Chapter 3

A squad of elite guards strode forward. Following behind them was Alpha Hall.

The High Priestess scrambled to her feet like she had just found a lifeline and scurried back into the Forbidden Grounds.

"Sia, what are you doing?" Hall frowned, his face unreadable.

I stood my ground and stared at him coldly. "You locked me in that dark pit of a prison, and now you are out here tying the knot with another woman?"

Something flickered in Hall's eyes, guilt maybe. His voice came out a little unsteady. "You heard the witch's prophecy yourself. You and your sister, you both carry the blood of the cursed wolf. If I insisted on making you my Luna, the entire pack would fall. Sia, for what we once had, I will swear by the Moon Goddess, if you just go back to the Forbidden Grounds quietly and stop hurting Lily, I will let today slide."

Before he even finished, a searing pain exploded in my chest. Like a blade twisting through my ribs, shredding flesh.

I knew what this was. Sia was still alive, and she was being tortured right now.

I clutched my chest and whipped my head toward the sealed stone door deep inside the Forbidden Grounds.

Hall noticed. His voice softened with something that almost sounded like pity. "Sia, I know this is cruel. I know it is hard to accept. But as Alpha, I have to think about the pack's future."

A soft, trembling voice came from behind him. "Hall, what's going on?"

Lily walked up slowly, flanked by her attendants, wearing that elaborate bone crown on her head, the one made from trophies of past Alphas. The one that was supposed to be Sia's.

Her eyes darted when she saw me, just a flicker of panic, before she smoothed it into a wounded, pitiful look. She sidled up to Hall and tugged his sleeve. "Sia, I know you hate me for taking your place. But bloodline and fate can't be fought. Why can't you just let go and wish us well?"

I bit through the fire in my chest and let out a cold laugh. "Wish you well?"

I walked toward her, step by step, my eyes ice cold. "The wounds on Sia's body. You ordered those?"

Lily's face tensed. She ducked behind Hall, her eyes glistening with fake tears. "What are you talking about? I don't understand. I've always treated you like a little sister."

She made sure to show off the bone anklet at her foot, Sia's coming-of-age gift.

The guards closed ranks around her, barking warnings. "That's enough! One more word against the Luna and we won't hold back!"

Hall pulled Lily behind him too, his stance solid and unyielding.

Lily, now feeling safe, dropped the act entirely. She turned to the guards and ordered coldly, "The cursed wolf broke out of the Forbidden Grounds and disrupted the Alpha's covenant ceremony, unforgivable. Seize her. Break her legs. Throw her back in."

Several guards drew their weapons and charged. I didn't bother drawing mine. I met them head on. Sidestep. Disarm. Elbow. Knee.

Within seconds, the elite guards hit the ground screaming, completely out of commission.

Lily let out a shriek of pure terror.

I walked through the wreckage, step after step, closing in on her, watching her pupils blow wide with fear. "Wearing Sia's crown. Taking Sia's things. And you actually think that makes you Luna?"

I picked up a blade from the ground and aimed it straight at her throat.

Hall's face went white. He pulled Lily into his arms, shielding her.

Then a frantic shout from the distance. "Stop! Don't hurt Lily!"

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