Chapter 1

I pressed myself against the marble column, trying to make myself as invisible as possible. Not easy when you're at a party where everyone can literally smell your fear.

The Moon Festival was in full swing. Crystal chandeliers cast golden light over the grand hall, and everywhere I looked, purebloods were showing off their designer clothes and family crests like they were walking advertisements for "Look How Rich We Are Monthly."

I'd been counting the exits since I arrived.

Standard safety protocol for someone like me—a half-blood in a school full of wolves.

My phone buzzed. I checked it quickly, using the screen's glow as an excuse to hide my face.

It was just a notification. I sighed and shoved it back in my pocket, then immediately wished I hadn't because now I had nothing to do with my hands.

That's when I heard Caleb's voice cut through the party noise.

"Gentlemen, I have a proposal."

I didn't need to look to know everyone was paying attention. Caleb Thornwood was the student council president, and when he spoke, people listened. It was partly the alpha thing—his pheromones could make you feel like you were standing in front of a king. But mostly it was because his family owned half the town.

"I'm bored," he announced, swirling his drink. "We need entertainment."

Several guys laughed. I recognized most of them—Finn, Liam, and a few others from the elite pack.

My stomach tightened. Nothing good ever started with "we need entertainment."

"I propose a bet," Caleb continued. He pulled something from his pocket—a wolf fang pendant on a silver chain. Even from where I stood, I could see it was ancient, probably worth more than my entire tuition. "My family's heirloom. Whoever can make our resident half-blood lose control tonight wins it."

The room went quiet for exactly two seconds. Then someone laughed.

My blood ran cold. They were talking about me. Of course they were talking about me. I was the only half-blood at Moonstone Academy stupid enough to show up to a purebloods-only party.

I should have left right then. Any sensible person would have walked straight to the nearest exit. But I'd spent three months building my cover here, three months playing the weak, pathetic half-blood who couldn't even control her shifts properly. I couldn't blow it now just because my feelings were hurt.

Besides, feelings were a luxury I couldn't afford.

Finn was already moving toward me. The crowd parted to let him through, and suddenly I had nowhere to hide.

"There she is," Finn said loudly. "Alice, right? The charity case?"

I nodded, keeping my eyes down. Playing weak was easy when you'd had years of practice.

Someone bumped into me from behind—hard. My drink spilled down the front of my dress. The cold liquid soaked through the cheap fabric, and I heard laughter rippling through the crowd.

"Oops," a girl said, not sounding sorry at all.

More people were gathering now, forming a loose circle around me. I could smell their pheromones mixing in the air—aggression, amusement, anticipation.

Finn grabbed my arm, his grip tight enough to bruise. "Come on, half-blood. Show us what you've got. Shift for us."

His alpha pheromones pressed against me like a physical weight. My wolf stirred restlessly inside, wanting to respond to the challenge.

I forced her down, made my body tremble, let my eyes water like I was actually scared.

I was scared, but not for the reasons they thought.

"I can't," I whispered. "I can't control it well enough—"

"Exactly the point," Caleb's voice came from somewhere behind Finn. The crowd shifted, and suddenly he was there, looking down at me with those cold gray eyes. "That's what makes it interesting. We want to see you lose control."

Something clicked in my head. This was my moment.

I took a shaky breath and raised my head slowly, meeting Caleb's eyes.

"Before I do that," I said, my voice still small but clear enough to carry, "I should probably mention something."

Caleb raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Your family's land rights. The Elder Council is meeting next week to revoke them." I watched his expression freeze. "Your father failed to maintain the bloodline purity requirements. Apparently, his great-grandmother was half-fae. It's all in the old records."

You could have heard a pin drop.

I kept going because stopping now would be worse. "So technically, you're not pure enough to hold your family's territory. The Blackwood pack is already preparing their claim. I heard they're planning to move on it the day after the vote."

Caleb's face had gone from tanned to white. Around us, I could hear the whispers starting—shocked, excited, cruel. Nothing spread faster in wolf packs than gossip about fallen alphas.

"Where did you hear that?" Caleb's voice was dangerously soft.

I shrugged, playing innocent. "Around. Us charity cases hear things. We're invisible, remember? People talk like we're not there."

It was true. I'd spent months being the perfect nobody, listening to every careless conversation, memorizing every piece of information. These rich wolves never imagined that the poor half-blood girl scrubbing floors might actually be paying attention.

Caleb stared at me for a long moment, and I saw the exact second his brain caught up with the implications. If what I said was true—and his expression told me he thought it might be—his entire world was about to collapse.

The party was dissolving into chaos around us, everyone talking at once. Finn had let go of my arm, looking confused.

I took my chance and slipped through the crowd toward the door.

I almost made it too. My hand was literally on the door handle when someone grabbed my wrist.

Caleb.

He pulled me into a quiet corner of the entrance hall, away from the party noise. Up close, I could see the fury in his eyes, but there was something else too. Calculation.

"Tomorrow," he said quietly. "Three PM. Student council office. We're going to have a conversation about where you got that information."

His grip on my wrist was tight enough to hurt, but I didn't flinch. "Okay."

"If you're lying to me—"

"I'm not."

He studied my face, and I let him see exactly what I wanted him to see—a scared half-blood who'd just said too much.

After a moment, he released my wrist and stepped back.

"Don't be late," he said, then turned and walked back toward the party.

I pushed through the door and into the cool night air, finally allowing myself to breathe. My wolf was still restless from all the aggressive pheromones, wanting to come out and fight.

"Not yet, girl," I whispered to her. "We have to be patient."

The walk back to the dorm usually took fifteen minutes, but tonight every shadow seemed darker, every sound louder.

Halfway across the quad, I felt it—that prickling sensation of being watched.

I turned slowly, scanning the tree line. Nothing moved, but I knew someone was there. The scent on the wind was too deliberate, too focused.

I clutched my bag tighter and walked faster, not quite running but close. My heart was pounding, and this time it wasn't from adrenaline. It was genuine fear.

I made it to the dorm and locked my door behind me, finally letting myself collapse against it. My hands were shaking.

"Day one of the plan: complete," I told the empty room. "Let's see if I survive day two."

I smiled despite my fear. The first fish was hooked. Now I just had to reel him in without getting eaten in the process.

Simple, right?