"Get up! Now!" Cook's words cut through my sleep like a knife. I bolted upright in my tiny bed, heart pounding. Sunlight streamed through my small window, and I could hear people yelling outside.
"What's wrong?" I asked, getting to my feet.
"The rogues are gone," Cook said, breathing hard. "They went just as fast as they came. But Alpha Orion wants to see you immediately."
My stomach dropped to my toes. The Alpha never wanted to see me. Ever.
"Did I do something wrong?" I whispered.
Cook's face softened just a little. "I don't think so, child. But you'd better hurry. He's waiting in the Great Hall."
I threw on my clothes and ran through the halls, my bare feet slapping against the cold stone. Pack members stared at me as I passed, their faces full of interest and something else. Fear?
The Great Hall doors were huge, carved with wolves and moons. I'd never been inside before. My hands shook as I pushed them open.
Alpha Orion sat on his throne-like chair at the far end of the room. He was huge, even sitting down, with silver hair and eyes that could cut glass. The three triplets stood beside him, all looking serious.
"Elara," the Alpha's voice boomed across the room. "Come here."
I walked forward on shaky legs, keeping my head down. "Yes, Alpha."
"Look at me."
I raised my eyes slowly. His stare was intense, like he was trying to see inside my soul.
"Elder Mira tells me you've formed a bond with my sons," he said. "All three of them."
"I don't understand it either," I said quickly. "I never meant for it to happen."
"Bonds don't ask for permission," Alpha Orion replied. "They simply are." He stood up, and I had to crane my neck to look at him. "Tonight is your eighteenth birthday. The pack will meet for your mate ceremony."
My heart stopped. "Mate ceremony?"
"Every wolf gets one on their eighteenth birthday," Lucien explained gently. "It's where the pack witnesses the bond between mates."
"But I've never heard of a triple bond ceremony," Kaelen added, frowning.
"That's because there hasn't been one for three hundred years," Alpha Orion said sadly. "We'll have to figure it out as we go."
Darius stepped forward. "What if the link isn't real? What if it's some kind of mistake?"
The Alpha's eyes narrowed. "There are no mistakes when it comes to mate ties, son. Only acceptance or rejection."
The word 'rejection' hit me like a punch. If they denied me, I could die. That's what happened to dogs whose mates didn't want them.
"I don't want to force anyone," I said quietly. "If you don't want me—"
"Stop," Kaelen said sharply. "Don't even think about that."
"The ceremony will happen at sunset," Alpha Orion decided. "The whole pack will watch it. Prepare yourselves."
---
As we left the Great Hall, my mind was spinning. A mate ceremony. Tonight. In front of everyone.
"Are you okay?" Darius asked, walking beside me.
"I feel sick," I admitted.
"It'll be fine," Lucien said, but he didn't sound convinced.
The rest of the day passed in a blur. Other pack members kept looking at me, whispering among themselves. Some looked excited. Others looked worried.
Rhea cornered me near the kitchens, her green eyes blazing with anger.
"This is impossible," she hissed. "You can't be mated to all three of them. It's not normal."
"I didn't choose this," I said, moving away from her.
"You must have done something. Used some kind of magic or tricks."
Before I could reply, she stormed off, her golden hair flying behind her.
---
As the sun began to set, my hands wouldn't stop shaking. I put on my only good dress, a simple blue one that used to belong to someone else. It was too big, but it was all I had.
A knock came at my door. "Elara? It's time."
I opened it to find Elder Mira waiting for me. Her cloudy eyes looked worried.
"Are you ready, child?"
"No," I said honestly. "I'm terrified."
"Good," she said, startling me. "Fear keeps us awake. You'll need that tonight."
We walked together toward the center courtyard where the ceremony would happen. I could hear voices, lots of them. The whole pack had gathered.
"Elder Mira," I said quietly, "what did you mean about a prophecy?"
She stopped walking and turned to me. "There are things you need to know, child. About who you really are. About why this bond has formed."
"What things?"
"After the ceremony," she promised. "When it's safe to speak freely."
---
We reached the courtyard, and I gasped. Hundreds of pack members stood in a circle around a bonfire. They all turned to look at me as I entered.
Alpha Orion stood near the fire with his three kids. The triplets looked as nervous as I felt.
"Elara," the Alpha called. "Come forward."
I walked into the middle of the circle, my legs wobbling. The fire crackled behind me, sending dancing shadows on everyone's faces.
"Tonight, we witness something that hasn't happened for centuries," Alpha Orion announced. "A triple mate bond."
Murmurs spread through the crowd. Some sounded excited. Others sounded afraid.
"Elara, step forward and face your mates."
I moved closer to the triplets. They stood in a line, all looking at me with looks I couldn't read.
"Place your hands on theirs," Alpha Orion commanded.
I reached out with shaking hands. The moment my skin touched theirs, everything burst.
Lightning shot through my body. Not painful, but intense. Like being struck by the most powerful force in the universe. My wolf howled with joy inside my mind.
The link wasn't just connecting me to one of them. It was linking me to all three, and through me, they were connected to each other.
Gasps echoed around the courtyard. Some people stepped backward.
But that wasn't the shocking part.
The shocking part was what I saw in the bond. Memories that weren't mine. Feelings that belonged to someone else. And in those memories, I saw a face I recognized.
Darius as a baby, being held by a guy with silver eyes and dark hair. A man who looked nothing like Alpha Orion.
My eyes flew open and met Darius's. From his face, I knew he was seeing the same thing I was.
"The bond is complete," Alpha Orion stated.
But before anyone could celebrate, Elder Mira's words cut through the air like a blade.
"No!" she cried. "Something's wrong. The bond is showing them things. Things that were meant to stay hidden."
She rushed toward us, her face full of fear. "Alpha, you need to stop this now. Before they see—"
Her words were cut off by a grunting sound. Elder Mira tripped, her hand going to her throat. Dark blood seeped between her fingers. She fell to the ground, her cloudy eyes staring at nothing.
Someone in the crowd screamed. Others began shifting into their wolf forms, snarling and looking for the threat.
But I was frozen, looking at Elder Mira's lifeless body. The only person who knew the truth about the promise, about who I really was, was dead.
And in the bond, I could feel the triplets' shock and fear mixing with my own.
"Protect the mates!" Alpha Orion roared. "Someone has infiltrated our ceremony!"
But as soldiers surrounded us, I realized the terrible truth. Elder Mira hadn't been killed by some random attacker. She'd been silent. Someone in our own pack didn't want me to learn the truth about who I was.
And now they were willing to kill to keep it secret.