{Elira}
~**^**~
This was the only time I got to sit at the table and eat like the actual part of the family I was, and not the servant Regina and her mother made me.
Uncle Marc had once said, "Elira is still family."
Lady Maren hadn’t agreed, but she hadn’t argued either. She had just narrowed her eyes like the word family tasted wrong when applied to me.
Uncle Marc sat at the head of the long table. His presence was warm, but quiet.
But watching him speak to Regina and Lady Maren felt like watching someone try to keep a garden alive in a drought. He tried. But nothing bloomed.
Lady Maren sat beside him, composed and elegant as always, her hands draped delicately over her silverware. Across from me sat Regina, all smiles and sugar-coated poison.
She still had it in her to keep up pretences after burning my back and treating me like a plank a few hours ago.
And there I was, literally perking on my chair, trying to appear invisible. The bruises on my back pulsed with every movement, but I kept my posture perfect.
I couldn’t eat much. I rarely did. Not because the food wasn’t good—it was—but because eating while under their eyes made everything taste like guilt. And then there was the scene of Lady Maren forcing me to eat spoilt food from the wastebin.
I felt Uncle Marc’s eyes on me and looked up. "Elira, you are not eating."
"I will, uncle," I said quickly, reaching for my spoon. "I’m just taking my time."
He gave me a small nod. He didn’t notice anything out of place.
"Tomorrow is your birthday, isn’t it? Happy birthday, Elira."
He remembered?
A genuine smile finally crossed my lips. "Thank you, Uncle."
"Happy birthday, Elira," Lady Maren said sweetly.
Regina smiled cheerfully and wished me as well. "Happy birthday, dearest cousin."
"Thank you," I said, forcing a smile. I wasn’t grateful.
Uncle Marc turned his attention to Lady Maren. "Did you get the birthday dress for Elira with the money I gave to you?"
A gasp escaped Lady Maren’s lips, pretending to be shocked. "It completely slipped my mind. I was only thinking about Gina’s engagement dress."
"The engagement talks haven’t been finalized. Aren’t you a little too fast?" he frowned.
"There is no harm in planning ahead," Lady Maren argued. "Besides, tomorrow is the mating ceremony. And if the moon goddess pleases, Gina might even feel the mate bond with Zenon before the engagement is finalized two days after.
Uncle Marc didn’t back down. He asked about me.
"What about Elira? Tomorrow is her 18th birthday, and she will attend the mating ceremony. The new dress would have been perfect. What would she wear now?"
I would hate for him to argue with his wife for my sake. He might not know this, but it would never end well for me tonight.
I had no idea he had given money to Lady Maren to get me a birthday dress in the first place. And honestly, I didn’t care.
I was already very much satisfied and thankful that he remembered my day.
"Gina still has some beautiful gowns she hasn’t touched in her wardrobe. Elira can manage one of them for tomorrow," Lady Maren said.
"Yes. And we are the same size," Regina added, looking happy to help.
Uncle Marc glanced at me. "Elira, dear, are you okay with that?"
"I am, Uncle." I forced another smile and turned to Regina. "Thank you."
The rest of the meal passed in silence.
And all I could think about through the smell of roasted venison and wine was the discreet punishment I might be made to serve tomorrow.
---
I woke before sunrise the next morning without the help of ice water.
The ache in my body hadn’t faded, but today was too important for excuses.
I was eighteen. Finally.
But there was no celebration, of course. No candle. No cake. I didn’t deserve any. And today wasn’t about me.
Tonight was the Mating Moon Ceremony.
The day when fate made its choices. The day when wolves found their mates, chosen by instincts deeper than blood, written in the stars, sealed beneath the full moon’s light.
And today, all eyes would be on Regina.
The future Luna. The pride of the Beta family. And the one the rumours said would be chosen by one of Alpha Cyprus’s sons.
I dressed quickly and tied back what was left of my hacked red hair. No one cared what I looked like. They only cared that I showed up when called.
"ELIRA!"
Regina’s voice rang through the house like a bell made of glass and venom.
I ran.
---
Regina made me serve her throughout the day under the guise of spending time with her. And she knocked me thrice in the middle of my head with a wooden stick for responding to something she said two seconds late.
Finally, when evening had arrived, she handed me one of her old black gowns from the depths of dirty luggage to wear for the night.
I had no complaints. At least she hadn’t cut the dress because I had nothing nice to wear. I simply put on the dress and returned to her room once again.
There were roses everywhere, and perfume was thick in the air. Her ceremonial gown, deep purple with silver threading, lay across the bed like something sacred.
Regina stood near the mirror in a robe, smiling like she knew her fate.
"Dress me," she said, like it was a gift. "You get to be the first to see me become the star tonight."
I stepped forward and began the routine: brushing, lacing, pinning, tightening.
She turned slowly in front of the mirror as I worked, admiring herself from every angle.
"I will bet all three of the Ashford brothers want me," she said, voice airy. "But I know Zenon’s the one. He looks like he needs someone polished. Someone worthy of a title."
She looked back at me over her shoulder. "You wouldn’t understand."
"No," I said softly. I would never.
When we went downstairs, Lady Maren was waiting, already dressed in regal navy blue and gold. Her expression soured when she saw me behind Regina.
She didn’t want me to join them, but Regina smiled.
"Oh, let her come. What better audience is there than the one who’s always beneath you?"
I didn’t flinch. But I felt it.
Lady Maren hesitated, then waved me off. "Fine. But don’t let her be seen near the front."
As if I would dare.
We left in silence.
The sky was beginning to darken. The scent of burning herbs drifted through the pack grounds. Wolves howled in the distance, their calls echoing like music before the ritual.
The Mating Moon would rise soon.