Chapter 8

The smoke cleared. The red glow of the emergency lights painted the ruins in shades of blood.

Slade stood in the center of the altar, facing a formidable Alpha of equal stature.

Killian Thorne, Rosalind's father, the Alpha of the Thorne Pack.

"I need an explanation," Killian's accusatory voice rang out. "My daughter nearly died on your territory."

"The attackers will pay the price. Every last rogue will be hunted down," Slade replied.

"Not enough."

Killian's gaze swept across the chaos, finally settling on me where I was propped up against a stone pillar.

"That human," he pointed a finger at me from across the square. "She is your weakness. She distracted you at a critical moment."

However absurd, the powerful always need a scapegoat.

Killian took a step forward, the clash of their Alpha auras sparking in the air.

"Our alliance is built on strength. An Alpha who allows a human to interfere with his judgment is not trustworthy. Unless..."

He delivered his ultimatum.

"Eliminate this liability before the official marking ceremony. Otherwise, the Thorne Pack withdraws its support, and our alliance is void."

Slade was silent.

The moment seemed to stretch on forever.

Finally, he slowly turned. The last flicker of conflict in his eyes died out, replaced by the cold logic of a ruler.

He called for Lucas, his voice low, yet it hit me harder than the wolf venom. "Begin the operation. The target is Eloise Vance."

Tears I didn't know I had left to cry streamed down my face, mixing with the taste of blood in my mouth.

The ultimate tragedy was this: I wasn't defeated by another woman, but by his own ambition and his so-called greater good.

My broken body was all but dragged to the herb garden I once treasured.

It had been my sanctuary. I never imagined it would become my grave.

Rosalind was already waiting for me.

She stood before the ruined Moonlight Flower bed, holding an exquisite silver dagger.

Behind her stood two burly werewolf enforcers.

"Slade told me to purify this place. Since you have to die, you might as well die in the place you loved most."

"And don't blame him," she said. "For the future of the pack, a stain like you must be cleansed."

She waved a hand. "Do it. Make it look like an accident."

The two werewolves closed in on me.

In their eyes, I was just a lamb to the slaughter.

But I wasn't.

I am a healer. I know how to save lives, which means I know even better how to take them.

From a hidden pocket in my dress, I pulled out two pre-filled syringes.

They contained a specially prepared, high-concentration dose of a powerful anesthetic.

As the first enforcer lunged, I endured the searing pain of my broken ribs and twisted, plunging the needle precisely into his carotid artery.

He collapsed without a sound, a boneless heap on the ground.

The second enforcer froze for a split second. I used the opening to jab the other syringe deep into his thigh muscle.

Rosalind screamed and stumbled backward, her delicate face twisted in fear.

"You... you used poison! You're insane!"

"You killed them!"

She brandished the dagger wildly, accidentally nicking her own arm.

Blood welled up.

I picked up the daggers the two enforcers had dropped and stood up straight, covered in blood. "It's an anesthetic. I haven't killed them."

"Help! Slade! Help me!"

Rosalind suddenly began to wail, clutching her arm. "Eloise has gone mad! She's trying to kill me!"

I scoffed. What a masterful actress.

Pack enforcers in their wolf forms rushed in, their growls vibrating through the ground as they circled me.

Slade strode over. He saw the two unconscious pack members on the ground and the trembling, bleeding Rosalind.

Finally, he saw me, holding a dagger.

This time, his eyes were utterly frozen.

Rosalind threw herself into his arms, sobbing hysterically. "She tried to kill me! She said she was going to poison everyone who ever took you from her! Slade, I'm so scared..."

Slade held her, his gaze falling on the "weapon" in my hand.

"Eloise!"

"You dare to harm the future Luna?"

He condemned me without giving me a chance to speak.

"Lucas," he summoned his Beta.

"Yes, Alpha."

"She has offended the future Luna, poisoned members of the pack, and attempted murder within our territory."

"By the Old Laws, prepare the Ritual of Shame."

Lucas's face went white. "Alpha... are you sure?"

"The Mark of the Hunted will erase her pack scent, making her the primary target for every rogue and predator for miles around."

"Throwing an unprotected human into the wilderness with that mark... that's a death sentence."

I lay in the dirt, looking up at the Alpha who had once promised to protect me for life.

Our gazes met for a fleeting second before he spoke the words that condemned me.

"She is a healer. She has ways to survive. She won't die."

"But she needs to learn her lesson. She needs to know her place."

"Prepare the ritual. Immediately."