Chapter 4
“Ella!”
Ella’s wolf form shattered as the curse struck her. She went limp in the wheelchair, trembling in terror.
Liam’s face darkened instantly, his wolf eyes burning crimson as he scooped her up into his arms and stormed out of the hall.
Ava stood frozen—until a sharp slap cracked across her cheek.
Her father’s voice was a furious snarl.
“How could I have raised such a vile daughter!”
His wolf ears stood rigid with rage.
“Your half-sister is dying from corrupted wolf lineage, and you still have the heart to curse her?”
Ava stumbled backward, knocking over a table. Wine spilled across the floor.
She fell to her knees among shards of porcelain, her claws bleeding, pain forgotten.
“It wasn’t me!” she cried, desperate.
“Silence!” her father Alpha Mason roared, his wolf tail slamming the ground.
“I’ve long seen how you envy Ella. She’s dying, and you can’t even show mercy?”
He turned to the guards.
“Lock this jealous bastard up!”
Ava was thrown into a small, pitch-black room.
She’d feared darkness since she was a child—her wolf had claustrophobic terror.
The moment the door slammed shut, blackness devoured her.
Her ears flattened back in panic.
She pounded on the door until her claws tore through skin.
“Please! Open the door! Don’t leave me here!”
No one answered.
Her strength drained away. She slumped to the floor as dizziness washed over her—
her claustrophobia was taking over.
When the door finally creaked open, she crawled toward the faint light—
Only for a bucket of foul, stinking liquid to crash over her.
Splat!
Ava gagged, choking on the stench. Her vision blurred.
Through the haze, she saw him—Liam.
He walked toward her, expressionless, and knelt to wipe her face with a handkerchief.
His voice was icy.
“Ella woke up. She’s not blaming you. She says you were possessed by evil and didn’t mean to curse her.”
He paused; eyes cold as frost.
“This liquid is Moon Bane Vine sap. It drives out darkness. The pack shaman said three full buckets are needed. I used only one.”
Ava stared at him, trembling.
“Liam, that curse wasn’t from me. You have to believe—”
“Ava.” His voice cut like a blade.
“Cursing your own kind… you know how despicable that is.”
Her breath hitched. Her voice turned into a plea.
“Please don’t leave me here. You know I’m afraid of the dark…”
“And Ella?” His tone hardened.
“Did you care if she was afraid when you cursed her?”
Ava’s mind blurred. She remembered that stormy night years ago—
when the lights had gone out and she’d huddled in a corner, shaking.
Liam had held her then, lit a candle, whispered against her hair:
“Don’t be afraid, Ava. I’m here.”
Now, the same man was pushing her into darkness himself.
He crouched before her, voice as cold as winter.
“Ella’s wolf soul is fading. The Pack Doctor said only my Alpha aura can stabilize her bloodline.”
Ava’s heart seized.
“What… what are you saying?”
Liam exhaled, as if cutting his own flesh.
“To save Ella, I must complete the Mark with her. My bond will keep her alive.”
He looked away.
“So, Ava… I have to break our Mark.”
The world went silent.
Ava’s ears rang, her vision swaying.
She remembered the Pack Doctor’s warning:
“If a Luna is Rejected, her unborn pup cannot survive. And she may never conceive again.”
“No!” Ava lunged forward, clutching Liam’s wrist. Her voice broke.
“Liam, I’m pregnant! You can’t reject me. You’ll kill our baby—”
A searing pain tore through her abdomen.
She doubled over, blood pooling beneath her.
Her trembling fingers gripped his pants.
“Liam… please… my baby…”
He frowned, disbelief flashing in his eyes.
“You never have a baby. Don’t lie to me.”
“I’m not lying—” she gasped, breath ragged, “it’s yours—”
“Enough.” His voice turned sharp.
“You curse your half-sister and now you use a child to beg mercy?”
One by one, he pried her fingers off, slowly and mercilessly.
“You broke the law, Ava. This is your punishment.”
Her cry shattered into a sob.
“Please… save our baby…”
But he only turned away.
“Three days,” he said coldly. “I’ll come back then.”
And then he left her—bleeding, broken, and alone.
From the shadows, Yael appeared, her lips curling into a cruel smile.
When Liam was gone, she waved her hand.
Two wolf guards stepped forward, each holding a bucket.
“Pour it.”
Cold, sticky Moon Bane sap drenched Ava again.
She screamed, her body convulsing. Blood beneath her turned black and cold.
But colder still was her heart—
for now she knew Liam’s cruelty was real.
The pup inside her was slipping away.
As darkness closed in, her wolf soul stirred at last, whispering through the haze:
“Ava… now do you see him for what he truly is?”
