Shadows Of Revenge

Chapter 2

The door slammed so hard the walls shook.

"WHY?!" Evelyn screamed. "WHY THE HELL DID THE MOON GODDESS CHOOSE THAT TRASHY b***h INSTEAD OF ME?"

She paced her room like a caged animal. Silk pillows hit the floor. A vase shattered.

"I've been trained for this my entire life," she hissed. "Etiquette. History. Combat. And now she just walks in and steals it? No. No way in hell I'm letting that happen."

Evelyn stopped in the center of the room, breathing hard.

"I have to do something about her."

She needed air. Needed to think.

The palace gardens were empty at this hour. Moonlight silvered the rose bushes. Evelyn walked without direction, rage still burning in her chest.

Then the scent hit her.

Burnt almonds and ash. Sweet. Wrong. It curled in her lungs and made her stop walking.

From somewhere deep inside, her wolf surged awake.

_Mate. Mate. MATE._

The word slammed through her head. Her wolf clawed at her ribs, desperate to run, to claim, to fall to her knees.

Evelyn followed the scent. Past the fountain. Past the hedges. To the very end of the garden.

A man was there. His back was to her. He was on his knees, tending to the flowers. His clothes were patched and worn — servant rags.

He turned.

The world tilted.

Evelyn forgot how to breathe.

Her mate.

The Moon Goddess had given her, Evelyn, the future Luna, a mate.

And he was an omega. A servant. Dressed in rags.

Disgust and fury warred in her chest. This had to be a joke. A cruel prank.

But the bond was there. She could feel it. A golden thread pulling her toward him, begging her to go.

Evelyn straightened her spine. Her voice was ice.

"No one is to know about this. Do you understand? It's shameful. Stay out of sight until I tell you what to do."

He bowed his head and turned to leave.

"Wait." The word came out before she could stop it. "What’s your name?"

He looked over his shoulder. "Samuel, your highness."

Samuel. He was handsome. Young. And still a disgrace.

Evelyn watched him walk away. Her mind was racing.

Luna stolen. Mate ruined.

Then something clicked.

The first rule of being Luna, drilled into her since childhood:

_'A Luna must never bring disgrace to her pack, or to her husband’s pack.'_

Evelyn’s lips curved. Slow. Dangerous.

"All I have to do... is make _her_ bring disgrace to the pack."

Later that night, she sent for him.

The door opened. Samuel stepped in and bowed low. "Your highness, you sent for me."

"Yes, I did." Evelyn circled him slowly. "I’ll accept you. On one condition."

Samuel’s head snapped up. His eyes flashed.

"W-what condition?"

Evelyn smiled. She’d struck a nerve.

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