FATED TO THE ALPHA I HATE

Elara Pov   "You look beautiful, sister," Celestia said from the doorway.   I did not turn around because I knew what I would see. My twin stood there with her golden hair cascading down her back and her honey brown eyes gleaming with something that looked like pity but felt like triumph. She wore a silver gown that matched mine but somehow on her it looked right while on me it felt like a costume.   "Thank you," I said.   My hands shook as I fastened the last pearl button on my sleeve. Three months of investigation and all the evidence I gathered against Father sat hidden beneath the floorboards under my bed. Lyanna's journal with her elegant handwriting detailing every dark magic transaction and every lie was wrapped in cloth and tucked between my mother's old letters. I memorized every word because I knew I could not bring the journal to the altar but once Adrian and I were bonded and I had his pack's protection I would speak and everyone would finally know what Darius Moonshadow really was.   "Are you nervous?" Celestia asked.   "A little," I said.   She laughed and it sounded like wind chimes but there was something sharp underneath. "Adrian is a good man. You are lucky he agreed to this match despite everything."   Despite everything meant to be wolfless and despite the shame I brought to our bloodline and even though our mother supposedly killed herself because she could not bear the disgrace of birthing a defective daughter. I swallowed the bitterness and smiled at my reflection in the mirror.   "I know I am lucky," I said.   "Father wanted me to check on you," Celestia said. "Make sure you understand how important today is."   "I understand," I said.   "Do you?" she asked. "Because this marriage is the only thing keeping our family's reputation intact. Adrian's pack is powerful and his bloodline is pure and when you bind yourself to him today you will finally be worth something."   I turned to look at her then and saw the way her mouth curved into a smile that did not reach her eyes.   "I said I understand," I repeated.   "Good," she said. "Father also wanted me to remind you that you represent the Moon Chosen bloodline today. Try not to embarrass us more than you already have just by existing."   She left before I could respond and I turned back to the mirror and took a deep breath. Today would change everything and not in the way Celestia or Father expected.   The temple was full of territorial Alphas and their mates and pack members from across the region. I walked down the aisle alone because Father refused to escort me and said it would be inappropriate given my status. Whispers followed me like ghosts and I kept my chin up and my eyes forward. Adrian stood at the altar in formal robes with his golden hair gleaming under the sacred moonlight streaming through the glass ceiling.   He looked at me and something flashed in his amber eyes but it was gone before I could name it.   The priestess began the ceremony and her voice echoed through the temple. "We gather under the moon's blessing to witness the union of two packs and two souls."   I barely heard her words because my heart pounded so loud it drowned everything out. This was it and once we completed the vows I would have the protection I needed and I would stand before all these Alphas and reveal what Father had done and justice would finally come for my mother.   "Alpha Adrian Silverclaw," the priestess said. "Do you accept this bond?"   Adrian opened his mouth and I waited for the words that would change everything.   "No," he said.   The temple went silent and I felt the ground tilt under my feet.   "What?" I whispered.   Adrian turned away from me and walked down the steps of the altar. He moved toward where Celestia stood in the front row and she looked just as shocked as everyone else but when he reached for her hand she gave it to him without hesitation.   "I claim Celestia Moonshadow as my chosen mate," Adrian announced.   The whispers exploded into chaos and I stood frozen at the altar while my mind tried to make sense of what just happened. This was not real and it could not be real because Adrian and I had been promised since childhood and he knew about the evidence and he knew I needed this bond to protect myself and he was supposed to choose me.   Father rose from his seat and the entire temple fell silent again. His face was cold and his eyes when they landed on me held nothing but contempt.   "I, Alpha Darius Moonshadow, disown Elara Moonshadow from this pack and this bloodline," he said.   My legs nearly gave out and I grabbed the altar to steady myself.   "Father," I said but my voice came out broken.   "You are a stain on the Moon Chosen name," he continued. "I name Celestia my heir and true daughter. You are no longer welcome in this house."   "But I did nothing wrong," I said.   "You exist," Father said. "That is wrong enough."   An Alpha in the third row stood up and I recognized him as Alpha Marcus from the eastern territories.   "This is highly irregular, Darius," Marcus said. "The girl was promised to Adrian since childhood."   "Adrian has chosen," Father said. "As is his right. My daughter failed to produce a wolf and therefore failed to uphold her end of the arrangement. The contract is void."   "She is still your blood," another Alpha said.   "She stopped being my blood the moment her mother's weakness manifested in her," Father said. "I have been patient long enough. Elara Moonshadow is no longer part of this pack."   The Alphas in the crowd murmured and some nodded in agreement while others looked uncomfortable but no one spoke against him. I looked at Adrian and he would not meet my eyes and I looked at Celestia and she was crying but she did not let go of his hand.   I ran.   My silver gown tangled around my legs as I fled the temple and tears blurred my vision as I stumbled through the pack house halls. I made it to my room and slammed the door behind me and pressed my back against it while my whole world crumbled into pieces around me.   Someone knocked and I almost did not answer but then Adrian's voice came through the door.   "Elara, please. Let me in."   I opened the door because I was stupid and desperate and I needed answers.   Adrian slipped inside and closed the door behind him. His face was pale and his hands were shaking and he looked at me with so much pain that for a second I thought maybe this was not his choice.   "Why?" I asked. "Why would you do this to me?"   "You have to run," he said. "Run far away if you want to survive."   "What are you talking about?"   "I cannot explain," he said. "Just trust me. Leave tonight and do not look back."   "No," I said. "You do not get to destroy my life and then tell me to run. Tell me why you rejected me."   "Elara, please," he said.   "Tell me," I demanded.   He turned to go and I grabbed his arm.   "Adrian, please. I do not understand. We were supposed to be bonded today. You knew how important this was. You knew I needed your protection."   He pulled away and looked at me one last time.   "I am sorry, Elara. For everything," he said. "But staying here will get you killed. Run while you still can."   "Killed by who?" I asked. "What is happening?"   "Just go," he said.   Then he was gone and I was alone again.   I sank to the floor and let the tears come because everything I planned was destroyed and everyone I trusted had turned on me and I did not know what to do. But then I remembered the journal under the floorboards and the evidence I spent three months gathering and the promise I made to my mother's memory.   Something was terribly wrong and my father was at the center of it.