All Chapters of The Last Lesson: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

"You wolves these days are absolutely useless. You can't even tell that it's a fake travel permit? How are we supposed to trust you with the safety of the pack if this keeps up?"When I heard Mother say those words, I was doubled over in agony, my whole body convulsing. I spat a mouthful of black blood onto the leather seat and stared at her in disbelief.The captain of the guard frowned and spoke in a stern voice."According to wolf pack law, even if you are the Alpha, I'm afraid you'll have to step out of the vehicle and cooperate with an identity check. We can let you through once everything has been verified."Father's expression darkened, and his eyes were red as if they were bleeding."Are you crazy? Why would I make a fake travel permit? It's real. Don't you know that? This is no time for jokes. Xena isn't going to make it if we delay any longer!"My younger sister, Bella, rushed to our mother's side and grabbed her arm, shaking it desperately. Her voice trembled so badly

Mother still did not budge. She frowned, and a trace of impatience crept into her voice."Bella, get up. You're not in good health. How could you let your feet touch that cold ground?"Her words hit me like a slap across the face.Bella could not let her feet touch the cold ground. Yet when Bella had been caught stealing from a store in our territory, Mother had forced me to kneel outside the store and apologize on Bella's behalf.Even now, when I was coughing up blood like that, all Mother cared about was Bella's health. She did not care about me at all.Father covered his chest, trembling with anger. "How long are you going to keep this up? What exactly do you want before you'll be satisfied?""What do you mean, satisfied?" Mother suddenly raised her voice. "This is all your fault!"Father stared at her in confusion.Under the bewildered eyes of everyone around us, Mother finally revealed the truth."Last week was the 20th anniversary of the day we met. I asked you half a mo

"Xena! I'll have your father go get his blood right now..."However, before she could finish, the smile on Mother's face froze.I lay perfectly still on the bed. My skin was white as snow, my lips a grayish purple, and my chest did not rise or fall even once."Xena?" Mother's voice suddenly sounded distant and unsteady. "Xena, I'm talking to you. Can you hear me?"No one answered.Bella's legs gave out behind her, and she dropped hard to her knees. Tears poured down her face like a broken string of pearls."Xena... Xena, you..."Mother staggered to the bedside. Her trembling hand moved beneath my nose. There was no breath.She jerked her hand back as if she had been burned. For two seconds, she simply stared. Then, she grabbed my shoulders and shook me frantically."Xena! Stop pretending to be asleep! Wake up! I'll have your father get the blood right now! Just open your eyes and look at me!"My head lolled from side to side like a broken puppet as she shook me."Xena! Can y

"Xena! I'm sorry! Please come back!" Mother threw herself in front of my grave and clawed desperately at the dirt with both hands.Her nails split and began to bleed, but she acted as if she could not feel the pain. She dug harder and harder, screaming my name over and over."Xena, come out... Please, come out and look at me... I'll never yell at you again... Please wake up..."Father stood behind her at some point, watching everything with icy eyes. "Stop pretending to be sorry."Mother's hands froze.Father's voice was hoarse. "I spent most of my time away from home handling territory business, so I left both cubs in your care. When Bella wanted to buy two drinks on credit, you insisted she was stealing and made Xena apologize in front of all those people."When Bella lost her pack mark and it was discovered, you didn't even think about helping her look for it. Instead, you made Xena take the whipping in her place."When Bella got sick and became addicted to cough syrup, all y

Mother was taken to the territory council hall.I followed behind her. For the first time, I saw her sitting in that cold interrogation chair.The guards asked her why she had put lethal wolfsbane into a bottle of Nightblood. She lowered her head and kept explaining herself."I only wanted to teach my younger daughter, Bella, a lesson."She became obsessed with drinking cough syrup. I told her so many times that she needed to stop once her cough was gone, but she wouldn't listen. She was already in poor health. Medicine can be harmful if you take too much, and I was afraid her body couldn't handle it."I thought if she saw her sister get poisoned and understood how serious the consequences could be, she'd be too scared to drink it again."The guard stared at her. "So, you knew there was poison inside, yet you deliberately left it somewhere a cub could reach?"Mother suddenly raised her head. "I diluted it with Moon Spring water! I really did dilute it with a lot of Moon Spring w