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I sucked in a shaky breath, trying to contain the overwhelming power that hit me like a thunderbolt as Desmond and his friends howled with laughter.

“Leave her alone, Desmond,” one of the younger boys muttered, but it was half-hearted. No one stood up to Desmond. Not really. They preferred to lick his ass since he was the next Alpha of the most powerful and popular pack in the northern territory.

He could do no wrong in the Alpha’s eyes, and the Pack Elders turned a blind eye to his cruel actions since it was aimed at me “the cursed, half-blood”

I didn’t dare confide in my stepmother. She wouldn't believe me and would want to investigate but by then, my father would have heard of it eventually, and he’d twist the story until I became the villain.

I still regretted the last time I tried to speak out against Desmond.

It didn’t matter how cruel he was, how twisted he was upstairs, he was Pureblood. The first and only son of Alpha Darrin Sterling.

Power and Blood forgave everything here. Bloodline was law. And as long as his father sat at the top, no one dared challenge him.

This wasn’t just about one spoiled prince. It was the whole pack system. Rotten to the bone.

Nobody ever questioned the Alpha. He was too powerful, too smart, and the only thing standing between them and the extreme dangers beyond.

“Or what?” Desmond shot back. “She's gonna shift and fight me?”

Laughter erupted once more.

I joined in, laughing harder and louder.

This caught Desmond’s attention, and when our eyes met, I stared coldly at him.

I began to visualize him choking and for a moment, I believed he grasped his neck, suffocating and gasping for breath as his eyes bled out blood.

And it began to happen right in front of me.

His friends froze. The laughter died.

“Desmond! Shit—Desmond!” Fred, the Beta's son and his best friend screamed, stumbling toward him before snapping his gaze at me.

“Juno— You freak! You better stop whatever tricks you’re pulling. Right now. If he doesn’t make it, neither will you.”

“You- little bitch.” Desmond grunted.

His body jerked once and then he went still.

“Desmond?” Fred called again, his voice cracking with panic.

No answer. Then he collapsed.

My eyes widened as Desmond's body hit the ground.

His limbs went limp, and his bloody eyes were wide open in a frozen stare.

His chest didn’t rise. His heart didn’t seem to be beating.

I blinked.

My heart began to race with multiple impressions of what had just happened.

“No,” I shook my head drastically, my lower lip trembling from terror and shock. “I-I didn't mean to.”

My hands trembled beside me, my body still tingling with that overwhelming strange energy.

The air smelled of burnt ozone like lightning had struck too close.

Around me, the crowd was screaming and panicking.

Someone yelled, “Inform the Alpha. Now!”

“Call the Elders.” Another voice that I noted belonged to the Librarian barked as the students began to point fingers, screaming, and calling me a monster.

“Never knew she had that in her.” Someone whispered.

But all I could do was stare blankly, wheezing.

“Desmond…” My voice was barely there.

He was dead.

I had killed my only brother.

My knees gave out.

The world tilted sideways and I felt my heart kick painfully against my ribs once, twice then everything went black.

“That unfortunate, worthless whore killed my son! Just burning her to death won't ease my fury, I want her dragged through the streets and beheaded!” My father's scream pierced my subconscious, and I jerked awake.

My heart sank when I realized I was tied to a massive tree, and beneath it lay piles of firewood, neatly stacked, ready to burn.

When my father noticed I was awake, his eyes darkened with fury, and he cried out, “Today was supposed to be his coronation! How could you murder him? What grudges existed between you two that you couldn’t forgive your younger brother?”

I stayed silent. What was the point? He wouldn’t believe a word I said. He never had. And now… now I had to protect myself somehow.

But how could I do that?

I was bound, helpless, and everyone present probably hates me.

His voice rose again, seething with venom.

“I want her head cut off so she won't be able to reincarnate!”

A gasp tore through the crowd right after his words.

My stepmother pushed her way forward, her face pale, and her eyes widening with horror.

“Please… please, my love… she’s still just a child. It was a magic trick gone wrong! She’s your daughter!” Her voice cracked, trembling as she gripped his arm. “She didn’t mean for this to happen. We both know she would never have done it if she knew it would kill—”

My father ripped his arm away, his expression twisted with grief and blind rage.

“Enough, Eve!” he snapped, his voice thunderous. “I have no half-blood daughter. Only a curse masquerading as my blood!”

His hateful eyes returned to me and he pointed his index finger, his head shaking with raw contempt. “She killed my son. The only heir worthy of this Pack. She deserves to suffer a slow, excruciating death!”

Eve fell to her knees, tears streaking down her face. She was the kindest and strongest female Alpha I knew, but she wasn't a good mother in the slightest.

She was still pleading for me, even after I murdered her only son. So, if this is my end, I’ll carry the memory of her kindness with me to the grave.

“Please… don’t do this,” Eve begged. “This isn’t justice. It’s madness.”

“Alpha Darrin, we must—”

“Burn her.” My father’s snarl cut off the First Elder’s words before he could finish. “Get it over with. Her face sickens me.”

That was when I knew that his mind was already made up.

There was no changing it. There would be no case.

No truth I could tell him that he’d actually hear.

His golden boy had died.

The guards moved closer with gallons of oil and they poured it on the firewood.

I coughed as the sharp, bitter smell choked the air.

I could’ve stayed silent. But I didn’t.

I met my father’s gaze for the first time since I discovered he was my father.

That was when I was just eight years old.

My mother and I arrived at this Pack, hoping and eager for his love, only to learn that he already had a family of his own.

“You really think that you can burn me alive like you did to my mother?” I asked, my voice low, ragged, steady as I could make it. “I’m not that easy to kill like your precious son.”

“Juno…” Eve gasped in horror.

I didn’t feel guilty that she realized his death was no magic trick gone wrong.

“Did you all hear that?” My father spun toward the crowd, his voice sharp with accusation. “She murdered him in cold blood! Her envy drove her to commit fratricide!”

Envy? Fratricide?

I let out a low, bitter laugh.

If I hadn't killed Desmond, he would have killed me one day.

He certainly wouldn't have to pay with his life like I was doing right now.

So this was survival.

And I’d burn this entire place to the ground if that’s what it took to survive this too.