Chapter 37 Rejected

AURORA

I staggered. Evelyn’s face was lifted to the sky, her eyes wide in wonder. Silver shimmered along her body, pooling and absorbing into her skin. She seemed to glow.

I turned away, my hand going to my chest.

Be an adult about this, Aurora, my inner voice said, immediately trying to calm me. It’s all right that it isn’t you. It’s good just to have the chosen.

But the neglected child in me, the unloved woman, the person who never was chosen, who never was enough, cried out at the deep pain of it, as familiar to me as my own heartbeat, my own breath.

In that same instant, I took hold of myself. If the pain was familiar, so was dealing with it.

I shoved it down. I told myself to get over it. I was one of the luckiest women in the world. I was wealthy. I was part of the High Alpine Pack.

But without this ceremony restoring my wolf like my grandmother insisted it would…was I still the first choice for Luna-heir?

Or would I lose my place to Lilliana?

Even if that did happen, I had my children. There was nothing to stop me from getting a normal job and living a normal, human-passing life. Plenty of single women did it every day. It would be a struggle, but as long as I had the kids, I would be fine…

Unless Dane found out they were his, and took them from me, too.

All these dark thoughts passed in a few seconds as I turned away from the sight of Evelyn being blessed with power and caught my breath.

I was still needed to read the journal to find the exact location of the relic, to translate how to peel back the layers of magic surrounding it.

As long as there was work, I could throw myself into it.

I would have purpose.

As the last magic was absorbed into Evelyn’s skin, the circle of Blue Ridge wolves broke into a celebration. They gathered around her, yipping and whooping and celebrating.

“Luna-heir?” Trajan appeared at my elbow. Evander stood beside him, looking grim.

I offered him a weak smile. “The goddess has her chosen, Trajan, and the chosen has her magic. The book was unclear on exactly what we should expect. Please arrange with Dane to have her test and record her powers over the coming days.”

Trajan hesitated, then nodded and headed toward Dane. Evander folded his arms across his chest and studied the Blue Ridge wolves. I had filled him in over the last few days on what I was doing here and what our grandmother wanted.

“Not to pour petrol on this garbage fire,” he said, “but Granny Augusta is not going to like this.”

“I know. I think I need a minute,” I said.

Evander nodded. I turned away from the celebrating wolves and headed into the forest.

I just needed to process. If the goddess had chosen Evelyn, it had to be for a reason.

Honestly, I should have known better. I should have expected this. I didn’t even have a wolf.

But if not me, why couldn’t it have been Piper? Or Celia? Or one of the few other Blue Ridge wolves who were kind, good people.

“I’m sure you see something in her I don’t,” I whispered to the goddess. “I only hope you’ll allow me to see it, too.”

“Aurora.”

My whole body tensed at the sound of Dane’s voice. I relaxed my face into a neutral, polite expression and turned toward him. “Alpha Montague. Can I help you?”

His face and voice were cold. “I believe the chosen should have the amulet that you keep with the book.”

My hand went to my neck. It had been silly and arrogant, but I was wearing it. It was so simple, so pretty—just a fat, silvery pearl that looked like the moon. Even now, I felt connected to it.

That was probably just my wishful thinking.

“I’d like to know what her powers are…to study them before we give her the amulet, as well,” I said.

Dane’s brows drew together, and he took a step forward. “Give it to me, Aurora. Evelyn is the chosen. You can throw a tantrum about not being chosen all you like, but I’m not going to give you a chance to disappear with something so important. Not again.”

My blood chilled at his words. Not again. I hadn’t taken anything of value from him last time. Nothing…except the children.

But he didn’t know about them. He couldn’t. He’d barely laid eyes on them twice.

When I didn’t respond, Dane stepped closer to me. “This isn’t about your revenge or your pride. That amulet belongs to Evelyn. Give it to me, or I’ll take it off your unconscious body.”

For the first time in a long, long time, I thought Dane might actually, physically hurt me.

But something in me, something deep, couldn’t let the necklace go.

Was there something I missed in the journal? Was there more to unlocking this power than I thought?

I stepped back. Dane stepped forward. A low growl rumbled from his throat. His canines and claws extended.

“Dane, stop!”

Dane and I both looked up in shock. Connell Montague was jogging through the forest. He wasn’t a young man anymore. He wheezed, then stumbled as he got close to us. Dane moved like lightning, taking his grandfather by the arm and supporting him.

“Dane, you can’t harm her,” Connell said. “She’s the only one who can save you. She–”

A chill rose suddenly in the forest around us. Thick, twisting vines of shadow shot from the ground.

Then they wrapped themselves around Connell Montague’s neck and started to choke him.