Luna in Chains

02.

Lyra awoke the next morning, the pale light of the sunrise warming her face as it filtered through the curtains of her room. Her dreams from the night before lingered, fleeting and uncomfortable. She shifted in bed, pushing away the unease she felt as she rose to face the day.

Her routine was the same as she’d followed countless times before, but today felt different. The heaviness in her chest, the one that had started to gnaw at her heart the moment she overheard her father’s conversation, hadn’t lifted with the rising sun. In fact, it grew harder to breathe the more she thought about it. The weight settled like a stone at the bottom of her stomach.

She dressed quickly, pulling on a simple tunic and trousers and winding her long, silver-blonde hair into a loose braid with a leather thong. The dried mud flaked away as she wove the strands together. Her mother would do much better, but she couldn’t bear to think about that on top of everything else weighing her down.

The wind outside was cool, blowing through her open window, its scent of pine and earth thick in the air. Lyra was accustomed to mornings in the packhouse, where the low hum of activity beneath her feet as the pack prepared for another day in the lower levels of the house was a familiar sound. The Midnight Crest Pack was steeped in tradition, with its ancient rituals and old bloodlines spanning back centuries, but beneath the rituals and pride of their lineage, Lyra had always known there was more at play. Darker, more complicated things.

Politics. Alliances. Power.

Her heart twisted as she stepped out into the hallway, her feet light but her mind heavy. She had spent so many years protected within the pack’s walls, basking in the love and safety that came with being the Alpha’s daughter, but now that security seemed as fragile as glass, ready to shatter at the slightest touch.

As she descended the grand staircase, the murmur of talking, morning chores, and activities filled her ears. She could hear the clinking of silverware against plates, chairs being moved in and out, and the general sounds of breakfast coming from the enormous dining hall on the first floor. Her father’s voice, authoritative and calm, carried through the stone walls.

Lyra hesitated at the top of the stairs. She could hear her father discussing something, someone, before she caught the familiar, more forceful, voice of Beta Garrett. Her stomach churned at the sound. She couldn’t imagine her life without Kade, but his father was another story.

“Rowan, you need to see reason,” Garrett’s voice said, his words clipped and sharp. “If we are going to secure this alliance, we need to act NOW. She may be young, but she will adapt.”

“We’ve had peace for generations, Garrett,” her father answered, his voice gruff but steady. “The Ironclaw Alpha may be ambitious, but his strength is not enduring. We’ve seen more than one Alpha and pack shine brilliantly and extinguish themselves in mediocrity. We should not rush decisions like this for our pack or my daughter.”

“You say there is no need to rush decisions?” Garrett’s voice rose, bordering dangerously on disrespect. Lyra never truly understood the relationship between them, as Garrett frequently seemed at odds with her father and eager to show it. “Rowan, we are standing at the precipice of war. You know as well as I do that if we don’t act, the Ironclaw wolves could take everything from us, including your daughter. This alliance was your idea! You know damned well that this marriage will strengthen our position. Ironclaw will have to treat her well and leave us alone at the same time. We cannot afford to let her mature to mating age. This only works if he gets to mark her. The alliance must come first.”

Lyra’s breath caught in her throat as her world seemed to tilt on its axis. Her mind flashed back to the previous night on the lake, to Kade’s promise that he would always be there. Now, as the weight of her father’s conversation sank in, she couldn’t escape the chilling reality that she may not be in control of her future at all.

The sound of the Alpha and Beta’s conversation grew louder as Lyra reached the bottom of the stairs. Realizing they would come through the door of the dining hall any moment and see her, she ducked into an alcove near the stairs. Her father’s voice faded as their footsteps crossed and then took them away from where Lyra was hiding. She remained frozen, unable to move as the hallway grew quiet again.

The Alpha’s daughter let out a slow, shaky breath. This wasn’t how things were supposed to go in her life. She wasn’t supposed to be a political pawn. While Midnight Crest had done so in the past, her father promised her that it was over. He wouldn’t allow it. She wasn’t ever supposed to leave her pack. Her home. She wasn’t supposed to be married to a stranger. Mates were chosen by fate, by the Moon Goddess. She knew, in her heart, it was going to be Kade. She just hadn’t told him. She couldn’t take it if he didn’t see the same fate for them. Seventeen was so far away, and they wouldn’t know until then. Now, she faced a “chosen” mate and never finding out who her fated mate would be.

The idea of it all twisted her stomach into knots.

She had always known there was a weight to her position as the Alpha’s daughter, but this? It was too much, something else entirely. A marriage to secure an alliance. Ten years old, and her father was having casual conversations over breakfast about forcing her into a bond with a man she didn’t even know. Lyra knew her mother would be outraged, but she was gone.

Her eyes stung, but she blinked back the tears and pulled herself together. She would not let herself fall apart. Not now. Not when everything felt so fragile.

She left her hiding spot and walked into the dining hall, trying to push the conversation she overheard from her mind, but it clung to her like a shadow. Lyra took her place at the Alpha’s table and noticed her father was still absent. One of the wolves that served the meals brought her a plate almost as soon as she was seated. As she looked down at one of her favorite breakfasts of fresh bread, honey, fruit, and eggs, she contemplated whether she would be able to eat it. Her head snapped up when she heard her name called.

“Lyra!” the Alpha greeted her with a nod, his voice still gruff but affectionate. “You’re up early. Did you sleep well?”

She nodded, offering a tight smile. “Of course, Father. Good morning.”

Alpha Rowan sat in his usual place next to her. Lyra accepted his small hug without question, even if everything in her life felt wrong. He was still her dad. To her relief, Kade’s face peered through the door. He lit up when he saw her and made his way over quickly.

“Good morning, Alpha,” Kade said, his voice respectful but warm, as always. His amber eyes flicked over to Lyra, a soft smile curving his lips when they made eye contact. Rowan nodded at him in acknowledgement and then moved to peruse the large map that he had at his seat.

Her father’s focus elsewhere, Lyra greeted her best friend, “Good morning, Kade.” He was always a comfort to her, and she felt like she needed it now more than ever.

He moved to his seat next to her at the table, his eyes never leaving Lyra’s face. The warmth of his smile helped ease the ache and terror threatening to overwhelm her. For a brief moment, she wished they could just go back to the lake and freeze in that time before she heard the argument between their fathers.

But the world wasn’t that simple anymore.

Lyra pushed her breakfast aside, deciding she couldn’t eat.

“Lyra,” Kade said, his voice concerned. “Are you alright?”

She managed a smile. A real one, for him. “Of course, Kade. I was just… thinking.”

The words didn’t match the churning inside her. She wanted to tell him everything. The conversation she overheard. The weight pressing down on her chest. The fear that gripped her heart like a vice. But… she couldn’t.

Not yet.

Her best friend in the world should be spared the anguish for as long as she could give that to him. She selfishly needed his warmth and strength if she were ever going to survive knowing what the future held for her.

Instead, she forced herself to turn to her father. He’d just started talking to Kade about training for the upcoming winter trials. Lyra listened absently, her mind wandering to thoughts of the future. The one that wouldn’t be with Kade anymore.

As her father and Kade continued their discussion, Lyra let her gaze wander around the room. She took in the sight of it like it was the last time, because she didn’t know when that would be. The stone walls, long tables, and the flickering fire in the hearth. The dining hall looked like many taverns she’d seen traveling with her father, only bigger. Midnight Crest was her home, and she loved it with all her heart.

But what would happen when the day came for her to leave? The question lingered in her mind like an unanswered question.