Chapter 3
When dawn broke, Dorian returned.
I stood at the apothecary door, watching him walk over from the main house.
His collar was undone.
There was a bite mark on the side of his neck.
It was shallow, fresh, and the edges were still red.
It wasn't my bite.
I'd only marked him once on the day of our mating bond, and my mark was about two finger-widths lower than that.
"How'd you get that mark?" I asked.
He tugged his collar up, hiding it.
"During training," he said.
"A bite mark from training?"
He frowned. "Wren, your wolf can't even wake up.
"What could you smell?"
That line cut deeper than the pain I'd felt last night.
He knew exactly where to strike and how deep to cut.
Rowan came up behind him, holding the ritual roster.
"Luna," he said, "the Full Moon Ritual is nine days away. Don't cause trouble now."
I'd lost count of how many times I'd heard "Don't cause trouble" in the past three years.
Back when I was treating fevers for all the pups, someone said, "Luna, don't cause trouble. Pups get sick all the time."
The same thing happened when I said the north wing needed a fireplace.
I shut the door.
Then I started gathering my things.
My mother's handwritten apothecary book was tucked away at the very bottom of the cabinet, its pages curled and worn.
I took down the dried herb specimens from the shelves, stacking them neatly.
I had three notebooks on poison remedies and a roster of border warriors. On them, I'd noted who got aches in old wounds when it rained and who was allergic to Purifying Flame Grass.
I left the roster on the table.
That belonged to the pack, not me.
Finally, there was an empty iron box.
It used to hold a silver bell, the one my mother tied around my wrist before she left. After the string snapped, I kept it with me.
It vanished five years ago, though.
Later that afternoon, Dorian caught me as I was packing.
"What are you packing?" he asked.
"Just clearing out the supplies," I replied.
"I see," he said simply.
He didn't bother to look inside, but turned and walked away.
I watched his back as he left, and honestly, it was almost laughable.
How little did he care that he didn't ask a second question while I packed up the entire place?
Thea came to see me in the evening.
She slipped a small pouch of Purifying Flame Grass into my hand and whispered, "Don't go up to the snowline alone for herbs again.
"Isolde lied to you last time."
"I know," I said.
"You knew, and you still went?"
I gave a small smile. "I wanted to see if he'd come looking for me."
Thea opened her mouth, but nothing came out.
As she left, she nudged the brazier closer to my feet.
"Wren," she said, pausing at the door, "you were up on the snowline for six hours that day.
"I tried to look for you, but Rowan stopped me.
"He said Alpha gave the order that no one was allowed to leave until the portrait was finished."
I mumbled a soft "Understood."
Even that tiny hope I kept hidden from myself finally collapsed.
Later that night, I got a reply from the Council of Elders.
It read, [Your request has been approved.
[But according to the Pack Law, an Initiate can't leave the pack unless the mating bond is broken.
[To break the bond, both you and your mate have to be there, or one of you can stand up during the Full Moon Ritual and reject the other in front of everyone.]
I stared at the words "in front of everyone."
I read the parchment three times, folded it up, and kept it pressed right against my chest.
Then, the Pack Bulletin Board lit up.
The invitation for the Full Moon Ritual was posted.
In the photo, Isolde was in the silver-gray ceremonial robe, standing right next to Dorian, her hand resting on his forearm.
The caption was only one line. [She will host this year's Full Moon Ritual, and with her, it all begins.]
The first comment was from Rowan. [Congrats, Alpha.]
The second was from Isolde. [Thanks, everyone. Wait for me.]