Prologue:
Prologue:
Sophia’s POV:
The smell of the earth was all around, and the rain that had fallen was sticking to the leaves of the trees. It was pleasant to my senses. Beautiful surroundings. This was my home. My legs were pumping as I jogged down the trail made out of the pack house. It was quiet. There was no noise. It was nature and I. Nobody else was around. Out here, I felt like I was free and not suffocating in the damn pack house with my obnoxious twin. We have similarities, but we do not look identical in any way. As she radiates like the sun, I am the darkness. I didn’t care about her title and didn’t want it, anyway.
I slowed at the thinning of trees, the empty space that marks the US and Canada border territory. If I stepped over the invisible line, I would be practically in another country. It is too bad it was illegal to cross boundaries, even if it didn’t apply to us like it did to humans. Tall pine trees greeted me, and there was another odd scent that didn’t belong here at all. It smelled foul, almost like sulfur, but faded as if it wasn’t there. That was odd. I stood there a little longer to see if I could smell it again, but all I could smell was the crisp taste of early summer morning.
A snap of a branch had me whirling on my feet with my handy shadow blade in my hand, ready to defend myself. The bushes rustled some more before a familiar dark-headed male with sun-kissed skin stepped out from the bushes and gave him me an amused look, “Novalie’s coronation is today. I am here to bring you back to get ready for it.”
I gave him a scowled while putting my blade away as he gave a familiar chuckle, “Trust me, I know. Your sister is already turning into a serpent back at the packhouse.”
“What’s new?” I sigh heavily, already knowing that my peace had ended, and it was time to attend my sister’s coronation. It was stupid. She was only doing this for the attention that she so desperately craves. Then again, our parents never really paid us any attention, much less spend any time together. It was always with a nanny. Somehow, Novalie turns out to be the overly-pleasing, doting daughter to our father. It turns out that even wolves can catch deadly diseases that are too severe for our bodies to heal. It was an odd thing to learn about, but I didn’t pay much attention. I was in the shadows. Always in my family’s shadow.
My sister and I are polar opposites of each other. My eyes drifted back to the boundary line, and I wanted to cross it-to escape all of this. I wish I would remain hidden forever. A place to start over and never have to deal with being a shadow to our parents or even to Novalie. Amare spoke, jolting me out of my thoughts, “Don’t think about it, Soph. I will have to chase you down.”
I gave him a humorless smile, “As if I want to hear my sister complain how I ruined her big day, I swear she was getting married and not becoming the next Alpha.”
“I couldn’t agree more with you there.” He let out a heavy sigh before falling into step next to me as we make the walk back to the packhouse. I had no urge to rush back to that house that felt more like a prison than anything else. After all, what else was I supposed to do except command the stealth force?
-(-
The packhouse was a whirlwind, and I wanted to disappear into the shadows, but my escape was interrupted. Our mother had spotted me the moment that Amare and I stepped forth into the foyer. As I tried to escape, my mother clasped my upper arm and asked, “Where were you?”
“I was taking my morning run.” I answered her even though it fell on deaf ears as she march me upstairs and down the long hallways. My mother decorated the walls with old-fashioned paints because she loved Da Vinci’s art.
“This is your sister’s big day. We all need to do our part.” She explained, as if I hadn’t said anything.
A frustrated feeling was bubbling inside of me before I jerk my arm out of her grasp while I spoke, “I don’t need you telling me what I already know. Why don’t you go attend to Novalie? You are so annoying.”
She was speechless as I gave her a hard, withering look and the woman had the audacity to avert her eyes. I stood there for a moment before speaking in that hard voice that I used with the new recruits, “I will be there for Novalie, but I don’t need your help to do so. I am not a child anymore.”
With that, I stormed off down the hallway, hot-bubbling anger sweeping through my body before entering my room and slamming the door shut behind me.
There was silence again as I took a deep, shaky breath to get past the feeling of being hurt. Why must I be the one to be overlooked? I was important, like Novalie. Just because she was becoming Alpha doesn’t mean that I wouldn’t be next to her side. I am her blade. We are twins. She is the light and I am the darkness. We are a force to be reckoned with, but it seems that I was nothing more than a shadow. All I did was exist.
I reminded myself to lock those emotions away and place into that bottle. I was numb. I was a blade. A silent shadow. I was nothing but death to those who dared to take a stand against us. I fell back into that harden shell of a wall and embrace what I have become. A shadow. A blade to be used when necessary.
As I took my place in the vanity and look at the reflection that was me. There wasn’t a happy little girl anymore. Only a monster that sat there with hands that were soaked with blood of my enemies. I reach up while removing the hair tie as my midnight locks fell in loose waves all the way down to my waistline. My cerulean eyes staring back at me. At least Novalie and I shared the same eye color, it was probably the most common similarity between her and I. Something that we shared, but we were strangers. Mirror images of each other. Polar opposites.
I began the process of stripping myself out of jogging outfit and taking a quick shower before getting ready for the event. After braiding my hair and wrapping it around my head, I made sure that it stay in place with silver pins before wearing a black dress that had shimmering gossamer that look like the stars every time that I would walk. After I place my heels on, I touch up my make-up and was ready to be presence against my sister who was becoming the Alpha of the pack. All of this was a pain in my ass.
Before I left my room, I got a thigh harness and slipped it around my thigh. I stuck one of my favorite shadow blades into the holster before my dress covers up. That was one thing that I never went without, was my favorite shadow blades. They were always on me, even in a dress or if I were wearing pants. They weren’t a gift from anyone. The weapon of choice was mine, and they were the ones that stood out. They belong to me. After I was dressed, my mother knock before opening the door and she gave me an approving look.
I jutted my chin upwards while strutting past her and into the waiting hallway. Everything was quiet once more, but there was tension in the air. Everyone was buzzing with excitement and nearly holding their breathes. Amare stood there with his elbow stretching out towards me, and I took it with a graceful nod. My sister cast me a look as she wore a tight smile on her face. She wore a brilliant shade of red that made her golden hair look like spun silk. I could see there was a faint gossamer to her skirt, too. At least we shared the same idea of looking like stardust before being presented in front of our pack members.
Our mother coddled my sister, and I had to stifle an eye roll before looking to Amare. He was wearing a smirk on his lips as he was looking dashing in his black and white suit. Once the door opens, my sister went in first. Right behind her, Amare and I stepped after her. Then it was the rest of the pack members. As I stepped into place by my sister, we all sat down beside my sister, who kneeled in front of our father. Our father was a dashing dark-haired man that had a lot of gray in it, but still looks freshly cut. No one could tell that he was dying from an incurable sickness.
As he stated to everyone of how much it pains him to step down, that his daughters will be in a place of him. I wanted to roll my eyes and call him out on his bullshit, but I didn’t. I held my tongue and reminded myself that I was nothing but a shadow. I didn’t feel anything, and I didn’t care for anything that he had to say. His timbre voice raised while having my sister stand up, “I, Tobias Michael Akselsen, step down as Alpha. My daughter Novalie Akselsen will be bestowed the gift of becoming Alpha. Her twin sister Sophia Akselsen will be her blade and her shield as our moon goddess has gifted us with twins.”
Oh please. I nearly scoffed right then and there, but tuned him out when he place our famous wolf necklace around her neck. It the marking of the wolf, the alpha, and the leader of the pack. Everyone began to clapped, but I didn’t. I couldn’t help, but staring at my sister. She was the next Alpha and I was her shield and sword. This was another imprisonment. One that I didn’t want to be tied down to, but I had little choice in this matter.
