On my eighteenth birthday, I thought I would finally complete the mating bond with my mate.

But that day, I was met with the most brutal betrayal of my life.

-

By pack law, I had to be assigned a new mate by the Elders.

But why… why were the ones chosen for me the Alphas of the pack?

And why were there two of them?

Axel and Kane — twin Alphas, the most powerful wolves in the pack, admired and respected by all.

But none of that mattered. What mattered was that everyone knew they already had a mate.

Yet because of me, they were forced to take me as their new mate.

Everything happened so fast. I was ignored, rejected, even hated by the two Alphas.

From then on, my life became a living hell.

Will anything ever change?

The mate bond cannot be broken. Through pain and growth, I—Elara—slowly become a true Luna.

And in the end, I discover… my mates are not just the two of them.

Elara POV

On my eighteenth birthday, Mason, the rogue Alpha I'd followed since childhood, marked me for the first time.

I thought it meant he was finally ready to accept me as his mate, the one he would spend his life with.

I floated through the entire night on a cloud of bliss, convinced my six-year-long love had finally culminated in a fairy-tale ending.

That is, until the next afternoon, when I approached the underground club where he and his bikers often gathered and overheard their conversation.

"Wow, Mason, you 'marked' little Elara already?" a voice said.

My face flushed crimson. I was about to slip away when Mason's careless voice, laced with that unique lupine arrogance, cut through the air.

"Of course not. Her wolf is weak—it is said that her dead father was a stupid human!"

He paused, and I could almost hear his dismissive shrug.

"My target is always Alice. She's a pureblood, and she knows a lot of secrets about those damn Alpha twin heirs. Only someone like Alice, with her pure bloodline, can help me return to the Constantine pack and shed this rogue wolf identity."

His biker friends laughed loudly, and his next sentence shattered my last hope. "Hell, even an Omega shows more passion than Elara does. Someone silly like her? Perfect for practice, to work on the skills of soothing a mate."

His words strike my soul like a lightning bolt. Despite the blazing afternoon sun, I feel thrown into an icy abyss.

After a brief pause, the conversation in the club resumes. "Future Alpha, indeed. Even a pretty girl like Elara is just a training tool."

Mason laughs, the sound devoid of warmth. "It's not exactly a loss. Having such an intimate connection with Alpha bloodline is an honor most lowly wolves would kill for."

My mind goes blank. Mason is just a bastard Alpha who is exiled from some pack. But I've never looked down on him, not once, even in the countless nights I've comforted him and praised him. And yet, here he is, reducing me to something beneath contempt.

Someone immediately chimes in. "You're right. She's nothing compared to a pureblood like Alice, who radiates pure power…"

Mason cuts him off. "It is the full moon, the mood is right that night… and honestly, she seems like she is about to combust with how much she is holding back. Her scent is practically drowning me…" His tone holds an embarrassing note of pity.

A few of them chuckle knowingly, their words turning cruder.

"Who knew quiet little Elara had such a… wild side?"

"Tsk, tsk, Mason's charm is just too potent. When the offering comes to you so willingly, why refuse?"

"She's been trailing after Mason like a lost puppy for years. She probably gets exactly what she'd been dreaming of."

Their raucous laughter feels like a physical blow. I bite my lip until I taste blood, my fists clench so tightly my nails dig half-moons into my palms. It takes every ounce of my strength just to stay upright.

Footsteps echo from the end of the hall. Jolted back to reality, I flee in a panic, ducking into the nearest restroom stall. Tears of heartbreak and humiliation pour out.

Mason's words, each one a barbed whip, lash relentlessly through my mind. Had I not heard it myself, I could never believe the boy who had been so intimate with me last night is the same person as this cold, calculating strategist.

So, it seems, a wolf can perform such an intimate marking without love. Even at their most passionate, they can still coldly utter the cruelest lies.

The more I cry, the worse I feel, but I don't dare sob aloud. I can only muffle the sounds, my body trembling uncontrollably in the confined space.

I don't know how long I hide there before my phone vibrates. It is a text from Mason.

[Head back on your own. Tonight's the biker's gathering. No outsiders allowed.]

It is always the same—he never once introduces me to his friends. I don't reply. Another message follows.

[And don't go telling anyone about last night. You know my bloodline can only be carried by a pureblood. Be good.]

Reading those words feels like a cold hand squeezing my heart. Last night, he held me close through the dark hours, his hands gentle, and left a temporary mark on the side of my neck—nothing more, though I'd been trembling, willing to give him everything. Exhausted, just before he falls asleep holding me, he specifically whispers in my ear, "It was your first marking. I didn't control my strength well. Get some rest."

Back then, I mistook the marking for his unique way of claiming me, a quiet promise of forever. Now… the truth feels like a bucket of ice water, shocking me awake.

I pinch the already bruised skin of my palm, forcing the tears to stop. I splash cold water on my face, fix my appearance, and walk out of the restroom.

I let myself into my apartment and lock the door behind me. The moment it clicks shut, all my strength leaves me. I slump onto the carpet, my eyes empty.

Ever since Mason moved next door to our community, I've been like a small animal drawn to the Alpha's scent, naively trailing behind him for ten years.

I never imagined a world without him in it.

But from now on, the door to his world is closed to me. I am utterly alone.

Outside the window, lights flicker on one by one, and eventually, most go dark again. I don't know how long I sit there, lost in a daze, until my best friend Mindy video-calls.

Mason never lets me tell anyone about our relationship. He always says we have to wait until he defeats the Constantine Alpha twin heirs and truly becomes the Alpha before he can give me the happiness I want.

I obediently protect this fragile connection. Mindy had once caught him in my bedroom—she is one of the few who knows about my feelings for Mason.

Mindy is dressed hot.

"Elara! Why aren't you with Mason? I'm at a bar, and guess who I just see?" Her expression is furious, but she lowers her voice as she quietly rotates the phone's camera.

The screen reveals a dimly lit corner of the party, where Mason and Alice are sitting close together. Alice wears a cropped top and a tight leather skirt, her curves highlighted, exuding a wild, confident beauty. They seem enveloped in an invisible force field, completely isolated from the crowd around them.

A suffocating pain grips my chest. Mason's so-called motorcycle club gathering this afternoon had been a lie.

He is chasing her, so he just wants me to stay far away.

Alice is playing a game and draws the "male to display strength" challenge by doing push-ups over her. Predictably, Mason immediately steps up, his eyes gleaming with that raw desire male wolves have to show off. The crowd erupts in cheers. Alice, blushing with feigned shyness, lays back on the couch.

Mason positions himself above her, his movements fluid and powerful as he knocks out several dozen push-ups, his muscle lines taut under the dim light.

He maintains a careful distance, avoiding actually touching her. Until the last one, where his arms give way slightly, and he lowers himself, gently pressing against her.

The screams around them are almost deafening. Both Mason and Alice's faces flush deeper red.

Amid the wild cheering, Mason lowers his head and kisses Alice deeply. It is a long, possessive French kiss that lasts a full three minutes before they break apart.

For those three minutes, I stare unblinkingly at the screen, feeling my heart being torn wide open, letting in nothing but cold, empty air. I want to cry, but I have no tears left after this afternoon. All that remains is a dry, aching pain.

"Phew, Elara, did you see that? That's Alice! Who doesn't know she's the Alpha twins' little sex toy? Mason's gone crazy! How dare he touch the twins' woman!" Mindy keeps ranting, "I've been saying Mason's not a good guy!"

Mindy says, sighing as she walks out of the booth into a quieter corner. Her tone turns serious.

"Elara, don't hate me for being harsh. But if I didn't make you see it with your own eyes, you'd never let go."

My throat is so dry and tight my voice comes out raspy. "Yeah. I don't blame you."

I only blame myself for foolishly indulging in fantasies and finding a thousand excuses for Mason's indifference.

"I just can't stand Mason! He knows how you feel and yet he lets you get close, feeds on your emotional energy, watches you sink deeper and deeper!

"Now you finally see the truth! You deserve better! Don't let him keep you chained until you lose yourself completely…"

"That won't happen, Mindy," I interrupt, a newfound steel in my voice I don't recognize. "I won't give him the chance again."

To sever all doubt, I open the laptop in front of her and send the breakup text without hesitation.

"Go to hell, you cheating asshole! We're done!"

Mindy practically cheers with excitement right away. She'd always wanted me away from Mason's sphere of influence.

After I hit send, the screen goes quiet. The finality of those words settles over me like ash.

"It's done," I whisper. But my hands won't stop shaking.

"Mindy…" my voice softens.

"You know what's coming," I say. The words taste like rust. "Mating season starts in a few days. And now I—" My throat closes. "I have no one. No mate, no claim, nothing. Mason's temporary mark will fade soon, and then I'm just… unbonded. Which means I have to register for the allotment."

The partner allocation. Every wolf who reaches maturity without a chosen mate is entered into it. The elders pair you off—matched by bloodline, by strength, by whatever cold calculus they use. You don't get to choose. You're chosen for. I always thought I'd be safe from it. I thought I'd have Mason.

I almost laugh at how stupid that sounds now.

"I spent six years making sure I'd never have to stand in that line," I say, my voice cracking. "And in a few days I'll be standing in it with all the leftover wolves, waiting for some stranger to be handed to me like a parcel."

The tears I thought I'd run dry threaten to return. I press the heels of my hands against my eyes.

Mindy is quiet for a moment. Then—

"Hey. No. Don't you dare cry over this." Her tone is fierce, but underneath it is something gentle. "Listen to me, Elara. The allocation isn't a punishment. You've just been telling yourself it was, because you were too busy worshipping that arrogant prick next door."

I huff out something that isn't quite a laugh.

"I mean it," she presses on. "Half the good males in this territory go through the allocation. You think every mate-bond starts with some grand fairy-tale chase? Plenty of them start with two strangers who got matched and decided to build something real. That's better than what you had—chasing a man who marked you one night and chased another girl the next morning."

The reminder stings, but she isn't wrong.

"You might get someone kind," she says, quieter now. "Someone who actually sees you. Someone who'd never leave you crying in a bathroom stall while he kisses another girl at a party. You deserve that, Elara. Maybe the allocation is how you finally get it."

I stare at the dark window, at my own reflection wavering in the glass—pale, hollow-eyed, but still upright.

"Maybe," I whisper.

It's the first thing all day that hasn't felt like a lie.

As for me, I once promised Mason we'd go to Stillwood together, where his mother's pack had settled long ago. Even though I fear going to a new territory alone, it had always been the only place I felt I could belong.

Now, I have no reason to go to Stillwood.

The mere thought of humbly clinging to the fringes of Mason's pack makes me despise myself to my core.

All I want now is to escape, to run somewhere far from the overwhelming pressure of his presence.

Elara POV

On the day of the pairing ceremony, I've used strong purification salt to scrub away the last of Mason's scent. His temporary mark faded days ago, but I keep washing until even the memory of it is gone from my skin.

After that night, Mason first texted me, asking me to explain things, but after two calls, he never reached out again.

The nightly "goodnight" messages that lasted for six years come to an abrupt halt.

Six years, and all he can give me are two phone calls.

Maybe this is for the best.

Mindy comes over every day to comfort me, telling me that everything will pass and that someone better is waiting for me.

"The mating ceremony isn't as scary as you think," she pushes me into the walk-in closet.

"The elders can pair you with someone amazing. The Alpha will be there, and maybe…"

"Joking! Those twins already have their chosen mate, Alice. I want a partner with whom we love each other."

"You see it, don't you? Alice betrays them. Honestly, Alice hooks up with your boyfriend, and now you should snatch her mate! Then those two idiots will have to call you Luna!"

"Alphas are way out of my league, don't tease me. Just finding me a normal mate would be enough!" I shrug, no longer believing in any fairy tales.

I pick a long, black silk off-shoulder dress that shows off my cleavage. Mindy styles my long, auburn hair into a wave of curls down my back, and I finish my outfit with heels and golden jewellery.

I look at myself in the mirror and congratulate myself for looking calm and collected. There are no signs of tears or the excruciating pain that pulses through me. Nobody looks at me and sees the pathetic girl with a broken heart.

"Oh, Goddess," Mindy gushes as she looks at me. "You're gorgeous."

"So are you," I say, and mean it. Her pink dress not only complements her skin; it also reflects her compassionate and bubbly personality. Her blue eyes sparkle, and not a hair is out of place in her pixie-style haircut.

Together, we walk to the car for the short drive to the courtyard where the ceremony will be hosted.

It's truly ironic. I always look forward to this day, imagining that Mason and I will make eternal vows to each other. Yet now, it has become the worst day of my life.

I once approached the ceremony with confidence and dreams, but now, all I feel is anxiety and uncertainty.

The closer we get to the courtyard, the more nervous I get. We are going to be paraded in pretty dresses for men to drool over until we are handed out like candy.

And it could be anyone — from a neighbouring pack or guys I go to school with who have also just turned eighteen to old men who can only get it up with the help of a little blue pill.

No one knows how the elders decide who is mated with whom. You just show up, smile and suck it up when your name is called.

The only way out is death. But not for the men. Oh, no, the lucky bastards simply return to the next ceremony and receive a new mate. After all, the purpose is to rebuild the clans after the Great War. So, basically, we she-wolves become nothing but incubators.

We enter the courtyard, and Mindy keeps up a steady stream of chatter to fill the silence. I reply absentmindedly as we join the other she-wolves near the stage. Babies are the last thing on my mind. All I feel is dread and an aching pain where my heart used to be.

That's when I notice the Alpha twins have arrived. They share the same striking blue eyes and the most alluring bodies, chosen as the sexiest in all of Constantine.

Kane's hair is wilder, black curls gleaming under the light. Axel's demeanor is more reserved, his brown hair neatly styled. Their overwhelming Alpha presence has the entire courtyard holding its breath.

Mindy nudges my shoulder, her eyes flicking to their tight, controlled crotches. "Huge, huh?"

Better than Mason. I think to myself silently.

Just then, someone bumps into me from behind.

I turn around to see Alice, dressed in a revealing low-cut top, strutting arrogantly past me.

"Little mutt," I hear her mutter under her breath. "Tonight, I'll let you bitch know who the best mate really is."

My fists clench, and I want to shout at her, but just then, the head elder, Anton, takes his place on the stage.

The crowd erupts into a murmur of excitement. That woman—who has been with my ex—walks proudly to join the twins.

Elder Anton lectures on honour, hope, and reproduction, but I am too caught up in my misery to care.

"Elara Montgomery!"

My name echoes over the courtyard, and all the she-wolves look at me.

"Pay attention," Mindy whispers urgently. "He called your name, get on stage."

Oh, shit. Why do I have to be first?

I take a deep breath and walk onto the stage with wobbly legs.

I don't want to do this. I don't want to do this.

The mantra repeats and pulses through me as I stand next to elder Anton.

"Elara Montgomery," his raspy voice reaches my ears. This is it, my moment of damnation. "It is my pleasure to announce that you have been mated to the Alpha Twins, Kane and Axel."

Wait, what?

I was angry and humiliated when Alice told me she and I would be competing tonight, but I never anticipated this.

I came here to get a mate, and now I have two?!

This is ludicrous. Besides, everyone knows they are both completely head over heels for Alice. Apparently, everyone but the elders who are in charge of the matches.

"You're joking, right?" I whisper, leaning closer to elder Anton.

"I'm not known for my sense of humour," he hisses, grabbing my forearm roughly, and I grind my teeth to hide my disgust when his bony fingertips dig into my flesh.

"Go," he growls, shoving me forward.

My first instinct is to argue, but I bite it back when I remember where I am. Everyone is watching. Defying an elder is not only a death wish; it would also bring shame to my family, and I have a little sister to think about. My actions could easily result in her getting a crappy match when it is her turn.

I swallow my pride and turn to face Alphas Kane and Axel, who are sitting on the other side of the stage.

I do my best to keep my head high as I take slow, steady steps toward them. They stare at me with a mixture of pain and anger on their faces, their mouths contorted in snarls. Their wolves shine behind their eyes, glaring at me.

Kane's hand grips the armrest tightly, a flash of gold flickering in his eyes, as if he could snap the wood in half. They look terrifying, and all I want is to run as far away as possible.

I make it across the stage and stand in front of them, bowing my head slightly as I wait for them to speak, to tell me what to do. Because… they own me now.

Alphas Kane and Axel do not take their eyes off me. And I wish I could tell what they are thinking.

Sure, I know they are not happy about this. They want Alice—damn Alice. But am I really that repulsive?

Their negative energy radiates off them toward the crowd, and I can feel more and more people looking at me with disdain and disappointment.

Wow, they surely know how to make a girl feel special and wanted.

"Elder Anton," Alpha Kane stands up, and I bet he is the tallest person I have ever seen. His wolf begins to emerge, anger rolling off him in waves. "Clearly, you've made a mistake."

"I assure you, we have not, Alpha Kane." Anton lifts his chin, his pointy nose tilted like a pig sniffing for food.

Alpha Kane glares at Elder Anton with disgust, and I gasp in shock when he pushes me aside and walks toward Anton. Kane towers over Anton, and he takes a cautious step backwards.

"Sir… Alpha…the choice has been decided," Anton clears his throat. "Once it has been written, it cannot be undone."

"Anything can be undone," Kane growls, clenching his fists.

Wait… undone? What does that mean? Will I be tossed back into the pool of she-wolves and be assigned to a new mate?

This sucks. I cross my arms and bite my quivering bottom lip to stop the tears.

Abandoned twice in a week.

I have never felt so unloved and undesired as at this moment.

Kane POV

I look from Anton to Alice. Tears are streaming down her beautiful face, and her blue eyes are screaming at me in agony. My heart speeds up, and I want nothing more than to wrap her in my arms and comfort her. I want to tell her everything will be okay.

Instead, I turn my gaze to Axel and open our special mind link that only twins can share.

“Go to her,” I urge him.

Within seconds, he is by her side, holding her and whispering words of reassurance. My heart painfully cramps when I look at them. Axel and I have shared everything since we were babies. It is no surprise that we share a love for the same woman.

That was supposed to be our future. My brother, Alice, and I, against the world, raising our pups and the next Alpha of the Constantine Clan.

I look at our designated mate. What was her name again? Oh, yes, Elara. How can the elders assign her to us? Yes she is beautiful, I mean, that gorgeous cinnamon hair and the curvy body wrapped tightly in the dress... My wolf was pacing in my mind, going wild from the first moment I saw Elara, this foolish wolf almost dragged me to pounce!

Okay, I admit she's attractive, but no, we promised Alice she should have our protection.

The more I think about it, the angrier I get, and I turn to Anton, allowing my wolf to show its claws.

“You,” I point a finger at Anton. “You will undo this.”

“But …”

“Find a way,” I command, cutting off his protest.

Anton’s wolf flashes in his eyes, along with something else I cannot place. But before I can figure it out, he looks at the crowd and then backs down. If he were in wolf form, his tail would have been tucked between his legs.

“Please, Alpha,” Anton whispers urgently, and I can sense his fear. “Can we finish the mating ceremony and discuss this privately afterwards?”

My first instinct is to decline loudly, but I take a deep breath to calm myself. I am vaguely aware of the crowd murmuring about what is going to happen. But if I want my way, I will need the elders on my side.

“Finish the mating ceremony,” I hiss, my anger seething below the surface. “Now.”

Ignoring Anton and the crowd, I return to my seat. Axel and I make eye contact across the crowd, and I can see we are sharing the same internal struggle.

“Stay with her,” I mind link Axel, looking at Alice and not taking my eyes off her. “And I swear to the goddess, if he calls her to mate with someone, I’ll have his head.”

The fact that Alice was twenty-one and had not been mated yet was not lost on anyone. Alice had been treated horribly by many others in the pack for it, but I worked hard to sway the elders to put it off. Alice belongs to us, nobody else.

The crowd settles down as Elder Anton takes his place at the podium.

“Next up.” Anton cleared his throat, looking everywhere but at me and Axel. “Alice Fabine. Mated to Gregory Bjorn and Lucas Spindler.”

What the fuck? Gregory and Lucas? The mate-killing monsters?

Axel POV

It is like a bomb explosion when Anton calls out Alice’s name. Kane is practically levitating in his chair, fighting his anger, and Alice is trembling in my arms, sobbing. That motherfucker! I will kill him.

There was no way in hell that I could stand there and watch as she walked over to Gregory and Lucas. Especially since it was Gregory and Lucas, they will tear her apart.

Alice would be their third mate in just over a year. Their first mate had been assigned to them the previous Fall, and she had mysteriously disappeared barely two months into their mating.

Knowing Gregory and Lucas since we were kids, we had our suspicions that her disappearance was not as mysterious as they claimed.

But the Elders ruled that there was no evidence of foul play and that Mary simply ran away. They never even bothered looking for her.

No foul play, my ass! Mary has been seen with bruises on her body by multiple people. The Elders were either lazy or did not want a scandal.

At the Spring ceremony, they had been assigned a she-wolf whose mate had just passed away in a car accident. Most thought it was too soon for her to mate someone else, but the Elders had thought it best for her to be mated right away, claiming that new love would help her heal.

She lasted three months before she was found dead in the woods behind Gregory and Lucas’s cabin. The Elders ruled it a suicide, blaming it on her depression and grief. When Kane and I visited the scene in the forest, we knew that was a lie. She was left-handed, yet the gun was in her right hand. I will never forget the smugness on Greg and Luke’s faces, shrugging when we asked them what happened.

A blind man could see that was not a suicide, but the Elders stuck to their story, because they did not want to admit they fucked up by giving those animals a mate. And now they are giving them another mate … again! What the fuck!

My entire body is vibrating with anger. I want to jump onto that stage and tear him limb from limb. Kane and I will declare that this whole mating process is done. That our pack will go our own way and do things the way we see fit. Fuck everyone else.

She does not deserve to endure this. I want to comfort her and assure her that everything will be okay.

“Don’t cry,” I whisper, kissing the top of her head. It breaks my heart that she is so upset. “Kane and I will fix this. You heard Elder Anton, we’re going to talk about this once the ceremony is over.”

“Alice, you must go to your assigned mates.” Elder Anton’s voice is slimy, and my fangs drop. So, help me, goddess, I will tear this man apart. Elder or no elder.

“I can’t,” Alice sobs, clinging tighter to me.

“What in the fuck are we supposed to do?” I project to Kane.

“Just… Fuck.” He growls.

Kane and I look at each other, our anger growing with every second. The angrier we become, the more restless the crowd grows. Anton looks from Anton to me, concern in his eyes, and I take a deep breath. There is a reason why alphas must stay in constant control. Anything we feel will be sent out to the rest of the pack, and if they do not have a tight rein on their emotions, they will act upon it. Right now, every wolf from the Constantine Clan is seething with anger, all because of Kane and me.

“We must calm down, brother,” I warn him. “Before this ceremony turns into a bloodbath.”

“Wouldn’t it be fun if they ripped the elders apart?” Kane jokes, taking a deep, calming breath.

“Maybe,” I smirk. “But the aftermath is going to be a bitch to handle, and who has time for that?”

Kane nods, and we close our eyes. We concentrate on our breathing until our emotions calm down enough for the crowd to settle.

I open my eyes and look at Anton. His hands are shaking, but he smiles, relieved at me.

“Miss Montgomery, please join your mates so we can continue the ceremony.” Anton addresses Elara — this red-haired girl pouts, fiery-tempered yet seemingly kissable. I begin imagining that mouth moaning my name.

Damn, my penis almost immediately get hard.

Shit, I actually start imagining those lips screaming my name, those eyes crying because of my thrusts.