The Scapegoat

Alejandra's POV

I hated her. Sometimes I wanted to make her disappear from all our family portrait, or wished she had never been born. Because of her, even all member didn't recognize me. They weren't sure if I was her elder sister or the youngest. They hated me as much as I hated her. But everyone adored and praised her.

"She is the incarnation of the Moon Goddess in the body of a girl."

"She is the one who will bring blessings to the pack when she finds her mate."

"She is the owner of pure alpha blood and has found an alpha mate from one of the strongest packs. Clearly, she is the one who will rule the world."

All that praise was not directed at me, but at my twin sister, Alexis. As for me...

"She must be a cursed child. Her eye color is different from her sister and family."

"Do you believe she is your twin sister? You two are so different. She is... terrifying."

... and various other insults that I could not accept. However, I had to. Especially when, at the age of eighteen, Alexis had already found her wolf and mate, who was the talk of many women and more than a hundred packs because of his tactical skills, intelligence, and good looks.

They began to gossip and influence my mother, who had always been on my side.

"Are you sure you haven't found your wolf yet?" my mother asked for the umpteenth time, and I couldn't even bring myself to nod. Well, I hadn't found my mate either.

When Alexis had already experienced mating at the age of eighteen and gotten her mark, I was just a laughing stock.

Why was I different? Why did they treat me differently?

"You are twins, and I am the witness. It's just that you were in different placentas, so you are not completely identical." My granny once said. But, the phrase "not completely identical" was quite hurtful when directed at me, of course. Even though the only difference was the color of our eyes.

And one more thing... Alexis had an ideal posture, while I...

"Ale, come with me," Alexis said at the time. I was busy with my pencil and sketchbook as usual, and she pulled my hand. "Come on... it'll be fun. You should do it with me more often so you can be slimmer. You know, all the members are talking about your weight and... eye."

I could probably force myself to lose weight, as she said, to be "slimmer." But my eye color... should I wear contact lenses? Would that change everyone's perception that I'm no longer a cursed child?

"No, Lex. I'm busy. You go ahead without me."

It wouldn't be Alexis if she didn't insist. She always got what she wanted since she was a child. If she couldn't get it, then my father and mother would do everything to make it happen.

She pulled me into a red sports car with an open roof, letting my hair fly in the wind along the way, until we arrived at an unfamiliar location.

She forced me again. This time to get out and pull me into the forest.

We arrived at a natural pool with crystal clear water that revealed its bottom. It was a beautiful lake that I had never visited before. The sparkling surface of the water tempted me to take off my clothes and jump in. Alexis laughed at my enthusiasm.

"I told you, it's fun!" She jumped in too. "Woo-hoo! I'm going to soak all day."

At first, I laughed at Lex's antics. But a moment later, I froze. A strange feeling suddenly crept over me. I looked around and found a sign not far from the lake. The pack borders sign.

"Lex! Are you crazy?!" I immediately got out of the pool and put my clothes on. "We're at the edge of the pack's territory, Lex! If Dad finds out—"

"He won't know as long as you don't say anything. I come here often and everything is fine. Come on..."

"No. I'm going home."

"Ale! You're no fun!"

"Lex, don't get me in trouble. Get out of the water now or I'll leave you behind." I insisted, but she just smiled mockingly. "Fine! I'm leaving."

I stomped my feet and walked away from the lake. However, before I got very far, I heard Alexis scream, which made me turn around. The rogues was there, pulling her out of the lake and starting to do what I never imagined. They stripped Alexis of her clothes and were about to rape her.

With all my courage, I jumped towards them, pulled a dagger from my pocket, and fought off the five wild wolves that were about to rape my sister. However, there were many of them, they were men, and they had strength that I could not match. Meanwhile, I... I was a disabled she-wolf.

They attacked me, tearing my clothes, skin, and flesh, making me their plaything before returning to Alexis, who lay on the ground weakly. I watched her for a moment before finally losing consciousness.

When I woke up, I only found Alexis's blood-stained clothes, and even though I howled her name, I never found her.

Neither could Dad or any of the others found her. Alexis disappeared as if swallowed by the earth, and everyone was forced to assume she was dead based on the evidence I had.

Since then, my world has been different.

***

I placed a bouquet of lilies on the mound of earth with a marble gravestone engraved with the name "Alexis Quinn." Not only every day, I even came every moment if I could. However, showing my grief did not make them believe that I was innocent.

My trial was about to take place. They might sentence me to death for harming my twin sister out of jealousy.

Jealousy? I didn't even know what jealousy was. I was neither upset nor happy about her happiness. It felt normal. So, what is jealousy like?

"Even after several months, you still don't believe me," I said when one of the prosecutors asked a question that seemed accusatory. I had no answer because the last thing I saw before I fainted was them taking turns raping Alexis. After that, I don't know what happened.

"How can we believe you when all the evidence and motives point to you? Only you could have disliked her."

"Why would I dislike my twin sister?"

"Because you don't have what Alexis has."

I snorted. This was ridiculous. No matter how many times I defended myself, they would still declare me guilty.

Alright, I do hate her. Wishing she never existed. However, if it was indeed my goal to eliminate her, I have done it a long time ago.

"Fine. It's up to you. I won't admit I'm guilty because I'm not. I was unconscious, and when I woke up, she was gone. Just sentence me to death. That's better," I said, and they were ready to strike the gavel. However, Dad stood up and stopped them.

"Wait! She must take responsibility for this mess. Especially, in our pack," Dad said and I wasn't surprised at all because it was him who brought this case to the pack trial which ultimately dragged me as a suspect. He just kept silent because he thought I was the one who killed his beloved daughter.

Everyone was waiting for the follow-up sentence that he seemed to have prepared. And sure enough.

"She must replace Alexis to marry Alpha Kyle, or else the alliance between our pack and theirs will be canceled and a great war may ensue," he added.

I shook my head in disagreement with Dad's opinion this time. I was usually obedient, but not today. Everyone ended up making me a scapegoat and... Kyle would never accept his decision.

"No, Dad. I can't marry him. He's Alexis' mate and—" Dad approached me, staring at me intently so that my sentence was left unfinished, hanging on the tip of my tongue.

"You have no right to defend yourself or argue, Alejandra Quinn. I am the alpha here and the decision is mine. You must marry Alpha Kyle, no matter what. Period," he said in his alpha's voice. But I'd never been afraid of him since I was a kid.

"He would never accept me as his wife. Please don't do this, Dad..."

The words I was about to say stopped when I heard footsteps and the door opened. A tall, sturdy figure stood there with a stern, expressionless. His gaze was fixed on me as he stepped closer. He extended his hand, but his expression was unreadable to me.

"Who said I don't agree with this marriage?" he asked in a flat tone that made me frown. "I wait for this moment for so long. Let's go home now and prepare for our wedding, Alejandra Quinn."