THE ALPHA'S CURSED BRIDE

***VERA***

"Make sure you find your mate at the ceremony tonight. Don't come home early-stay. Your mate might be waiting," Mother said, tugging Tricia's braid into place.

"I'm not a party person, so yeah, I'll leave right after the hurdle," Tricia replied with a lazy smile. Mother pinched her ear anyway.

"My words weren't for you. I was talking to Vera."

I smiled because smiling used less breath than speaking. My fingers were steady, even though my heart felt like a trapped animal. I smoothed my lashes for the twentieth time and the mirror showed the image I had worked months for: a gown that caught the light in soft waves, hair pinned back to reveal my throat. I had practiced this entrance until the thought of it made my cheeks ache. Tonight would be the night.

"Why put so much effort into this? It's the Luna's ceremony, not a mate-hunt," Tricia teased, brushing a stray curl behind her ear.

"It just feels right," I said, twirling once in front of the dressing mirror. The silk whispered against my legs. Last week I'd spoken with the Alpha-two breathless minutes-and something in me had clicked. I'd felt it in my chest and along my spine. I'd known, and I had been certain he'd known too.

"Vera, your makeup was perfect five minutes ago. And ten. And fifteen-" Tricia sang, smiling. She nudged me, and I laughed, the sound brittle with nerves.

Outside, people gathered like a tide. I hopped out of the car and the world flooded with murmurs of admiration. "In!" I squeaked, taking Tricia's hand and racing for the front row. I wanted the Alpha to find me quickly, wanted every pair of eyes to see the moment he would take me. Pride had always tasted like a promise.

"We're an hour early," Tricia said as I dragged her across the empty chairs. "You're ridiculous."

"All the better," I whispered. I had a plan; I had a place in the very front so he wouldn't have to search. It would be quick, ceremonial, perfect. The pack would remember the night the Alpha finally claimed me.

Then Lana arrived like a sudden shadow. She flipped her hair, practiced smile set in place, and leaned just close enough for me to hear. "What's a disgrace doing in the front row? Trying to jinx the Luna ceremony?"

My stomach tightened into a small cold stone. Everything in me bristled. I had spent my life shrinking to make space for other people; tonight I had decided not to. "Who's she talking about?" I breathed to Tricia, too loud to be private.

"Who else but you?" Lana sneered before flouncing off. Her minions followed, eyes bright with malice. Tricia stepped between us like a shield. "Don't you feel ashamed, always humiliating my sister?" she demanded.

"You're pathetic, Vera," Lana said, as if her words were a verdict. "Your little sister has to defend you."

I drew a hollow breath and felt something cold tighten in my chest-not fear. Not yet. Determination. "In a few hours, Lana, I'll give you an answer befitting your status," I said, loud enough that heads turned and whispers snagged like torn thread. They blinked. Her smirk faltered for half a heartbeat, and for the first time since I was small, I felt the sick thrill of standing straight when the world wanted me small.

"Promise?" Tricia asked, eyes pleading. I wanted to tell her everything-the tiny signal I had felt in the woods, the way my wolf had answered a stranger's scent-but the bells started before I could confess.

A hush swept the crowd. The Alpha entered like a sun no one dared stare at. The priestess's voice dropped into the formal cadence I had heard all my life: "Find your Luna."

He walked through the gathered bodies with the slow certainty of someone who had never known doubt. My chest thudded so loudly it felt like applause in my ears. He was coming my way. He had to be. I closed my eyes and held my breath as customs demanded: mark and be claimed.

The world erupted into claps and exultation-faces blurred into light and sound-and a strange expectation coiled in my gut. When he passed near my row, I felt nothing. No warmth. No pull. A silence like snow fell over the part of my chest that had expected flame.

I opened my eyes because I had to. Because the breath I'd been holding needed space to leave my lungs. That's when I saw him.

He wasn't looking at me.

He was at Tricia's side.

The Alpha's hand moved with a claim I thought reserved for myself. His teeth brushed the soft skin at the corner of her throat-a tiny, ceremonial bite-and the priestess's voice swelled with the word I had rehearsed in my head for nights: "Luna!"

The clap around me felt like blows. My knees turned to jelly. I clutched the edge of my seat until the fabric groaned under my fingers. The song in my chest-what I had convinced myself was destiny-snapped like a frayed string.

Tricia's face lit with stunned joy, the kind that comes when someone else's hand takes something from you and calls it yours. She looked at me then, eyes bright with triumph, and for a terrible heartbeat, I loved her for it and hated her equally. Her smile gleamed through the echoed cheers like a blade.

You'd think the world would tilt slowly, that time would pool and stretch. Instead, the room contracted into a needle point of white light and my mind felt full of lead. I tasted metal-bitter, hot-on my tongue and for a second I thought I might pass out.

"You always were dramatic, Vera," someone nearby muttered, equal parts accusation and amusement. Lana's voice threaded through the crowd like a compass needle finding fault.

A laugh rose somewhere behind me, high and cruel. Fingers touched my arm, not in comfort but as voyeuristic curiosity, as if my shame were entertainment.

My wolf, Nyx, whined low and close. She scraped at the back of my neck with her teeth, sensing my falter, her small heart thudding as crazily inside me as mine was. We were always told the bond would present as a fire-bright and unmistakable. Tonight there had been only bitter ash.

I slid out of my seat when the applause stalled, because staying made my bones ache. My legs were noodles but I forced them to carry me away from the center of noise. People's eyes roved over me-pity, disgust, thinly veiled triumph-and every glance was a nail.

Outside, the night air was hard and cold and honest. I pressed my palms to my face and let the tears come, hot and angry and unladylike. I hated the way they dampened my lashes. I hated how small I felt. I hated that every dream I'd held like a shield had been peeled away in front of the whole pack.

"Vera," Tricia's voice came soft, and for the first time since she'd smiled, it sounded fragile. She touched my shoulder in a way that would have been comforting if she'd done it as a sister, not as a Luna newly crowned in the place that had denied me. "I-"

"Don't," I cut her off, voice brittle. I pulled away from her hand, from the offer of consolation that smelled faintly of candle wax and new duties. How could she understand the crater she'd made in me? How could she know the hollow where hope had lived?

She flinched, and for a moment I saw the child she once had been-the one who'd shared bitter roots with me under the same roof-and my chest pinched. I wanted to tell her everything: how the Alpha had felt like a promise, how I had twined my future around that certainty. But the words lodged in my throat like stones.

"Why did he choose her?" I asked into the dark, not because I expected an answer but to hear the question spoken aloud. The night swallowed it. The answer was the sting that marked me: not for lack of trying, not because fate had been cruel, but simply because the world had chosen someone else.

Lana's laughter drifted from the doorway-sharp, triumphant. I wiped my face with the heel of my hand and felt the grit under my nails. For the first time since I was a child, I let myself hate. Not in the soft, ashamed way that kept me small, but with a clean, white-hot anger that untethered my breath.

They clapped for the new Luna inside the hall, a sound like distant thunder. I let them clap. I let the sound wash over me until it dissipated like smoke. I pressed my back against the cold stone and closed my eyes.

This was not the end. My throat burned with a promise I did not yet understand. If destiny could be taken from me with the pressure of a single tooth on a sister's throat, then I would find, somewhere, the parts of me the world had not yet seen. I would learn to be dangerous. I would learn to be necessary. I would learn to make them see me-on my own terms or not at all.

For now, there was only the ache. And the vow.

***VERA***

"Can you believe it, Vera? I'm Luna!" Tricia squealed, clutching my arm like I was supposed to share in her joy.

I stood frozen, my heart pounding so loudly I could barely breathe.

"No," I whispered, blinking hard to keep the tears from spilling. "I actually can't."

She laughed, spinning in delight. "I know, right? Even I can't believe it."

But my eyes weren't on her. They were locked on Alpha Conry-my mate. My fated one. My supposed savior. The man who had just chosen my sister instead of me.

Marking Tricia meant rejecting me. The truth cut deep, sharp as a dagger. My vision blurred, and I forced a smile that felt brittle, like glass cracking under pressure.

"Enjoy yourself. I'll be back," I said softly, prying Tricia's fingers from my arm. Then I turned and walked away as fast as I could, praying the tears wouldn't fall until I was alone.

*Why, Moon Goddess?*

*Why curse me like this?*

*What sin did I commit to deserve such humiliation?*

"Vera."

I froze. My whole body went stiff at the voice I least wanted to hear. Slowly, I turned.

"You knew," I said, glaring through the tears that blurred my sight. "You knew I was your Luna... and you still chose her?"

Conry's expression didn't waver. "You're right," he said evenly. "I knew."

The world tilted. "Then why?" My voice broke, raw and desperate.

He glanced around before answering, his tone low and sharp. "My pack needs a Luna who is strong. Someone who can protect them when it matters most. You... are not that Luna. Your wolf is a disgrace, Vera."

His words gutted me. I stumbled back, my breath catching in my throat.

"A disgrace?" I whispered. "I didn't ask for this wolf. I didn't choose this fate. The Moon Goddess made me this way. And it hurts more that my own mate-the one who was supposed to protect me-calls me worthless."

He stepped closer, voice dropping to a cold warning. "No one must ever know you are my mate."

Then, as if to twist the knife deeper, he reached up and tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear, his touch gentle and cruel all at once.

And then... he walked away.

Just like that.

Leaving me trembling, hollow, and on my knees.

Maybe the Moon Goddess should just take me now. Maybe I wasn't meant for this life.

A sharp kick to my side snapped me out of the fog. Pain shot through me as I looked up through blurry eyes. Lana stood over me, her lips curled in a smirk.

"Pathetic," she sneered. "Crying again? You look even worse than usual."

She crouched low, tilting my chin up with her finger. "You're jealous, aren't you? Your mate chose your sister. You're nothing but a shadow, Vera. Always have been."

Her nails dug into my skin as she yanked my hair hard enough to sting.

"Why do you always do this?" I rasped.

"Because I hate weak wolves," she said with a laugh. "And you're the weakest of them all." She tugged harder, enjoying my pain.

Something inside me cracked.

I didn't even think. I grabbed her ponytail and yanked with every ounce of strength I had. She shrieked, stumbling backward. My knee slammed into hers and she collapsed to the ground.

"Why stop now?" I snarled, hauling her back up by the hair. "Didn't you want to play?"

Her friends gasped and rushed toward me, but my fear was gone-burned away by something wild and fierce that I didn't recognize.

I ripped the dagger from her belt and held it tight, my hands trembling but firm.

"I swear I'll use this," I growled, my voice shaking with fury. "Even if I die for it, I won't die cowering anymore."

One of the girls lunged at me. I shoved her back-too hard. The blade nicked her arm, leaving a thin line of blood. She screamed.

The world froze.

Everyone stared at me, eyes wide with shock. My chest rose and fell fast, my heart thundering, but there was no fear anymore. Only fire.

All the years of torment. All the shame. All the rejection.

*Enough.*

I dragged Lana up again, slapped her hard across the face, and spat, "You don't get to own me anymore."

Her lip split, blood smearing her chin. For once, she looked scared.

The guards came running, shouting orders. One of them grabbed me by the shoulders, rough and commanding.

Without thinking, I pushed him away-except he didn't just stumble. He flew.

His body hit the wall with a sickening thud, blood splattering across the stone.

I froze. My breath hitched. My hands shook as I stared at them.

That strength... had come from *me.*

The other guards charged, but before they reached me, a strange force surged outward, knocking them all back like a storm wind.

The dagger trembled in my grip. My pulse raced out of control.

"What... am I?" I whispered.

From the shadows beyond the courtyard, a figure emerged-or maybe he had been there all along. His mismatched eyes, one green and one black, glowed faintly under the moonlight.

"Impressive," he murmured, voice smooth and dangerous.

I blinked, and he was gone-vanished like smoke.

Silence fell again, heavy and unreal.

The guards groaned on the ground, Lana whimpered, and the night air crackled with something new-something alive.

I clutched the dagger to my chest, trying to steady my breathing. The weight of everything pressed down on me-the betrayal, the humiliation, the pain. But beneath it all... something else stirred.

A spark.

Power.

It wasn't fear anymore that made my heart race. It was realization.

I wasn't weak. I wasn't broken.

I was something else entirely.

Something the Moon Goddess herself might have tried to hide.

And for the first time in my life, I didn't feel small. I didn't feel sorry. I didn't even feel like crying.

I felt alive.

As I stood there beneath the pale light of the moon, surrounded by the chaos I had unleashed, I finally understood.

The curse everyone spoke of... maybe it wasn't a curse at all.

Maybe it was my power.

My beginning.

My vengeance.

And as the wind swept across the courtyard, carrying the scent of blood and fire, I whispered to the night-soft, steady, and certain:

"Things will be different now."

***CONRY***

"This is the third patrol found slaughtered at our borders, and still no one can give me a valid explanation!" My fist slammed against the oak table, the sound echoing like thunder through the council chamber. Shadows from the torchlight danced along the walls, shivering with each impact. "Do you all want to lose your heads?"

The gamma nearest me flinched, shoulders caving under my glare. The elders, dressed in ceremonial robes, shifted uneasily but said nothing. Their silence weighed heavier than words. Cowards. Every life lost was one of ours, yet they sat like statues.

"Speak!" My voice rumbled like an approaching storm. "Someone give me a damn answer!"

At last, the leader of the gammas cleared his throat, sweat sparkling at his temple. "Alpha... we believe the attacks are coming from the neighboring pack-Alpha Blake's pack."

My brows rose. Blake? The name hit me like a blade to the ribs. "Blake?" I repeated, tasting bitterness. "Why in the hell would he dare?"

No one moved. The silence dragged until my patience snapped. "Do we have unfinished business with him?" I demanded.

A wave of heads shook in unison, though none dared meet my eyes. "None that we know of, your highness," one of the gammas answered, voice tight.

"Then why suddenly strike my people? Did our patrols cross into his territory?" My words were sharp enough to draw blood.

Again, heads shook. No. Always no. My wolf pressed against my skin, restless, hungry for truth.

I grabbed my goblet and drained it in one pull, the cool water doing nothing to calm the fire inside me. "There's no proof," I muttered, setting the cup down with force. "For all we know, our men wandered too far. I will not risk a war on rumors."

"There was... one survivor," an elder whispered from the far end of the table, voice trembling.

My head snapped up. Finally. A lead. "Then where is he?"

The doors opened. Guards ushered in a trembling boy, barely old enough to stand without swaying. His clothes were in tatters, stained with dried blood and dirt. His eyes-wide, glassy-were the eyes of someone who had stared into death.

"Him?" I scoffed, gesturing with a sweep of my hand. "Since when do we send children to the patrol lines?"

The gamma bowed, shame all over his face. "Forgive us, Alpha. He insisted on proving himself."

A curse burned the back of my throat. That gamma would answer to me later. I leaned forward, my voice slicing through the chamber. "You were there?"

The boy's lips quivered. His whole body shook, each breath shallow. At last, he broke into sobs. "They were so fast... we couldn't fight back. Shadows in the trees. Teeth and claws everywhere. We-" His voice cracked. "We didn't stand a chance."

The chamber fell into silence, broken only by his sobs. Pathetic, but real. I studied him, searching for something useful, but found only terror.

"Useless." I waved my hand. "Take him away."

The guards dragged him out as his cries echoed behind him. I rubbed my temple, the ache burrowing deep. "Artemis," I growled, turning to my beta, "arrange a meeting with Blake. Now."

"Yes, Alpha." Artemis bowed and hurried from the chamber. Minutes later, he returned with a raven's scroll tied in black silk. His face was grim as he handed it over.

I broke the seal, scanning the words. My jaw clenched. "Blake has agreed to meet-at the boundary."

Too quick. Too willing. Trouble brewed in his readiness.

"That cunning bastard," I muttered under my breath. My wolf snarled in agreement.

"Then we go," I ordered. "If he dares play games, we'll be ready."

The boundary stank of old blood and moist soil. Mist clung to the ground, curling around our boots. I paced restlessly, my wolf bristling beneath my skin, every instinct screaming that something was wrong.

"It's been thirty minutes," I snapped, scanning the treeline. "Where the hell is he?"

A raven shrieked overhead, black wings slicing the sky. Artemis caught it mid-flight, untied the message, and passed it to me. My eyes skimmed the words, fury bubbling in my gut.

"Typical Blake." I crushed the scroll in my fist. "He's changed plans. He wants us to come to his Luna Choosing Ceremony."

Artemis frowned. "What does that have to do with us?"

"Less talking," I barked. "More moving."

***

Three hours later, we arrived at Blake's hall. It loomed against the night sky, banners snapping like the tongues of serpents in the wind. Guards in black and silver armor lined the path, eyes cold and sharp. Inside, the hall was already packed-wolves pressed shoulder to shoulder, the air heavy with the scent of wine, sweat, and anticipation.

They ushered us to our seats like honored guests, but every detail screamed of a trap. This wasn't a ceremony-it was a show of power. Blake's wolves moved with precision, their posture designed to intimidate.

I leaned back, feigning disinterest. Let him enjoy himself. A man who flaunts his strength so loudly often hides a weakness.

Bored, my eyes drifted toward a commotion near the far wall. A girl was being maltreated, her thin frame stumbling under the weight of blows. Laughter rose from the bullies around her.

She lifted her head, and in that instant, our gazes collided.

My wolf surged forward so violently it stole my breath. Mate.

My chest tightened, heart hammering in a way no battle ever had. The noise of the hall faded until only she remained in my vision. Her face was streaked with tears, but beneath them lay fire-unyielding, defiant.

I gripped the armrest until the wood groaned. Of all places... here? In Blake's den? The Fates had a cruel sense of humor.

I rose, ready to claim her then and there, but the bells tolled, drowning the moment. The ceremony began. Blake, dressed in ceremonial silver, strode to the dais. Within minutes, he marked his Luna before the roaring crowd. Applause thundered, wine flowed, and wolves howled in approval.

But my mind was elsewhere. My mate. The girl.

Slipping from my seat, I moved like a shadow, following the faint trace of her scent through the hall's corridors.

I found her outside, crumpled in the shadow of a stone pillar. Her sobs were softer now, her body trembling, but when the bullies returned-smirking, ready to torment her again-she rose. This time, she fought back.

A fist to the gut. A knee to the ribs. Fierce. Defiant. Her spirit burned bright even in the darkness.

I stayed hidden, my wolf pressed against the surface of my skin, watching with hunger and awe.

Her strength ignited something inside me-something I hadn't felt in years.

Not just desire. Possession. Destiny.

That woman is mine.