Chapter 1
Chapter One
Evadine
You’re meeting your husband today.
My eyes snapped open, the whisper of my cozy dream of warmth by a fireplace fading away as reality replaced fantasy.
I was meeting my husband today.
But not just any husband.
“Evadine, darling!” my mother called from outside my door. “You need to get up! We’re leaving for the palace in an hour.”
I let out a slow yawn that turned into a groan as I stretched, then plopped back onto the bed. I wished I could go back to sleep. Go away. Go anywhere. Just shift into my wolf form that I could feel pawing just beneath my skin and run.
My future husband was the soon-to-be Emperor of the Veridian Empire, Branock Aris.
A man whose ego and brashness had been the talk of the capital ever since he came of age and his father announced he would be taking over the throne sooner than expected. He was the shallow, hot-headed heir who always got what he wanted and didn’t care who stood in his way.
And I had to marry him.
I sighed and tossed the blankets off, planting my feet on the rug a bit harder than necessary. It wasn’t every day your parents sold you off to the most powerful family in the empire, if not the world, but I supposed I was lucky.
That was what the other ladies said. What even my parents said. “Oh, Evadine, you’re going to make the most beautiful bride.” “How proud you must be to become our future empress!” “Every woman would kill to be in your shoes, Miss Faelan.”
Yes, well, they didn’t have to resort to murder. I’d give them my shoes, my dress, my entire closet.
Perhaps I should be more grateful. Perhaps I should view this as an opportunity for a new life—a way to make change and do good for the people of Veridia. The diplomatic, optimistic version of Evadine Faelan grasped onto that mindset with everything she had.
But the real me? The one with claws buried beneath my fingertips and the headstrong heart of a wolf inside?
She wasn’t so sure.
“Miss Evadine, I have your dress ready,” my maid Lucia said as she entered my suite, curtsying with a gown draped over her arms.
“Thank you, Lucia. Let’s set it on the bed.” I tidied up my blankets and helped her lay the dress down, taking in the deep blue corset with white ruffled sleeves, the gold designs weaved into the fabric, and the matching gold skirt that miraculously made it look as if I actually had curves.
Lucia helped me bathe and dry my hair, brushing the kinks out of my blonde locks so that it hung straight, barely reaching past my shoulders. When she prodded me to sit at my vanity so she could do my make-up, I fought the urge to roll my eyes.
“All this trouble for an arrogant royal boy with a laboratory,” I muttered, closing my eyes as she swept blush across my fair cheeks.
Branock Aris came from a long line of Alchemists—people with the power to create spells and potions by using the nature around them.
It was one of the many magic types that made up our Veridian Empire.
My bloodline was all Shifters. Wild, emotional, erratic.
Unused to being tied down and stuffed into a metaphorical box.
Especially when we had no say in it.
“Come now, Miss Evadine,” Lucia said, her blue eyes twinkling at me. “There must be something you’re excited about.”
I considered her words, struggling to put aside my stubborn nature. Truthfully, I already had everything I could ever want. I had my family, my magic, and my freedom. I was happy. Comfortable. Content.
Lonely, a voice whispered in the back of my mind. Unfulfilled.
“The food will probably be good,” I said with a shrug, my lips tilting into a grin when she laughed.
“Yes, the food.” Lucia’s smile turned mischievous as she backed away to get my dress. “You know, I’ve heard that man is tasty enough to eat. Tall, dark, and handsome, those chiseled—”
A snort escaped me. “Then maybe you’d rather be the one to marry him.”
Mother’s voice filtered in again. “Are you almost ready, Evadine?”
My laughter faded. I swallowed hard, stepping into the dress and letting Lucia tie it at the back.
The fabric felt too tight on my skin, constricting my lungs as pressure built in my chest. My wolf half ached to be free.
It stretched its snout, claws raking against my mind in distress, the way it always did when my emotions ran high.
Fear, anxiety, discomfort, defiance. All things that made me want to shift, run deep into the forest, and leave my problems behind.
I turned to take one final look in the mirror. My eyes drifted over my pale skin, freckles, shoulder-length blonde hair, and the blue and gold gown cinched at my waist.
“Ready as I’ll ever be,” I murmured.
The palace in Veridia City was only a thirty minute carriage ride from our home.
Even though my father was an ambassador for the Shifters and one of the wealthier lords in the capital, I had only been to the palace once in my twenty-one years.
I was barely a teenager then, and I remembered spending most of my time in the gardens while father sat in a meeting.
I’d watched young Branock Aris traipse through the flowers with his lackeys in tow, ordering them and the palace servants around in his loud, rude tone like he was already their emperor.
If the gossip from town was any indication, he hadn’t changed much from his youth. Still ordering others around, still demanding obedience, still using his power to punish his people and get what he wanted.
Father, Mother, and I entered through the grand double doors.
Bright, golden accents on the walls shone like the sun, wealth and grandeur flowing from the ornate portraits, the plush emerald rug, the elegant candelabras and sconces hanging from the ceiling and walls.
The palace was a bustle of activity. Servants hurried to and from their stations while guards in the sleek silver uniform of the Royal Guard stood at attention down each corridor, and lords and ladies of the court milled about in thick cloaks and gowns that spoke of their status.
It was beautiful, sure, but it felt…false. Heavy. Like a life I wasn’t meant to step into.
The corset tightened around my chest.
“Remember, darling, first impressions are important,” my mother said, smoothing a wrinkle out of my skirt as a guard led us down the hallway.
I gently swatted her hand away. “Mother, I’m not a doll.” Her hazel eyes peered back at me, so similar to my own. I softened my gaze and squeezed her hand. “Relax. I’ll be fine.”
Father fell back to walk by our side. He patted my shoulder reassuringly. “We know you will be, Eva,” he said, his deep voice rolling over me. “And one day you’ll see how much of an—”
I cut him off with a sigh. “I know, I know, it’s an honor. I’ve heard it all before.”
“I was going to say opportunity,” he said.
“You know that Shifters have been looked down upon for centuries. Think of what kind of impact a Shifter empress can make on our people. On the entire empire. You’re showing the world that we’re not defined by our past nor our magic.
Shifters have a place in Veridia, as much as anyone else. ”
I rolled my lips together and nodded, straightening my spine.
There were six magic types in the Veridian Empire.
Alchemy, like Branock and his family possessed; lightbending, where people could create light with their hands; striding, or the ability to transport yourself from one spot to another; illusions, where false images could be created in the mind of another; shadow wielding, which was like lightbending but with shadows, and last but not least, shifting.
Out of all of them, Shifters were the least respected.
A war had almost broken out more than two hundred years ago between the Shifters and the rest of the empire over who deserved to be in power.
Our animal forms made others view us as volatile and wild, ruled by our baser instincts instead of rational thought.
Even though there had been peace for two centuries now, that stigma never went away.
Beast. Freak. Monster. All words I’d heard many times growing up, especially when my wolf half kicked in.
It took time for Shifters to control their animal forms. Emotions easily brought our magic to the surface, making us lash out when we didn’t mean to—fangs, claws, and sharp tempers didn’t mix well.
I couldn’t count how many times I’d accidentally lost control and snapped in the middle of a crowded street, scaring other kids and even adults without so much as touching them.
We were made to feel as if something was inherently wrong with us. That we were other.
My father was right. Maybe I could make a difference. Maybe I could use this marriage to change how the empire viewed my kind.
Or maybe it’ll make those parts of you disappear. Maybe it’ll force you to become like everyone else.
I pushed back the thought as we approached an enormous set of gold-plated doors. The guards on either side bowed, then pulled the handles, slowly exposing the grand throne room. My heartbeat quickened with each inch revealed.
It opened to a cavernous hall with gleaming marble columns and shadowed alcoves at the ceiling.
A golden chandelier as large as my bedroom hung in the center, with numerous torches lining the walls, casting reflections across the floors.
A deep green rug embroidered with gold ran from the door all the way to the raised dais at the end of the chamber, where two marble thrones were poised beneath a ribbed archway.
Emperor and Empress Aris sat on each of the thrones, warm smiles evident on their faces as we grew nearer.
My father worked closely with the emperor, but I’d only seen them a handful of times over the years.
Emperor Arturus Aris had developed a heart condition that had rapidly worsened in the last decade.
They remained closed-off from most of the people, choosing to let their ambassadors be the face of the empire.