Kimberly POV:
The warriors circled me. I recognized them. I had paid for their training. I had signed the checks for their armor. Now, they looked at me like I was a rabid dog.
"Drop the weapon," the lead warrior growled.
"It's a necklace, you idiot," I snapped.
"Get on your knees!" another shouted, his muscles bunching as he prepared to shift. But I saw the hesitation in his eyes. His wolf was whining, pacing inside him. He could smell something-my scent wasn't that of a Beta or a crazy woman. It was ozone and storm clouds.
The injustice of it tasted like copper in my mouth. This was my pack. My bloodline ran through the soil beneath this school. My ancestors had built these walls. And yet, a crowd of sheep was ready to tear me apart because a wolf in a cheap suit told them to.
I looked at Austyn. He was smiling. It was a small, cruel thing. He thought he had won. He thought if he humiliated me enough, if he turned the whole world against me, I would break. I would leave. I would disappear, leaving him with my money and his mistress.
"Please," Evalena sobbed, playing the victim perfectly. "Just make her leave, Austyn. I don't want her hurt. I'm too kind for that."
"You hear that?" Austyn said, projecting his voice. "The Luna shows mercy. Even after this woman attacked her." He looked at me with mock sadness. "Kimberly, apologize to the Luna, and I will let you walk out of here. I will even give you some money for the bus."
The crowd murmured their approval. What a benevolent Alpha. What a kind Luna.
I looked down at Lily. She was silent now, her eyes wide and terrified. She was watching me. She was waiting to see if her mother was a victim or a warrior.
I couldn't protect her by hiding anymore. I couldn't save her by being the quiet, supportive wife.
I closed my eyes. I reached deep inside, past the hurt, past the betrayal, down to the ancient, primal core of my being.
I felt the White Wolf stir. She was huge. She was ancient. And she was furious.
Show them, she whispered. Burn it all down.
I opened my eyes.
A gasp ran through the room.
My eyes were no longer brown. They weren't even the usual Alpha red. They were gold. Molten, swirling gold that glowed with an inner light.
The air in the room grew heavy. Gravity seemed to double. The warriors took a step back, their instincts screaming at them to run. Captain Vance dropped his spear, his knees buckling involuntarily.
"Apologize?" I asked. My voice had changed. It echoed, sounding like two voices speaking at once-human and wolf.
I took a step toward Austyn.
"You want me to apologize to a Rogue whore and a traitor?"
"Watch your mouth!" Ms. Albright shrieked, though she was trembling. "How dare you speak to the Alpha like that!"
"He is not an Alpha," I said.
I took another step. The floor tiles cracked beneath my heel.
"He is a stray I picked up off the street. A weakling I dressed in silk. A coward who needs a woman's money to feel like a man."
Austyn's face turned purple. "Kill her!" he screamed at the warriors. "She's gone rogue! She's a threat to the pack! Kill her now!"
The warriors hesitated. They could feel it. The pressure radiating off me was immense. It was the pressure of a Supreme Alpha. Their wolves had forced them into a submissive crouch; they physically couldn't attack me.
"Daddy!" Jaylin yelled. He picked up a rock from a potted plant decoration near the door. "Stop being mean to my daddy!"
He threw the rock.
It wasn't a big rock. It wouldn't have hurt me. But his aim was bad.
It flew past me and hit Lily squarely on the forehead.
A small cut opened up. A drop of bright red blood trickled down her face.
Lily cried out.
Time stopped.
I looked at the blood on my daughter's face.
Something inside me snapped. The last chain holding back my power shattered.
