Chapter 11
Eden
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It becomes harder to breathe. To stay calm. To not fall to my knees. The snow under my feet might as well be quicksand since it feels like it is pulling me down into the darkness. I stare at Azriel, at those violet eyes I’d secretly admired, feeling sick with betrayal.
Those looks in the corridors. Those shares
The ride home from the party. The way he’d watched me…
He was never interested in me romantically. Of course, he wasn’t! He is out of my league and was only sizing me up as an omega sacrifice.
The pack stirs around us. Most pack members look terrified of Azriel and what he just said, while others lean forward, hungry for drama. I search for Elvira, finding her frozen in place with her family’s arms protectively around her. At least she’s not alone.
I am.
My mother’s body lies in a bloody heap just a few feet away in the snow. I still haven’t fully processed the fact that she is dead and that she is never coming back. I’m probably in shock. When I look at her, I want to scream, but my voice is trapped in my throat, unable to come out.
I’ve always known her to be a troublemaker with her drinking and inability to hold her tongue when she does. Still, I never imagined she would pay for it with her life.
By the altar, Logan cracks his shoulders and looks Azriel dead in the eye. “I asked the moon goddess for help since Paris isn’t my true mate and not an omega. She will never be able to carry my pups without help.”
Azriel’s attention travels back to Logan and he goes down on one knee, hand on his chest. “And the fae listened to your prayers,” he stands again, a smirk on his face. “My name is Azriel Rhysander, and my sister, Mara Rhysander, queen of the Nightmare court, needs blood from an omega werewolf to feed her magic. In return, she will gladly bind you and your werewolf mate so that you can have as many pups as you want. That’s what you want, no?”
Paris preens at the fairy’s words, stepping closer to Logan with a triumphant smile directed at me. As if she’s won some competition I wasn’t even aware I was part of.
Logan’s jaw tightens. “I requested help,” he acknowledges stiffly, “but I never agreed to a blood sacrifice.”
Azriel laughs. “You can think about it,” he turns around and my blood runs cold when he studies me. “Eden isn’t eighteen yet, and a blood sacrifice must be ripe of age. There also needs to be a blood moon present in order for me to take her to the other world where the fae live.”
My mouth runs dry. Am I just to wait for my birthday so that I can be turned into the sacrifice needed? Running away isn’t an option. Leaving the pack would make me a rogue, and a packless wolf without a mate would turn feral fast. I would lose all sense of who I am and possibly even suffer memory loss, but what other option do I have?
The pack elders, all dressed‘ in suits and expensive clothing, mumble among each other. I can’t hear what they are saying. but they must come to some sort of conclusion because the oldest elder, a man named Spinel, clears his throat and steps forward.
“The pack would benefit from the union between Logan Valentine and Paris Moonsong. Both come from powerful families, so we, the pack elders and werewolf council, accept your trade,” he bows, “You may bring Eden Felicity to the magical realm on her eighteenth birthday as a blood sacrifice for the great queen of the Nightmare court.”
I can’t breathe. My lungs refuse to expand as the elder’s words sink into my skin like poison. I can’t believe my own pack has condemned me to death without hesitation!
“No!” Elvira’s shriek pierces the silence. She tries to break free of her family’s grip. “You can’t do this! She’s a person, not a
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Chapter 11
thing to be traded!”
“Quiet, child!” one of the pack elders growls. “Or do you want to be sacrificed too!”
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“That’s a great idea!” another pack elder chimes in. “With two omegas sacrificed, I’m sure the fae queen’s blessing will be even strongert”
The pack elders all look at Azriel, who shrugs. “If you want to sacrifice more than one I’m not going to say now?
What? No!
“I will come willingly!” I blurt out, drawing everyone’s attention, “All I ask is that you leave Elvira alone,” my voice trembles. I’m scared, but I can’t let them sacrifice the one and only friend I’ve ever had. “Please?
Azriel’s violet eyes linger on me, their depths unreadable yet magnetic enough to pull a breath from my lungs. The glamour he’d worn at school is completely gone, revealing his true fae appearance. His beauty is otherworldly and painful to look at, like staring at the sun for too long
A pack elder opens their mouth, “I still think two-
“Then it’s settled,” Azriel interrupts, “I’ll return for Eden and Eden alone when the blood moon rises after her eighteenth birthday. Until then, I shall keep an eye on her while continuing my studies at Winston Fate,”
Logan steps forward, a muscle jumping in his jaw. “You don’t need to continue your studies. You’ve achieved what you came for
Azriel’s lips curl into a smile that doesn’t reach his violet eyes. “I didn’t ask for your permission, Alpha.” He says the title like it amuses him. “Besides, your pack elders just traded away Eden’s life. The least you can do is let her enjoy her remaining time at school”
The clearing goes silent again, and my head spins. My mother is dead. My life has been traded away. Azriel is a monster. I will be sacrificed soon.
I witnessed Marcus murder my mother.
The scene plays on repeat
Flesh torn.
Blood coloring the snow.
“It’s settled then, Spinel announces, clapping his hands together as if we’ve just concluded a pleasant business transaction. “The ceremony will continue
Azriel bows dramatically, a mocking, gesture that makes several pack members shift uncomfortably. “By all means. I do love a good coronation”
When he straightens, his eyes find mine again, but while he is smiling, I am not. Quite the opposite–my legs finally give out, and I sink to my knees in the snow. The cold seeps through my dress, but I can’t feel it since numbness has taken over my entire body.
My mother was murdered.
I’m next.
Why can’t I stop thinking about my mother?
Elvira’s mother helps me to my feet. She says while leading me away from the center of the clearing, but I don’t hear her voice. I’m drowning in my own head, and I don’t return even when Elvira runs up to me.
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Mon, 23 Jun
Chapter 11
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“I’m so sorry, Eden,” Elvira whispers, throwing her arms around me in a hug that I don’t return. “We’ll find a way out of this, I promise. There must be a way!”
I want to believe her, but what can we possibly do against a fairy court and an entire pack?
I glance at my mother’s lifeless body, and a hollowness spreads through my chest. It’s so strong that it feels like I’m being eaten alive by it. My mother wasn’t perfect–far from it—but she was all I had. All those nights I’d tucked her in, all those mornings I’d cleaned up her messes… I’d never stopped hoping that someday she might look at me with something other than resentment.
Now she never will.
Tears blur my vision, hot against my frozen cheeks. My throat constricts, and then I start ugly sobbing. I’m alone. Completely, utterly alone in a pack that just sold my life without a second thought.
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