Chapter 4

Hazel's POV

The iron bars of the cell rattled as they dragged me roughly from the cold stoned floor. My wrists ached from the tight cuffs they had worn on my hands, the metal biting and tugging into my skin. I stumbled, catching myself against the wall, heart pounding with a mix of fear and anger at the same time.

Get moving,” one of the guards barked, shoving me forward. 

I shot a defiant glare at him, but it didn't do so much as a sinister laughter followed. It was almost as if they enjoyed my helplessness, a traitor’s daughter in their grip under their absolute mercy.

“Please listen to me. I didn't do anything. Francis was my mate. How could I kill him? I didn't do it. Someone must have set me up. Please listen to me." I begged uncontrollably, hopeful for at least some kind of sympathy.

“Just give me a chance to prove to you that I'm telling the truth, please,” I cried. 

He raised an eyebrow, amused. “You think you deserve a say in this? You’re the daughter of traitors.”

Daughter of traitors?

How? 

Mom, Dad, Traitors? 

That's not possible.

They couldn't be traitors. They swore their loyalty to the pack and would never do anything that brought harm to the pack, no matter what.

“There must be some kind of mistake, my parents would never do such a thing. They aren't traitors.” I looked up at the guard praying for a chance of heart.

He scoffed a laugh. "You claim innocence, yet you were found with a dead body in your arms.You murderer! Do you expect anyone to believe you?"

“I didn’t kill him!” I cried, desperation creeping into my voice. “Francis was dead when I found him.”

The guard's mocking smile deepened, and all I could feel was mere frustration wash over me. Why wouldn’t anyone believe me? 

Before I could voice another protest, a figure dressed in finely woven fabrics of high rank emerged from the hall down the cell. It was our pack’s Beta-Kael.

His presence brought an instant pause to their laughs, their composure immediately shifting uneasily at his approach.

He gave the guards a quick and stern look, and immediately they followed behind. They went to a corner not so far from my cell; their voices were an intended whisper, but I could hear them regardless. 

“Alpha Xavier has ordered all the women present for his coronation. All including her,” Kael spoke.

“But she's a criminal, there's no way someone like her should even live for another day, let alone be allowed to attend the coronation.” The guard replied, his eyes widened in disbelief.

Coronation?

Ever since I was little, I had heard the coronation was a sacred event, especially after the Alpha's hibernation. It was the night the Alpha's new Luna, his fated mate, would be announced.

Why would the Alpha request my presence? 

Maybe he wanted to give me a chance to defend myself.

The thought was something I knew was naive and almost impossible— a flicker of hope that was quickly extinguished immediately after.

I had never seen the Alpha since, but words from the pack said that he was a ruthless leader with a different personality from all other Alpha's before him. 

He wouldn't have any use for someone like me. So why?

Kael hissed before darting his eyes back to me. His eyes filled with nothing but hatred. “Unfortunately, that was his order; afterwards we can pass judgment as we should.”

With those final words, he left, disappearing into the shadows of the cell hall, leaving me alone to battle with my thoughts. 

The guard gave me a final glare before unlocking the cell gate and pulling me through the corridors.

“Consider yourself lucky,” he spat, hate prominent in his voice.

“Hopefully Alpha Xavier will punish you for your crimes, you murderer,” the other guard spoke, a smile creeping on his wrinkled face. 

Punish? My eyes widened in fear at the thought of the Alpha himself passing judgment directly to me.

******

The entire forest was shining brightly, the moon casting its beautiful glow at the packed ground. The tall trees and grasses shimmered in the cold night. 

The evening was not only marked as a coronation for the Alpha but an ancient tradition of the pack till this day.

When we finally reached the forest, the scents of rich foods and quietness filled the air. It was like my presence had interrupted the entire event.

I was still being pulled by the guard, my chains clinking like a bell of doom.

The crowd's eyes immediately turning towards me, their expressions shifting from one of joy and excitement to disdain.

The entire air changed in that instant. I felt like a ghost, moving towards a path that I couldn’t control. I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was being paraded as a warning—a reminder of what betrayal could lead to.

I could feel the crowd surge around me. But I was lost, drowning in confusion and fear. I caught glimpses of their faces—some of them turned away in disgust, others whispered to my face, pointing hands to me, but all of them were watching me with hate evident on their faces. 

I could feel the tears I was trying too hard to hold leaking out through my eyelids. 

I was lonely and hated even more than before. No family, no mate. I was completely alone in this world. 

As if the bullying I faced from the pack members earlier for my rank wasn't enough. Not now.

Not only was I the pack's Omega, I was now labeled a murderer and the traitors’ daughter to them as well.

Then I felt it—a gaze that pinned me in place. Scanning the crowd, my eyes finally locked onto a pair of silver gray eyes. A shiver ran down my bones, igniting me from within—something I had felt before but this time more intense, more fierce and profound—a connection…

Mate.