The Moon Chose The Wrong Mate

The night I turned eighteen, the Moon chose my mate. Apparently, I was supposed to be happy about that. I wasn't. I stood at the edge of the ceremonial clearing, trying not to pull at the sleeves of my dress for the hundredth time. Around me, hundreds of wolves gathered beneath the full moon, their voices blending into one restless murmur. The Moon Ceremony happened every year. Every wolf who turned eighteen was brought before the pack, and the Moon Goddess revealed their mate. People loved it. They called it sacred. Beautiful. The beginning of a new life. I'd spent the entire week listening to older wolves tell me how lucky I was. Right now, I felt like I was waiting for a sentence. “Stop looking like you're planning your escape,” Mira whispered beside me. “I am planning my escape.” She covered her mouth to hide a laugh. “You're terrible at this.” “At what?” “Pretending you're not nervous.” “I am nervous.” “I know.” I glanced at her. She was smiling. “Very supportive.” “Always.” Before I could say anything else, the crowd began to quiet. Mira's smile faded. “Oh.” I followed her gaze. The Alpha had arrived. Kael Draven walked into the clearing. He wasn't surrounded by guards or announcing himself. He didn't need to. People simply moved aside as he passed. I'd seen Kael plenty of times over the years. Everyone in the northern territories knew who he was. Twenty-three years old. Alpha of the Blackthorn Pack. Youngest Alpha our territory had seen in decades. Strong enough that people twice his age lowered their voices when they talked about him. I'd never spoken to him. Not properly, anyway. Tonight was probably not the night to start. He wore a dark ceremonial coat with the Blackthorn silver crest across his chest. His black hair was slightly messy from the wind, and there was something unusually tense about his face. He looked like someone attending a funeral. He didn't look like he wanted to be here either. “That's Kael,” Mira whispered. “I know.” “You're staring.” “I am looking.” “At his face.” “That's generally where people look when they're looking at someone.” She gave me a look. I turned away before she could make another comment. The ceremonial bell rang. Once. Then again. By the third ring, the clearing had gone completely quiet. The Elder stepped onto the stone platform. “Tonight,” she said, her voice carrying across the clearing, “the Moon Goddess will reveal the bonds written into the blood of those who have come of age.” My fingers curled inside my sleeves. Here we go. One by one, the unmated wolves stepped onto the platform. Some returned to their families with huge smiles. One girl started crying when she saw her mate. A boy from the eastern side of the pack actually tripped over his own feet trying to reach his. Mira leaned toward me. “Please don't do that.” “Do what?” “Trip.” “I wasn't planning to.” “Good.” I almost laughed. Then the Elder looked toward the crowd. “Elara Vale.” My stomach dropped. Mira squeezed my arm. “Go.” “Easy for you to say.” “You'll be fine.” I wasn't convinced. Still, I walked toward the platform. The moment my foot touched the stone, something changed. The wind stopped. I noticed it immediately. The leaves that had been moving a second ago were perfectly still. The murmuring crowd disappeared into silence. I looked up. The Moon was directly above me. For a heartbeat, nothing happened. Then pain shot through my chest. I gasped. Silver light flashed beneath my skin. My wolf woke so suddenly that I nearly lost my balance. Mate. The word wasn't spoken. I simply knew it. Someone in the crowd stumbled. I looked up. Kael. He was staring straight at me. The silver light between us grew brighter. A gasp traveled through the crowd. Then someone whispered, “The Alpha.” My heart started pounding. No. It couldn't be. But I already knew. Kael was my mate. I'd heard people describe the moment before. They said finding your mate felt like recognizing a song you'd somehow known your whole life. I used to think that sounded ridiculous. Standing there beneath the Moon, I understood it. For one brief, stupid moment, I was happy. Actually happy. Kael started walking toward me. One step. Then another. My wolf was going completely insane. Mate. I couldn't stop smiling. I probably looked ridiculous. I didn't care. He stopped a few feet away. Our eyes met. And that's when I realized something was wrong. He wasn't smiling. He wasn't even surprised. He looked terrified. My smile slowly disappeared. “Kael?” He said nothing. The Elder looked between us. “The bond has chosen,” she announced. “The Alpha and Elara Vale are—” “I reject the bond.” I think I forgot how to breathe. For a second, I genuinely wondered if I'd heard him correctly. “What?” Kael's jaw tightened. “I reject the bond.” The crowd erupted into whispers. Mira said my name behind me, but I barely heard her. I stared at him. There had to be some explanation. A mistake. Something. Anything. “Why?” The question came out quieter than I'd intended. Kael looked at me. For just a second, I saw something in his eyes. Pain. Then it was gone. “You are not my mate.” My chest tightened. “But the bond—” “Is wrong.” Two words. That's all he gave me. The Elder stepped forward, clearly angry now. “Alpha Kael, the Moon Goddess does not make mistakes.” His expression hardened. “Then tonight, she made one.” The clearing went silent. I could feel everyone looking at me. I wanted the ground to open. I wanted to disappear. Instead, I looked down at my wrist. The silver mark was still there. Still glowing. If the bond was wrong, why could I still feel him? Why was my wolf still reacting to him? Why did it feel like there was an invisible thread connecting us? I looked up. “Then why can I still feel you?” Something flickered across Kael's face. Fear. He stepped closer. His voice dropped until only I could hear him. “Because you shouldn't be able to.” I stared at him. “What does that mean?” His eyes moved briefly toward the Elder. Then the crowd. Then back to me. “Leave this pack tonight.” My stomach turned. “What?” “Leave.” “You reject me in front of everyone, and now you're telling me to run?” “Yes.” “From what?” He didn't answer. “Kael.” His expression tightened. “I can't explain.” “Then try.” “I can't.” “You're not even going to tell me why?” He looked at me for a long moment. Then, quietly, he said, “I'm trying to keep you alive.” Before I could respond, he turned away. I reached for his arm without thinking. He stopped. I let go immediately. “Tell me the truth.” He looked at me. For the first time since he'd walked into the clearing, his expression softened. “I can't.” Then he walked away. Just like that. The Alpha of the Blackthorn Pack had rejected me in front of everyone, and somehow that wasn't even the strangest part. Mira reached me almost immediately. “Elara…” “Don't.” She stopped. “I just want to go home.” We took only a few steps before the Elder called my name. I turned. She wasn't looking at my face. She was staring at my wrist. Her expression had completely changed. “Elara.” “What?” She approached slowly. Then she caught my wrist. Her fingers were trembling. “Where did you get this?” I frowned. “This?” “The mark.” I looked down. I'd seen mate marks before. They were usually simple silver symbols. Mine wasn't. The crescent on my wrist had thin lines running through it, almost like cracks spreading across glass. I looked back at the Elder. “What is it?” She released me so quickly that I almost stumbled. “Go home.” “What?” “Now.” Her voice was low. Not angry. Afraid. I had never seen the Elder afraid before. “What aren't you telling me?” She didn't answer. Before I could ask again, the Moon disappeared behind a cloud. The clearing darkened. Something cold brushed against the back of my neck. My wolf stirred. Not excited this time. Afraid. Elara. I swallowed. “What?” There was a pause. Then one word. Run. I looked toward the forest. At first, I saw nothing. Then, between two trees, I noticed a pair of pale eyes. Watching me. I blinked. They were gone. I turned back toward the clearing. Hundreds of wolves were still staring at me. Mira was beside me. The Elder looked terrified. And Kael was nowhere to be seen. For some reason, his absence frightened me more than his rejection. Because I finally understood something. Kael hadn't rejected me because he didn't want me. He had rejected me because he was afraid of what I was. And judging by the look on the Elder's face, I had a feeling I wasn't going to like the answer.