Chapter 5

Meggie's POV

"Where's what you promised me?" The man in the black robes stood in the doorway of her guest room, his voice a raspy screech.

Meggie quickly shut the door.

"Now?" she hissed. "Hazel is barely in her grave, and you're already at my door?"

"A deal is a deal," the warlock said, pulling back his hood to reveal a scarred, twisted face. "You got everything you wanted. Now, it's time to uphold your end."

Meggie gritted her teeth. "I need more time!"

"Time?" The warlock sneered. "You had eight years to set this up. Wasn't that enough?"

"Hazel's death will raise suspicion! I need to secure my position first, and then—"

"And then what?" The warlock's eyes narrowed. "You plan on breaking our pact?" He raised a hand, and a crimson sigil glowed on his palm. Instantly, a sharp, searing pain shot through Meggie's chest.

"Ah!" She clutched her chest, nearly falling.

"Remember, little girl," the warlock said, lowering his hand. "Without the harmless little curse I gave you, you never would have earned their pity. And without the lethal one I placed on Hazel, you'd never be free of your biggest obstacle."

Meggie bit back the pain.

"What I want is simple: the pack's sacred relic, the Heart of the Moon Goddess," the warlock continued. "It's a core ingredient for a much more powerful curse."

"I know!" Meggie glared. "But the relic is sealed in the ancestral vault! The wards only respond to a pure Luna bloodline!"

"That's your problem, not mine," the warlock said, turning to leave. "I want the Heart of the Moon Goddess in three days. Or else…" He looked back, his eyes glowing with a malevolent red light. "Or else you'll experience the same pain Hazel did."

The door slammed shut.

Meggie collapsed to the floor in fury.

No, I have to get the relic.

As soon as possible, she muttered.

Once I settle my debt, no one will ever be able to threaten me again.

The next morning, Meggie changed into a white dress and went downstairs, feigning a look of frail weakness.

"Meggie, how are you feeling?" Lyra rushed to her side.

"Much better," Meggie forced a smile. "The purification ritual really worked."

"That's wonderful!" Jaden said. "Hazel's sacrifice wasn't in vain."

The mention of Hazel made the room awkward.

No one knew where she had gone, but they assumed she was on her "long trip."

"By the way," Meggie began carefully, "since I'll be managing the family's affairs, shouldn't I start familiarizing myself with the important relics in the vault?"

Jaden nodded. "Of course. You are the acting Luna now."

"Then let's go now," Meggie said, unable to hide her excitement.

The ancestral vault was deep underground, protected by an ancient stone door.

"The vault's wards only recognize the Luna bloodline," Jaden said. "Normally, Hazel should have been the one to bring you, but since she's not here…"

"I'll try," Meggie said, placing her palm on the bloodline recognition sigil.

The sigil began to glow a faint silver.

"It's working!" Jaden said, surprised. "The wards accept you!"

But in the next second, the silver light turned a blinding, angry red.

It flashed like an alarm.

Then, a cold, ethereal voice echoed from the seal itself:

The Goddess witnesses all. The blood of a deceiver shall not pass.