A Healer's Heart, Not a Luna's Crown

The day Alpha Kyle Locke came to deliver the marking token, he brought two, just like always, and let my sister Serafina Voss choose first. One was a custom-made moonstone collar, a specialty piece from Frost. The other was a wolf fang pendant, the kind sold in every shop in town. Neither of us said anything. Everyone just waited for Serafina to reach out first. Never mind that this token had been chosen for my marking ceremony with Kyle, not hers. But this time, I moved first. My fingers landed on the moonstone. I spoke before anyone else could. "Can I be the one to choose, this time?" Kyle frowned. "Ella, Serafina's health is delicate. The moonstone will help settle her wolf. Yours is already steady. The pendant is more than enough for you." I didn't pull my hand back. I looked at the two tokens in front of me, and it finally hit me. Every choice in my life had been made exactly like this. Serafina's blood ran nobler, so she always got to choose first. I was the one who gave ground, every single time, right up until Kyle came along. Everyone had expected Kyle to pick Serafina as his Luna. In the end, he chose me instead. I thought, for once, I was the one who'd been chosen, not the one left with the scraps. It took me a long time to understand that the position of Luna was mine, but the priority behind it always belonged to Serafina. Not this time. I wasn't going to be the one who came second, not anymore. Chapter 1 Ella's POV Kyle Locke's tone turned coaxing. "The moonstone carries too much power. If you wear it, it'll stir up your wolf. Besides, the fang pendant was always meant for you." He said it like it was obvious, like I'd been fighting over something that had never belonged to me in the first place. I lifted my chin and looked him straight in the eye. "So I only deserve the ordinary one?" He blinked, caught off guard for half a second, then laughed, a little helpless, the way you'd laugh at a kid throwing a tantrum. "All right, don't get worked up. If you don't like this pendant, we'll go pick something else out at the jeweler's." That was the moment my heart finally sank all the way down. I stood up and pushed the fang pendant back across the table. "Don't bother. Give it all to Serafina. Kyle, let's call off the engagement." Kyle must have thought I was just being petulant, because he reached out to pat my head. "Ella, don't go around saying we're calling off the engagement. The bonding ceremony is in seven days. The whole pack's already been informed about it. What would everyone think if we called it off now?" Serafina Voss slid the moonstone collar back toward me. "Take it, Ella. You're about to bond with Kyle. Don't make things hard for him in front of the pack over something this small." Kyle stopped her before she could finish, pushing the collar back in front of her instead. "That one was made for you. Ella's a Healer. Herbs and daily care are all she needs. The moonstone's power would just be wasted on her." So there had never been a choice to begin with. The most precious things had always been set aside for Serafina from the start. I pulled my hand back and turned to walk away. Kyle sighed, tired, and followed after me. "Fine, we'll go to the jeweler's. Pick whatever you want. Happy now?" We'd just reached the shopping district downstairs when Serafina stopped at a perfume counter. "I want to try that cedarwood scent. It might come in handy for tonight's dinner." Kyle nodded without even thinking about it. "Try that one first, then. Ella, wait here." Serafina tried on scent after scent and couldn't decide, so Kyle just bought both and shoved the one she hadn't picked into my hands. "Here, take it. You get one too. Happy now?" I didn't take it. I didn't want anything that was someone else's leftovers. "I'm going to my father tonight. I'm going to ask him to call off both the engagement and the bonding ceremony." Kyle's hand froze halfway through the air, and the smile finally dropped from his face. "Ella. That's enough." That same night, Kyle called my parents in. Chapter 2 "Have you lost your mind? The bonding ceremony is in seven days, and you're just going to call it off just because you feel like it?" My father, Gareth Voss, rapped his cane against the marble table. His voice alone was enough to make it hard to breathe. "The pack alliance between the Voss family and the Locke family isn't something you get to throw a tantrum over." He gripped my chin, forcing me to meet his eyes, his tone as stern as always. "You don't have your sister's Silver Wolf bloodline. Marrying into the Locke family as their Luna is a stroke of good fortune. You should be grateful." Kyle stepped in front of me, smiling as he smoothed things over. "Don't be so hard on her. Ella's just nervous about the ceremony. She's letting her temper get the better of her." My mother, Marilyn Voss, immediately put on her most approving expression. "See how much Kyle dotes on you? Where else are you going to find an Alpha as good as him?" I almost laughed out loud. Everyone seemed to think I ought to be down on my knees thanking Kyle for being willing to marry someone as merely "suitable" as me. "If you dare break this engagement, I'll sever the blood bond between us. Don't you dare call me your mother again." The room went quiet. I took a breath and nodded. "Fine." They all relaxed, thinking I'd finally given in. Kyle relaxed too, reaching out to ruffle my hair. I turned my head away before he could touch me. I went back to my room and dug out the healing kit I kept hidden at the back of my closet. I'd trained under the pack's old Healer since I was a child, learning to treat wounds and mix remedies, and I'd earned my practitioner's badge by the time I was sixteen. But my family had always said being a Healer was a servant's trade, not fit for a daughter of the Voss family. Serafina said the same, that it was beneath us. Kyle told me I could learn the household accounts instead, that the pack already had its own Healers and I didn't need to get my hands on it. So I'd kept my skills hidden, only ever poring over my remedies when no one was around. Now I packed my healing needles, my own mixed tinctures, a thick stack of handwritten notes, and a few pouches of dried herbs into my bag. I didn't pack any of my nice clothes. I didn't take a single piece of jewelry the family had given me. All of it either came from Serafina's castoffs, or had only been given to me to keep up appearances as "a daughter of the Voss family." I didn't want any of it anymore. I called my best friend, Lila Marshall, the chief Healer of the Deep Valley pack. "Lila, it's me." "Ella? Why are you calling at this hour? You're bonding with Kyle in seven days, aren't you?" I took a breath and made sure my voice came out steady. "I'm not going through with it." Lila's voice rose. "Are you sure? The Locke family won't just let this go, and your family won't let you leave either." "I know." "So where are you planning to go?" "You said your pack was short a resident Healer. Are you still looking for a healer?" Lila went quiet for a few seconds, then I heard her set something down. "You're sure about this? The Locke family won't just let this go, and your family won't let you leave either." "I know." Lila didn't try to talk me out of it again. "Okay. I'll arrange a car to pick you up on the day of the ceremony. I'll get you your own healing room." I closed my eyes. "Thank you." After I hung up, I carved a small mark into the windowsill. Seven days until the bonding ceremony. Chapter 3 When the car pulled up out front, Kyle said, offhand, "Serafina's coming by in a bit too. I want to set a room aside for her at our new house." I didn't say anything. I just quietly pushed open the car's back door and got out. The whole ride over, Kyle and Serafina had sat up front, heads bent together, talking about the Moonlight Rite. The two of them looked so close, so at ease, that I felt like the odd one out. I watched their profiles and finally understood. I had never been the center of this engagement. The house was built on high ground by the lake, meant to be our bonding home. There was a skylight cut into the roof, and on a full moon the light would fall straight onto the bed at its center, ideal for completing a bonding and for a mated pair's wolves to merge. The inside of the house was grander than I'd imagined, and none of it had been made with me in mind. The moment Serafina walked in, she looked straight up at the space under the skylight, her eyes bright as polished silver. "The moonlight's strongest right here. This is the perfect spot for the old scrolls and the moonwort." Kyle nodded immediately. "Then we'll clear out the inner room for you. Ella can take the outer one. She doesn't need that much moonlight anyway." I stopped where I was. "Isn't this supposed to be the room for our bonding?" Kyle didn't even look at me. "It's just a room. Serafina's scrolls for the rite matter more. They can't get damp, and they can't go without moonlight. You'll be fine in the outer room. It won't hold up the ceremony." I didn't argue. I walked into the outer room and touched the cold stone wall. There was a small bed here, a lamp, a blanket. I knew, once again, I'd been put second. After we left the house, Serafina suggested we go into town to pick out a new evening gown. Kyle agreed without hesitation. I'd assumed we'd all be choosing our ceremony outfits together. But once we reached the shop, Kyle steered me toward a rack of dresses and said, "Serafina's attending the council dinner as the Moonlight Rite's High Priestess candidate. She needs something new. Help her pick something out." I stood there. "What about me?" Kyle blinked, surprised. "You? Don't you already have that custom gray gown? That'll do fine for the ceremony." I almost wanted to laugh. I was the one about to bond with Kyle, and yet somehow everyone still revolved around Serafina. The clerk brought out several dresses, and Serafina tried on one after another, dissatisfied with all of them. Finally, her eyes landed on me. "Ella, can I borrow that dark gray dress of yours? I remember wearing it once. It really brought out my presence." Kyle jumped in right away. "Right, and it's not like Ella wears it much. Serafina, if you like it, just take it for now." I looked at the two of them. That dress had never been mine to begin with. It was one Serafina had worn a few times years ago and then tossed my way. I'd secretly been happy about it for the longest time, thinking it was the first formal dress I'd ever truly owned. Now I finally understood. Even that dress had never really been mine. "Sure," I said. "You can have it." Serafina smiled. "Thanks, Ella. You're the best." Kyle relaxed too. "That's more like it. I'll buy you a new one sometime." I didn't answer. I stood in front of the mirror, looking at the plain black dress I had on, and it hit me that I'd been waiting for twenty-some years. Waiting for my parents to see me. Waiting for Kyle to value me. Waiting for the day I'd finally stop coming in second behind Serafina. But I wasn't going to wait anymore. That night, back in my room, I gathered up every piece of clothing, every trinket Serafina had ever handed down to me, and set it all in a neat pile by the door. None of it was mine. I didn't want any of it anymore. Chapter 4 The pack had already started printing the guest lists. I flipped one open and saw, right at the top in the boldest print: Guest of Honor: Serafina Voss, Candidate for High Priestess of the Moonlight Rite. My own name only showed up further down, in the section for the bonding couple, small, tucked in like an afterthought that couldn't be left out entirely. My mother saw me looking and said, without much thought, "Serafina's the Silver Wolf bloodline's High Priestess. All the guests from every pack are coming for her. Don't read too much into it. Your name's on there too." I didn't say anything. I already knew that. My name was on the list, but not because anyone was looking forward to seeing me. It was only there because a ceremony needs two names. Three days before the bonding ceremony, the pack held a family dinner. That day also happened to be my birthday and Serafina's. Kyle had ordered the cake himself, and when it came out, the whole table was full of praise. The frosting was piled high, covered in crushed pistachios and hazelnuts, Serafina's favorite. I was allergic to nuts. For a wolf-kin, an allergic reaction could stir up the wolf, or worse, choke off the breath entirely. Not one person at that table remembered. My mother was busy cutting Serafina the most perfect piece with the frosting flower intact. My father was talking to Kyle about next month's council meeting. Kyle stood there holding a small tiara, waiting to set it on Serafina's head. None of them meant any harm by it. Their minds were just always full of Serafina. They were used to it, used to giving her the best of everything first, used to her preferences, used to me never pushing back. Kyle set the little tiara on Serafina's head, smiling. "Our future High Priestess gets to make her wish first." I looked at that cake covered in nuts, at the little tiara that belonged only to my sister, and finally spoke up. "Kyle, we used to have two of everything in this house. Why is there only one cake now?" The long table went silent. Kyle's brow furrowed. "We've been busy with the rite lately. I only had the kitchen order Serafina's favorite flavor. I forgot about your allergy. That's on me." My mother shot me a cold look, her fork and knife clinking softly against her plate. "Your sister's going to be the next High Priestess. Of course she goes first. If you had half her talent, you'd get to make the first wish too." I fell silent again. Right. They would never think they'd done anything wrong. In their eyes, it was only natural for the Silver Wolf bloodline to get an extra share of favor. Serafina closed her eyes to make her wish, and everyone hummed the blessing song under their breath. By the time it was my turn, the candle had burned down to a stub, wax pooling on the frosting. Kyle glanced at it and said, offhand, "No more candles left. It's just a formality anyway. Make your wish next year." Twenty-some years, and it was always next year. I never once got to see that next year come. One of the maids cut off a corner of cake that hadn't touched the nuts and quietly set it on my plate. I made an excuse and went back to my room early. Downstairs, Kyle and my parents were all holding their breath, waiting for the results of Serafina's selection as High Priestess of the Moonlight Rite. I leaned against the window and went through the herbs and healing tools in my bag one more time. There wasn't much worth bringing. Almost nothing in that house had ever been meant for me anyway. A cheer erupted from downstairs. Serafina had been chosen. I heard my mother shriek, my father clapping, and Kyle saying, "I knew you could do it." Then Serafina's voice came, sweet, with just the right touch of a pout. "But the Moonlight Rite falls on the same day as Ella's bonding ceremony. You'll all be with her, and I'll be up there all alone." The living room went quiet for a second. Then Kyle's voice came through, "We won't let you be alone." I stood in the dark and let out a small laugh. Of course. It was always like this. Late that night, my phone buzzed. It was a message from Lila. [The car and your new identity are all sorted. The healing room's ready too, just waiting on you. The morning of the ceremony, take the staff entrance. The car will be waiting at the end of the alley.] I typed back one word. [Okay.] Three more days. Three more days, and I'd walk out of this life where I always came in second, for good. Chapter 5 I opened the door and found Kyle standing there. "Ella, Serafina's Moonlight Rite only happens once in a lifetime. It starts at ten." I looked at him. "So?" "Let's move the bonding ceremony to the evening. We can skip the formal part and go straight to the reception." Kyle walked into my room, his expression carrying that same air of taking it for granted. "Ella, you're always the reasonable one. You'll agree to this, right?" I looked at him and suddenly thought back to when I was a kid. I'd once placed first in a Healer's examination, and my parents had gone to watch Serafina's Moonlight performance instead. Kyle had said he'd come. In the end, he went to Serafina too. I'd stood alone on that stage, watching everyone else's parents in the crowd. I understood then. All those years, I'd really been alone the whole time. "Fine," I said. "Move it to the evening." It worked out well, actually. It saved me from having to find another excuse to stall. He clearly relaxed once I agreed. … The morning of the bonding ceremony, the Voss household was up before dawn. Everyone was busy getting Serafina ready for her annual Moonlight Ceremony. My mother picked out pearl earrings for her. My father went over the security detail for the escort. Kyle knelt in front of her, carefully straightening the collar of her gown. I came downstairs carrying a small bag. "I'm not going to the ceremony. I still have things to sort out at the venue." Kyle didn't even look up. His attention was still on Serafina's collar. "Fine, go on ahead. Take care of the guests. We'll head over the moment the rite is done." I put on my veil alone, smoothed out my skirt, and walked into the reception hall by myself. The hall was full, packed with elders, officials, and old family allies from every pack. It didn't take long before everyone noticed. The Alpha was missing. Whispers rippled through the crowd beneath the chandelier like a rising tide. Some people looked at me with pity. Others were just there for the spectacle. I stood beneath the moonflower arch, facing all of it, and I didn't lower my head. The sky slowly darkened. The agreed-upon time came and went. The spot where Kyle was supposed to stand stayed empty the whole time. My phone buzzed against my wrist. Kyle: [Serafina's got a swarm of press over here. I'll be a little late. If the guests ask, just cover for me. You're the best.] I read the message twice, then laughed softly. I reached up, took off the token around my neck marking me as belonging to the Locke family, the one that sealed our engagement, and set it gently down on the hide-bound guest register. The elder presiding over the ceremony lowered his voice. "Ella, Alpha Kyle will be here any minute." "No, he won't." The words had barely left my mouth when a deafening blast tore through the side wall of the reception hall. Members of the Rothwell family stormed in, carrying silver dust and wolfsbane. The guard wolves bared their fangs, snarls crashing against the stone walls. Silver dust exploded into the air. One breath of it was enough to burn straight through the wolf. Chaos swallowed the hall whole. Screaming, snarling, the sound of heavy things crashing to the ground, all of it tangled together. I moved with the crowd, heading toward the staff exit. Everyone was searching for the Alpha. Everyone was shielding their own pack members. No one was paying attention to one ordinary Omega standing off in the corner. A black car was waiting in the alley. The window rolled down, and the driver Lila had sent gave me a nod. I pulled the door open and got in. "Everything taken care of?" the driver asked. "Yes." I leaned back against the seat and closed my eyes. The car pulled away, heading for the Deep Valley pack's territory. I didn't look back. … At that same moment, Serafina's annual Moonlight Ceremony was reaching its peak. Kyle was clapping and smiling when his phone started buzzing wildly. He answered it. It was Marcus Owen, his beta. Marcus's voice came through, a ragged shout, tangled with the sound of an explosion in the background. "Alpha! The Rothwell family attacked the ceremony hall! The side wall's been blown open!" Kyle's blood went cold. "Where's Ella?"