THE MOON HIDES MY HEART

Chapter 9: The Selection

The news spread like wildfire. By morning, every wolf at Nordlicht Academy knew about the binding. Whispers followed me as I walked to breakfast, stares burned into my back, and the hunger of the wolves washed over me in waves. "Three alphas," they murmured. "She bound them all." "The Volkov. The Brandauer. And that Alaskan who just woke up." "A human controlling three alphas. Disgusting." "Lucky." I kept my head high and my face neutral, but inside, a fire churned. Through the bond, I felt their emotions: Nikolai's possessive fury, Lukas's anxious protectiveness, Tomas's quiet wonder at being alive. It was overwhelming, and I knew it would only get worse.

The dining hall fell silent as I entered. Every head turned, every nose twitched. Even the teachers paused their meals to watch me. I grabbed a tray and sat at the farthest table, alone. Or so I thought. Within thirty seconds, three wolves joined me. Not Nikolai, Lukas, or Tomas, but strangers.

"You're Elif, right?" a girl with honey-blonde hair and amber eyes smiled. "I'm Mira. I'm a delta in the Volkov pack. Nikolai sent me to keep an eye on you."

"I don't need a babysitter," I replied.

"Tell him that," Mira shrugged. "He won't listen."

A boy on my other side leaned in, his dark skin and shaved head contrasting with eyes like molten gold. "Lukas asked me to watch your back. Name's Finn."

"And Tomas?" I asked.

A third wolf appeared, tiny with silver-white hair and eyes the color of a winter sky. "Tomas is still in the infirmary. But he said to tell you that he can feel your heartbeat from across the academy, and it sounds like a hummingbird."

I pressed my hand to my chest. They could feel it too. Of course, they could. "Tell them all to back off," I said. "I'm not a prisoner."

"No," Mira said. "You're something much more complicated."

The summons came during first period. In Lycan History, I was trying to ignore the furtive glances at my neck when a first-year student appeared at the door. "Miss Demir. The Headmaster requires your presence."

The walk to her tower felt longer than usual. Every step echoed, and every shadow seemed to watch. Headmaster Aldric Vane waited for me in her office, standing by the window, her silver hair glowing in the pale morning light.

"You've been busy," she stated.

"I didn't ask for any of this."

"No. But you accepted it." She turned to face me, her black eyes unreadable. "The binding is complete. Three alphas, bound to a single Balancer. Do you understand what that means for this academy?"

"It means people are staring at me."

"It means war, Miss Demir." She walked toward me. "The Volkovs, the Brandauers, and the Tikaanis have been rivals for centuries. Their bloodlines have fought, killed, and died to prove superiority. And now you hold all three of them in your palm."

"I don't want to hold anyone."

"Want has nothing to do with it." She stopped in front of me. "You are the most valuable asset this academy has ever housed. Every pack in the world will want to claim you. And every alpha in this building will try to win your favor."

"Then what do I do?"

The Headmaster reached into her pocket and pulled out a small velvet box. "Wear this," she said, opening it. Inside was a necklace: a thin silver chain with a pendant shaped like a crescent moon made of black stone that seemed to absorb light.

"What is it?"

"A neutralizer. As long as you wear it, no alpha can mark you. No wolf can claim you. It will give you time to decide." She fastened the chain around my neck. The stone settled against my collarbone, cold and heavy. "You will wear this until you choose your mate. Not before."

"And if I don't choose?"

"Then you wear it forever." She stepped back. "But the fire inside you won't wait forever. Neither will the alphas."

I left the tower feeling heavier than when I entered. The necklace was cold against my skin, but beneath the chill, I could feel the stone humming, alive, listening. Mira was waiting at the bottom of the stairs.

"How'd it go?"

"I have to choose one of them."

"Obviously." Mira fell into step beside me. "The whole academy is taking bets, you know. Current odds: Nikolai is leading, Lukas is second, and Tomas is a distant third because no one knows anything about him."

"People are betting on my love life?"

"People are betting on which pack gets the Balancer. Your love life is just the vehicle." She glanced at me. "No pressure."

I spent the rest of the day avoiding everyone. I skipped lunch, hid in the library during free period, and sat in the back of every class with my head down. But I couldn't avoid the bond. Nikolai's emotions bled through—sharp spikes of possessiveness when another wolf looked at me too long. Lukas's feelings were softer but persistent, a constant hum of concern that made my chest ache. And Tomas… Tomas was still too weak to project much, but I felt his awareness, his curiosity. He was watching me through the bond. They all were.

After dinner, I tried to retreat to my room, but Nikolai was waiting in the hallway. "You've been avoiding me," he stated.

"I've been avoiding everyone."

"Not everyone. I saw you talking to Mira. To Finn. To that boy from the library who asked about your book."

"I didn't ask them to talk to me."

He stepped closer, his ice-blue eyes dark. "You've been wearing that necklace all day. The Headmaster's leash."

"It's not a leash. It's protection."

"From me." His voice was low, angry. "She's trying to keep me away from you."

"Maybe she's right."

He grabbed my wrist, not hard, but firm. "The library," he said. "The blizzard. The way you screamed my name. Did that mean nothing?"

My heart pounded. The necklace grew colder against my skin. "It meant something," I said.

"Then why are you pushing me away?"

"Because I have to choose, Nikolai. And I can't choose if you're always there. In my space. In my head. In my—" I stopped, swallowed. "Just give me time."

"How much time?"

"I don't know."

His grip tightened. "That's not good enough."

"Let her go." Lukas appeared at the end of the hallway, his green eyes hard, hands shoved in his pockets, tension in his shoulders.

"This doesn't concern you, Brandauer."

"Everything about her concerns me." Lukas walked toward us. "She asked for time. Give it to her."

"She didn't ask you to speak for her."

"She doesn't have to." Lukas stopped beside me. "I can feel her through the bond. She's exhausted. Overwhelmed. And you cornering her in a dark hallway isn't helping."

Nikolai's jaw tightened, but he released my wrist. "This isn't over," he said to me.

"I know." He turned and walked away, his footsteps echoing down the hallway until they faded into silence.

Lukas turned to me. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

"You're lying." He reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. His fingers brushed the necklace. It hummed. "This thing. Does it help?"

"It keeps them from marking me."

"Does it keep them from wanting to mark you?"

I shook my head. "Then it's useless." He dropped his hand. "But I'll respect it. I'll give you space. I won't push." He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Just don't forget that I'm here. When you're ready."

"I won't forget."

He nodded and walked away. I stood in the empty hallway for a long time, one hand pressed against the cold stone at my throat.

The fire started at midnight. I was in my room, lying in bed, staring at the ceiling. Sleep wouldn't come. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Nikolai's face, Lukas's smile, Tomas's dark, wondering eyes. Then I smelled smoke. At first, I thought it was my imagination, the bond playing tricks. But the smell grew stronger, thicker. I sat up. Smoke was seeping through the cracks around my door. Fire. I ran to the door and pressed my hand against the wood. It was hot. Too hot. I tried the handle; it burned my palm.

"Help!" I screamed. "Someone help!"

The fire was spreading. I could hear it crackling in the hallway, devouring the old wooden walls. Smoke filled my room, stinging my eyes, burning my throat. I grabbed my pillow and pressed it over my nose and mouth, then ran to the window. The drop was three stories. I couldn't jump without breaking both legs. Think, Elif. Think. The fire was at my door now, flames licking through the cracks, orange and hungry. The smoke was thicker, darker. I couldn't breathe.

The door exploded inward, not from the fire, but from force. Nikolai stood in the doorway, his body silhouetted against the flames. His eyes blazed gold, his teeth bared. "Elif!" He ran toward me through the fire as if it were nothing. His hands grabbed my waist. He lifted me as if I weighed nothing and carried me toward the window.

"We have to jump," he said.

"Are you insane?"

"The alternative is burning to death." He kicked out the window frame, glass shattering around us. "Hold on to me and don't let go." I wrapped my arms around his neck. He jumped.

We hit the snow below, hard. Nikolai twisted in mid-air so he landed on his back and I landed on his chest. The impact knocked the breath out of both of us. I rolled off him, gasping. Snow was everywhere—cold, wet, alive. "Are you hurt?" he asked.

"I don't think so." I looked up at the academy. My room was on fire. Flames poured out of the window, reaching toward the sky like hungry fingers. The stone walls were black with smoke. Other windows were lighting up now; the fire was spreading. "The whole building is going to burn," I whispered.

"No." Lukas appeared beside us, his chest heaving. "It's just the East Wing. Your wing." He looked at me. "Someone set this fire, Elif. Someone wanted you dead."