They Offered a Crown, I Chose Another Alpha

On the night of my twenty-first birthday, Silvercrest Pack held my coming-of-age mate selection ceremony. When the full moon rose above the forest, none of the four candidates had appeared. They were the four men who had grown up beside me—and the heirs to the four highest-ranking positions in the pack. I waited alone on the ceremonial dais until the ritual ended. Following a livestream, I found them at a private estate across the forest. The camera was pointed at the birthday cake in front of Mira. She was a she-wolf Silvercrest had recovered only three months ago. Missing since childhood, she had grown up among humans. When the patrol found her, wolfsbane still lingered in her blood. She was so weak she could barely shift. I had brought in the pack’s best healer and arranged for her to live on pack grounds. Yet now Everett, the future Alpha, was taking a glass of wine from her hand so she would not have to drink it. Nolan, the Beta heir, draped his coat around her shoulders. Julian, the Gamma heir, crouched to straighten the hem of her dress. And Rhys, the Delta heir, placed the Moon Crown I had personally chosen on her head. My phone rang a moment later. Everett’s low, controlled voice came through the speaker. “Elara, don’t come in here and make a scene in front of Mira. She almost cried a minute ago. We’re only trying to give her a proper birthday.” Nolan took the phone. “The mate selection can be rescheduled. Mira has only just returned to the pack. Emotional distress could interfere with her recovery.” Julian laughed softly in the background. “She never even had a real birthday before. You grew up with the entire Silvercrest Pack doting on you. Is it really so terrible to let her have this one night?” Outside the estate, two servers lowered their voices. “Not one of the future Luna’s candidates showed up for her coming-of-age ceremony.” “They’re all here celebrating with that newly recovered she-wolf. After tonight, Miss Elara will be a joke in every pack in the region.” Once, I would have pushed open the door. I would have demanded to know why it was always Mira—what, exactly, I lacked that made all four of them choose her over me. This time, I simply unpinned the silver moon crest that marked me as the Luna-in-waiting and dropped it into the sink. Then I sent a message to my grandmother, Silvercrest’s High Elder. [Grandmother, I won’t choose any of them.] [Contact Blackridge Pack.] [I accept Callum Thorne’s alliance proposal.] Chapter 1 My grandmother called almost immediately. I could hear the old grandfather clock in her study, each measured tick striking slowly against my heart. “You’ve finally made up your mind?” I stood in front of the sink and watched the current carry the moon crest into the corner. “I have.” “Blackridge sent the alliance contract three years ago,” she said after a pause. “You were the one who insisted that Everett and the others had grown up with you, and that surely one of them would choose you sincerely.” I said nothing. Because I truly had believed that once. Everett had stood in front of me when a rogue wolf lost control and attacked. Nolan had carried me halfway across the city when wolfsbane poisoning left me unconscious. Julian had defended me at an academy assembly when rumors spread about my bloodline. Rhys had fought a hunter who crossed our border and broken the bones in his hand protecting me. Each of them had given me a little tenderness. It had never been much, but it had been enough to keep me tangled in four almost-romances for years. I kept thinking that one of them, at least, would look back and truly see me when I came of age. But tonight, no answer had come. All I had received were the pitying and amused looks of every guest in the pack. I ended the call, dried my hands, and returned to the banquet hall. My place at the head table was gone. The silver-edged place card engraved with ELARA STERLING had been pushed aside and replaced with Mira’s name. She sat in the future Luna’s chair, wrapped in Nolan’s coat, wearing my Moon Crown. A moonstone bracelet glittered at her wrist. It was not an inexpensive piece. Only the week before, Mira had told me through tear-filled eyes that her treatment had already cost too much and that she could not possibly accept even a decent dress. Now the gemstones flashed white beneath the lights, bright enough to sting. Everett saw me first. His brows drew together. “Where did you go?” I looked at the place card that had been removed. “Where is my seat?” Mira stood so quickly that she looked ready to faint. “Miss Elara, I didn’t know this was your place. I felt dizzy, and they told me to sit down for a little while.” Julian put a hand on her shoulder and gently pressed her back into the chair. “Stay seated. You’re the birthday girl tonight.” Then he turned to me, wearing his usual easy smile. “Elara, it’s only a chair. This really doesn’t need to become an issue.” I held his gaze. “Tonight is my coming-of-age mate selection.” “I know.” Julian swirled the wine in his glass. “The ceremony isn’t going to become invalid because you gave up your seat for a few minutes. Don’t make the evening uncomfortable for everyone.” Nolan finished checking Mira’s complexion before looking up at me. “Mira’s emotional state was highly unstable a moment ago. She has only recently returned to pack life, and she still has no sense of security.” His voice was as precise as if he were delivering a report to the council. “As the future Luna, you should understand that stabilizing her condition matters more than applying pressure to her in public.” Rhys leaned back in his chair. The silver lighter between his fingers snapped shut. “Elara, don’t make us restrain you in front of everyone.” Everett spoke last. He held the highest rank of the four, and everyone had always assumed he was the most likely to become my mate. “Sit beside me.” He said it as though offering to add another chair at his side was generous compensation for everything he had done. In the past, I would have gone to him. I would have told myself that Everett had still made room for me in the end. This time, I only smiled faintly. “No, thank you.” Everett’s expression darkened. Mira bit her lip, and tears quickly rolled down her cheeks. “Is it because I took Miss Elara’s seat? I can stand. I really can. I never should have sat here in the first place...” Everett immediately leaned down to soothe her. “No one is asking you to stand.” Rhys looked up at me, warning already hardening his eyes. I did not look at any of them again. I crossed the room to my grandmother, bent close, and murmured in her ear. “Tomorrow, I’m going to the Council Hall to register my union with Callum.” Chapter 2 The banquet ended badly. Some guests held up their phones to record us. Others whispered in the corners of the hall. “Is Elara truly angry this time?” “What difference does that make? The heirs of all four Silvercrest offices are right here. In the end, she still has to choose one of them.” “Exactly. Their mate agreements have been discussed since they were children. Who else could she possibly choose?” I had almost reached the estate entrance when Mira hurried after me. She was still wearing the Moon Crown. The hem of her white dress trailed over the damp grass and darkened with moisture. “Miss Elara.” I stopped. She came to a halt in front of me. Her voice was soft, but pitched for the four men behind her to hear. “Do you regret bringing me back to Silvercrest?” I looked at her without answering. Her eyes reddened at once. “I know someone like me—someone with no clear background, someone who couldn’t even complete a wolf shift—has no right to sit in your place. I shouldn’t wear your crown, and I shouldn’t have let them stay with me for my birthday.” She gathered a fold of her skirt in one hand. Her voice began to tremble. “I only wanted one real birthday after coming home to a pack.” “You found a healer for me. You gave me somewhere to live. I have always been grateful. But sometimes I’m afraid.” She raised her eyes, tears suspended on her lashes. “I’m afraid you helped me only so I would remember forever that I’m the stray wolf you rescued, while you’re the Luna heir standing far above me.” Silence held for several seconds. I almost laughed. Three months ago, when the border patrol brought Mira back from the human territories, wolfsbane had already spread through her blood. The healers thought she would never recover. The elders would not spend valuable resources on an unverified she-wolf. I had invoked my authority as heir and brought in the finest specialist I could find. When she first regained consciousness, she had knelt beside the hospital bed, sobbing that she would remember my kindness for the rest of her life. Now she stood at the entrance to my family’s estate, wearing my Moon Crown after taking my seat, and told everyone that my kindness had been a chain around her throat. Everett responded exactly as she had intended. “Elara, apologize.” I turned to him. “What did you say?” “I said apologize to Mira.” His voice was low, but the command of a future Alpha made it impossible to mistake his meaning. “I will reimburse every resource spent on her treatment. From now on, do not use the fact that you brought her home to remind her that she owes you.” Nolan looked at me as well. “You are the pack’s heir. She is an ordinary she-wolf who has only recently been recovered. An imbalance of power already exists between you.” He spoke in the same calm tone he used for council business. “You may not realize it, but your assistance can make her feel controlled. Her fear is not entirely without basis.” Julian sighed lightly. “Elara, kindness stops being kind when the person receiving it is afraid of you.” Rhys was even more direct. “If you didn’t want to help her, you shouldn’t have reached out in the first place. You don’t get to save her with one hand and make her kneel in gratitude with the other.” I looked at all four of them and realized that even my disappointment came a beat too late. Pain, endured long enough, could make a person numb. I took the candidate list from my clutch. Four names were written side by side on silver-white contract paper. Everett Ashborne. Nolan Reed. Julian Cross. Rhys Kane. I had studied that list countless times. Everett’s name reminded me of him standing between me and a rogue wolf, ordering me to stay behind him. Nolan’s reminded me of him carrying me into the hospital while wolfsbane tore through my body. Julian’s brought back the academy stage, where he had publicly silenced every rumor about my bloodline. Rhys’s brought back his broken hand, and the way he had laughed through the pain after fighting a hunter to protect me. Now the paper only seemed absurd. In front of them, I tore the list into four pieces. Julian’s smile froze. Rhys straightened sharply. Nolan’s brows knitted. Everett’s expression became the darkest of all. “Tearing up the list changes nothing, Elara.” He approached one deliberate step at a time, his voice turning cold. “Silvercrest will not permit you to choose anyone else.” I met his eyes. “Is that so?” Nolan spoke in a grave voice. “You are displaying an acute stress response. Once your condition stabilizes, you will regret whatever decision you make tonight.” Julian forced out a laugh. “If you take the performance too far, it’ll be difficult to clean up afterward. Go home, sleep, and come find us in the morning.” Rhys stared at me, open irritation and possessiveness churning in his eyes. “If you actually choose another Alpha, I’ll personally drive him out of Silvercrest territory.” Mira lowered her head. From an angle none of the four men could see, the corner of her mouth curved very slightly. My fingers closed around the torn pieces. “All right,” I said calmly. “Tomorrow, you’ll see.” Chapter 3 The next morning, I went to the Silvercrest Council Hall. This was not a sudden decision. Grandmother told me that Callum Thorne had resubmitted Blackridge’s alliance proposal a month earlier. He had only been waiting for my answer. I stood outside the Council Hall with the four torn pieces of the candidate list still clenched in my hand. I had not returned home after leaving the estate. Instead, I had spent the entire night sitting in my car while my phone vibrated until the battery died. Everett called twenty-three times. Nolan sent me an entire packet about stress responses and impulsive behavior. Julian sent a sticker of an angry wolf pup, followed by a message. [Your Highness, come home when you’re finished being mad.] Rhys’s message was the shortest. [Location. Now.] Not one of them asked whether standing alone on the ceremonial dais had hurt. They only thought I was throwing another tantrum. Just as they always did. A black SUV stopped below the steps, and Callum climbed out. He wore a black shirt with the sleeves rolled to his forearms. His features were cool and severe, his Alpha scent powerful but held under perfect control. Everyone said Callum Thorne was difficult to approach. Blackridge had nearly torn itself apart in an internal power struggle before he brought the pack back under control. Even Everett restrained his arrogance around him. But when Callum reached me, all he did was offer me a cup of warm oat milk. “Drink something first.” I stared at it. “Grandmother told you?” “Yes.” His gaze moved over my face. “She said your stomach hurts if you go too long without eating.” The cup was hot against my palms. Whenever I ate with the other four, Everett made sure the kitchen avoided every seasoning Mira disliked. Nolan remembered that she could not have cold drinks while wolfsbane remained in her system. Julian cut her steak for her. If the smell of blood made her uneasy, Rhys would have every platter of roast meat removed from the table. They knew about my stomach problems too. They simply forgot whenever I was the one sitting in front of them. An attendant called our names. Before we entered the registration chamber, Callum stopped. “You can still change your mind.” I looked up at him. “Are you afraid I’ll regret this?” “Yes.” His honesty was immediate. “But I was more afraid that when you finally chose to leave, no one would be waiting on the other side.” Something touched my heart so gently that, for a moment, it almost hurt. Inside the registration chamber, the alliance contract between our two packs had already been prepared. I signed the final page. Callum signed after me. The seals of Silvercrest and Blackridge were pressed beneath our names. The clerk entered the union into the Council register, then handed us our sealed copy. “Your union is now in effect. Congratulations.” I looked down at the two signatures beneath the terms. Mine was slightly uneven. Callum’s was firm and deliberate. Outside, I plugged my phone into the charger in his SUV. As soon as it powered on, messages began appearing. Everett. [Elara, return to the estate by nine.] Nolan. [I’ve arranged an appointment with a counselor. You need to talk to someone.] Julian. [That dramatic little scene with the list last night—send me the video. I could make something of it.] Rhys. [Don’t make me track your location.] I looked at the screen for a long moment. Then I photographed a corner of the contract, with the Council seal visible, and sent it to our group chat. [Don’t wait for me.] [I’ve registered my union.] For three seconds, no one replied. Julian was first. [That seal looks almost real. Who made it for you?] Nolan. [Childish behavior will not resolve this.] Rhys. [You expect us to believe a forged contract?] Everett sent a voice message last. I pressed play. His voice was cold, every word delivered like a reprimand. “Elara, I’m giving you one last chance.” “Admit the contract is fake.” “Otherwise, I will consider this a deliberate attempt to disgrace Silvercrest.” I looked up. Callum stood beside the open car door, waiting for me. He had not hurried me. He had not asked to see my messages. For the first time that morning, I felt myself relax. Here was someone who did not rush to decide I was wrong. I left the group chat and deleted the conversation. Then I dropped the four torn pieces of the candidate list into a nearby bin. “Let’s go.” Callum looked at me. “Where?” “Back to the Silvercrest estate.” I slipped the sealed contract into my bag. “To collect my things. And let them see for themselves.” Chapter 4 When I returned to the Silvercrest estate, Grandmother sat in an armchair beside the drawing-room sofa, watching the scene before her without a word. Mira sat in the center of the sofa, wrapped in my pearl-white cloak. Grandmother had brought it back from a northern pack the previous year. It was lined with warm silver fox fur and had been intended for my winter patrols. Everett crouched in front of Mira, pulling the cloak more closely around her. Nolan was examining her medicine. Julian sat nearby, peeling an apple. Rhys leaned against the window, spinning a set of car keys around one finger. When they saw me, none of them mentioned the alliance contract. It was as though refusing to acknowledge it would make it disappear. Mira stood first. “Miss Elara, you’re back.” She began timidly pulling off the cloak. “I didn’t know this belonged to you. The steward said I looked pale, so he brought it to me.” I glanced at her. “Keep it on.” She froze, apparently unprepared for the possibility that I would not even bother reclaiming it. I headed straight upstairs. Everett followed. At the turn of the staircase, his hand closed around my wrist. “What do you think you’re doing?” I pulled free. “Collecting my documents and personal belongings.” “Taking them where?” “To my mate’s home.” For a moment, everything went still. Then Julian laughed from the drawing room below. “Elara, you’re really committing to this performance.” Nolan frowned and came toward the stairs. “Entering a union out of spite will only hurt you.” Rhys looked up at me, his expression dark. “Bring him here.” “I’d like to see who thinks he can claim what’s mine.” I looked at him. “What’s yours?” His expression stiffened. Everett’s jaw tightened. “Enough.” He turned toward the drawing room, his voice carrying through it. “If you insist on making this an issue, we’ll settle it now.” I stopped on the stairs. “Settle what?” Everett held my gaze. “You think all four of us have let you down?” “Fine.” “We’re all here now. Choose.” Silence fell over the room. Julian’s smile faded a little, but he did not object. After a few seconds, Nolan spoke. “If this will help you regain your composure, I’m willing.” Rhys threw his car keys onto the table. “Choose me.” “I’ll take you home with me right now.” Mira stood beside the sofa, her face paling. “Everett, please don’t do this because of me—” Everett did not look at her. He came toward the foot of the stairs, his tone making the offer sound like an order. “Elara, don’t say we never gave you a choice.” “Choose one of us.” “We’ll proceed with the mating ceremony as planned.” Julian leaned against the sofa and gave a quiet laugh. “Surely that’s what you wanted?” “The crown, the gown, the ceremony. Whatever you missed, we’ll make it up to you.” Nolan spoke evenly. “Honoring the existing agreements remains the most practical arrangement for Silvercrest.” Rhys stared at me, possessiveness plain in his eyes. “I don’t have the patience for this fake union of yours.” “If you’re trying to make them jealous, choose me. You can leave with me today.” All four stood before me. Everett was finally prepared to make a decision, provided I accepted the choices he allowed. Nolan treated the proposal as a sensible solution to my emotional state. Julian still believed I was waiting to be coaxed. And Rhys assumed that if he held out his hand, I would follow. I had imagined this scene countless times. Them finally noticing me. Finally competing for me. Finally putting me first. Now that it was happening, all I could feel was how absurd it was. They had not asked why I wanted to leave. They had simply decided what it would take to make me stay. The light above the staircase fell across my wrist. A red ring remained where Everett had gripped it. I had not told him it hurt. They would only have called that a performance too. I reached into my bag and took out the alliance contract. As I laid the Council-sealed document on the table, all four expressions went momentarily blank. “There’s no need to choose,” I said. “I’ve already registered my union.”