BLOOD AT THE FOUNTAIN

CASSANDRA

"I wish we could stay here forever," Aiden whispered, running the tip of his nose up and down my neck before capturing my lips in a passionate kiss. "After the ceremony, I'll mark you. You'll be mine. Forever."

His touch sent tiny sparks of pleasure skittering down my spine as the butterflies in my belly exploded. I was soaking wet.

"I can't wait to be yours, baby." I moaned in pleasure, arching against the angry bulge that was straining against his pants. "B-but does the Alpha know about us, yet?"

Aiden tensed, almost shattering the spell. But he pulled back slightly, just enough to cup my flaming cheeks in his hands. I looked up into those storm-gray eyes. His dark hair was messily scattered across his forehead, like it always did after our numerous, secret sexual bouts here in this little glade. This close, his sweet scent of cedar and pine invaded my nostrils. 

"Cassandra," his husky voice was heavy with emotion, "you have to trust me, okay? No one- not even my father- is going to take me away from you. Not now. Not ever. I'm yours, you're mine, and that's not changing." 

Something inside me cracked open, and I melted into him, wrapping myself around his six feet three muscular frame like I never wanted to let go. My lips found his again, this time desperately, and when I finally pulled back, my heart was hammering. 

"I love you," I whispered, almost breathless. "I'll spend my whole life loving you. I'll be the best Luna you've ever dreamed of. I'll stand beside you through everything. I swear it, Aiden."

He chuckled, beaming before planting a kiss on my forehead, then he pressed his lips against mine. "Save the vows for the ceremony babe. Go get yourself ready," he tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. "I'll come pick you up. And tonight?" His voice dropped an octave as he whispered in my ear, brushing an earlobe and leaving another tiny shiver careening down my spine. "After I announce us in front of the entire Pack, I'm going to take you back to my room and fuck your pretty little brains out. You're mine, Cassy. They all know it."

I squealed, heart bursting as I took off toward home. I'd never felt this happy.

You see, I'd spent most of my life being the Pack's favourite punchline. The freak. The disappointment. The girl who never shifted. Turning twenty-four without a wolf was the final nail in the coffin-- and no one let me forget it. My father, the Pack's Beta, barely acknowledged me unless it was to remind me how ashamed he was. Mother was worse- cold smiles, sharp words and always pretending I didn't exist. And my sister, Skylar? She made it her mission to break me every chance she got. I was nothing more than a stain on their perfect legacy. But even in all that darkness, there was one person who saw me- really saw me. Aiden. The Alpha's son. While everyone else looked at me with disgust, he looked at me like I mattered. We'd known each other since high school. At first, he was just the boy who noticed when I was being shoved into walls and tripped in the hallways. He sat with me when no one else dared to. But slowly, the awkward smiles turned into conversations, and those conversations turned into something warmer- something real, something heartfelt. Four years later, we were inseparable. What started as a quiet friendship blossomed into the kind of love I never thought I'd get to have, the kind that made the pain hurt a little less.

We'd kept things under wraps since then, and tonight at the pre-cleansing ceremony in just a few hours, I'll be standing in the sacred grove among other she-wolves, where he would finally announce to the Pack that I was his chosen mate.

It was perfect. Right?

But it was the moment before everything went to hell... before my whole life came apart.

I barely recognised the girl staring back at me as I stood in front of the mirror, admiring my dress. It hugged my figure like it had been made just for me- soft champagne silk with tiny pearls stitched across the bodice, flowing into a layered tulle skirt that shimmered with every turn. I'd saved for months to buy it, hiding coins in old shoes since my parents never bothered with more than torn hand-me-downs.   

My green eyes looked brighter under the soft touch of blanched and white powder; and my dark strawberry blonde black hair was curled loosely, pouring over my shoulder in waves. I've always hated my freckles and the scar that slashed through my right eyebrow, but Aiden always said it made me look stunning.

Aiden picked me up from my house after dusk in his royal carriage, much to the chagrin of my parents and Skylar, but it was nothing compared to the wave of whispers that followed when we stepped out of the carriage to the courtyard in front of the looming Packhouse castle. He offered a hand, straightening his vibrant blue, close-fitting, tailored tunic with the other. I took it with slightly shaking fingers, nervous. Then he leaned in and pressed a kiss to my cheek. "You look stunning, and I'm proud of you. Don't let them make you think otherwise."

I nodded but it wasn't enough to dispel the fear that gripped me when I spotted Alpha Kane glaring down at me from the balcony as we walked through the cobbled path lined with iron sconces, each casting a glow across the faces of the gathered crowd. 

Just then, the Pack Gamma, dressed in chainmail and black boots approached with a palm wrapped around his sheathed silver sword. "Your Grace," he was speaking to Aiden. "The Alpha wants to see you. The girl stays behind."

"Wait here, I'll be back." Aiden squeezed my hand reassuringly with a smile before ambling into the Packhouse entrance, his black leather boots clicking in his wake.

Ignoring the stares from the congregation, I found a spot by a stone pillar, far enough to be ignored but close enough to see everything. Banners bearing the crest of the Crescent Moon Pack fluttered from the carved stone pillars under which musicians sat, their flutes, lutes and deafening drums singing sweet notes that wove through the air like a spell. Several unmated wolves mingled with glasses of grape wine on their fingertips, dressed in dark tunics as they scanned the crowd for their missing ribs.

The Pack priestess and her coven stood out in their moss-colored robes near the fountain, purifying the water where every attending, unmated she-wolf would be sanctified. It was a tradition as old as the Pack, believed to bestow blessings and ward off bad luck. Everywhere I looked, there was life, celebration, love.

Just then I spotted Aiden talking with his father on the balcony. Their body language was tense, sharp and even though I couldn't make out a word, it made my stomach twist with dread. I knew instantly that he wouldn't be coming back soon. 

The sanctification for the she-wolves started not long after, but as I stepped out to join the others, a familiar sharp voice cracked through the air like thunder. "Stop her!"

My heart stopped beating. 

I whipped my head in the direction of the voice and spotted my father standing near the edge of the fountain with a face so hard and cold like a stone that'd never known the sun. 

"A wolfless female has no business in the fountain. Letting a wolfless freak into the sacred waters would be an insult to the goddess." Then he looked me dead in the eye and said, "you're not worthy."

Before I could utter a word in defense, two guards appeared, seized me and started to drag me away. 

"Let go of me!" I struggled, flailing my arms as I fought to free myself but the guards wouldn't budge. Skylar was grinning to herself when I spotted her, just as much as everyone who was relishing my downfall. But the spell soon shattered.

"Let her go!" Aiden's growl sliced through the chaos like hot knife through butter. "Now!"

The guards froze and for a breathless second, nobody moved. Then slowly- hesitantly- they released me. My arms were shaking from being yanked back.

I barely had time to breathe before my father spat. "You're making a mistake. Alpha. She will taint the ceremony-"

"Say another word," Aiden cut in, his voice low and lethal, "and I'll rip your throat out myself."

Gasps swept through the crowd, leaving a heavy, suffocating silence in its wake. The music had stopped. Aiden descended right after, and the crowd parted for him.

His eyes never left mine, and when he reached me, he didn't hesitate. "I've made my choice." he announced, turning to face the crowd. "She will be my Luna."

Heavy gasps followed as the crowd struggled to come to terms with me being the Luna, intensifying the nerves. I purified myself at the fountain before a guard escorted me to the balcony where the Pack priestess was waiting now. This was supposed to be my moment of triumph, the day I would silence my doubters once and for all but there was no excitement in the air anymore. It felt more like a funeral procession. 

That's when I heard them, father and son locked in a heated argument from inside the Packhouse. "Have you lost your damn mind? She has no wolf and the Pack will never accept her. We will be the laughing stock of the neighbouring Packs."

My heart twisted painfully, because he was right. The Pack will never accept me. But Aiden always said they would learn to see the good in me.

I hated that he was going through this because of me even though we'd expected it. 

An angry Aiden countered. "I love her!"

"To hell with love! Don't be foolish, she's a burden."

"I have made my decision, father. And I am not going back on my word." Aiden snarled before the entrance door burst open and angry footfalls followed. 

The anger on his face gave way to a smile the moment our eyes met but I knew he was hurting inside. He turned to the Priestess and gave the go ahead. At his command, we stepped closer and linked hands. Then she stepped forward to seal the bond, asking Aiden to repeat after him. 

"I, Aiden of house Blackmoor, vow to honour you, protect you, and love you until my last breath. Do you, Cassandra Stormborne, accept to be my mate?"

"Yes," I nodded emphatically. "I accept to-"

My words were cut off when Aiden suddenly staggered back, his grip on my hands loosening.

"Aiden?"

He swayed again, this time harder. A ragged breath caught in his throat  and then his knees buckled beneath him before he collapsed onto his side and started to convulse. 

My heart stopped. Crippling fear took root in my gut and spread, engulfing my whole body. It took a moment to process and when it registered, I dropped to my knees beside him, my whole body trembling like a leaf caught up in a wild wind. His eyes were rolled back and foam bubbled at his lips as he frothed. 

"Aiden!" He didn't answer. A trickle of blood oozed off the corner of his lips and his skin had turned a sickly shade of ash.

Pandemonium erupted.

"Help!" I screamed as pure terror seized me.

Gasps, panic and screams had taken hold of the Pack. My father and the Gamma, together with the guards ran to his side to help, and then someone shouted the word that turned every heard. "Poison!"

"Call the healers!" I heard Alpha Kane yell over my shoulder before he threatened in a chillingly-close growl. "This is all your fault! if anything happens to my son, consider yourself dead."

It was hours later in the Packhouse almshouse (hospital), long after Aiden had been stabilized, that the healers confirmed the cause. "This is no ordinary poison. And I'm afraid we don't have the antidote that'll heal him. We've been able to stabilize him but if nothing is done in a few days, his condition will worsen..." 

A heavy pause followed as the words settled, then he continued. "The only known antidote strong enough to reverse this kind of poison can only be found in the Red Moon Pack. It's called the Nightshade. " 

The air around me froze. The Red Moon Pack. The Lycan King's Pack. 

Alpha Killian was a name mothers used to frighten their children into obedience. The stories were more like nightmares. Whole Packs had vanished under his rule and he once hung an entire council of elders for lying about a treaty. And worse, he wasn't on good terms with the Crescent Moon Pack after a failed alliance many years ago.

But what no one knew- what I never told anyone- was that I'd once saved him. 

Eight years ago, I'd found him bleeding out in the woods. I'd stopped the bleeding and stayed with him until his warriors found us. He never said a word, but he'd left behind a blood-stained pendant which I still had with me till this day. 

I tried to dispel the thought, but a pang of fear slithered through me when I saw Aiden's pale face as he lay there, battling for his life. 

If this wasn't done, he would... No! I couldn't bring myself to think about that. I couldn't let him die.

I stepped toward the Alpha and the few councilmen who were already locked in a heated argument about how we could get the antidote. 

"I can help." I chipped in, breaking the spell.

All heads turned towards me, and expressions ranging from shock to doubt and unwavering disgust followed. But that didn't deter me.

"Let me go to the Red Moon Pack."