Chapter 2

Mira’s POV

After I released the grey wolf into the wild, I returned home before morning. No one asked where I had been. By evening, the bond had been cut under the Moon Covenant. Caden and Torin were free of me, and I was back at my family’s dinner table as if losing two bonds in one day meant nothing.

The mark that had tied me to them was gone, but the place it left behind still hurt. Moon-bearers calmed male shifters during Beast Rage. Stronger males needed stronger women, or they could turn feral. That was the excuse everyone gave Caden and Torin. Lyra was a Silver Moon female. I was the low-ranked daughter who had failed.

Lyra sat across from me in a clean dress, her silver moon mark bright on her skin. She looked at my untouched food and smiled. “You should eat more,” Lyra said. “People will think the bond-breaking punished you more than it freed them.” I replied, “I’m not hungry.” Father said, “Do not make that face at the table, Mira. You embarrassed this family enough today.”

I had been betrayed, but I was still the shameful one. “Father, please,” Lyra said. “She is hurt.” Uncle Daven gave a dry laugh and asked, “Hurt? A moon-bearer who cannot hold her males should thank the sister who can. If they had gone feral because of her weak power, we would all carry the shame.” Mother finally looked up and said, “Do not resent Lyra because she was born stronger.”

That hurt more than Lyra’s smile. I had gathered herbs, sold beast cores, and bought medicine for Caden and Torin, but none of it mattered. They saw a failed moon-bearer beside a Silver Moon female. Lyra touched her mark and said, “At least everyone knows the truth now. You were never suited for two powerful males.” Uncle Daven nodded and said, “A low-ranked moon-bearer should know her place.”

I pushed my chair back and stood. I had wanted one person at that table to say I mattered. Not one of them did. Nessa, my closest friend, entered before Lyra could say anything else. She looked at my face, then at the silent people around the table, and her expression hardened.

“Mira, come with me,” Nessa said. Lyra folded her arms and said, “She always runs away when she hears something she does not like.” Nessa looked at her and replied, “And you always speak when no one asks you to.”

Nessa led me to an old building hidden behind empty stalls. I asked, “Where are we?” Nessa answered, “A hidden gladiator arena. I thought a few fights might distract you.” I stared at her and asked, “This is your idea of helping?” Nessa said, “Think about something else for one hour.” I almost refused, but I did not want to return home, so I followed her down the stairs.

Men shouted around a fighting pit. Chains scraped the floor, and beasts growled behind wooden gates. A handler stood in the pit with a whip. “Bring out the next beast!” the handler shouted. Two guards dragged a small grey wolf into the pit. One guard kicked him and shouted, “Get up!” The wolf tried to stand, but his injured back leg failed him. The crowd laughed, and the handler struck him with the whip. “Fight, or you die,” the handler said.

A large black dog was released into the pit. I moved closer, and Nessa asked, “Mira, what is it?” The grey wolf turned, and I saw the burned circle around his back leg where the silver snare had trapped him. Beneath the dirt near his shoulder, I also saw a slave brand. He was a rogue shifter sold like property. “That is the wolf I rescued near the lake,” I said.

The black dog rushed toward him. The grey wolf dodged and bit its shoulder, but his bad leg gave out. The handler raised the whip again. “Stop!” I shouted. The handler looked up and asked, “What do you want?” I gripped the rail and said, “I want to buy him.” The handler laughed and asked, “That weak thing?” I looked at the wolf. They called him weak because he was wounded and chained. My family had looked at me the same way.

The owner stepped forward and asked, “Can you pay?” I removed the pouch from my coat. It held everything I had saved. Nessa looked at it and said, “Mira, that is all your money. You will have nothing left.”

“I know,” I replied quietly. “I will save him again. I placed the pouch in the owner’s hand and said, “Take it. That is enough.” The owner counted the coins and said, “More than enough.” The guards dragged the wolf out and dropped the chain at my feet. I knelt beside him. His eyes opened slightly when he heard my voice. “It’s me,” I said. He did not move away, but his eyes closed again before I could say anything more.

Caden’s POV

After the bond was broken, I still could not believe Mira had truly left me. She had spent years following Torin and me, gathering herbs and trying to please us. Mira should have understood why we chose Lyra. Pride did not suit a girl who had built her life around being useful to us.

Lyra sat beside me and rested her hand on my arm. “Do not worry about her,” Lyra said. “Mira is pretending to be hurt so people will pity her.” I looked toward the door and said, “She agreed to break the bond.” Lyra said, “She wanted us to stop her. When no one did, she became angry.” Her explanation made sense. Mira would return when she remembered that no one else would want a weak moon-bearer with a broken bond.

Later that evening, the front door opened, and Mira walked inside with a wounded grey wolf beside her. I stood at once. I had been right. She had returned. “You finally returned,” I said. “I knew you still loved me.” Mira stared at me as though I had said something foolish.

I stepped closer and said, “You can stay, but do not bother Lyra again. She did nothing wrong.” Mira gave a short, tired laugh and said, “You are crazy and delusional.” Anger rose in me. “Watch your mouth,” I said. I reached for her arm, but before I could touch her, Mira raised her hand and struck my fingers with moon magic.

Pain spread through my hand, and I pulled back, shocked that she had dared to use her power on me. Mira looked directly at me. “If you touch me again,” Mira said, “I will ruin your hand.”