Chapter 4

Ayla’s POV

The moment the words left my mouth, it felt like I was split in two halves with a sword. My body trembled, my chest tightening so hard that it was difficult to breathe. I coughed up blood again, my body weak as I slumped to the ground. They ignored me and went on with the ceremony. Julian was crowned Alpha, a wave of shock spread through my body when he named Elena his Luna.

She stepped out of the crowd, her heels making sharp, echoing clicks against the marble. Stopping right beside me, she crouched down and gave a low menacing laugh. “Oh, poor thing. To think that you actually believed you would become Alpha. Tsk tsk, pity.”

I was already so weak, the pain from the bond severing, the betrayal playing before me now was just too much to bear. Still, i clenched my jaw, refusing to let a single tear drop down my cheek. Julian didn’t just name her his Luna; he marked her right there in front of everyone, declaring her his chosen mate. The crowd cheered, happy for them, totally forgetting about me slumped in the corner, fighting a silent battle against the pain ripping through my soul.

I reached for my necklace, slowly touching it, praying deep in my mind for a miracle to happen. Nothing happened. Then, Elder Vagner’s voice thundered through the hall once more.“ Now that we have a new Alpha and Luna, It is time to rid the pack of evil. Ayla Reed was so desperate to rule this pack. And out of that desperation, she murdered her own parents.”

A broken, sad laugh escaped my lips. They had stolen my throne, now they are framing me.

‘I’ve always said it, she is cursed! So evil!’ someone yelled from the crowd.

‘Someone that beautiful shouldn’t exist, I’ve always known there was something off about her.’Another followed.

‘Behead her! she doesn’t deserve forgiveness.’

How did I not see all of this, how did I not see the signs? Now I have lost everything.

Then, I heard him. The one man I was willing to sacrifice everything for, “Since she was the former heir of the shadow blade pack, I’ll be lenient with my judgment.” Julian said, turning around to face me. “You have been demoted to an omega slave. You shall serve everyone in this pack for the rest of your life.”

Lucian’s POV

“Mmmm.” I groaned as satisfaction washed over me, the delicious energy of human souls absorbing directly into my veins. Shifting back into my human form, I looked down at the floor. The bodies were already gone, reduced to brittle skeletons.

“Dispose of them.” I ordered my assistant as I walked out of the underground chamber, headed back to the mansion. Having lived centuries in total Isolation from all pack politics and other supernatural bullshit, I had managed to keep my real identity hidden, only but a trusted few knew what I really was.

“Master Vane” the housekeeper greeted the moment I stepped into my master suite.

“What, Vera?” I asked. Stepping into my walk-in closet, draping a silk shirt over my body.

“The mansion is short-staffed. I intend to recruit more servants, I need your permission for that.” She explained, keeping her gaze to the floor.

“Do as you please, Vera. Just do not let them wander into places they are not supposed to.” I said. She bowed respectfully, walking out of the room. It was past midnight, I always feed at midnight—a centuries old ritual, the only thing that has kept my demonic side tightly in check.

I sat down at my dark oak work desk, going through files and company reports. A soft knock echoed before my assistant stepped in.

“Master”

I lifted my head up. “Is it done, Caleb?”

He nodded, carefully dropping a stack of surveillance photos on the desk. “Mr Thomas was indeed involved in the smuggling. I discovered too late, my apologies.

I scoffed. My jaw tightening as I scanned the photos. He actually dared to steal from me.

“If I had known earlier, you could have added him to the group I just fed on.” I muttered, a dark smile touching my lips. “A soul like his is always full of deceit, just the kind I love.” I tossed the photos aside. “What about his family?”

“They are currently in my custody, Master.”

I lay back in my seat, a smirk playing on my face.

“What do you think, Caleb? Do we Release them… or should I absorb their souls too?”

Ayla’s POV

The guards brutally shoved me into the maids quarters, a small, untidy room, laughing as they slammed the door shut. Bruised and alone in the dark, I let out a soft, broken laugh, my heart burning with hatred and vengeance. The intense pain in my body had reduced to a dull ache: thank goodness I accepted the rejection, else the pain would have killed me by now.

The pain of betrayal still piercing through every bone in my body. I stayed in the room until it was dark, the celebration noises had died down. The guards all left their posts, still drowning in the mood of the ceremony. I slowly dragged my bruised, weak body off the ground and headed to the kitchen, grabbed a knife before walking to Julian’s room. Every step I took was filled with undiluted, pure rage. They think I am weak. I’ll show them weak.

As I drew closer, soft muffled sounds echoed in the hallway—the intensified sound of skin slapping against skin, followed by loud, breathless groans. “Aahh~ ohh~ just like that… deeper,” Elena’s moans echoed through the heavy iron doors.

I slowly pushed the door open and walked in. Elena was straddling Julian, riding him so fiercely as he was buried balls deep inside of her, his hands locked onto her hips, their bodies rubbing against each other. My sudden entrance caught them off guard, before they could even react, a surge of adrenaline tore through my entire body.

Gritting my teeth, I Lunged forward taking them by surprise, dragged Elena off him, throwing her across the room. She hit the wall, slumping to the floor unconscious. Before Julian could react, I brought the knife down, slashing it deep across his face. He screamed in pain, holding his face as red crimson liquid streaked through his fingers.

“Die, you bastard!” I yelled.

Aware that the guards would come any moment, i limped to the window, jumped down, tearing past the iron gates, ignoring the intense pain in my body, running into the woods. I kept running for a long time until my lungs burned. Then I suddenly heard sounds of heavy footsteps behind me. Without looking back, I increased my pace until I reached the dead end of the cliff before coming to a halt. I turned around to look at the massive number of Guards holding blazing tourches.

Elena stepped out from the crowd, wiping a drop of blood from her lips, a low menacing laugh escaping her lips. “Oh, darling. I never knew you had it in you” she mocked, her smile widening in triumph. “You actually attacked your lovely mate.”

“Why?” I choked out, my heart twisting in pain. “Why did you treat me like this?”

“Please, Ayla. I’ve always hated you.” She chuckled, a dangerous glint flashing in her eyes. “You were spoilt from childhood, even though you were wolfless, you had everything. Status. Beauty. A loving family. So I decided to take everything from you. One. By. One.”

I blinked hard as the truth was beginning to dawn on me. “You… you killed my family?”

“Take a wild guess.” She laughed, a low chuckle that made the leaves rustle, “Did you think I’d let you run tonight and come back later in future to take back your throne?” Oh, think again darling.

“You betrayed me.” I whispered, tears blurring my vision.

“I’ll tell you a little secret before I send you off,” she said, grabbing my shoulder roughly, and pulling me closer to whisper in my ears. “It was me, All of it. The plots, everything. Julian was the one you saw that night—he murdered your mother the night after he found out you were his mate. The murder attempt on your life before your father’s returning? That was Julian. As for your father… well, I just gave him a little poison to speed things up.”

I froze, my breath catching completely in my throat. Before I could utter a word, I felt a sharp sting on my stomach, my breath hitched as I looked down, gasping. Elena had stabbed me with a knife, the same knife I used to injure Julian.

“Goodbye, Ayla.”

she shoved me hard, my legs left the ground as I fell off the cliff, her confession still lingering and buried deep in my head.