Chapter2

“A week? Why?” Bella tensed.

“Relax, babe.” Ethan pulled a silver-embossed card from his inside pocket and waved it in front of her.

“The Alpha King is holding his mating ceremony on the night of the Blood Moon. The Royal Court sent us an invitation. It’s on the King’s territory, at Crown Lake.”

Bella’s hands shook with excitement as she carefully opened the envelope.

“The King actually wanted me in his Royal Guard,” Ethan said with a shrug. “I’m too busy. I passed.”

I nearly laughed out loud.

Julian’s guard had been chosen six months ago, every one of them a veteran who had bled beside him. Ethan hadn’t even made the shortlist.

“The Alpha King… what’s his name again?” Mom glanced at me.

Every wolf knew the Alpha King’s name was Julian. No one had ever seen his face.

Bella caught on instantly and burst out laughing.

“Mom, come on! The year he took the throne, half the pups in the North got named Julian! Imagine being a packless Rogue with the Alpha King’s name. He must have used up all his luck on that.”

My parents doubled over. When they looked at me now, it was with open contempt.

To them, a daughter like me deserved nothing better than a Rogue who drove other people around.

The glass on my tray tipped, and cold bourbon splashed across the back of my hand.

“The invitation says four guests only,” Bella said.

“Four’s perfect,” said Ethan. “Show up with a crowd and Blackthorn looks like a bunch of hicks.”

Mom didn’t hesitate for a second. “That works out. Hazel’s mating that same night anyway, so she couldn’t come.”

Triumph flashed in Bella’s eyes before she swapped it for an innocent pout.

“But if none of us go to Hazel’s ceremony, won’t that look kind of bad?”

Dad waved a hand. “Why would anyone go to some Rogue’s mating ceremony? If we skip it, the boy saves on four dinners. She should be thanking us!”

I clenched my jaw.

I had never expected them to choose my ceremony over Bella’s. Julian had even planned to fly them out to Crown Lake a few days early so he could tell them the truth himself.

I’d thought that if I expected nothing, I couldn’t be let down.

But somewhere deep inside, I’d still been holding on to a little hope. Now even that was gone.

Then Dad eagerly produced two documents and laid them in front of Ethan.

“Perfect timing. Diane and I put together Bella’s mating gifts: fifty-five percent of Shaw Lumber, and the deed to the ten acres on Flathead Lake.”

Mom beamed. “It’s nothing next to what the Graysons have. Just a small token.”

Ethan nodded, satisfied, and handed the papers to a warrior behind him without looking.

The blood in my veins went cold.

“Shaw Lumber should have gone under three years ago. I’m the one who saved it, with two years of all-nighters doing the books and chasing orders. And the lake land—Grandma left that to me in her will. You have no right to give either of them to Bella!”

Dad’s face darkened, and his Beta dominance slammed into me. “Shut your mouth! You don’t get a say here!”

Bella’s tears came right on cue.

“Hazel, I know you don’t like me, but how can you talk to Dad like that? It’s family property. How can you fight with Mom and Dad over money? If you want it, I’ll just give you all of it…”

Mom pulled her into a hug. “Don’t you worry, sweetheart. All of this is yours. Nobody’s taking it from you!”

Then she shot me a vicious look. “Look at your sister, and then look at yourself!”

Dad shook his head in disappointment. “Your mother and I already got you a mating gift. It’s waiting in your room. It was supposed to be a surprise, but you just can’t control your temper!”

I froze.

Maybe, for something as big as a mating, they had thought of me after all. For the first time that day, a tiny spark came back to life inside me.

I hurried to my room.

The cedar hope chest Grandma had built for me was gone from the foot of my bed. All that was left was a square of lighter floorboard where it used to sit.

My gift was on the bed.

A set of cheap mugs, still in the box, slapped with a bright 90% OFF CLEARANCE sticker. Next to it sat a filthy, broken suitcase stuffed with Bella’s castoffs.

At the very bottom were two old quilts. One still had the yellow stain from when Bella wet the bed as a kid. The other had a corner chewed through by mice.

“This is my mating gift?” I turned to my parents, who had followed me in.

Mom rolled her eyes. “You’re mating a Rogue. What did you expect, something expensive? This is plenty!”

“And another thing,” Dad said. “Once you’re mated, however hard things get, don’t expect a single cent from your mother or me!”

He pulled out two documents he had obviously prepared in advance, set them in front of me, and told me to sign.