Chapter 3

I barely had time to think before I was dragged roughly out of the hall where my fate had just been decided.

Behind me were the cold stares of the werewolves and Carla's fake sighs of sympathy.

The stone door of the holding cell slammed shut behind me with a deafening crash. The sound echoed through the cramped space and made my ears ring.

The cell was dark and damp. The air carried the rotting scent of mildew and dust.

The only source of light came from a small slot in the door used to pass food through. Pale moonlight slipped inside, casting shadows across the floor like prison bars.

I curled up in the corner with the icy stone wall pressed against my back. Cold seeped slowly into my bones.

Tomorrow at dawn, I would be taken to the edge of the Forbidden Forest and thrown away like trash.

Just as despair and cold were beginning to numb me, I heard the sound of a key turning in the lock.

The stone door opened slightly. A slender figure stepped inside. There was a sweet floral scenet that felt completely out of place in this place.

It was Carla.

She carried a small oil lamp. The soft yellow glow made her face look gentle and beautiful, but the false kindness and pity in her eyes earlier were gone. All that remained was cold malice.

"My dear sister, aren't you afraid of being here all alone?"

She walked up to me and looked down from above. Her voice was eerily sweet.

I didn't move. I only raised my head and stared at her coldly.

I had always known she hated me, but I just never understood why.

She clearly had everything. She was clearly beautiful.

I was only a mute werewolf everyone despised.

Part of me hated her too, but I couldn't even argue or accuse her of anything.

She seemed to enjoy my silent, hostile stare.

She crouched down and placed the oil lamp on the floor. The light rose from below, making her face look eerie.

"Did you know? Jamie already agreed to Dad's proposal. Once you've been dealt with, he'll announce that I'll become his Luna Queen."

She leaned closer. Her warm breath brushed against my face. Every word she spoke carried icy cruelty.

My heart clenched. A sharp pain spread from my chest.

Was Jamie going to mark her?

That explained why she targeted me. It was all because of Jamie.

The way he protected me was a symbol of his affection for me.

It made Carla jealous. That was why she targeted and humiliated me. She wanted everyone to know that I wasn't worthy of Jamie.

I lowered my head sadly. She pretended to realize something.

"Oh, right. I forgot. You're mute. You can't even congratulate me."

She chuckled. Her voice was crisp but horrendously unbearable.

"You must be wondering why the Council of Elders was so determined to exile you."

She reached out and wrapped a strand of my hair around her finger.

"Because I told them to. I told them your existence stained our noble bloodline. That you were an omen of misfortune. And guess what? They believed me."

So it was her.

The werewolves had always looked down on me, but no one had ever suggested exile before.

She had planted the idea.

It was all because of her.

But I had done nothing wrong. I simply couldn't speak.

Why? Why me?

Did my disability mean I didn't even have the right to live?

Did my disability mean my right to love deserved to be mocked and taken from me?