Chapter 1: The Night I Burned For Him
Thalia’s POV
The mirror didn't lie, even if I wanted it to.
I was broken.
I stared at my reflection, my fingers tracing the faint, jagged scar across my skin. It started at my collarbone and went all the way down to my waist, a brutal reminder of the night my life changed forever. The night I almost died.
In exactly two days, the love of my life, Adonis, would be crowned Alpha, and I was expected to take my place beside him as Luna of the pack.
After everything I had sacrificed, this was supposed to be our happily ever after.
But there was only one problem.
Squeezing my eyes shut, I reached inward, desperately searching for the familiar warmth of my wolf. But there was nothing there… just total emptiness.
Two years had passed, yet the hollow ache inside my chest never truly went away.
My mind drifted back to that horrific night; it had been a brutal rogue attack on the pack. There was fire everywhere and the agonizing howls of dying pack members.
In the chaos, I had found Adonis lying in the blood-soaked mud, his chest torn open by a silver-tipped blade. The wound was so deep that his pulse was fading beneath my fingertips.
Driven by panic, I remembered an old text I had secretly uncovered in the pack's private archives years ago.
The forbidden blood ritual.
It was a dark, ancient magic strictly banned by the Elders, who always warned that the price was too high for any wolf to survive.
But looking down at Adonis’s pale, lifeless face, I hadn't cared about the consequences of my actions; I just wanted to save his life.
I had placed my hands over his bleeding chest and spoken the ancient words. The magic had acted like an iron hook, ripping my wolf out by the roots to heal him.
I saved his life that day, but the price was my identity… I was now wolfless.
"Stop stressing, Thalia. You're going to burn a hole through that mirror if you keep staring at yourself like that.”
Eris's sharp voice broke the silence, pulling me back to the present. I blinked, the image of the burning forest fading away to reveal my bedroom once more.
She was standing a few feet behind me, her brow furrowed in deep concentration as she aggressively wrestled with the zipper of her emerald-green dress.
Catching my eye in the mirror, she softened her expression. "You're going to be a perfect Luna, Thalia."
"You mean a wolf-less Luna, right?" I muttered bitterly.
I turned around to face my best friend, wrapping my arms protectively over my chest. "Let's not pretend the entire pack isn't talking, okay? Even the Elders are already whispering, questioning whether a woman who cannot even shift is fit to lead.”
Eris opened her mouth to protest, but I raised a hand, cutting her off.
"If we’re being realistic here, Eris, he has so many other options for a befitting Luna," I continued sadly. "Women who you know can actually grow fur and protect the pack. Not a human liability.”
Eris scoffed, finally abandoning her stubborn zipper. She marched across the room, grabbed me by the shoulders, and spun me back around to face the mirror.
“Look at yourself,” she demanded, poking my reflection in the mirror. “Your beauty is honestly offensive, Thalia. Seriously, if I had your face, I’d be completely insufferable to everyone in this pack. I’d make people bow.”
A small laugh escaped me, the tension in my shoulders dropping an inch. “Eris, I’m serious—”
“So am I!” she interrupted, smiling at my reflection, her dimple making an appearance. “And let’s not even start on that massive heart of yours."
She slid her hand over mine, pressing it against my scarred chest. “You literally sacrificed your own wolf just to keep him breathing. Adonis loves you. He will be on his knees thanking the Moon Goddess for having you as his Luna.”
She bumped her hip against mine, flashing a cheeky grin. “And if he isn't, I'll personally slide silver into his protein shakes. Now, help me with this damn zipper before I rip the dress.”
I forced a real smile this time, the tight feeling in my stomach finally going away. I stepped behind her, grabbing the metal tab of her zipper and pulling it up. As I did, my eyes caught my own reflection again, specifically, the scar near my collarbone.
Everyone in the pack believed that after I healed Adonis that night, he rescued me from the rogue wolves that gave me this scar.
But my memories of those final moments before darkness took me were blurry and a bit confusing. I faintly remembered a massive, battle-scarred wolf, a beast far larger and more terrifying than Adonis’s wolf, tearing my attackers apart before vanishing into the pitch-black night.
Whenever I brought it up to Adonis, he simply told me my mind was playing tricks on me due to the trauma of losing my wolf. And I had believed him.
Why wouldn't I?
Before I could spiral further into the dark rabbit hole of my past, my bedroom door swung open.
My heart did a familiar flip-flop as Adonis stepped into the room. He looked every bit the future Alpha, strong, commanding, and breathtakingly handsome. A soft smile crossed his lips as he walked up behind me, wrapping his strong arms around my waist and burying his face in my neck.
"You look beautiful, my love," he murmured against my skin, his warm breath sending goosebumps down my arms.
I closed my eyes, leaning into his chest, letting my hands rest over his arms. I took a deep breath, expecting the comforting, familiar scent of woodsmoke and amber that I loved so much.
But as I inhaled, my breath caught in my throat.
Beneath the musk of his cologne, my nose caught a sharp, lingering trace of something else. Something sweet, distinct, and unmistakable.
My eyes snapped open, staring in shock at the reflection in front of me. I looked at Adonis, who was smiling softly against my neck. Then my gaze shifted slightly to the side, landing on Eris.
She had turned around, her back now facing us in the background.
Black rose and jasmine.
It was Eris’s favorite perfume.
