CHAPTER ONE
1489 Words
Chapter One
The scent hit her first.
Luka.
And beneath it Rin.
Amaris stepped into the clearing, moonlight silvering the grass, her heart already racing before her mind caught up.
She saw them then.
Entwined.
Luka’s hands buried in Rin’s hair.
Rin’s fingers gripping the lapels of the forest-green suit he had worn only an hour ago the same suit he had worn while promising forever.
Amaris stopped breathing.
“Luka…”
Her voice was barely sound.
They broke apart.
Rin’s lips were swollen. Luka’s chest heaved.
For a second, no one moved.
The night held its breath with her.
“Amaris,” Luka said, stepping forward. “Please”
“Don’t.”
The word cracked like glass.
Rin adjusted her dress, fingers moving slowly, deliberately not a tremor in them.
She did not look ashamed.
She did not look guilty.
She looked composed.
Amaris’ voice faltered. “Rin.”
Rin finally raised her gaze.
There was nothing in it.
No remorse.
No apology.
Just indifference.
And that hurt more than any apology would have.
Luka reached for Amaris. “It wasn’t what it looked like.”
A hollow laugh escaped her. “You were kissing my sister.”
“It was a mistake.”
“A mistake?” Her voice rose. “Did you trip and fall into her mouth?”
“Amaris, I was confused. The ceremony was overwhelming. I”
“Stop.” Her voice was softer now, but far more lethal. “Don’t blame the ceremony.
Don’t blame the moment.”
Her eyes locked on his. “You chose her.”
He couldn’t deny it.
The silence that followed said everything.
Rin finally spoke.
Her voice was calm.
Too calm.
“You always get everything, don’t you?” Rin said softly, her voice like venom wrapped in silk.
Amaris frowned. “What are you talking about?”
Rin’s lips curved faintly, but there was no warmth in it. “Father’s pride. Mother’s favorite. The pack’s golden girl.”
“Rin” Luka warned.
She ignored him.
“When we were children, they would say your wolf was stronger,” Rin continued, her eyes never leaving Amaris. “That you would make a better Luna one day.”
Amaris shook her head. “That’s not true.”
“Of course it wasn’t but they all believed it,” Rin replied.
Silence pressed between them, each heartbeat echoing louder than words could.
“And then Luka chose you.” Rin’s jaw tightened slightly. “Even though I was older.”
Luka’s face went pale. “Stop this.”
“For once,” Rin said quietly, “I didn’t want to stand behind you.”
The words weren’t shouted.
They didn’t need to be.
Amaris felt something deep inside her splinter.
Not just from the betrayal
But from the realization that this hadn’t started tonight.
This had been building for years.
“So you took him?” she whispered.
Rin didn’t deny it.
Luka stepped forward desperately. “I love you, Amaris. It meant nothing.”
“Nothing?” Her hands trembled. “You kissed her minutes after binding yourself to me under sacred oath.”
“I panicked.”
“You betrayed me.”
Her wolf stirred beneath her skin, restless, furious.
Rin folded her arms. “If he was truly yours, he wouldn’t have wavered.”
The cruelty was surgical.
Amaris took a step back as if physically struck.
“Rin,” Luka warned.
But Rin’s gaze never left Amaris.
“You were never as perfect as they thought,” she said softly.
The words sliced deeper than the kiss.
Amaris’s voice trembled, barely a whisper. “How long?”
Neither of them answered.
That was answer enough.
The pendant around her neck, a symbol of their sacred mating rites suddenly felt unbearably heavy.
A cruel weight, almost mocking her.
Luka reached again. “We can fix this.”
She recoiled. “There is no fixing this.”
Her eyes moved between them her mate and her twin.
Two people she trusted more than herself.
“I hope you’re happy,” she said, the calm in her voice sharper than her tears.
“You can have him.”
She spun on her heel.
“Amaris!” Luka lunged forward, desperate.
Rin’s hand shot out, gripping his arm.
“Let her go,” she whispered, low and commanding.
“I need to explain,” Luka pleaded, his voice breaking.
“You’ve done enough,” Rin said coldly.
Luka froze. That pause hesitation was all Amaris needed.
Her heart shattered completely.
She ran.
The moon hung low, silvering the forest, but it offered no comfort.
Amaris stumbled over a root and cursed under her breath. “Why… why him? Why her?”
Her voice was barely audible, lost among the rustling leaves. “I trusted you, Luka… I trusted you.”
She pressed her hand to her chest as if it could hold her shattered heart together. “And you… you chose her?”
Branches clawed at her hair and gown. She yanked free a twig, muttering angrily, “You both of you… how could you?”
Her feet hit another patch of undergrowth, and she tripped. She scrambled upright, breathing hard. “It wasn’t supposed to be like this. It wasn’t supposed to be like this!”
The image burned in her mind. Luka’s lips, Rin’s hands. “You think I’ll forgive this?” she whispered fiercely to the night. “No. Never. Never!”
She swung her arms, brushing twigs aside. “I gave you everything… everything! And you both of you wasted it!”
A sob caught in her throat. She shook her head, running faster. “I hate you… I hate you both…”
Then she paused, the forest around her silent except for her ragged breaths. “I can’t believe this… I can’t…”
She pressed her fists into her thighs. “Why do I even feel like crying for you, Luka? Why? You don’t deserve me… neither of you do.”
Her voice rose, desperate, shaking with grief. “I’ll never… I’ll never forget this.”
Her feet moved again, faster this time, twigs and leaves tangling in her hair. She whispered to herself, voice trembling, “I can’t stop… I won’t stop… I just need… something…”
Her eyes, once bright and alive, scanned the darkness. “Is there anyone… anyone out there who will care?”
Her chest tightened with each gasp. “I can’t… I can’t breathe…”
She pushed forward, crying out to the emptiness. “I’m done! Done with lies! Done with betrayal!”
And still, the image of them together Luka and Rin haunted her, stabbing at her chest like a knife.
She stumbled over another root, hair in her face. “I… I have to… I have to get away…”
Her voice broke, barely a whisper. “I have to… I have to survive this… somehow…”
Memories of the mating ceremony flooded her mind as she ran.
The clearing had glowed warmly under the moonlight.
The pack had gathered in a circle.
She could see the pride on her parents face.
Her father, the Alpha of the pack, had stood tall, his presence commanding respect from every wolf present.
Her mother, the Luna, radiated quiet strength at his side.
He had spoken solemnly, his voice echoing through the clearing.
“Amaris… Luka… you have pledged yourselves to one another. May your bond honor the pack, and may loyalty guide your hearts.”
Her mother had nodded beside him, Luna Helen, her expression serene but watchful.
They had clasped hands.
“Do you vow your loyalty and your love?” Kane had asked, eyes meeting Amaris’.
“I do,” she had said, heart swelling.
Luka had looked at her then, the devotion in his gaze matching her own.
“I do,” he had echoed.
Her father’s hands hovered over them for a heartbeat, then gently pressed down, a quiet blessing sealing their bond.
“May your union strengthen the pack, and may your hearts remain steadfast,” Kane intoned, his voice both solemn and commanding.
With the ceremonial duties complete, he stepped back, pride radiating from him like sunlight spilling across the clearing.
“Remember,” he had said, voice steady, “love is more than feeling, it is duty, honor, and sacrifice.”
Her heart had lifted. She had believed every word. Every promise. Forever.
Now, those memories were cruel mockery.
Amaris stopped abruptly, chest heaving. Her hands shook as they clutched the pendant.
“You lied… all of you,” she whispered through clenched teeth.
With a cry, she ripped the pendant from her neck and hurled it as far as she could. It sailed through the moonlit air, clinking against the branches, disappearing into the darkness.
Her throat ached from sobs. “Everything… everything I believed… gone!”
- Writer
