Keira
My mother fussed with a stray pearl on the bodice of my gown. Her hands trembled slightly, a stark contrast to the absolute stillness of my own.
“Darling, you look like a queen,” she whispered, her eyes shimmering with tears. “But you’re so quiet. Are you feeling alright?”
I met her gaze in the mirror. My reflection was a stranger in white, a woman I was supposed to have been three years ago. A naive girl, giddy with love.
“I am perfectly well, Mother,” I said. My voice was even, without a hint of the bride’s traditional flutter. “A wedding is a serious ceremony. I am giving it the gravity it deserves.”
Tara, my handmaiden, hovered by the door. “The stylists said they’ve never worked with a bride so composed. You sat like a statue carved from moonlight.”
“It’s nerves, of course,” my mother insisted, smoothing a non-existent wrinkle on my sleeve. “Every bride feels them. Even my Keira. It’s a big day.”
“I am not nervous,” I corrected her gently, but with a firmness that made her pause. “I am ready.”
My father was waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs. He was a proud Alpha, his chest puffed out in his ceremonial uniform. He took my arm, his hand warm over my silk glove.
“Your hands are ice, my daughter,” he murmured as we began the slow walk toward the great hall. “Is your heart sure?”
I thought of blood melting in the snow. Of Gavin’s cold eyes as he left me to die.
“My heart has never been more certain of its path,” I replied. The words were true, just not in the way he understood.
We entered the hall. Hundreds of pack members stood, their faces turned toward us. At the end of the aisle, standing before the ancient Heartwood tree, was Gavin.
He looked exactly as I remembered from that first, foolish time. Handsome. Confident. A golden Alpha, beloved by all. He smiled at me, a dazzling, possessive smile that once made my knees weak. Now, it only made the ice in my veins harden.
He was not my future. He was my target.
My father placed my hand in Gavin’s. His touch was warm, but it felt like a brand. I did not flinch. I simply looked at him, my expression placid, a perfect mask of bridal serenity.
Elder Maeve began the rites, her voice a low, calming hum that filled the cavernous space. I tuned it out, focusing only on the promises I was about to break.
“Do you, Gavin of the Silver Moon Pack, take this woman, Keira of the Northern Ridge, to be your Luna and wife?” Maeve asked. “Do you swear to protect her, to provide for her, and to lead her with the strength of the moon?”
“I do,” Gavin said, his voice booming with pride. He squeezed my hand, his eyes promising a future he had already stolen from me once.
Maeve turned to me. Her old, wise eyes seemed to search my face, perhaps sensing the change in me. “And do you, Keira of the Northern Ridge, take this man, Gavin of the Silver Moon Pack, to be your Alpha and husband? Do you swear to honor him, to cherish him, and to obey him in all things as his loyal Luna?”
This was the moment. The first crack in the foundation of his perfect life.
I met Gavin’s expectant gaze. I let a small, serene smile touch my lips.
“I take this man to be my husband,” I said, my voice clear and carrying through the silent hall. “I will honor him and I will cherish him, as the Luna of this pack.”
I stopped. The silence stretched for a beat too long. Elder Maeve’s brow furrowed. She knew the words. She knew one was missing.
But Gavin, in his arrogance, noticed nothing. He was too lost in his victory, in the sight of me standing before him, his prize. Before Maeve could prompt me, he leaned forward.
“You may now kiss your Luna,” Maeve declared, her voice tight with a hint of confusion.
Gavin’s lips met mine. It was not the passionate kiss I remembered from my first life. It was a kiss of ownership, hard and brief. I felt nothing. I simply stood there, a beautiful, cold statue, until he pulled away.
The pack erupted in cheers. I was his.
For now.
The reception was a blur of smiling faces and well wishes. I played my part with terrifying precision. I smiled. I accepted congratulations. I danced the first dance with my new husband, my body moving with a grace that felt disconnected from the vengeful spirit housed within it.
“You are breathtaking tonight, my love,” Gavin murmured into my ear as he spun me around the dance floor. “But so serious. I can’t wait to get you alone and see you truly smile.”
“Patience, my Alpha,” I said, my voice a silken promise I had no intention of keeping. “The night is still young.”
But eventually, the night did end. We bid farewell to the last of our guests and made our way to the Alpha’s chambers. The suite was filled with flowers, their scent cloying and sweet. A fire crackled in the hearth.
Gavin closed the door, the sound of the latch clicking into place echoing like a prison cell locking.
“Finally,” he breathed, turning to me with a hunger in his eyes. He reached for the ties on the back of my dress. “Alone at last, my beautiful wife.”
I took a single, deliberate step back, out of his reach. His hands fell to his sides.
“Gavin,” I began, my tone calm and factual. “There is something you should know.”
His smile faltered. “Can it not wait? I’ve been waiting for this moment all my life.”
“I’m afraid it is a matter of biology,” I said smoothly, my expression one of polite regret. “It seems the Moon Goddess has a strange sense of timing.”
He stared at me, his brow creasing in confusion. “What are you talking about, Keira?”
“My cycle,” I stated, as if discussing the weather. “It began this afternoon. A most unfortunate development, I agree.”
His face went from confusion to disbelief, then settled on a deep, simmering annoyance. “You cannot be serious. On our wedding night?”
“I assure you, I find no humor in the situation,” I replied coolly. “It is merely a fact. We cannot consummate our union tonight. Or for several nights to come.”
He took a step toward me, his Alpha presence flaring slightly, an old tactic that no longer had any effect on me. “This is ridiculous. It’s our wedding night.”
“Indeed,” I said, not backing down. “Which is why I will not dishonor it, or you, by engaging in the consummation ceremony during an impure time. It would be a bad omen for the pack.”
He was trapped. He couldn’t argue against tradition and superstition without looking like a brute. He couldn’t force me. He ran a hand through his hair, his frustration palpable.
“So what do you suggest we do?” he bit out.
“I have already had the guest suite prepared,” I said, walking toward the adjoining door. “I will sleep there. It is the proper thing to do.”
“The guest suite?” he sputtered. “On our wedding night? What will the staff say?”
I paused with my hand on the doorknob and looked back at him. My face was a perfect mask of sympathy and logic.
“They will say nothing,” I said, my voice leaving no room for argument. “Because their Alpha will not mention it. We would not want rumors to start, would we? Goodnight, husband.”
I didn't wait for a reply. I slipped into the adjoining room and closed the door firmly behind me, leaving him standing alone in his flower-filled chamber.
Leaning against the cool wood of the door, I allowed myself the smallest, coldest of smiles. The first wall was built. The first stone in his prison was laid. He thought he had married a devoted bride. He had no idea he had just welcomed his executioner home.
