowed through her body followed by a sensation of being pulled and stretched that had her gasping for breath.

Finally the smoke cleared.

Serena stumbled slightly, catching herself against the table.

Her breathing came fast.

Slowly, she looked down at herself.

Her chest was flatter.

Her shoulders broader.

Her scent-

She froze.

It had changed completely.

The soft scent of a she-wolf had vanished.

Now it was the scent of a male and prime Alpha...

"It worked," she whispered.

The witch chuckled quietly.

"Of course it did. But remember child, magic always demands a price."

By the time Serena and Soren returned to Blood Hollow, the moon hung low in the sky.

Serena leaned over the water trough outside the stable.

The reflection staring back at her made her pause.

It was as if she was looking back at Soren's twin.

Her cousin leaned beside her, grinning.

"You're insane," he said.

Serena smiled faintly.

Soren clapped her shoulder.

"But Mooncrest might just need your kind of insanity."

Serena looked up toward the distant mountains where her pack slept.

Tomorrow she would enter the Alpha Dominion Academy.

A place filled with powerful young wolves who would tear her apart the moment they discovered her secret.

Yet for the first time since the council meeting, something like hope stirred in her chest.

Tonight she allowed herself one small victory.

But long after the house had gone silent and everyone slept, something strange happened.

The voice continued.

Report to Alpha Dominion Academy by dawn. Failure to report forfeits your acceptance.

Her blood turned to ice.

The spell wasn't supposed to activate until tomorrow night.

She stared into the darkness, heart racing.

She had only hours left to become someone else.