"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." - George Santayana

Donata sat on her wooden porch in a knitted sweater. Her rocking chair squeaked as she leaned back.

Squeak. Squeak.

Her eyes were staring at nothing in particular. They just looked off into the distance. It was a chilly morning, but nothing a wolf couldn't handle. The cold didn't bother her, but there was something weighing heavy on her mind.

The last time I saw something like this, blood was spilled.

It was my favorite day of the year. Giornata del Sangue, blood day. It was the day we remembered all of those who were slaughtered by one of our past alphas, who to this day is remembered as the strongest alpha in the world. The history of the day was depressing, but we did not treat the day as it was.

Instead of a day where we cried over the past, we celebrated. We celebrated the lives of those who were lost. Not their deaths, but the lives they lived. The day was complete when the Alpha took an oath to never repeat the mistake of our past leader.

The entire day was spent at the lake. No humans bother us because we have it all closed off for the day.

"Hey are you ready to go?" Lilia asked.

"Yeah, just fixing up my hair."

"It's going to get ruined in the lake anyways."

She was right. I was paying more attention to my looks these days. Ever since Zane basically rejected me, I've been more self-conscious. Nothing has ever wavered my confidence before but somehow he did.

"You know what, you're right."

I took my hair out of the elaborate braid I had done, and let it flow freely like I usually did.

"Let's go blondie."

We ran in wolf form to the lake. It was a beautiful day today, the sun was out shining brightly and everyone around me was laughing.

"Alessandra! Tesoro, come here!" I could hear my dad shouting from his grill.

"I'll be back," I told Lilia before I ran over to my dad.

He was wearing an apron and grilling a steak. My mom was lounging behind him on a towel. She looked at the meat with disgust. I nearly let out a laugh. My dad was a lot of things, but a good cook was not one of them. He refused to believe that though.

"Oh my Alessia, you are so big now."

I rolled my eyes. It was safe to say my sister and I had my dad wrapped around our fingers. He thought we were still little babies who needed protection. If Zane wasn't an alpha wolf, I'm sure my dad would have taken care of him by now, if I ever told him that is.

"Papa, you saw me three hours ago. We live in the same house!"

"I know, but now you can swim without floaties, and you don't need to hold onto me anymore."

"She's been swimming since she was six years old Antonio," my mom said with nonchalance.

"Valentina, let's have another one."

"Don't be ridiculous we are almost 50!"

"And? Wolves live long and we are betas our life span is in the 400-year range."

He was right. My parents were old in human years but they looked to be around 25. The aging process slowed down once a wolf turned 18 but it really came to a standstill once you met your mate.

"It's impossible to have sex with two teenagers in the house Antonio."

Okay I did not need to hear this.

"Look! Isabel and Zane are coming," my dad shouted.

Oh no.

I turned in the direction he was pointing. There they were. Zane's arm was wrapped around Isabel but his eyes found mine. A moment passed before I turned around.

I was not going to let them ruin my day.

"Alessandra! Wait up!" I heard Isabel yell.

Spoke too soon.

I turned around and gave her a smile. It would be expected that I resent her, but I didn't. None of this was Isabel's fault. She was just a girl who was trying to find happiness after she had lost it.

3 Years Ago

Sobs wracked her body as Isabel felt her heart breaking. This was true heartbreak. The kind where your heart splinters down the middle, damaged beyond repair. Isabel was wrapped in Zane's arms. Her face covered with hot, salty tears.

My parents and I stood on the side of our living room along with my brother. My mom was crying as she watched her daughter break down in front of her.

"Make it stop!!!" Isabel yelled.

"Isabel calm down," Zane said in a steady voice.

She wouldn't calm down though. I could feel it. My wolf could feel it. She was going to explode.

"Please just make it stop! Please!"

She grabbed at her chest as she fell to the floor. More sobs and tears came out of her. She tilted to the side and laid down on the floor of our living room. She cried and cried. The tears never stopped flowing.

If there was anyone in the world who didn't deserve this it was her. While I was never all that interested in meeting my mate, Isabel was. She loved him before she ever met him. Now she would never get the chance. He was dead, she could feel it.

My family looked at each other. The same thought on all of our minds.

Wolves don't survive this.

Zane kneeled down by Isabel. He held her and told her that he would be there for her and that it would all be ok. After all, he had experienced loss too.

This was all the beginning of their love story. I didn't know it at the time, but it was the end of mine.

It was cruel really. There's no worse fate than the death of a mate. However, the death of a mate you never got the chance to meet is so much worse.

It's what makes this whole thing worse. Even if Zane did want me, could I really take him from Isabel? She wouldn't survive. I know she wouldn't.

"There's my sister from the same mister!" Isabel said.

I smiled at her and we hugged.

"So have you sniffed out your mate yet?"

"No I don't think they are in our pack," the lie slipped out of my mouth smoothly.

"Oh that's alright! But you cannot switch packs Alessandra. When you find him he moves here with you," she tells me.

"Really? Why is that?"

"I would miss you too much silly, you're my twin."

"I guess I could stay for you then."

She laughed. Someone called her over and she walked over to them after waving goodbye to me. That's who she was, Isabel Romano, future luna of Blood Moon. Everyone loved her. She was the type of girl who attended all the events and was always there for her pack members. Isabel was luna material.

I couldn't compete with her. I liked being alone and I never planned on staying here anyway.

I would be a terrible luna.

That's not true, it's our destiny.

I shake the thoughts out of my head and go over to the makeshift bar to get myself a drink.

"Hey Alessia," Jaden said.

"Hey Jaden!"

We talk for a while about our lives. He is doing warrior training and I am training for the next race between all the packs. I forget about my worries for a minute when Jaden's beer spills all over me.

"Oh was that me? Sorry," Zane spoke with no remorse. Of course it was him.

"It's alright Alpha. Here Alessandra let me help you," Jaden said. He grabbed some napkins from the table and went to wipe them on me when they were snatched away from him.

"Jaden why don't you go somewhere else, I got this," Zane said.

"Oh it's ok, I can help Alessia with-"

"I said go," Zane responded. He didn't use his alpha command (goddess help us all when he actually became the alpha) but he didn't need to, authority bled through his tone leaving no room for arguments.

Jaden turned around and left with a confused look on his face.

"I don't need your help, Zane."

"I wasn't going to help you anyway."

"Then why did you chase away the guy that was actually going to?"

"I don't have to explain myself to you," with those parting words, he turned around and left.

Unbelievable.

Even from here, I could see him standing with his friends, shirtless. His bronze skin glistened in the sun. I also noticed that he was trying to kill Jaden with his eyes. He had a mean death stare on his face.

"There you are!" Lilia shouts at me.

"Here I am."

"Come on, I entered our names for that pushing game," she grabs my wrist and we walk closer to the water.

"Alessandra wait up!" I hear a voice call. I turn around and see Hiro.

"Hi?"

"Zane requests your presence at sundown in his office," he tells me. I don't even get to respond before he walks away.

"Why does he want to see you?" Lilia asks.

"I don't know," I answer.

What could he want from me?