Lyra's POV
Eighteen years of abandonment, and now my mother expects me to choose a husband from a catalog like I'm ordering takeout. The irony tastes bitter on my tongue. Vivienne Luna, Queen of the Luna pack, couldn't be bothered to raise her own daughter, but suddenly she needs me for an arranged marriage.
I glared at the glossy photographs spread across the mahogany desk. Three perfect male specimens stared back at me with their golden eyes and chiseled jawlines. Ironwood. Thornevale. Eclipse. Each name carried weight in the supernatural world, each man an heir to power I'd never understand.
The problem was simple: I had no wolf. I was defective goods being pawned off to the highest bidder.
"So what am I supposed to do, point at random and say 'that one'?" I shoved the papers toward Vivienne, letting them scatter across her pristine desk. "Pick an Alpha like I'm choosing produce at the grocery store?"
Vivienne's shoulders sagged, exhaustion creeping into her elegant features. Even stressed, she looked regal with her flame-red hair and those honey-gold eyes that matched my own. "Lyra, these men come from respected bloodlines. Any one of them would be honored to have you as a mate. They could guide you, help you understand our world."
A harsh laugh escaped my throat. "Why not let your precious Octavia make the selection first? I'll happily take whatever scraps she doesn't want." I crossed my arms, defiance radiating from every pore. "Besides, what Alpha in his right mind would want a wolfless mate? I'm damaged goods, remember?"
The familiar guilt flickered across Vivienne's face, the same expression I'd memorized during my six months in this gilded prison. "You're my firstborn," she said softly, as if that explained everything. "The choice is yours by birthright, wolf or no wolf."
"Firstborn." The word tasted like poison. "Yet you dumped me in an orphanage and pretended I didn't exist for eighteen years. Clearly, Octavia's the daughter you actually wanted. Let her play princess and pick her perfect mate."
Vivienne's composure cracked, her mouth trembling like she might cry. I couldn't stand to watch the performance any longer. I shot up from my chair and stormed toward the office door, wrenching it open with more force than necessary.
"Lyra, please wait—"
I didn't turn around. We'd had variations of this same conversation dozens of times since Vivienne had appeared in my life like some fairy godmother with ulterior motives. The day I aged out of the orphanage system, standing on the street with everything I owned in a garbage bag, she'd materialized with her royal proclamation that I was heir to the Luna throne.
The joke was on both of us. An heir without a wolf was like a car without an engine—useless.
Vivienne had spent weeks testing me after our reunion, searching for any sign of my supernatural heritage. Did I feel restless during full moons? No. Did my bones ache with the need to transform? What transformation? Did I have enhanced senses or strength? Unless you counted my ability to spot manipulation from a mile away, I was disappointingly ordinary.
Just another reason for Vivienne to regret bringing me home.
"Lyra!" Her voice echoed down the hallway, desperation bleeding through her royal composure. "Please, let me explain."
I whirled around, my patience finally snapping. "Explain what, Vivienne? How you threw away your own child because she wasn't perfect enough? How you kept me hidden in this castle for months like some embarrassing family secret?"
"I was protecting you," she insisted, wrapping her arms around herself defensively. "There are things you don't understand, dangers—"
"Stop." I held up my hand, fury making my voice shake. "Just stop with the cryptic mother act. If you wanted to protect me, you should have left me alone. I was fine being nobody's daughter."
Vivienne flinched as if I'd slapped her. "I am your mother. I love you more than you could possibly know."
"You love the idea of me," I corrected coldly. "You love having an heir to legitimize your reign. You don't love me, the wolfless disappointment who spent her childhood wondering why nobody wanted her."
Tears gathered in Vivienne's eyes, but I felt nothing except hollow satisfaction at finally hitting my mark.
"If that's what you believe," she whispered, "then perhaps it's time for a different approach." She straightened her spine, slipping back into queen mode. "You're leaving tomorrow for Celestia Alpha Academy. Graduate successfully, and I'll answer every question you have about why I gave you up. You'll also be free to leave if that's what you choose."
My heart stuttered. "Leave? As in, no arranged marriage?"
Vivienne's jaw tightened. "If that's your decision after graduation, yes."
"It is." I lifted my chin defiantly. "And I will graduate from your precious Academy just to prove I can. Then I expect answers, not more royal riddles. Otherwise, I'm gone for good."
I spun on my heel and stalked away, leaving Vivienne to stare after me with those guilt-ridden eyes I'd grown to despise.
A week later, I found myself in the back of a sleek car, watching unfamiliar countryside blur past the windows. For the first time since Vivienne had claimed me, I felt something resembling hope. Alpha Academy looked like any normal university when we pulled up to the admissions building. Students in regular clothes walked across manicured lawns, backpacks slung over their shoulders. No crowns, no royal protocols, no whispered conversations about the wolfless heir.
I could disappear here. Become just another student working toward a degree.
The driver helped me gather my bags—still pathetically few after eighteen years of owning nothing. I took a deep breath, savoring the scent of freedom, and headed for the stone steps leading to the main building.
I made it exactly three steps before a massive blur of black fur slammed into me, sending my bags flying and knocking me flat on the concrete. Pain exploded through every nerve ending as electricity seemed to course through my bones, and I heard someone screaming before realizing the sound was coming from me.