Chapter 2

Finishing her little twirl, Jocelyn finally noticed the tense air in the living room. Her eyes swept over the shattered moonstone, then landed on my bloody face.

Her smile vanished. Disgust twisted her features. She even made a show of covering her nose.

"God, Rowan, what is wrong with you now?" Jocelyn stepped back, afraid my blood would ruin her dress. "You're getting blood all over Mom's favorite rug!"

"Enough!" Marcus snapped impatiently. He couldn't wait to prove how stupid I was.

"Jocelyn, tell me." Marcus looked at her, his voice full of absolute confidence. "Is tomorrow's ceremony fully secured?"

Jocelyn blinked, then grinned. "The ceremony? Of course. I have everything under control."

My father's shoulders relaxed. The look he gave me was ice-cold. Jocelyn walked over and patted his back.

"Don't worry, Dad. I got the absolute best to lead it. You've heard of the Moon Witch, right? The legend every pack wants. The ceremony will be flawless. Tomorrow, we lock in the alliance with Kaelen."

"Jocelyn," my voice sliced through her bragging. "I am the Moon Witch."

For two seconds, the only sound was the blood roaring in my ears.

Then, Jocelyn burst into hysterical laughter. She was almost crying. She pointed at me, her finger shaking.

"Are you insane, sister?" She tapped her temple. "The Moon Witch is elusive and insanely powerful. Everyone knows that. You read a few dusty old books and suddenly you think you're her? The Moon Witch is the Goddess's messenger. You're a glorified file clerk. Get over yourself."

Livia dropped the fake tears, a sneer forming on her lips. "Oh, Rowan. I know you're jealous that Jocelyn gets to ally with the great Alpha Kaelen, but this is just pathetic. Making up lies just to embarrass your sister."

My father stepped toward me, his face turning deadly dark.

"Enough," he snarled. "First you blame Livia for breaking some 'relic.' Then you claim you control the ceremony. Now you're a legendary witch? What game are you playing?"

I looked at his twisted, furious face. For a second, I flashed back in time.

I was eight. Right here. In this very room. Livia had smashed a solid gold ritual bowl just to frame me. She dropped to the floor, crying, pointing at me, saying it was my fault.

Marcus had looked exactly like this. Storming toward me in a rage. He didn't ask a single question. Didn't listen to a word of my defense.

He just grabbed me by the collar and threw me into the pitch-black silver room. Three days. Three nights. No water. No light.

Since that day, I knew I didn't have a father.

"Dad, stop wasting time with her!" Jocelyn egged him on. "She just wants to ruin things for the pack! She wants to wreck the ceremony and ruin our alliance!"

Livia dabbed at her eyes again. "Marcus, I know Rowan hates me. I can take it. But now she's trying to destroy the pack's future!"

"Shut up!" Marcus roared. His patience was completely gone.

He turned to Jocelyn and barked an order. "Jocelyn, call your witch contact right now. Put it on speaker!" Marcus pointed viciously at me. "I'm going to rip that disgusting mask right off her face!"

Jocelyn's eyes lit up. She whipped out her brand-new phone. "You got it, Dad. I'll show you who's really getting things done."

Smirking, she swiped her screen, dialed the number, cranked the volume to max, and hit the speaker button hard.

"You've reached the Coven's attendant,"a raspy male voice answered.

Jocelyn shot me a triumphant look. "Hi, I'm looking for the Moon Witch. I need to confirm the Silver Moon pack's blessing ceremony."

The contact replied, "Her Eminence the Moon Witch is currently meditating. But I can confirm the ceremony is prepped and will happen on schedule tomorrow."

The living room fell dead silent.