Chapter 2

Hazel's Pov 

The men dragged me out of the car and started pulling me toward another vehicle. I fought against them with everything I had, twisting and struggling to free myself from their grip.

“Ian! Dad!” I screamed, my voice breaking as I looked back at them.

One of the men grabbed Dad and pulled him out of the car while another went straight for Ian. He lifted Ian over his shoulder as if he weighed nothing. “Hazel!” Ian cried.

They dragged me to the other car and threw me into the trunk. My body hit the hard surface, and before I could even sit up, the trunk slammed shut, leaving me trapped in complete darkness.

A few minutes later, I felt the car start moving. I curled myself into a corner, tears running freely down my cheeks as Ian's cries echoed in my head. 

I should have known better, there was no way I could return to Western Sun without him finding out.

The Lycan King owned almost the entire continent. There was nowhere I could hide from him for long. I had spent years trying to stay away from this world, convincing myself that if I stayed far enough away, I could keep my family safe.

Now, because I had come back, my father and Ian had been dragged into it too. I pressed my hand over my mouth, trying to hold back another sob.

The journey seemed to last forever. I had no idea how many hours had passed before the car finally slowed down and came to a stop.

The engine went quiet, for a few seconds, there was nothing but silence.Then the trunk opened. Before I could adjust to the light, two men grabbed me and pulled me out.

I looked around, and my heart immediately sank. My suspicion was confirmed, this was the Lycan King's palace.

Even through the fear running through me, I couldn't deny how massive the place was. The compound stretched farther than I could see, with more than a hundred expensive cars parked across the grounds. The mansion itself was enormous, far bigger than anything I had ever seen back in my father's pack.

But I couldn't bring myself to admire any of it, my mind immediately went to Ian and Dad. I desperately hoped they were still alive. I hoped the men hadn't hurt them. I hoped they hadn't been killed because of me.

The men dragged me through the enormous entrance and into the mansion. I barely had time to look around before one of them shoved me forward.

I fell hard onto the floor of the living area. I caught myself with my hands, pain shooting through my palms. When I looked up, more than ten men were standing around me, their guns pointed directly at me.

Then I heard footsteps behind me. I turned quickly. My father was being dragged into the room. “Dad!” They shoved him onto the floor beside me.

I immediately crawled toward him, my hands trembling as I grabbed his arm. “Dad, are you okay?” He looked shaken and exhausted, but he was alive. I quickly looked around the room again, Ian was nowhere to be seen.

My heart dropped. “Where is Ian?” I asked, my voice trembling. “Do you know where he is?”

Dad shook his head slowly. “We were separated before we got here,” he said.

I lowered my head as tears filled my eyes again. “I am so sorry,” I whispered.

Dad looked at me.

“I shouldn't have come here,” I continued, wiping my tears with the back of my hand. “I shouldn't have dragged you into this. You had nothing to do with any of this, and now you're here because of me.”

There was no way they had brought us all the way to the Lycan King's palace just to let us walk out. I had a horrible feeling that I wasn't going to survive this. And if they decided to kill me, there was a good chance they would kill Dad too.

The door to the living area suddenly opened, the moment Blade Voss stepped inside, my eyes met his. I immediately looked down.

I didn't need anyone to tell me who he was. His presence alone was enough to silence the entire room. The air seemed to grow heavier the moment he walked in, and the men standing around us became even more still.

His aura was terrifying. Even my father, who had always tried to appear strong in front of me, shifted nervously beside me.

King Blade walked toward us slowly, his footsteps echoing across the large room. He stopped directly in front of us, and for a few seconds, he said nothing.

Then his deep voice filled the room. “Finally. After eight years of hiding from me, I finally have you in front of me.”

“Look at me.” My body reacted before my mind could. I slowly raised my head and looked into his eyes.

Blade Voss was an incredibly handsome man. The kind of man people would probably stare at if they saw him from a distance. His features were almost too perfect, as if the Moon Goddess had created him carefully and given him everything she could think of.

But there was nothing beautiful about him to me, he was a monster. A ruthless king who had ruled through fear for years. People whispered that his cruelty was the reason he had been cursed, though no one dared say it to his face. Looking at him now, I understood why people were afraid of him.

“I didn't do anything,” I said, my voice trembling. A sharp slap suddenly landed across my face.

My head snapped to the side, and I fell hard onto the floor. Pain spread across my cheek as tears immediately filled my eyes. “You do not speak unless you are spoken to,” the man who had slapped me said coldly.

I held my cheek, staring at the floor. “You killed my niece,” He said, his voice filled with anger. “You burned her body and disappeared. And after eight years, you still have the courage to stand here and tell me you did nothing?”

I shook my head quickly. I wanted to defend myself, but fear kept the words trapped in my throat. I couldn't risk being slapped again.

“Speak!” His voice made me flinch.

“I swear I didn't kill her,” I finally said, my voice breaking. “I don't know what happened that night. I was at the party, but I fell asleep. I didn't know anything had happened until the next morning.” 

Blade stared at me with cold, unforgiving eyes. “You invited Gianna to that party because you had already planned to kill her.”

“No,” I whispered, shaking my head. “That's not true.”

He took a step closer. “Enough with the lies.” I immediately fell silent.

“No lie is going to save you this time,” he continued. “You ran from me for eight years, but now that I have you, you will answer for what happened to my niece.” My entire body trembled, then his expression hardened. “I will make sure your entire bloodline pays for what you did.”

I turned toward my father, fear written all over my face. My father swallowed hard before clearing his throat. “My King.” King Blade slowly turned his attention toward him.

My father lowered his head. “I have fulfilled my part of the bargain,” he said carefully, his voice shaking. “I brought her to you like I promised. So please, settle what you owe me and let me leave.”

 I stared at my father in complete shock. My mind struggled to process what I had just heard. He had betrayed me, he had made a deal with the Lycan King and deliberately brought me here.

“You planned all of this with him?” I asked, disbelief filling my voice.

My father looked at me without a trace of guilt. “Of course I did,” he replied coldly. “You disappeared for eight years to be with that woman you call your mother, even though you knew exactly how much I hate her. You didn't contact me once during all those years.”

Tears blurred my vision. “I am your daughter,” I whispered.

“You stopped being my daughter the moment you chose her over me,” he said. “For eight years, I got nothing from you. Then I was given an opportunity to hand you over to the king, and you expect me to turn it down after everything he promised me?”

I stared at him, my heart breaking inside my chest. “You're a terrible human being,” I cried. “How could you do this to me? I'm your daughter!”

“Not anymore.” He glanced away from me. “And thankfully, I still have a son who is worth something.”

I covered my mouth as a sob escaped me. I couldn't believe the man in front of me was my father.

Before I could say anything else, Blade cleared his throat, both my father and I turned toward him. He had been watching us silently. “I want to understand something,” he said calmly. “Why did you kill Gianna? Was it jealousy? Anger? Something else?”

I shook my head immediately. “I didn't kill her.”

Blade studied my face. “Your phone was found with her, and several people saw the two of you arguing that night.”

“I know what you heard, but I didn't kill her.”

He remained silent for a moment, then he slowly reached inside his coat. My eyes followed his hand. When he pulled out a gun, my entire body went cold.

Blade raised it and pointed it directly at my father's head.

“Wait…” I said. 

“For every lie you tell me,” Blade said calmly, “someone from your family will die.”

My father's face was drained of color.

“I'll start with your father,” Blade continued. “Then I will move on to your younger brother.” My father stared at the gun in disbelief, he had clearly never expected this.

“You promised—” 

Blade cut him off with a cold look. “You thought handing her over to me would make you safe?” My father's lips parted, but no words came out. “You betrayed your own daughter for money and power,” Blade continued. “Both of you are betrayers. Neither of you deserves my mercy.”

My father started shaking violently. “My King, please…”

Blade ignored him and turned his attention back to me. He lowered the gun slightly but kept it trained on my father. “I'll ask you one more time,” he said. “Why did you kill Gianna? What did she do to you?”

I shook my head desperately, tears streaming down my face. “I didn't kill—”

The gunshot exploded through the room, my father's body jerked violently before collapsing to the floor.

I screamed, Blade looked at me without any emotion. “Wrong answer.” He raised the gun again. “And now, your brother.”