Bound by fate

The broken leaf

AVA

“She has no choice. This is the best for her, Adrian,” Dad’s voice tried to explain what wasn’t making sense to me at all.

I swallowed through the tears that were choking me. My voice trembled before it hardened, “No, Dad…” I shook my head over and over, refusing the words that kept pressing on me, “I have a choice. I don’t have to marry him. I’ll definitely have a mate.” My voice cracked but the last word came out sharp, stubborn.

I had always dreamed of my mate. A man carved out by the Moon Goddess herself, strong enough to shield me, gentle enough to love me, and fierce enough to choose me above everything. I carried that hope in my chest like a fragile flame.

And now, they wanted to throw me into the arms of someone I had never seen, never even heard laugh. Elijah Rummon.

The name tasted like ashes on my tongue. He was the son of some faceless Alpha of the Nightshade pack, and my father wanted to hand me to him as though I were a token in a trade, something passed across the table to seal an alliance.

“Yes, she will probably have a mate, Dad. She will know him on our birthday,” Adrian snapped quickly, my twin always the shield I never asked for but always needed. He tried to keep the anger out of his voice, but I knew him. I knew the way his jaw clenched when he fought the urge to shout.

Dad’s shoulders lifted and fell in a heavy sigh, his broad chest rising as though the weight of the whole pack pressed down on him. His eyes, hard and tired, met mine. “It’s not like that. She will reject him…” He stopped. My lungs froze. His words split me open. Reject?

He let the silence drag like a blade before continuing, “…no one can be stronger to protect her than Elijah. We could go to war at any time. And I won’t be here forever to guard her. Even you, Adrian.” Dad straightened his back, his voice dragging out his authority like a chain, “I’m doing the best for you, baby.”

But his ‘best’ felt like a coffin.

I shook my head faster, tears streaming fresh, each one hot as fire against my cheeks.

“You don’t have to tear yourself apart,” Mom’s sharp voice sliced the room like glass. Cold, flat, with that cruel edge she always saved for me. “This is the best thing a weak wolf like you can get. He’s doing you a favor. You’ll thank him for it.”

Her words burned worse than Dad’s decree. Like she had poured salt straight into my chest.

“Mom!” Adrian snapped, his voice low but warning, like thunder right before the storm breaks. His fists curled at his sides. “You don’t need to interfere if you’re not going to help.”

He glared at her, his fury barely leashed, but she only raised her chin with that same unbothered smirk that made me want to scream.

Dad shook his head at her, weary, before turning back to me. “Don’t mind her. She was only...”

I didn’t let him finish. The walls were closing in, the air was crushing my lungs. I stood, my chair screeching against the floor, and bolted. My legs carried me before my thoughts caught up, my sobs breaking the silence as I ran to my room.

Behind me, I heard Adrian shouting, his boots pounding the floor. “Ava! Ava! Wait!”

But I couldn’t stop. If I stopped, I’d shatter.

***

Two weeks passed like a nightmare I couldn’t wake from.

Dad was taking me to the Nightshade pack. Two to three days, he said. Time to “get to know” the Alpha and his son. As though I was some lamb brought to sniff the wolf’s den before being devoured.

Every step closer to that day was a step deeper into a trap. I clawed for escape, looked for my mate at gatherings, walked through the markets with eyes scanning every stranger, prayed the Moon Goddess would show me a sign. But nothing. No spark. No recognition. Maybe he hadn’t seen me yet. Maybe he didn’t exist.

And still, the day came.

“Pack everything she’ll need,” my mother commanded one of the maids, her voice clipped, her posture sharp like a blade sheathed in silk.

The maid bowed low, her voice small. “Yes, Grace.”

Grace. The title sat cold on my tongue every time I heard it given to her. Grace she never showed me. Grace she never gave.

She stood there watching, not with concern but with something close to relief, like my leaving the house even for a few days lightened her heart.

The maid folded my dresses, packed my shoes, tucked away little pieces of me into a trunk as though sealing a fate. My eyes drifted to the pile and my chest squeezed tight.

“What is all this?” My voice came out rougher than I meant. “I’m just going for a visit, not a wedding.”

The maid faltered, her eyes flicking toward my mother before lowering again. She didn’t answer.

“You’ll need everything,” Mom’s voice slithered in, calm and cruel. “Clothes. Jewels. And enough handkerchiefs for your upcoming tears.”

The words struck harder than a slap. My throat burned, but I swallowed it down. I wouldn’t give her the joy of seeing me cry here. Not now.

I turned from her. Walked outside.

Dad was waiting with Adrian and a cluster of guards, all mounted and ready. My eyes went straight to Adrian. But before I could step toward him, Dad’s voice came low, steady, final.

“You’re not following us, Adrian.”

The air stilled. Adrian’s face shifted, his brows shooting up in disbelief. “What? You think I’d let my sister ride off to Nightshade without me?”

“You will stay,” Dad’s words pressed ice into the air.

Adrian’s jaw tightened, his usual humor replaced by the kind of anger that made him look older, harder. “I always follow my sister anywhere she goes.”

“Even into a room…” Mom’s voice cut through, sickly sweet, cruel as ever, “…with her husband?”

The word struck me like a whip. Husband. My breath caught in my throat. I blinked hard to steady myself, refusing to let tears fall here in front of the guards.

“Mom…” Adrian’s voice broke, for once without a comeback.

I knew I had to stop him.

Once Dad’s word was stamped, it might as well have been carved in stone.

I reached for Adrian, pulled him into a hug. He froze, stiff with anger, before finally melting into me, his arms wrapping around me with that familiar warmth I clung to.

“You don’t have to come, brother,” I whispered, my voice trembling against his shoulder. “I’m just going for a visit. I’ll be back soon.”

He exhaled, long and heavy, his hand clapping against my back. “I need to protect you.”

I forced a smile, slapped his shoulder lightly. “Dad is coming with me. No one will dare hurt me there.”

He studied me, then finally nodded, though his eyes were stormy.

We pulled apart, and I caught Mom watching us. Her gaze darted away the moment I met it, turning instead to Dad. She draped her arms around his neck, her voice low and coy, “Darling, come back early.”

He bent, kissed her lips quickly. “I will, my queen.”

I looked away, bile rising in my throat.

“Now, let’s go,” Dad’s voice commanded.

I swallowed hard, my legs feeling like stone as I stepped toward the horse. A hand caught mine. Adrian again.

His eyes were sad, heavy, speaking all the things he couldn’t. For a moment, I wanted to drop everything, bury my face in his chest and beg him to come. To protect me. To never let me go.

“Don’t forget our birthday,” he murmured, his voice rough with anger he couldn’t hide. “Come back early.”

I forced a smile though my heart was breaking. “How could I forget the best day of our lives?”

But deep inside, I already knew. That day might not belong to me anymore.

He nodded, squeezed my hand, then let go. He helped me onto the horse like he always had, his touch lingering for a second longer than needed.

“Come here, baby,” I heard Mom coo to him, ruffling his hair like he was still a little boy.

The horse neighed suddenly, jolting me forward. I gripped the reins tight, my stomach clenching.

Then we were moving. Leaving home. Leaving Adrian’s sad eyes and protective arms behind.

And heading straight into the shadows of Nightshade pack.