The glowing red eyes blinked in the dark.
My guards screamed, dropping my arms instantly. They bolted toward the safety of the tree line.
I didn't wait to see what hunted them.
Fire ripped through my surgical wound, but I forced myself off the dirt. I stumbled back up the illuminated path, heading straight toward the Moon Goddess Temple.
I slammed the heavy oak doors open.
The entire pack turned.
Adrian stood at the altar, holding the ceremonial chalice. Vivian leaned against his chest.
"You swore on the Moon Goddess!" I yelled.
My voice echoed off the vaulted stone ceiling.
Adrian slammed the chalice down onto the marble pedestal. "I told the guards to remove you."
"You promised me the Luna title," I pushed forward, clutching my bleeding side. "You made a sacred vow."
Vivian stepped away from him. The sweet, sickly smile vanished from her face.
"A vow to a bastard child?" Vivian scoffed.
The pack gasped.
She descended two steps, her silver-trimmed dress dragging behind her.
"You really thought an Alpha would bind himself to an illegitimate mistake?" she asked.
"I am your sister," I spat.
"You are a blood bank," Vivian sneered. "A Mate Bond means nothing against my noble lineage. I belong on this altar. You belong in the dirt."
I stared at the girl I had protected my entire life.
"You are standing there because of my kidney," I reminded her. "You would be dead right now."
Adrian stepped in front of Vivian, shielding her from my gaze.
"Watch your tone, Elena."
"She took my organs and my Mate!" I shouted.
"She is weak and needs our protection," Adrian retorted. "Sisters are supposed to care for each other."
"Care for her? I let them cut me open!"
"And you did your duty," Adrian said. "Vivian deserves the pack's favor. Stop being so unreasonable."
A cold numbness washed over my skin.
"Unreasonable," I repeated.
"I need a Luna who commands respect," Adrian explained. "Not a half-blood who embarrasses me in front of my people."
"You used my love for you," I said.
"I secured my pack's future," he corrected.
"Leave the temple," Adrian commanded. "Before I have you thrown in the dungeons."
I turned around. The heavy doors stood open, framing the dark night outside.
"My neck!" Vivian shrieked.
I paused, glancing over my shoulder.
Vivian clawed at her collarbone.
"The Moon Goddess Necklace!" she cried. "It is gone!"
Panic erupted in the sanctuary.
Adrian grabbed her shoulders. "Are you sure?"
"I wore it just a moment ago!" Vivian sobbed, burying her face in his robes. "The symbol of the Luna. Someone took it!"
"Lock the doors," Adrian ordered.
Four guards rushed forward, pushing the heavy oak shut. The iron latch fell into place.
"No one leaves," Adrian announced. "Search the grounds. Search the quarters."
"Check the temple first," a council member suggested.
Guards scoured the pews, overturning cushions and sweeping the marble floors.
I leaned against a stone pillar. My legs shook.
Ten minutes passed in suffocating silence. Pack members muttered, casting suspicious glares in my direction.
A guard jogged down the center aisle, holding a silver chain. A crescent moon pendant dangled from his fingers.
"Where did you find it?" Adrian demanded.
"In the eastern wing, Alpha," the guard replied.
"Whose room?"
The guard pointed directly at me. "Elena's."
"That is impossible," I said.
Vivian let out a tragic wail. "Why, Elena? Why would you do this?"
"I didn't take it," I told Adrian.
"The guard found it in your chambers," Adrian countered.
"I haven't been in my room since the surgery!" I yelled. "I woke up in the clinic and came straight to the ceremony."
Vivian wiped a fake tear from her cheek.
"You were jealous," Vivian whimpered. "You wanted to ruin my ceremony because Adrian chose me."
"You planted it," I accused, glaring at my stepsister. "You set this up to get rid of me."
"Why would I risk the sacred necklace?" Vivian asked the crowd.
"Because you are a liar!" I screamed.
"Enough of these lies!" a new voice boomed.
The crowd parted.
My father, Gregory Ravenshade, marched toward the altar.
"Father," I gasped. "Tell them. Tell them I was in the hospital."
Gregory refused to look at me. He bowed his head to the Alpha.
"I must speak the truth, Alpha Adrian," Gregory said.
"What did you see, Gregory?" Adrian asked.
"Before the ceremony began, I saw Elena sneaking into Vivian's quarters."
The sanctuary erupted into angry whispers.
"Thief!" someone shouted.
"Traitor!" another yelled.
I stared at my father's rigid back.
"You saw me?" I whispered.
Gregory finally turned. His expression remained completely flat.
"Do not deny it, Elena. I watched you steal the necklace with my own eyes."
"Why are you doing this?" I asked him.
"I am protecting this pack from a criminal," he replied.
"I am your daughter!"
"You are a mistake," Gregory said. "You always have been."
Helena Hale stood in the front row, covering her mouth to hide a vicious smile.
My father. The man who raised me.
He was sealing my death warrant to protect his precious stepdaughter.
A strange sound bubbled in my throat.
I didn't cry. I didn't scream.
I threw my head back and laughed.
The sound echoed through the temple, harsh and broken.
Adrian frowned, his jaw tightening. "Have you lost your mind?"
"I never had a family," I said, smiling at Gregory. "I never had a father. I was just a spare part."
"Lock her up," Gregory told the guards.
"You won't have to," I replied.
I turned toward the massive stained-glass window at the back of the temple.
"Elena, stop!" Adrian shouted.
I grabbed a heavy brass candleholder from the nearest pew.
I swung it as hard as I could.
Glass shattered, raining down on the marble floor. The night air rushed inside.
I climbed onto the stone ledge.
"If I stay, you will kill me," I looked back at them one last time. "But if I survive, I will end you all."
I threw myself out the window into the darkness.
I hit the soft earth and rolled, ignoring the tearing pain in my gut.
I sprinted into the trees.
Behind me, the pack howled in fury, giving chase.
I ran until my lungs burned and my legs gave out.
I collapsed near a massive oak tree, blood pouring from my side.
A low growl vibrated through the soil beneath my hands.
I lifted my head.
The same glowing red eyes from the forest edge stared down at me.
A massive black wolf stepped out of the shadows.
