by Brea Viragh
He jerked his chin in my direction and the clapping grew louder. I forced my smile to widen in response to the noise level. Sure, I worked for him, and I did a good job, if everyone ignored my memory issues.
No one knew how much I hated it. No one noticed how I kept to myself. It wasn’t the job itself, although the world my uncle frequented, the world he thrived in, held no appeal to me. It was how everyone looked at me that irked the most.
I did the work because Uncle William desired it of me, and as his ward, I owed him my gratitude, my life, everything. He’d taken me in when I had no one else in the world. When he wanted something from me, I did it. Familial obligation took on a new meaning for shifters.
“She’s a rising star no matter what room she walks into, and a guiding light for the future of our pack. When her father was murdered by those Faerie pigs—” William paused to shudder, and some of the crowd of shifters took to hissing at his words. “—I wasn’t sure what to do with a child. I’m not the kind of man who gets along with children, generally speaking. But I believe we’ve managed well with each other. Tavi, I am so proud of the woman you have become. Your kindness, your generosity, your courage, and your work ethic. There is no one like you in this world.”
He had the last part right. Only the others could never know the truth about me.
“I cannot wait to see where your future leads,” William stated, gearing up for a big finish. I could tell from the way his gestures broadened, his eyes gleamed. “No matter the darkness in your life, you shine. You will be the one to lead our people into tomorrow. You will be the bridge for the canyon between the Alderidge pack and the Grimaldi pack. Lucky, lucky girl!”
Wait a minute, what?
My stomach curled with dread as William’s smile went supernova. “Because the elders have determined that you, my dear niece, are the fated mate for Kendrick Grimaldi. Surprise! Please, everyone, give her another round of applause. What a gift.”
A bomb went off in my head. I was suddenly sick to my stomach at the mention. Kendrick Grimaldi, the bloody alpha of the Grimaldi pack—and my sworn enemy.
2
My fated mate, the man I’m meant to be with, is none other than the alpha of our rival who had risen to his status not by right but by might, uncaring of who he brutalized on his rise.
No. God, no, it can’t be.
Luck? No, this wasn’t luck. This was suicide.
Uncle William couldn’t be right. It was impossible.
An icy wave of revulsion threatened to bring me to my knees and my stomach heaved, sending a stream of acidic nausea to coat the roof of my mouth. Shivers ran along my limbs and the tiny hairs along my forearm stood on end. I almost dropped my glass.
Around me the pack erupted, cheering at what they would only see as good news. They viewed Kendrick as a leader, one who wasn’t afraid to do what needed to be done to bring the wolves under him to order. To keep them safe and structured.
The Grimaldi and the Alderidge wolves had never been close. After my father’s murder, the divide between the two packs grew even wider. We went our separate ways when we could no longer come together on issues such as a female’s rights and inheritance, to mention a few.
I felt lightheaded. At once the vision of my uncle standing on stage blurred and the rest of me went hot and scratchy. How could you do this to me? How do you know you’re right? Who are the elders to decide my fate?
I opened my mouth to respond but snapped it shut again. If it weren’t for Uncle Will, I’d be dead. The pack was unkind to orphans like me. Half-breeds. I couldn’t question him in public. Not without potentially damaging his position with the others and outing myself for a fraud by blood.
“Give it up for Tavi, everyone,” William repeated, clapping his hands together. “She deserves it!”
Jason clapped, but he’d gone quiet, and I looked over in time to see him crinkle his nose with a sniff. “Congratulations,” he said when he noticed me looking. “Not everyone is lucky enough to find their fated mate.”
Fated mate. And again with the luck.
Fated mates were rare in this world, two souls who were destined for each other, their lives together written in the stars and their fates dictated by the universe itself.
Me…and Kendrick Grimaldi?
No.
I might have been looking at Jason when he spoke to me. But I wasn’t at the party anymore. I wasn’t sure where I was, honestly. The sting in my chest from the news had migrated lower to an ache in my gut and I felt untethered in the worst way.
Kendrick Grimaldi was about seventeen years older than me and a seriously bad dude. His pack and mine had been at each other’s throats under the guise of peace for years, and Kendrick came into power with blood and betrayal on his hands. It had been a fight to get there, to seize the throne from the elder Grimaldi alpha and destroy him.
The man was damn near a legend in pack lore.
Jason stepped closer to run a hand down my cheek. “Hey, where did you go?” he asked with a dry neutrality I’d never heard from him before.
I took my time coming to, swallowing back the words I wanted to scream out at everyone, the tears threatening to give me away, about how I would rather die than spend the rest of my life chained to a man like Kendrick.
“I’m, ah, I’m here,” I managed to get out. The smile I flashed Jason was anything but sincere. “I think I need a little bit more to drink. My throat’s dry.”
“You still have some sparkling cider left.” Jason gestured toward the glass dangling from my limp fingers.
“I don’t want cider.” My lips felt two sizes too big.
“Come on, let’s take a walk,” he suggested.
I didn’t want a walk, either. Did I have a choice?
Jason kept one hand lightly on the small of my back and it was obvious how his flirty facade had disappeared entirely. He kept his touch casual the way any wolf may have while escorting me, all hints of his earlier interest gone. I didn’t blame him. One simple speech from Uncle Will and everything had changed.
If anyone else noticed how I wasn’t over-the-moon thrilled by the news, they didn’t mention it. I kept a fake smile plastered on my face even as it felt like hot pokers were stabbing at me.
My future—gone. Whatever choices I’d wanted to make, chances I’d wanted to take, ripped away from me with two little words.
Kendrick. Grimaldi.
I was as good as dead but no one could see it.
My cheeks flushed but not from happiness. Fear had me walking stiffly away from the refreshment table to make a loop around the lawn with Jason. Finally, when he couldn’t take my silence anymore, he brought me into the house, trying not to stop for all the well-wishers stepping forward.
Congratulations!
You are one seriously lucky pup.
Thank you, bless you.
Bless me? No, damn me. I glanced up at all of them through dark lashes damper than they had moments ago.
“I can’t believe it,” Dawn said with a pout, having cut through the crowd to stand at my side once Jason left it. She took my hands in hers. “Did you know your uncle was going to spring this news on you?”
My jaw clenched. “No, I didn’t,” I said, trying to calm my breathing. “I had no clue. He took me completely by surprise.”
“I just can’t believe it,” she repeated. “You and Kendrick Grimaldi. He’s drop dead gorgeous! You are one of the luckiest people I know.” Dawn shook her head. And if I didn’t know any better, I thought I detected a hint of jealousy in her tone.
I huffed. “You can’t be serious right now—” But I stopped myself from going further.
No one would understand my reservations. Fated mates were few and far between. To the rest of them, yes, I was fortunate, blessed, not only because I’d found mine—supposedly—but because he turned out to be a handsome, powerful wolf. A leader in our community.
Deadly and violent.
It wasn’t until much later, after t
he party ended and the guests had gone back to their own homes, that my uncle stumbled into the kitchen, with the sounds of the cleaning crew winding down behind him. I’d been waiting for him. I knew where he kept the good scotch, and it wasn’t in his office.
“We need to talk,” I said the moment I had his attention. Then I slammed the bottle he wanted down with enough reverberation to have his eyes widening at the sound.
His brows narrowed. Sometime during the evening he’d undone his tie and left it loose around his neck. “I wondered where you’d been hiding,” he told me. “I hadn’t seen a hint of you since my speech.”
“Yes, your speech. We have a few things to talk about.”
But William was already walking toward me, his hand outstretched for the bottle and frowning at me as though I’d run away and ruined his night on purpose. Only one of those things was true.
I slid the bottle away and he growled, flinging off his outer jacket before tossing it onto one of the stools lining the massive kitchen island. “You know I don’t approve of you touching this stuff,” he warned.
It was all I could do to keep from collapsing. Be strong. Say what you need to say. I’d never spoken up to Uncle William before. Then again, I’d never had any reason to question him.
Things had changed.
“If you think you can so nonchalantly sell me off to the highest bidder without asking me first, then with all due respect, you’ve got another think coming.” Bracing my arms on the granite countertop, I shook my head, ignoring my nerves. “What were you thinking, announcing an engagement in front of everyone? Why didn’t you come to me first?”
William’s brown eyes narrowed. “I’m thinking about how you are my ward, and eighteen or not, this is not your decision to make. You have a fated mate, Tavi. The pack elders divined the match. The divination means something, despite your feelings. It’s a gift.”
I went hot and cold at the same time. My finger tapped against the booze bottle. “A fated mate. I’m calling bullshit, Uncle Will. I don’t think Kendrick Grimaldi and I are fated at all. We don’t even know each other. I think you auctioned me off like cattle behind closed doors so you can gain control of the Grimaldi holdings and land. Pack elders? No way.”
The moment I said it, I knew I should have approached this with a little more finesse.
No reaction or hint of alarm showed on his face. He cocked his head. “Is that what you think I did, Tavi?” Then suddenly Uncle Will’s fist slammed down on the countertop. “Answer me!”
Wow, he was pissed.
But I would not be cowed. “Yes! It’s exactly what I think!”
His unrelenting steel and grit had helped both me and the pack survive—thrive—until this point. He alone maintained our status and had brought the Alderidge wolves to new heights, especially after the problems with the Fae. With my mother’s people.
“Do you have a problem with your fate?” he asked icily.
My jaw seized from clenching it too hard.
William shifted, blinking, and grabbed the scotch from between my hands, knowing I wasn’t foolish enough to face him if it came to a fight. “You should be pleased with the match, Tavi, considering your tainted bloodline and the nasty influence from your mother’s side. Not everyone is as gifted as you are. Kendrick Grimaldi is certainly one of the most eligible alphas around, with great wealth and power. This match between you two will strengthen the relationship between our packs. You’re marked for greatness. It is destiny. It is fate.” He stressed the word. “And therefore, it is out of my control. I want you to remember before you sling accusations at me.”
I couldn’t take any more of his cool indifference. Not when inside I wanted to rage. I drowned out the urge to scream at him by storming off and slamming the kitchen door behind me hard enough to rattle the dishes. Heels and fancy dress and all, I ran. Out the front door and down the street. Into the darkness.
Nothing about the night had ever scared me. Not when I knew I could handle whatever threat came my way through strength and wits.
I could handle anything except what my uncle asked of me. Demanded of me. I swallowed the urge to give in to tears. They were there, ready to come flooding out.
The park up ahead, a community green space where the rich moms took their toddlers in our exclusive community, had become my escape. The lateness of the cool evening meant the area was empty. Thank God.
I slowed my steps to a methodical march, the black iron fence around the park positioned like silent sentinels.
“Elfwaite?” I called out.
My voice echoed back to me without an answer.
Despite the hush of night, I finally relaxed. The tension in my shoulders eased the farther I walked into the park. Large oak trees shaded the paths during the day, but tonight, with the moon high and casting shadows, I stepped through random pools of buttery light.
Here, I didn’t have to pretend anymore. I didn’t have to protect myself against judgment. Elfwaite was the only person in the world I truly trusted with my truth. She didn’t care about my blood. She only cared about me.
A flutter of wings caught my attention and instead of preparing to run, I smiled. This time, I meant it.
The pixie’s nostrils flared delicately as she crept between the leaves of a bay laurel bush. All four inches of her tiny, purple-skinned supernatural self. “You’re supposed to be enjoying your birthday party, young lady,” Elfwaite gently scolded, her voice a mere whisper of sound. “You told me you were going to have fun.”
“And it was fun, for the first five minutes.”
“Somehow I doubt things went downhill fast without a good reason. It wasn’t an unruly guest throwing food around, was it?”
I shook my head. “No, definitely not.”
Elfwaite’s family had left Faerie a hundred years ago, during the great Pixie War. She was born and raised in the human lands and knew no other life. Yet she had been my best source of information on Faerie so far, the only connection I had to my mother’s people, of her life before coming here.
My pixie friend had returned to her homeland multiple times once the war ended to visit family. She’d simply never wanted to stay.
We met by chance when I was jogging one day, a passerby knocking into me and sending me flying into the laurel bush where Elfwaite happened to be napping. Her kind didn’t normally associate with wolves, even half-wolves. But she’d been kind. So had I. It made an impression.
I knelt down on the soft grass, uncaring of what happened to my dress.
“I…I need to talk to you,” I began haltingly, holding out my palm for her to rest on. This was followed by an embarrassed cough, glancing back along the empty path. I knew I could say whatever I wanted to Elfwaite without fear but it took me precious moments to let my guard down. “I need to talk to someone who won’t judge me. Or, heaven forbid, be happy for me.”
“What’s wrong?” Elfwaite pressed her palm to mine and magic sizzled between us.
Laying my free hand flat on the grass and resting upon it, I raised my gaze to meet her slanted pupils. Why did this seem so difficult? “My uncle found my…my fated mate.”
Her wings fluttered. “This is not good news for you.”
Not a question. A true statement. She understood better than most. “No, it’s not. Uncle Will announced it at my party.” The rest of the story spilled out of me faster than I’d anticipated and I ended up telling Elfwaite everything.
I told her about the first time I’d seen Kendrick at a rather explosive pack meeting at my uncle’s estate. I’d seen the gleam of desperate violence in his eyes when he spotted me. Like a starving hunter spying a rabbit warren. Like I’d be easy pickings because I was pretty and weak.
I’d never killed anything outside a few deer, let alone another wolf shifter. Seeing Kendrick all those months ago, I’d wished for something to defend myself against him, and I would have used a weapon if necessary. Now I wanted nothing more than to bury the memory and never think about it
again.
I stared at my friend. “I don’t understand what’s happening. I really don’t,” I continued, swallowing hard. “Worse, I don’t know what to do to get out of it. I’m not strong enough to fight the will of two packs by myself. No one will listen to me.”
“Oh, Tavi.” Elfwaite kept her tone comforting and quiet, fluttering forward to hug me. She was only a little bigger than my nose, and she moved there to soothe me.
“There’s no way I can let my uncle marry me off. I would rather die than spend the rest of my life chained to someone like Kendrick, someone people say revels in the misery of others. How can he be my fated mate? He’s not a good man.”
“I would rather you not die. There is always another option, though…you can run away to somewhere you would be safe from your uncle’s reach.”
I was desperate for a solution when it seemed there was none, and clung to her words. “Where?”
“To Faerie, of course.”
Unable to help myself, I laughed. “Elfwaite, I would never be allowed in. I’m half werewolf. The gatekeepers would throw me back into human lands on my ass.”
The pixie moved back to stare at me, frowning. “There is another way,” she insisted.
My laugh turned into a snort. “It sounds almost as ridiculous as Kendrick Grimaldi being my fated mate.”
But her gaze held steady and strong. A being so small, one would think the expression laughable on her face. I knew better. She packed a world of power inside her minuscule body.
“There are places in this world standing apart,” she said. “I’ve told you this before. Places the lucky few know about. You happen to be in the correct position to travel to one of them.”
As if I’d been struck, I leaped up from the ground, an electric current in my blood at her words. “Tell me.”
“You could apply for a spot at the Fae Academy for Halflings. It’s located in the mortal realm, a school for halflings like you who want to earn a place in Faerie.”
