Chapter 1

I lay on the cold floor, and every breath came shorter than the one before.

The edge of the silver statue had pierced through my back, tearing into my lung before reaching my heart, and I could feel the silver burning deeper with every heartbeat.

Blood kept sliding down my side, gathering slowly beneath me on the tile.

A few steps away, Celine was curled into Mother’s arms on the sofa. Her hands were pressed tightly over her ears, and her whole body kept shaking violently.

“She did it on purpose!” Celine suddenly cried. “She knows I cannot handle that sound! She wants me to have another seizure!”

The moment those words fell, Father’s face darkened.

“Iris, are you satisfied now? Your sister has barely been stable these past few days, yet you still found a way to set her off!”

“I did not do it on purpose.”

My voice was so weak that even I could barely hear it.

The silver statue shifted deeper into my back when I tried to move. A sharp pain spread through my chest, and I fell against the floor again.

Celine suddenly screamed and burst into louder cries.

“Get her out of here! Make her go away! Go away! I do not want to smell blood!”

Mother immediately pulled a blanket over Celine’s shoulders, then turned toward me with obvious impatience.

“Iris, can you not be sensible for once? Your sister is already in this state, yet you are still lying there making everyone look at you!”

I stared at her for a moment. The blood below me was getting larger, and my fingers had already gone cold. A wave of dizziness hit me, making the room spin for a moment.

“Mom…Dad… the silver is too close to my heart.”

Hearing this, Father frowned.

“Stop saying things like that. Celine is already terrified enough. Do you want her to think someone is dying in this house?”

Perhaps my words really had frightened her, because Celine suddenly cried louder.

She grabbed the cushion beside her and threw it toward the wall.

The cushion struck the family frame above the fireplace. The glass shattered, and the frame crashed to the floor.

“I told you she wants to scare me!” Celine buried her face against Mother’s chest. “She always does this! Every time I am finally calm, she finds a way to make everything worse!”

She was still shaking from the seizure, her cries coming between each uneven breath.

Mother lowered her head and stroked her hair, her voice becoming gentle in an instant.

“It is alright. Do not listen to her. The bad sister is gone now.”

Watching this, I suddenly remembered the night my wolf first woke.

I had run all the way home and burst through the door before I could even catch my breath.

“Mom! She’s here! My wolf, I felt her, she—”

Before I could finish, Mom’s eyes had already gone to the staircase, where Celine’s light was still on.

She crossed the kitchen and caught my shoulders.

“Quiet. Do you want your sister to hear you? She has not shifted yet, Iris. If she finds out your wolf came first, you know exactly what it will do to her. Do you want us pulling her out of a breakdown all night?”

“But Mom, I thought you would be—”

“You are the strong one.”

She stroked my hair, guilt sitting soft in her eyes.

“You have always been the strong one. This family needs you to be patient. Can you keep this to yourself? Just until your sister catches up?”

I nodded.

That night, I lay awake until morning with my wolf pacing inside me like something caged, and I did not make a sound.

To this day, no one in this house had ever asked my wolf’s name.

My breathing had gone quick and shallow, and the burning was closing around the center of my chest.

The silver poison was spreading deeper. My wolf fought against it, trying to heal the damage, but every attempt was met by another wave of burning pain.

“Mom,” I managed. “Please... it’s silver. My chest hurts.”

I tried to reach toward her, but my fingers only dragged a few inches across the floor.

Mom finally turned, a frown pulling at her face.

“Iris, stop performing. Can’t you see the state your sister is in? You have always wanted everyone’s attention. You have done it for as long as I can remember. Whatever game this is, it can wait.”

The moment her words fell, Celine’s screaming became louder.

“Get her out! Get her out of here!”

“My sweetheart, Daddy’s here. It’s okay.”

Father’s voice was impossibly gentle.

“Daddy’s already chased the bad sister away. No one’s going to hurt you!”

I wanted to tell him that I was the one being hurt.

The silver had already reached my heart.

My vision blurred as another wave of dizziness swept over me. My wolf was still fighting, but the silver was winning.

My fingers dragged weakly across the floor, leaving a thin streak of red behind them.