Chapter 1"Daphne, Dario, Dorothy! Tails down here. Now. Breakfast - and we're finalizing your Turning ceremony details."
Our Luna, Joanna Sinclair, shouted from the kitchen. Oh, right - I should back up. We're triplets. Tomorrow's our eighteenth birthday.
The day we find our fated mates. The day we shift for the first time. 11:47 PM sharp - the exact moment we came into this world.
"Triple Threat, move your asses or you're late for the academy!"
That was Alpha Harold's growl cutting through the packhouse. He calls us that when we're dragging our feet and he needs all three of us at once.
I tugged on my oversized hoodie. Let me give you the rundown on the Triple Threat.
Dario's up first. Eldest by minutes.
He stands six-ten. Bronze skin from our Luna mother, the powerhouse build from our Alpha father. Storm-gray eyes that can make seasoned warriors drop their gaze.
She-wolves throw themselves at him constantly. Doesn't matter. My brother's dead loyal to the mate bond.
He's stupidly gorgeous and the one person I actually talk to. Our future Alpha. Born to lead Silver Moon.
Then there's me - the middle pup.
Honey-kissed skin. Amber eyes that match Dad's wolf. I'm in killer shape thanks to secret sessions with him. The Moon Goddess apparently told my parents my wolf would be... exceptional.
No one knows what's under these baggy clothes though. I layer up like armor. Nobody sees the real me.
I also rock thick glasses, so the academy wolves slapped me with "ugly," "fat," "four-eyes." Whatever. If they only knew.
Last comes Dorothy. Yeah, I'm already rolling my eyes.
Mocha skin. Chocolate-brown eyes. Waist-length auburn hair. She's stunning, and she knows it.
She's also the pack's biggest attention whore. Constantly draped all over the future Alpha of Night Fall, the neighboring pack.
We share Thornfield Academy with them now. Their school got wrecked in a rogue attack.
We finally make it downstairs. Dario's in fitted black jeans, a charcoal V-neck showing off all that Alpha build, designer boots.
It's blazing Colorado heat outside. Me? Oversized hoodie. Baggy joggers. My favorite sneakers.
And Dorothy? Of course she's wearing a skirt that barely exists, a top cut way too low, and five-inch designer heels.
Time to head to the academy. I hate it there. But it's senior year and I've got straight A's.
"Mom, Dad - I am not riding with Daphne. She's embarrassing."
My sister's whine could shatter glass.
"You are, because your brother already left and you've totaled your last three vehicles." Dad's growl. No argument there.
"Stay away from me at school, nerd!" she snaps at me.
Yeah. Clear as day. This is going to be a long one.
Thank the Goddess it's Friday.
Chapter 2
Daphne's POV
We made it to the academy with Dorothy bitching the whole ride.
I pulled my black 2025 Challenger into the spot reserved for the Alpha's offspring. Next to me sat Dario's black Charger. Already here.
Yeah, our parents are loaded. In the human world, Dad's some big-shot businessman.
On the other side of my brother's ride? Midnight blue Corvette. The squeal my sister just let out told me exactly whose it was. Caiden Hollins. Future Alpha of Night Fall.
I steer clear of that asshole. For reasons I still don't get, he hates my guts.
He's the ringleader. The name-calling. The cruelty. All him.
His twin sister, Stella? She's my best friend. Their birthday's tomorrow too, and our dads thought combining ceremonies would be brilliant - since Dorothy's convinced Caiden is her fated mate.
Look. He's vicious to me. Absolutely vicious. But I'm not blind.
The guy stands six-ten like my brother. Piercing blue eyes you could get lost in. Dark hair styled perfectly. And those abs he's always showing off in those fitted tees.
Ugh. Snap out of it, Daphne. I hate him. He hates me. End of story.
The second I hit my locker, it starts.
"Hey, fatso."
"Nerd."
"Four-eyes."
"Ugly bitch."
Only when Dario's not around, obviously. Dorothy, her shallow little crew, and Caiden. The ringleaders.
I stay silent. "Snitches get stitches" - their favorite threat.
I'm not scared of them, though. Dad says I can take anyone. Alpha included. Hell, I've even made him submit when we spar.
Caiden despises me. But Stella? She's glued to my hip.
She's always trying to get me to dress more "feminine." Ditch the glasses. Whatever.
She walks up now, slinging an arm over my shoulder.
"Daphne, why do you let them treat you like this? I know you could destroy them. Why are you holding back?"
I don't answer.
I just grab my books and sigh. "Let's go to class."
We've got every class together. My brother's best friends - Kane, our future Beta, and Orion, our future Gamma - they're in my first couple periods too.
They report everything back to my overprotective brother. So those classes? Uneventful. A brief break from the bullshit.
Then the bell rings. Lunch.
I'm so excited to see all my wonderful friends at Thornfield Academy.
Yeah. That was sarcasm.
Here come the fat jokes.
I tell myself the same thing every time. Ignore it, Daphne. None of it's true.
I know that.
But it still stings. These assholes are cruel, and the worst part?
My own sister joins right in.
Chapter 3
Daphne's POV
Stella and I step into the cafeteria.
"Stella, why are you hanging with that loser?"
"Hey, fatty - skip lunch, yeah?"
"Stella, sit with us. Let the loser eat alone."
Pointing. Laughing. All of them.
My eyes sting, but I refuse to let a single tear drop. They don't get that satisfaction.
I pull free from Stella and bolt - then slam straight into someone. I land hard on my ass.
"Watch it, you ugly bitch!"
Caiden.
He kicks me in the ribs. Hard. The air punches out of my lungs.
"I feel sorry for whoever gets stuck with you as a mate. He'll probably reject your pathetic ass the second he lays eyes on you."
His words cut. Deep. But he's not done.
"Seriously. Who'd want a weak, fat, four-eyed nobody? I bet you'll die alone."
"And look at how you dress. Who'd even want to be seen with you?"
He goes on, then kicks me square in the face before walking off. That one's gonna bruise. Nasty one too.
I just sit there. Wondering why people are so damn cruel.
Then Dario walks in.
He sees me on the hallway floor, crying. And it's like a switch flips.
He sits beside me, arm wrapped around my shoulders. "Who the fuck did this to you, Daphne?"
Kane and Orion appear right behind him. They're just as furious. To them, I'm a little sister too.
I don't answer. I just lean into my brother and let it out.
"Daphne, damn it. Tell me who."
I break down harder. He kisses my forehead.
"I'll drop it for now. But when I find out? They're getting a beat down. I promise you that."
I reach out through the pack bond. Mind-link Mom. I tell her I'm sick. I want to come home.
Dad's at the academy anyway - meeting with the Headmaster about rogue sightings near the woods.
I don't want him seeing me like this. It'd be hell to pay.
And as much as I hate Caiden Hollins, I don't want him dead. Not today. Because if Dad or Dario found out? That's exactly what would happen.
My father is not the Alpha you cross. Ever. You do, and your neck gets snapped. Simple.
Dad does not mess around when it comes to his princess.
Yeah. I'm a daddy's girl. You've figured that out by now.
Mom gives me the okay to come home. Fine. I'm out of this hellhole.
Maybe she'll let me skip the ceremony tomorrow.
Alpha Preston. Luna Evelyn. Caiden. Stella. Their future Beta, Korbin. Future Gamma, Ben. All of them. Staying in our packhouse. To "help prepare."
FML.
Why can't Night Fall just do their own damn ceremony?
