Chapter 3

Arwen was trembling uncontrollably. His lips quivered, but he couldn't force out a single word.

He clearly remembered that after the fire five years ago, everyone told him that it was Sienna who'd risked her life and braved the flames to save him.

When he opened his eyes after the disaster, Sienna was the first wolf he saw. She'd held him and wept about how terrified she'd been, claiming that she'd overcome all fear just for him.

As for me, I was covered in wounds and barely alive when the healers carried me back to the pack. I spent two weeks unconscious in that hut with my life hanging by a thread before finally waking up.

Everyone assumed I'd simply gotten hurt from recklessly running around, including Arwen. He'd even harshly scolded me for it, calling me immature for always causing trouble and saying that I was nothing like the brave and kind Sienna.

Now, the memory crystal laid the bloody truth bare before him.

Sienna's face had gone pale as well. She clutched Lorcan's arm and frantically explained, "N-No… That's not what happened… I was there, too… I was just too scared…"

Lorcan frowned. He looked at the bloody version of me in the memory, then at Arwen's ashen face. For the first time, doubt flickered in his eyes.

Maverick stood up as well, looking utterly shell-shocked. "I-Is this real? Velda…"

I was losing strength. The stabbing pain in my head came in waves, each stronger than the last.

I could feel my wolf mourning and slowly weakening, but the memory crystal would not stop there. It would keep draining my life until it'd played every core memory tied to the three werewolves or until I died.

…

The memory crystal flashed again and began to extract the second memory.

This time, the light was focused on Lorcan on the tribune. His heart sank as a cold, ominous dread washed over him.

The vision shifted to the Alpha's bedroom three years ago.

Lorcan lay on the bed, convulsing violently. Black veins spread from his heart across his entire body.

His eyes were shut tight, and his breathing was faint.

"It's wolfbane," the pack healer announced in a voice heavy with defeat. "I can't cure the giant wolfsbane's toxin."

Lorcan's expression turned as grim as Arwen's. He remembered this scene perfectly.

Three years ago, during a battle with a rival pack, he'd walked straight into an ambush and been poisoned.

The entire pack had been utterly helpless. Everyone believed he was going to die, and that the Moonshadow pack was about to lose its Alpha.

In the memory, Sienna knelt by his head and wailed in anguish. Arwen and Maverick stood nearby, looking grim and solemn.

As for me, I was there, looking at Lorcan as he lay dying. Then, I turned and walked out of the room.

When Sienna saw me leave, she immediately turned to Arwen. "Look at her, Arwen. Lorcan's dying, and she doesn't even care at all."

Arwen watched me walk away with eyes full of bitter disappointment.

The vision followed me as I sprinted out of the pack grounds and into Black Marsh, where the legendary witch was said to live.

Black Marsh was filled with danger. A toxic miasma drifted through the air, and it was a forbidden land no werewolf dared tread.

Still, I rushed straight in without hesitation. The mud of the swamp quickly swallowed my legs up to my knees.

Step by treacherous step, I struggled through the filth until I finally arrived at a small wooden shack covered in tangled vines. That was where I met the legendary witch.

She was as shriveled as a dead branch, but her eyes shone with a sharp light.

"What do you want, little pup?" she asked.

I dropped to my knees before her and pleaded in a shaking voice, "Please save my fated mate. He's been poisoned by a giant wolfsbane."

The witch let out a harsh, cackling laugh. "I can save him, but what will you give me in return? My help doesn't come cheap."

I lifted my head and met her eyes with an unwavering gaze. "I'll give anything to save him."

The witch studied me as a strange smile curled her lips. "Sure.

"Your wolf is remarkably strong and full of life. You're sturdier than most wolves, and your body heals faster, too.

"So here's the deal—I'll save him, and in exchange, you'll give me your health.

"From this day forward, your body will be frail. You'll be plagued by constant sickness and will never again endure the rigors of battle. Your wolf will become brittle, and every shift will bring you agonizing pain.

"Do you accept?"