Chapter 2

A dreadful premonition drove me to the Moonrise Chamber, the sacred suite Kael had prepared for me.

I never should have gone.

Kael had told me he would be patrolling the eastern territories, but I found him there instead.

He was with Lyra.

They were tangled together in the bed that belonged to Kael and me. The bell on Lyra's ankle chimed, each ring piercing my soul.

Lyra. I recognized her instantly. Twenty years ago, we had found this starving, freezing wolf on the edge of our territory, and I had begged Kael to spare her life.

In her desperate eyes, I had seen the humanity I once lost.

I took her in, gave her food and clothes, and called her my sister. In the castle, whatever was mine was hers.

Kael used to joke with an indulgent smile that I spoiled her too much.

Now, my "sister" was curled up in my husband's arms.

Lyra was wearing a pure white gown-the ceremonial dress for the Luna's Ascension.

The exquisite silver wolves and crescent moons embroidered on the fabric were burned into my memory.

I had spent months stitching that gown, pouring all my love and hope into every needle and thread.

It was my wedding dress. My human wedding dress. I had dreamed of the day I would wear it, dreamed of the look on Kael's face when he saw me.

Lyra had once said, "Luna Elara will be the most beautiful bride in all the realms."

Her words now echoed in my mind, a cruel, twisted mockery.

I stood frozen in the doorway, my hands clenched into fists so tight that my nails drew blood. I couldn't feel the pain. I tried to step back, to flee this nightmare.

A deliberately raised voice shattered the silence.

"They say the Alpha loves his Luna more than his own life," Lyra whispered softly, tracing idle circles on Kael's chest. "So why do you still come to me?"

I stopped, feeling as if my breath had been snatched from my lungs.

After a long, agonizing moment, I finally heard Kael's voice. It was low, husky, and ruthlessly cold.

"She is... kind and pure. But in the bedroom, beneath the burning moonlight... she is cold. She lacks your fire. She doesn't have even a tenth of your passion."

Those words flooded my veins like ice water, freezing me from the inside out.

Lyra's sweet laughter rang through the room like shattering glass.

She tilted her head, her gaze shifting over Kael's shoulder to meet mine dead-on. Her eyes were sharp and triumphant, gleaming with a predatory thrill.

"Then," she murmured, "give her the ceremony. Give her the vows, the flowers, and the adoration of the pack. But the night of the Ascension... the night of blood and the mating bond... save that for me. Will you?"

The world seemed to stand still. My heart stopped beating.

The next second, Kael dipped his head and kissed Lyra fiercely.

I squeezed my eyes shut, but I couldn't block out the sounds.

The wet, hungry kisses. Lyra's soft moans. The rustle of expensive fabric being shoved aside.

I figured this was what being flayed alive felt like. This was what it felt like to watch your own heart being ripped from your chest.

The soul pact had been forged.

In seven days, Elara would cease to exist.