Chapter 3 - Bruised
The shelves of the pantry loomed around me, stacked high with jars of preserves, bins of grain, and crates of dried roots. The air was cool and heavy, filled with the earthy scents of potatoes, onions, and dried herbs. Dust powdered my palms as I set down the last sack of flour with a grunt, straightening slowly as my shoulders protested. My muscles ached, the dull throb settling deep into my bones. Carrying Lyra’s chores on top of my own had left me exhausted, but that was nothing new.
If I worked quickly, I could be gone before anyone noticed. I could slip out into the hallway, back into the shadows where I belonged. Head down, voice quiet, no reason for anyone to stop me. Keep moving. Keep breathing.
The hinges groaned. The pantry door creaked open behind me.
I froze, the fine hairs at the back of my neck prickling.
Then I heard it.
Laughter.
Not the warm, light laughter I sometimes overheard from the others when they sat around the fire together, but sharp, cruel, slicing straight through me like knives.
“Well, well,” Lyra’s voice sang, sweet as honey but edged with poison. “If it isn’t the little house mouse. Still pretending that if you fold enough laundry and count enough beans, someone will actually notice you?”
My stomach dropped, twisting hard, but I forced myself not to turn. My hand brushed against the wooden crate beside me, fingers gripping the edge to keep them from trembling.
“Just doing what’s required,” I murmured, willing my voice to stay steady, even as my throat ached with the effort.
Two more shadows slipped in behind her—Callie and Rina. Always her shadows. Always her echoes. Callie leaned lazily against one of the shelves, arms crossed, while Rina twirled a lock of hair around her finger, both of them smirking like they’d already won some game I hadn’t even agreed to play. Their eyes slid over me in unison, sharp and hungry, like wolves that had cornered something small and weak.
“Required?” Callie repeated, her tone dripping mockery. She tossed her hair back and let out a high, grating laugh. “You really think chores make you worthy of anything? Do you think they’ll make you Luna someday? You’ll never be recognized, Kira. You don’t belong.”
Heat flared across my face, but I bit down on my tongue. If I snapped back, it would only feed them.
Lyra’s steps clicked softly against the stone floor as she drew closer, her perfume wrapping around me, cloying and suffocating. “Don’t worry,” she said smoothly. “I’ll make sure of it. The Gathering isn’t for shy little nobodies who don’t even know their place.”
Something inside me twisted—tight, sharp, unbearable. I turned at last, clutching the crate for strength. My voice cracked sharper than I intended. “You can’t stop me. The Elders issued the order themselves. Even you can’t go against them without making a fool of yourself.”
The words hung in the air like the echo of a dropped blade.
Callie’s grin faltered, her brow arching in surprise. Rina’s smirk slipped into a frown. But Lyra—Lyra’s smile only tightened, her eyes narrowing into slits.
“Is that so?” she whispered, circling me like she was measuring me, like she could already taste my fear. She tilted her head, green eyes gleaming with malice. “Maybe I can’t stop the Elders. But I can make sure no Alpha looks at you twice.”
My pulse spiked, thudding painfully against my ribs.
Her gaze sharpened, voice lowering into a hiss. “And another thing. Stop flirting with Darin. I saw the way he stared at you in the den.”
The accusation struck me hard. Heat flooded my cheeks as I shook my head quickly. “I wasn’t—”
“You were,” Rina cut in, her laughter ringing false and cruel. She stepped closer, her eyes flashing with amusement. “That’s the problem with you, Kira. You stand there with your downcast eyes, pretending to be meek and innocent. But you make it look like you think you’re better than the rest of us.”
“I don’t—” My words stumbled out, thin and desperate.
“Enough.” Lyra’s voice sliced through mine, cold and final. She flicked her eyes toward Callie and Rina, her lips curving into a smile that sent ice through my veins. “Let’s fix her little act. Smash her pretty face. See if anyone still stares at her then.”
The words froze me in place. My breath caught in my throat, chest tightening until I could hardly breathe.
Callie’s smirk widened, her eyes glittering. She rolled her shoulders like a fighter warming up, cracking her knuckles one by one. “Gladly.”
Rina grinned too, stepping in beside her, her expression sharp with anticipation. “She’s overdue for a lesson.”
My back hit the shelves behind me. Glass jars rattled dangerously, their contents shifting with the vibration. My lungs dragged for air that wouldn’t come.
“Don’t,” I whispered, the sound breaking in my throat. My voice was barely more than a breath. “Please, don’t.”
Lyra only smirked wider, her beauty twisted into something vicious and cold. She tilted her head, watching me press against the shelves like a caged animal. “Oh, sweet sister,” she murmured. “You should have stayed quiet.”
And then Callie lunged.