Marked By My Triplet Stepbrothers

Serena

The carved wooden wolf slipped from my hands.

It struck the floor with a sharp crack before I could catch it.

I froze.

"Oh no..."

I knelt quickly and picked it up.

A crack split across the little wolf's neck.

Lyra sighed inside my mind.

You'll have to buy another one.

I swallowed around the lump in my throat.

"I know."

Another expense.

Another coin gone.

I had spent six months saving for this night.

Flowers.

Candles.

Moon incense.

A carved wooden wolf.

Everything important.

Today was for father.

I walked to the old cedar box resting on the shelf above Father's chair.

No one sat there anymore.

Not for seven years.

I opened the box carefully.

Inside rested the only thing I had left of him.

A silver wolf pendant.

The chain had darkened with age. Tiny scratches covered the surface, but I knew every single one. My thumb traced the carved wolf.

"I miss you."

The words came quietly.

The room didn't answer.

It never did.

I closed my eyes.

I could barely remember his face anymore.

Only pieces remained.

Strong hands lifting me onto his shoulders.

His laugh.

The smell of pine and smoke whenever he hugged me.

His voice telling me...

"Even healers have claws, little moon. Never forget that."

My throat tightened.

Tonight, beneath the moon, I'd untie the seventh silver ribbon in the Weeping Willow Court.

For seven years, I'd tied one ribbon every memorial.

Every wolf who lost someone tied a silver ribbon to a branch.

The custom was older than the Kingdom of Lunareth itself. Long before humans built kingdoms of their own, wolves believed the Weeping Willow carried whispered prayers to the Moon Goddess, guiding lost souls safely beyond the Veil.

I placed the pendant back inside its box as gently as if it were made of glass.

"I'll make today beautiful for you, Dad."

You always do.

Lyra sounded softer now.

He'd be proud.

I swallowed hard before turning back to grab my breakfast.

The cereal bowl looked even smaller than yesterday.

I carried it to the little table.

One chair.

Mother's untouched bowl.

An empty seat where Father used to laugh.

I reached into the old biscuit tin beneath the cupboard.

Coins clinked together as I counted.

One.

Two.

Three...

Thirty.

I counted again.

Still short.

Barely enough for everything.

That's why I can't afford a bus into Silverroot.

Lyra huffed.

You should eat more meat.

"We can't afford meat everyday, I bought candles."

Candles don't fill empty stomachs.

"They honor the dead."

The living need proper food.

I smiled.

"Father deserves this day to be perfect. So his soul can find peace."

Silence.

Then...

...You're impossible.

"I learned from the best."

Obviously.

The smile stayed on my face as I finished breakfast.

When I looked toward Mother's room, the door stood open.

Empty.

Again.

I already knew before walking inside.

Her bed was already made.

A folded note waited on the pillow.

Gone to Moonstone.

Don't wait for me.

—Vivian

I folded it again.

It looked like every other note she'd left these past few months.

Meetings. Lessons. Politics.

Silverroot. Moonstone.

Always another reason.

Always somewhere else.

Maybe becoming a Luna meant sacrificing ordinary things.

Maybe.

Or maybe...

I wasn't important enough to be included anymore.

Don't.

Lyra interrupted gently.

You're doing it again.

"I know."

You're trying to diagnose a wound you didn't cause.

A tiny smile returned.

"Old habit."

Bad habit.

I slipped my boots on and grabbed my worn backpack.

Herbs. Bandages. Notebook.

Everything I needed for another day at Silverroot.

The morning air hit my face the moment I stepped outside.

Black Hollow Pack was barely awake.

Black Hollow was one of Lunareth's forgotten border packs. We weren't wealthy or powerful, but our healers knew every herb in the forest, and our hunters never wasted what the Moon gave them.

Most wolves had never heard our pack's name.

I didn't mind.

Home didn't have to be important to be loved.

Most people here worked hard.

Harder than anyone from the five Houses ever realized.

But they smiled anyway. Old Mrs. Hale waved from her porch, I waved back with a smile.

The forest waited beyond the last cottage.

The moment I crossed beneath the trees...

everything changed.

The scent of damp earth wrapped around me.

Birdsong echoed overhead.

Morning mist drifted between ancient trunks.

I breathed deeply.

Home.

Run?

Lyra asked eagerly.

I didn't answer.

I shifted.

Bones rolled beneath skin.

Muscles stretched.

As Lyra golden fur burst across my body.

The world sharpened.

Every scent.

Every heartbeat.

Every fluttering bird.

Lyra bounded forward before I could stop her.

Freedom.

She loved running more than I loved breathing.

Sunlight poured through the leaves, turning her golden coat almost molten.

Our paws barely touched the forest floor.

Wind rushed past.

Cold streams splashed beneath us.

Wild sage brushed against our legs.

We crossed familiar paths worn by years of travel between Black Hollow and Silverroot.

Forty minutes became twenty.

Lyra slowed as Silverroot's borders came into view.

White stone walls rose gracefully between flowering trees.

Ancient towers peeked above the forest canopy.

The scent changed.

Fresh rain.

Lavender. Moon lilies.

Crushed sage. Healing herbs.

Silverroot.

Silverroot was one of the Five Great Houses of the Kingdom of Lunareth. While House Silverstone ruled from the Moon Throne, Silverroot guarded the kingdom's healers, future Lunas, blood records, and ancient healing magic.

Beyond the gardens stood Bloom Court, home of Arch-Luna Celestine Ashwood.

Every Luna in Lunareth answered to her. She guarded bloodlines, approved royal marriages, and remembered every student who walked through Silverroot's gates.

I'd only spoken to her twice.

Somehow, she'd remembered my name both times.

No matter how many times I crossed Silverroot's gates, it still stole my breath.

Healers hurried along marble paths with baskets of herbs. Midwives laughed beneath flowering trees. Everywhere smelled of crushed sage and fresh rain.

Young Luna candidates hurried toward the academy dressed in elegant white uniforms embroidered with sage leaves.

Mine had been mended so many times the stitching showed.

I pretended not to notice.

They pretended not to stare.

Mostly.

The Luna Academy stood beyond the gardens.

Elegant.

Ancient.

Beautiful.

Inside those halls, noble daughters from every Great House studied here.

Some wanted to become respected Lunas.

Most wanted power.

With the Luna Festival only weeks away, every lady dreamed the Moon King ... or one of his royal sons... would notice her.

I only wanted to become a royal healer.

Unfortunately, the girls who wanted crowns never seemed to believe me.

"Morning, Sereen"

I looked up.

Elias Rowan carried enough books to build a wall and smiled as though they weighed nothing.

Silverroot called him its brightest young healer.

At just twenty-two, Elias was the youngest royal healer in Silverroot.

Patients trusted Elias long before they trusted the medicine in his hands.

I'd had an embarrassing crush on him since I was sixteen.

I tried not to think about that.

His blond hair looked windswept as always.

His smile was warm enough to chase away cold mornings.

"You're early."

"I could say the same."

He grinned.

"Master Aurelia thinks sleep is a disease."

I laughed.

"I've heard worse diagnoses."

"There it is."

"What?"

"The smile."

Heat crept into my cheeks before I could stop it.

"You smile more when you're talking about medicine."

"I like medicine."

"I know."

His voice softened.

"I think that's why you'll become one of the best healers this kingdom has ever seen."

My heart stumbled.

Just once.

Before I could answer...

"Look who we have here."

A familiar voice sliced through the courtyard.

"Finally the border girl graces us with her presence."

Laughter followed.

Lizarath Ashwood.

Lizzy.

Silverroot's favorite Luna candidate.

Beautiful. Noble. Perfect.

At least, that's what Silverroot liked to call her.

To me, she was the beginning of every bad

day.