The Wolfless Bride Of The Dying Alpha

KLOE POV:

The freezing stone slab dug into my cheek, its cold seeping into my bones like countless tiny needles, spreading through my blood to every corner of my body.

The thin dress clinging to me was useless against the damp chill of the cell. The only window had been boarded shut, leaving the room suffocatingly dark.

My father's words still echoed in my ears, every one of them branding itself into my heart like red-hot iron.

"You wolfless piece of trash, Kloe. You're the disgrace of the Howe Pack!"

The heavy door creaked open, and blinding light flooded the room so suddenly that I squeezed my eyes shut against the pain.

My stepsister, Candace Haley, stood in the doorway like a proud queen. She wore a sapphire silk gown, but the smile on her lips was as sharp and poisonous as a venom-coated blade. Two tall guards stood silently beside her. They yanked me to my feet, their hands clamping around my arms like iron vices. My legs were as weak as water, unable to support me.

"Leave us." Candace waved her hand lazily, dismissing them as though swatting away flies. The guards obediently stepped outside and slammed the door shut behind them with a loud bang.

She swayed her hips as she crossed the room and gracefully sat in the only chair, casually twirling a silver goblet in her hand.

"I have some news for you." Her voice was sickeningly sweet, though even a fool could hear the falseness beneath it. "Your loyal little watchdog, Blair Thorne, actually dared to storm the estate to save you. How laughably overconfident."

She deliberately paused, like a cat toying with a mouse, waiting to watch me break apart.

"He's dead. The guards disposed of him without breaking a sweat."

A strangled sound escaped my throat, half sob, half gasp, as darkness swept across my vision. Blair, my only friend, my protector, was gone.

A surge of fury erupted inside me, burning my eyes red. I threw myself toward her with the last scraps of strength I possessed, but my weakened body betrayed me, and I crashed hard onto the freezing floor.

Candace laughed. The sound was light and crisp, yet to me it was utterly revolting.

"Oh, and there's more good news." Her voice dripped with contempt as she reveled in the pleasure of crushing me beneath her heel. "Your sweet and innocent little brother-Rowan. The prince declared him your accomplice. This morning, he was executed."

The fire inside me vanished instantly, replaced by an icy chill that climbed from my feet and left my entire body trembling. Rowan, my little brother. The final thing holding me together collapsed with a deafening crash. Tears slid silently down my face as pain carved through my chest like a blade. I opened my mouth, but no sound came out.

Candace rose from her chair, walked over to me, and crouched down. Her fingers dug cruelly into my chin, forcing me to look at her. Her face was so close to mine, and madness flickered inside those blue eyes.

"Did you really think Prince Colby loved you?" she hissed, her voice slithering like a serpent's tongue. "He's always been with me. What he wanted was your mother's secret-the same secret that got her killed."

Her face twisted with excitement. "Very soon, I'll become his Luna. I'll become Queen."

She pressed the silver goblet to my lips. The dark red liquid inside smelled sickeningly sweet, tinged with the metallic scent of blood and death.

"Drink it, little sister." Her voice wrapped around me like a venomous snake. "This is the prince's mercy. There's silver dust mixed into it. Once you've swallowed it, that sleeping wolf inside you will never awaken."

I closed my eyes. I no longer had the strength to resist. Was this really how my story would end?

Slowly, I parted my lips.

The cold, bitter liquid slid down my throat.

A burning agony erupted from my stomach, as if a thousand silver blades were twisting inside me. My body convulsed violently, every muscle screaming in torment. My vision blurred as darkness rose around me like a tide, swallowing me inch by inch.

The last thing I saw was Candace's beautiful face, but the jealousy etched across it made her look like a demon.

If I could live again, I swore to the Moon Goddess, I swore to every god willing to listen, that I would make them pay in blood!

I would make them suffer for everything they had done!

Then the darkness consumed me completely.

A wave of nausea and suffocation dragged me back from the endless void.

The stench of cheap perfume mixed with sweat filled my nose, making me want to vomit. Something heavy was pressing down on me-a man! A rough hand was tearing at the bodice of my dress.

My eyes flew open.

That leering face hovering above me was one I would never forget, even in death!

Delano Castro!

He was the youngest and most unruly prince of the Castro family. The Castros had always been the most ruthless and overbearing family among the packs, and the only reason their influence now rivaled that of my own family was because of the brutal and merciless methods they employed.

In my previous life, Candace knew he coveted me, so she deliberately arranged for him to violate me, ensuring that I would never dare to resist.

My eyes darted frantically around the room. It was one of the manor's guest rooms, unfamiliar and yet painfully familiar. Floral wallpaper. Heavy velvet curtains...

This was my seventeenth birthday party!

This was the night everything had been destroyed. I had been drugged, violated by Delano, and then Candace had burst into the room with half the Pack's elite warriors and caught us "red-handed."

My reputation had been utterly ruined.

This was the beginning of my tragedy.

I was back!

I had returned carrying a lifetime of pain and memories, and a heart filled with hatred!

Delano lowered his head, his foul breath washing over my face.

The icy fury inside me instantly drowned out the shock. Given a second chance at life, I forced down the storm of emotions threatening to consume me. The terror on my face slowly hardened into cold mockery, and I nearly laughed out loud.

I stared at that greasy, filthy face with open contempt, then drove my knee upward with all my strength!