BEGINNING OF THE END.

CHAPTER 1: BEGINNING OF THE END.

KAYLAN'S POV.

For a brief moment, I shut my eyes. The slap stung like a bitch. The whizzing sound that rang in my head slowly faded with every passing second.

As I opened my eyes, I met the disdainful glare of Lady Regina — my stepmother.

"You keep lazing around, calling it training, and especially on a day such as this? When will you ever be useful around here?" Regina sneered.

"You're very much aware that we have delegates coming from the capital. We need all hands on deck, and you're no exception."

'Right. I'm not,' I scoffed within.

I was no better to her than a servant in my home of birth. Meanwhile, Camila, my stepsister, her daughter, had been out all day doing God-knows-what.

"Besides, what is a wolfless runt like you training for? Females are meant to be gentle, comely. Your duty is to make pups for whoever's unfortunate to claim you as their mate."

I looked down and said nothing to her.

"It's little wonder you turned out this way, being born of a mother like yours. It would be unrealistic of me to expect any different."

Now, that struck a nerve. I clenched my fists, my jaw tightened as I sulked, holding back the anger that welled up in me.

"Look what being a 'warrior got her. Well, unlike you, she wasn't wolfless, to say the least," she added, wearing a satisfied smirk.

I burned with fury, but I refrained from reacting. She was the Luna of our pack after all, the Silver Fang Pack, the second most powerful pack after the Iron Claw Pack, which is Alpha King's pack, in the King's domain.

This was a status our pack earned through the relentless sacrifice and commitment of my mother while she was alive, being the only female to rise through the ranks of the Allied Forces, attaining the second highest rank as Commander.

She defended our kind with all he might, running headfirst toward every threat that threatened us as a people, and as a race.

"Now go be useful for once and quit fooling around," Regina said. Deeply hurt, I quietly walked away.

As I got to my room, I locked the door and sat by the edge of my bed, curling up into a ball. I broke down in tears. I could never get used to being treated this way. It hurt even more than it did years ago.

I couldn't turn to my father for comfort. His complacency made me realize years ago that he stopped caring about me. Now his focus was mainly on strengthening his political hold and status — all of which would not have been possible without my mother's sacrifice.

'If only I were strong like my mother. If only I wasn't wolfless. Maybe all this wouldn't be happening,' I said to myself as I sat there in sorrowful solitude.

After a while, I heard my phone chime. It was beside me on the bedside table. I sighed softly and reached for the phone. I saw that I was notified of a reminder I had set two weeks ago.

"Meeting with Jace at Palms Hotel."

The notification angered me as I was reminded of something I could unsee — something I wish I had not witnessed. It totally broke and shattered me. It was what prompted me to go train, to take my mind off of it.

I woke up that morning, enthusiastic about getting to meet Jace after two months of not seeing each other. I freshened up and applied the cologne he told me he liked on me. He never failed to remind me how aroused he got whenever I wore it.

Heck, I even shaved.

I did all that just to find him thrusting his rock-hard dick from behind into someone else, instead of me. My jaw dropped when I saw whom he was fucking like his life depended on it.

"Camila?" I muttered in disbelief, taken aback by what I saw. My heart was shattered to a thousand pieces.

"Does her pussy grip your dick as tightly as mine does?" Camila asked, moaning.

"No, baby," Jace replied, his voice deepened. That's how he got whenever we were having sex, and he was trying to last longer.

"Tell me I'm all yours," Camila requested.

"You're all mine, baby," he replied.

I turned away from the door and headed out. I could still hear the clapping of her butt cheeks. Well, maybe it was in my head. I couldn't tell.

They didn't even notice when I came in and left.

I cried myself to sleep on the floor in my room.

____________

I jerked awake when I heard a knock on the door. It startled me.

"My Lady?" A familiar voice called. It was Agnes, the Stewardess of our household.

I got up from the floor and wiped my face. I took a deep breath as I walked to the door, trying to compose myself.

I opened the door slightly and stuck my head out only.

"The guests have started arriving, my Lady. I think it's best you get ready soon," Agnes informed me.

"Thank you," I nodded softly, then I shut the door. I sighed again as I walked back in and fell face up, looking at the ceiling.

I wished I could skip the ball, but I had no choice. Everyone who hated me for one reason or the other was going to be there.

I freshened up and got dressed, wearing the appropriate attire for the occasion. But my choice of color was black.

I tried to go unnoticed as I arrived at the hall, but the prying eyes of naysayers caught sight of me.

Gossip arose as they threw stares at me. I ignored them and walked up to where my father and Lady Regina were. They seemed to be having the time of their lives as they chatted with the delegation from the capital.

Jace, of course, was among the delegates. He was elegantly dressed, standing there with his father, Lord Magnus, the Alpha King's brother.

"Father. My Lords," I greeted with a courteous bow.

"Lady Kaylan," Jace responded with a smile. I reciprocated the gesture just for the sake of my father.

"Kaylan has grown. The spitting image of her mother — a fine warrior who is missed to this day," Lord Magnus said.

"She better hope she finds a mate real soon. But I wonder how she'd do that with all the manly things she's into," my stepmother said.

"Commander Kiera found Nolan, didn't she? So why wouldn't she?" Lord Magnus replied.

Regina scoffed, rolling her eyes. "I'd be as optimistic as you are were she half the woman her mother was."

"Can you both stop talking about Kiera?" Father requested.

"Of course, darling," Regina smiled, then she eyed me.

"By the way, where is Camila?" Lord Felton, another delegate, asked.

Just then the doors to the hall swung open, and everyone turned their attention there.

It was Camila. She had just arrived.

"Speak of the devil," Regina smiled, beaming with pride.

As always, Camila wanted to be the center of attention, hence the dramatic entrance and the effort she put in to adorn herself beautifully.

Well, her plan succeeded. Everyone looked at her in awe.

She walked up to where we stood and courteously greeted everyone, starting with our father.

"My goodness. Camila has bloomed into a fine young lady," Lord Magnus remarked admirably.

"The apple didn't fall far from the tree," Regina said proudly. "I raised her intentionally and properly, knowing she was destined for great things."

"Cheers to great parenting," Lord Felton said, raising a glass and sipping a bit of the drink.

"Please, if you'll excuse me," I requested, forcing a smile as I turned and walked away. I couldn't stand being there. It was annoying to see how Camila and Jace subtly threw stares at each other, acting as though they didn't know each other.

I grabbed a drink from a server and walked out of the hall, leaving all the chatter and soft music that played. I walked to the fountain and sat down. I chugged the entire drink in two gulps and sighed.

I stared up at the stars, trying not to let my thoughts wander.

"Mind if I join you?"

Without looking, I knew who it was. It was the last person I wanted to run into that night.

I closed my eyes for a second and sighed, pursing my lips. "Sure."

Camila sat beside me, smiling. "Beautiful night, isn't it?"

I didn't respond to her.

"By the way, I like your dress. Unique design. Where'd you get it?" she asked further, turning toward me.

"Why are you here, Camila?" I asked.

"Can't I just look at the stars with my sister?" she asked, pursing her lips as she made puppy-dog eyes at me. But I scoffed.

"I don't have time for this." I got up to leave.

"He's mine now, you know," Camila said, making me halt and look at her. She stood up and walked toward me.

"Jace. He is mine now."

Anger welled up in me, but I did my best to suppress it.

"I knew you were at the door. The atmosphere reeked of your scent the moment you came in," Camila said.

"It's quite unfortunate you left early. You missed the best part," she smirked, then she pulled up the sleeve of her dress and revealed something that made my heart skip. Tears began welling up in my eyes.

"He— He—"

"Yes, dear sister. Jace marked me," Camila completed the sentence.

I didn't want to feel hurt, but I couldn't help it.

I was the one he promised to mark. Several times, I nudged him to do it, but he kept on procrastinating. I finally knew why.

"He marked me just as he shut his load into me at the point of ecstasy, yelling my name," Camila added, infuriating me even more.

I lost it. I didn't know when I pushed her. Normally, she wouldn't have fallen. Her awakened wolf made her stronger than me. So I wondered why she fell that easily.

To my utter surprise, she pulled out a curved blade and used it to stab herself.

"What the hell, Camila?!"

"Now, let's see whom they believe," she said, wearing a devious smile.

She suddenly began screaming out in pain. "Help! Somebody help! Help!"

My heart raced at this point as folks began rushing over.