The Road to Fate Book 1: The Road to Fate
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Kara Verbeek
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Prologue
KASSI (AGE 3)
I was jerked awake by loud, howling noises. No, not loud. Blood-curdling.
The noises were coming from outside, right below my window. I immediately began screaming for Mommy. She could make it all better.
But Mommy wasn’t coming.
I crawled out of my bed and tiptoed to the door, where I quietly opened it and looked down the hallway. I couldn’t stop my body from shaking with fear.
When I made my way to Mommy’s room, Mommy and Daddy weren’t there. I decided to go see if Bubby knew where they were. He was six, so he was super smart. I went to his room, but he wasn’t there either.
Where was everyone?
I began to cry. I hated being alone, and the noises were only getting louder.
I made my way downstairs as quietly as possible. Maybe Bubby or Mommy were just hiding somewhere? When I got to the living room, I immediately forgot about being quiet and started screaming at the top of my lungs.
Every direction I looked was covered in blood!
I ran through the house, trying to find someone, but it was empty. Panic took over, and I started sobbing as I rushed out the back door.
Outside, dead werewolves littered the ground in both wolf and human form. I started screaming even louder.
“Mommy! Daddy! Bubby! Where are you?!”
The yellow glow of our house was the only light in the darkness. I heard the creak of the swing set, swaying in the cool night breeze.
Just past the swing set was the wide-open field used as training grounds, where Daddy was teaching Bubby to fight. I squinted, trying to make out the bodies on the ground, barely able to breathe.
That’s when I caught sight of Bubby. He was lying on the ground across the field.
“Bubby! Bubby!” I screamed, running to him.
I fell on top of him, tears pouring down my face, shaking his body to try and get him to wake up. Why wasn’t he waking up?
I moved my hand away from him. It didn’t look right. It was dark with something. His entire shirt and the ground around him were crimson.
I looked around, frantic to try and find anyone, and that was when I saw Mommy, lying on the ground nearby. She wasn’t moving either.
I ran to check on Mommy, but before I could reach her, I was grabbed from behind and pulled away.
“Mommy! Bubby! Let me go!” I yelled.
I felt something hard hit my head, and everything went dark.
***
I woke up in my bed, drenched in cold sweat. I closed my eyes—the blood was everywhere.
I opened my eyes again. No. I was here, in my room. With my adopted family. Safe.
I sat up, squinting against the morning light. I reminded myself that I was in my bed, with Rebecca and Tom, the best parents a girl could ask for, even if they weren’t my biological parents.
I didn’t really remember much from before I came to live with them, but ever since I was a kid, I’d been having the same nightmare, the one I’d just had, over and over and over.
It always felt so real. Too real.
I heard the bedroom door next to mine open. Connor. He was my oldest adopted brother. Tom, his dad, was our alpha, which meant that Connor was going to be the next alpha.
Then I heard another voice, and my stomach jumped—
“Hey, Con, have you seen my dress shoes?”
Ty. Connor’s younger brother. My boyfriend of four years.
Ty would be turning eighteen at midnight—tonight—and the pack was throwing a huge party for him. Eighteen was the age when we got our wolves, and also the age we could find our mates.
If the mate was also eighteen, your wolf could find your mate by smell, sight, or touch.
If the mate wasn’t eighteen and didn’t have their wolf yet, you could only find them by touch, but the one under eighteen wouldn’t feel the bond until they got their wolf.
Since I was only seventeen, I didn’t have my wolf yet. I slid back down in my bed, pulling the covers over my face. I was so, so nervous for the party. We were about to find out for sure whether Ty and I were mates or not.
If we were mates, then we could continue to be together. If we weren’t, we’d have to break up so he could find his mate.
It was especially important for Ty to find his, since he would be our beta someday. He’d be second in charge of our pack, Moonlight Rising.
“Kas, you ready yet?” I heard Connor yell.
“Yeah, be right down,” I shouted back.
I got out of bed, stretching my arms above me. Connor still hadn’t met his mate yet, even though he was older than Ty by four years.
I changed into a light-pink baby doll dress with matching ballet flats, putting my hair up into a cascading ponytail. I applied some mascara and lip gloss, leaving my room to head downstairs to meet my family.
Rebecca had always had an eye for interior design, and the living room was no different.
The light-beige walls perfectly reflected the sunlight coming in from the canopy windows. A massive fireplace occupied the center of one wall, a smiling portrait of our family placed above it.
Connor and Ty were sitting on the navy loveseat in front of the fire. I loved spending my nights there with Ty, curled up together, talking about our future.
“Wow, you look amazing!” Connor said, staring at me.
He started to move toward me, almost in a daze, but snapped out of it when Ty let out a low snarl.
“You of all people should know to stay away from my girl,” Ty growled, coming over and pulling me into a hug.
Ty had always been very possessive. He didn’t like other males getting near me, let alone touching me, but especially Connor.
“Sorry, bro,” Connor said, backing away with his hands in the air.
Ty quickly pulled me into a hug, then moved back, looking me up and down.
“You look beautiful, Kassi,” Ty said.
Ty was wearing a dark-blue collared shirt that brought out his light-brown hair and blue eyes. His shirt was stretched tight across his chest and arms, hinting at the muscles beneath.
Goddess, he was gorgeous.
“You look amazing too,” I said, blushing bright red. “Are you excited to maybe find your mate?”
“I found her twelve years ago,” he told me sweetly, kissing me on the forehead.
We were interrupted by Rebecca, clearing her throat.
“We really should get to the party, you two. There will be plenty of time for that and more after the party, if you are mates,” she said, making me blush again.
Rebecca opened the front door and ushered us down the steps. Ty and I walked hand in hand down the gravel path that led to the main pack conference center, where the party was being held.
A DJ was set up in front, already playing music, while several circular tables with black tablecloths and twinkling candles lined the walls. There was a buffet at the back, and based on the smell, I could tell there was a lot of meat.
Some guests were mingling and drinking whiskey, a feeling of excitement already building.
I slipped off my jacket, handing it to the omega coat check attendant.
Rebecca really had a knack for party planning. I hoped I could do her justice when—I mean if I got to become the beta female someday. I took a breath, sneaking a glance over at Ty, who was talking to Tom.
I could see it so clearly it hurt. Ty and I, happily mated, working with our luna to plan pack parties, while I helped out in the pack nursery too. Our future, together, if we were mates.
Somehow, despite my nerves, the night passed quickly. Ty stayed by me the whole evening, even while performing his social duties as the future beta.
He was polite while he greeted the visiting alphas and their daughters, but he still made sure his hand was around my waist the entire time.
Just before midnight, I pulled him to an empty hallway, standing so close to him that our bodies were nearly touching. I looked up at him.
There was no denying that every inch of my boyfriend was attractive, but his best feature was definitely his eyes.
“Ty, I love you more than anything in the world,” I started.
“I love you too, baby,” he replied casually.
“If we end up not being mates—”
“We are mates. I can feel it. You are it for me, babe,” he interrupted.
“Okay, but if we aren’t—” I quickly put my finger over his lips before he could interrupt me again. “If we aren’t, I want you to know that you have been the most amazing boyfriend and best friend I could ever have. If you have a different mate, please don’t stop being my friend. I don’t ever want to lose that.”
My voice was trembling.
“I love you, Ty.”
I pulled him into a kiss, pressing my chest against his body. I used our kiss to express all of my feelings to him—the longing to be mates, the fear of being separated, the overwhelming love I felt for him.
If this was the last kiss we were ever going to have, I wanted to make sure all of my feelings reached him.
After a moment, he broke his lips away from mine, brushing back a strand of my hair that had escaped from my ponytail.
“Kassi, I will always love you. You are my entire world,” he whispered.
He bent to kiss me again, pulling me even tighter against him when we were interrupted by someone clearing their throat. I jumped back from Ty, my cheeks burning.
“It’s time,” Rebecca said.
We turned, following Rebecca outside. Even though it was midnight, the moon was shining brightly, illuminating the open space just outside of the conference center.
As was tradition, there was an elevated stage where Ty would shift for the first time. Ty would get his wolf at exactly midnight while we all watched.
Slowly, the rest of the pack and guests joined us, forming a large semicircle. My palms started to sweat, my mind a jumbled mix of emotions.
As soon as the clock turned, Ty fell to the ground, groaning in pain. In a matter of seconds, Ty would be able to officially find his mate.
Oh Moon Goddess, what if it wasn’t me?
