My Five Alpha Beast Husbands Don't Know I'm Deadly

Lysandra Pov:

The thing about prophecies is that nobody actually wants to be in one.

I learned that lesson tonight, standing in the Grand Hall of Everspire Palace, wearing a long flowing dress, while five of the most powerful Alphas in the kingdom stared at me like I was a piece of rotting meat someone had left on their dinner plate.

The Blood Moon hung fat and red in the sky above us, visible through the massive glass ceiling that the royal wolf architects had installed specifically for this ceremony. Once every thousand years, they said. Once every thousand years, the Moon Goddess herself would choose a woman to unite five Alpha packs and save the kingdom from destruction.

Lucky me.

"This has to be a mistake," said Alpha Kieran Silvercrest, Crown Prince of Everspire and the first of my supposed "fated mates." He wasn't even looking at me when he said it. He was looking at the High Priestess like she'd personally offended him by conducting this ceremony. "Run the ritual again."

The High Priestess, a tiny old woman who probably weighed ninety pounds soaking wet but could make grown Alphas pee themselves with a single look, did not appear amused. "Your Highness, the Blood Moon does not make mistakes."

"Then the Moon Goddess has a terrible sense of humor," Kieran shot back.

I couldn't even argue with him. I was standing there in a silver dress that someone had shoved me into three hours ago, my hair actually brushed for once in my miserable life, and I wanted to be literally anywhere else but here. The dress had approximately eight thousand tiny buttons down the back and I was pretty sure at least half of them were stabbing me in the spine. Fashion was torture and rich people were insane.

"The prophecy is clear," the High Priestess continued, her voice echoing through the hall where about five hundred pack members had gathered to witness this disaster. "When the Blood Moon rises in the thousandth year, five Alphas shall be bound to one woman, chosen by the Goddess herself. Together, they will stand against the darkness, or the kingdom shall fall."

"Darkness, darkness, always with the dramatic darkness," muttered Alpha Darius Goldmane, the Merchant Heir, who was examining his fingernails like this whole thing was boring him to death. "Can we speed this up? I have a trade negotiation in the morning."

I felt my eye twitch. Of all the things to say during your supposed fated mate ceremony, "I have a trade negotiation" was definitely up there on the list of most insulting.

Alpha Theron Ironfang, the General, had his massive arms crossed over his chest. The man was built like someone who had decided to see how many muscles they could fit on one person and then added a few more for good luck. He was scowling at me like I'd personally insulted his entire military career. "She doesn't even have a wolf," he said flatly. "I can't smell one on her."

And there it was. The thing everyone was thinking but he was the first to say out loud.

I was wolfless.

Or at least, that's what everyone believed.

The crowd started murmuring, that horrible whisper-buzz that happened when hundreds of people all decided to gossip at once. I could hear bits and pieces of it.

"...no wolf..."

"...orphan from the outer territories..."

"...lives with the Blackwater family..."

"...heard she can't even shift..."

"...this is an insult to the Alphas..."

My face was burning. I wanted to disappear. I wanted the floor to open up and swallow me whole. I wanted to shift into my wolf form and run so far away that nobody would ever find me again.

But I couldn't do any of those things.

Instead, I stood there, hands clenched at my sides, and reminded myself that I'd been through worse than public humiliation. Much worse.

Alpha Cassian Nightweaver, the Grand Sorcerer, was studying me with those weird silver eyes of his that looked like they could see straight through to your soul. His pack specialized in magic, and he gave off this creepy vibe like he knew things about you that you didn't even know about yourself. "Fascinating," he said softly. "The Goddess chose someone with no detectable power signature. There must be a reason."

"The reason is this to waste everyone's time," snapped Alpha Zane Shadowmere, the Shadow Guardian. He was the most terrifying of the five, and that was saying something. His pack operated in the dark, handled the kingdom's dirty work, and he had a reputation for being about as warm and cuddly as a rabid wolverine. He hadn't said a word since I'd been brought into the hall, just stood there radiating menace and looking like he wanted to murder someone. Possibly me. "I reject this bond."

The words hit like a physical blow.

You couldn't just reject a fated mate bond. Well, you could, but it was supposed to hurt. It was supposed to feel like your soul was being ripped in half. The legends said that rejecting a true mate was one of the most painful things a wolf could experience.

Zane said it like he was commenting on the weather.

The High Priestess sucked in a sharp breath. "Alpha Shadowmere, you cannot simply..."

"I reject this bond," he repeated, his dark eyes finally landing on me. They were cold. Empty. Like I was absolutely nothing to him. "I will not be bound to a wolfless orphan, prophecy or not."

Oh, good. We were doing this now.

Kieran straightened up, and I could see the political calculations happening behind his golden eyes. The Crown Prince was handsome in that annoying way where you wanted to punch him but also maybe stare at him for a while. Sharp cheekbones, perfect hair, it was the type of confidence that came from being told you were special since birth. "I agree with Alpha Shadowmere," he announced. "I cannot take a mate who would weaken the royal bloodline. I also reject this bond."

Two down.

The crowd was in an uproar now. This had never happened before. Nobody rejected a mate chosen by the Blood Moon itself.

Theron shrugged his massive shoulders. "She'd be a liability in battle. Can't have that. I reject the bond too."

Three.

Cassian tilted his head, still studying me like I was a particularly interesting bug. "You're all being hasty," he said, but then he looked at the other Alphas and seemed to realize he was outnumbered. His silver eyes went cold. "But I won't be bound to someone who can't even channel basic magic. I reject this bond as well."

Four for four.

Everyone looked at Darius, who sighed like we were all inconveniencing him terribly. "Well, I'm not going to be the only one stuck with her," he said, examining his nails again. "I reject the bond. No offense, sweetheart, but you're just not memorable enough for me."

And there it was.

All five of my supposed fated mates had rejected me in front of the entire kingdom.

The High Priestess looked like she was about to have a stroke. "This is... this is unprecedented. The prophecy..."

"The prophecy can go to hell," Kieran said coldly. He turned to address the crowd. "The Moon Goddess has made an error. These things happen. We'll petition for a new ceremony next year with a more... suitable candidate."

A more suitable candidate. Right.

I should have felt something. Heartbreak, maybe. Devastation. The mate bond rejection was supposed to be agonizing.

Instead, I just felt... tired.

And maybe a little bit amused, which was probably a sign that something was wrong with me.

Because the thing was, these five Alphas had no idea who they'd just rejected. None of them knew that the "wolfless orphan" standing in front of them had more power in her little finger than they had in their entire bodies. They didn't know that I'd been training since I was eight years old. They didn't know about the scars hidden under this ridiculous dress, or the blood on my hands, or the secrets I carried.

But sure. I was just a forgettable a wolfless orphan.

"Well," I said, and my voice came out steady even though I was screaming internally. "I guess that settles that."

Kieran blinked, apparently surprised I could speak. "You're taking this rather well."

I smiled at him. It wasn't a nice smile. "Oh, I'm devastated. Truly. However will I cope with being rejected by five Alphas who can't even be bothered to look at me before deciding I'm not good enough?"

His eyes narrowed. "Watch your tone."

"Or what?" I asked sweetly. "You'll reject me again? Too late."

Theron made a sound that might have been a laugh or a growl. It was hard to tell with him.

The High Priestess cleared her throat. "The prophecy remains, regardless of your rejections. The Void is growing stronger. The Demon King will rise. And according to the sacred texts, only the woman chosen by the Blood Moon can stop him."

"Then find another woman," Zane said flatly.

"The Blood Moon chose her," the High Priestess insisted, gesturing at me. "Lysandra Vane is the one."

"Lysandra Vane is a nobody," Darius said dismissively.

And wasn't that the truth? At least, the truth as far as they knew.

Lysandra Vane, orphan. Taken in by the Blackwater family out of the "goodness of their hearts." Living in their basement. Doing their dirty work. Just invisible, forgettable and worthless.

That was the story, anyway.

"If we're done here," I said, already turning toward the door. "I'd like to go home."

"You will remain in the palace," Kieran said sharply. "Until we figure out what to do about this situation."

I turned back to look at him. "You rejected the bond. You don't get to give me orders."

His jaw clenched. "I'm the Crown Prince."

"And I'm the woman your Goddess chose, so I guess we're both having a bad night." I gave him my best curtsy, which was terrible because nobody had ever taught me how to do it properly. "Your Highness."

I walked out of the Grand Hall with my head held high, even though my hands were shaking. The crowd parted for me like I had the plague. I could feel their eyes on my back, could hear the whispers starting up again.

"Can you believe..."

"...humiliation..."

"...poor thing..."

"...what was the Goddess thinking..."

I made it to the corridor outside before I let myself lean against the wall and take a deep breath.

Okay. That had been a disaster.

But also, kind of hilarious when you thought about it.

Five Alphas had just rejected their fated mate because they thought she was weak. Meanwhile, I could probably kill all of them in their sleep if I wanted to. Which I didn't, because I wasn't a monster, but the option was there.

"Miss Vane?"

I jumped about a foot in the air and spun around to find a young woman in palace servant clothes standing there with a worried expression. She had kind eyes and dark hair pulled back in a bun.

"Sorry!" she said quickly. "I didn't mean to startle you. I'm Mira. I've been assigned to... well, they told me to show you to your quarters."

"My quarters?"

"The Prince insisted you stay in the palace tonight. There's a room prepared for you in the east wing."

Of course there was. Because Kieran couldn't just let me leave. That would be too easy.

"Lead the way," I said with a sigh.

Mira seemed nice enough as she guided me through the palace corridors. She kept giving me these sympathetic looks that made me want to crawl out of my skin.

"That was really horrible, what they did to you," she said softly as we climbed a staircase. "In front of everyone like that."

"It's fine."

"It's not fine. They're supposed to be our leaders and they acted like... like..."

"Like I was beneath them?" I supplied. "Because according to everyone in this kingdom, I am."

Mira shook her head firmly. "The Blood Moon chose you. That means something."

"Yeah," I said. "It means the Moon Goddess has a twisted sense of humor."

That got a small laugh out of her, which made me feel a bit better.

The room she took me to was bigger than the entire basement I'd been living in for the past fifteen years. There was an actual bed, not a cot. Windows with real curtains and a real bathroom attached. It was almost obscene.

"I'll bring you something to eat," Mira said. "And some clothes for tomorrow. That dress looks uncomfortable."

"You have no idea," I muttered.

After she left, I stood in the middle of the room and tried to process what had just happened.

I'd been chosen by an ancient prophecy. Check.

Five powerful Alphas had rejected me publicly. Check.

I was now stuck in a palace full of people who thought I was worthless. Check.

And I still had to somehow save the kingdom from the Demon King without revealing that I was actually the most dangerous wolf in Everspire.

Great. Just great.

I went to the window and looked out at the Blood Moon. It was still hanging there, red and ominous, like it was mocking me.

"You picked a great time to choose me," I told it. "Really excellent timing."