The night before the Duncan Pack was to be taken as tribute, I found Valentin Hart, the Alpha of the Shadow Moon Pack, the man I had once saved. He still remembered me, his obsession evident as he pinned me down, claiming me with a ferocity that lasted seven days and seven nights. I pleaded softly for my pack’s mercy, but he forced a vial of poison down my throat.
I gagged, black blood spilling from my lips as he watched with cruel satisfaction. “Even the purest healer can be tainted,” he sneered, his voice dripping with venom. “Now you know what it feels like to be poisoned, just as my pack suffered at your hands.”
“If you don’t give me the antidote,” he growled, his alpha tone cutting through the air, “you’ll never leave this place.”
He used my pack as leverage, locking me in the shadows of his territory while he took one mate after another. Every night, he dragged me to his chambers, forcing me to watch as he indulged with others, all while making me endure the pain of his claws raking my flesh. He ripped the fur from my back—symbols of my healing heritage—to brew tonics for his mates. When one of them was declared infertile, he sliced open my chest to take the blood that flowed closest to my heart.
He claimed he wanted me dead, yet when I teetered on the brink, he tore through the city to find a healer to save me. As I saw the anguish in his eyes, I couldn’t help but laugh. The secret I’d carried for so long would finally be free.
Healers of the Duncan Pack were blessed with long lives, but once the blood from our hearts ran dry, so did our time. Five more days, and I would be free.
---
My wrists and ankles were bound with heavy chains, the metallic taste of blood filling my mouth as I endured the pain of his claws cutting into my tongue. The cold wind bit at my skin, but it was nothing compared to the ache in my chest. I had long since grown numb to the physical pain.
From the main house, a cry echoed, and Valentin stormed out, his face dark with impatience. “Cut her open and take the blood from her heart,” he barked at his subordinates. “Amelia’s hand is bleeding. She needs it now.”
A servant stepped forward, pressing a dagger to my chest, but no blood flowed, no matter how many times he stabbed. Frustrated, he kicked me hard. “Useless healer! Do you hear the Alpha? Amelia needs your blood, and you dare refuse?”
I didn’t have the strength to respond.
Valentin grabbed my chin, his grip bruising, his alpha aura suffocating. “Still playing the victim? Do you think I’ll ever let you go?”
When I didn’t answer, he snarled, “If she’s refusing, then cut her open. Take her heart if you must!”
The servant obeyed, slicing into my chest, only to freeze when he saw the hollow, shriveled remains of my heart. “Alpha… there’s no blood left…”
Valentin’s cold laugh filled the air. “Healers are immortal. Don’t think I don’t know your tricks. What game are you playing now?”
I forced out the words, my voice weak and trembling. “The blood… it’s gone. I’m no longer… immortal.”
He gripped my face tighter, his eyes blazing with fury. “Gone? What does that matter? My pack has suffered for five years because of your poison! Even if you bleed dry and die in agony, it won’t be enough to ease my pain!”
I let out a bitter laugh. “The Duncan Pack didn’t poison them, Valentin. I’ve told you a thousand times.”
“Then why won’t you give me the antidote? Answer me!”
I turned my face away, unable to speak. The secret was one he could never know.
His rage only grew. “If there’s no blood, then take her heart! She’s immortal—she’ll survive without it!”
Novalee, the omega, stepped forward, her hands trembling as she pressed the blade to my chest. This time, the wound didn’t heal as it once had. Desperate, she slashed my wrists, muttering, “You exist to serve Amelia. As long as you suffer, she’s happy.”
Even the servants knew my place—lower than a mate, existing only to atone for sins I didn’t commit. I laughed bitterly, finally understanding the truth of Valentin’s words. But soon, this pain would be over. I wouldn’t last much longer.
