Her eyes were wide like she couldn't believe what she was seeing. Her heels clicked sharply against the marble floor as she stepped forward, slow and calculating, scanning the room. Then she locked eyes with me bleeding, broken, barely standing.
"No…" she whispered, voice trembling. "No, it can't be…"
And then the scream tore from her throat.
"WHO DID THIS TO YOU?!"
Father instantly rushed to her side, that fake calm mask plastered on his face.
"Darling, it's fine," he said, touching her arms as if that would soothe her wrath. "It's just hair. It'll grow back"
"I SAID WHO DID THIS!" she roared, eyes burning.
Lilian didn't hesitate.
She pointed directly at me, where I lay crumpled on the floor with Ariel wrapped protectively around my body.
Stepmother's face twisted. "The ruin of the litter? The bastard did this to mychild?"
Her heels clicked again as she stalked toward me, venom in her eyes.
"You.."
But Ariel jumped up and blocked her path. "Mum, please! She's weak—she needs the healer"
"She needs death!" Stepmother shrieked. "That's what she needs!"
She turned on Father like a wild flame. "Marcus! How could you let this happen?! How can she be the Moon Chosen with her hair like that?!" She gestured dramatically toward Natasha, who—of course—took that cue to ramp up her performance.
"She ruined me!" Natasha wailed. "Cayden and his brother will never love me now! How can I be Luna with my hair butchered like this?! Let's kill her!"
"YES!" Sophia squealed, clapping like it was a party game.
Father swallowed hard, eyes on me. I saw the way he looked at me—like I wasn't even human. Like I wasn't his blood.
"No," he said finally. "We can't kill her. She's part of the pack, technically. They'll question us."
Relief almost hit me until he spoke again.
"But she'll definitely be punished." His eyes narrowed. "Bring me the whips."
"NO!" Ariel screamed.
But Sophia bolted from the room like a giddy child and returned in seconds, dragging in the whip.
That whip. The one with the twisted, dark leather strands. The one that knew every inch of my back—every rib, every scar.
"Strip," Father commanded.
I stood up slowly. My whole body trembled. Ariel clung to me, sobbing, but I gently took her hand and smiled through the pain.
"I'll be fine," I whispered.
Then I slid off the shredded, wine-soaked gown—one of the few old dresses I'd been allowed to keep. I stood there in my bra and panties, chest rising and falling, exposed and trembling but unbroken.
"Come forward," Father ordered.
I took one step. Closed my eyes.
Braced for the burn.
CRASH!
A scream tore through the hallway, followed by the rush of footsteps. A maid skidded into the room, bowing low with her hand to her chest.
"Sir!" she panted. "Beta Caspian is here!"
Caspian is here.
My breath caught. I turned slowly to Father. Silence stretched between us, thick and dangerous, as everyone held eye contact—no one daring to move. Then, out of sheer shock, Father dropped the whip.
Selene was the first to break.
"Oh my god—your Beta is here!" she gasped, whirling on Sophia. "Go put on that gown I got you last spring!" she snapped, and Lilian rushed to pull her away.
Meanwhile, Natasha grabbed a scarf and quickly wrapped it around her head.
"Nat, dear," Father said, suddenly composed. "Go to your room. No one must see you like this."
She nodded and darted out.
Then he turned to me. Fury replaced every trace of panic.
"I'll deal with you later," he growled.
"You better," Selene added, voice sharp as glass.
And then they were gone.
I collapsed to the floor. Ariel rushed over and threw a thick blanket around me.
"I'm so sorry," she whispered, eyes flooding. "My family—they're horrible to you. And you've done nothing but exist."
I took her hands gently. "It's fine."
But Ariel, with her golden hair and piercing blue eyes eyes that mirrored the same bloodline as the ones who hurt me shook her head.
"No. It's not fine. You always say that, but it's not." Her voice cracked. "It's never fine!"
"Ariel!" I cupped her cheeks and wiped away her tears. "Don't ever stand up for me again. You hear me? Never."
Her lips trembled. "Why?"
"Because I don't want you to end up like me. Don't turn them against you. Just go. Please."
"But Hazel…"
"I'm okay. Really." I forced a smile. "Go before your mother or father comes back. You'll only be in more danger."
Reluctantly, she nodded. "Not until I treat your injuries first."
She ran out, then returned with a balm.
"This will help," she said gently. "You can't heal yourself...you're not a werewolf."
She opened the tin and gently dabbed the ointment across my forehead. Her touch was soft, careful, almost reverent. When she finished, she leaned down and kissed my forehead.
Then she left.
And I was alone again.
I stared blankly at the mirror beside me. A chunk of my hair my beautiful, long, black hair was gone. My chest cracked open at the sight, and I nearly cried again.
But then I remembered—I took Natasha's too.
Small win.
Then I heard voices from downstairs. Loud. Confident. Deep.
A masculine voice rolled through the house like thunder, and I felt every word vibrate inside me. Then came Sophia's fake laughter, light and shrill in contrast.
He's here.
My father had finally done it. He'd paired his daughters to the elite wolves of the Blue Moon pack Natasha to the Alpha, Sophia to the Beta, Caspian. If the third brother hadn't died, Lilian would've been served to him too.
He raised them for this. Fed them lies and delusions of becoming royalty. Mates to power.
I quickly threw on my gown and tiptoed down the stairs. No way I was missing this.
Every maiden in Blue Moon dreamed of seeing Beta Caspian. All of New Orleans knew him the man in the suit, the deadly beauty, the walking myth. The gentleman with taste sharper than claws.
The moment he came into view, my breath vanished.
The rumors didn't do him justice.
Black hair perfectly styled. An exquisite tux that shimmered under the chandelier. Piercing blue eyes full of quiet intensity. His presence was overwhelming..his aura like a storm in still air.
He was breathtaking.
And there Sophia was—clinging to his arm like she'd already won.
Jealousy burned hot in my chest. I wanted to hurl my shoe at her face. But I wanted to stay alive more, so I clenched my gown instead and stayed hidden.
Natasha was nowhere to be seen probably locked up with her butchered hair. Small victories, again.
Father was putting on a full performance, trying to impress him—With Sophia and Lilian giggling at every sound he makes like it's funny.
Then it happened.
Caspian's gaze shifted. Slowly. Purposefully.
Until it landed on me. And he froze. He blinked, as if unsure I was real. We locked eyes.
The moment stretched forever.
Then he broke it.
I immediately ducked behind the stair wall, hands flying to my chest. My heart was thundering like it wanted to jump out and scream.
Damn it. What have I done?