Even now, years later, that venom lingered. Their resentment clung to every glance, every clipped word, every silence that screamed louder than any accusation.
At the banquet, Nyra shone brighter than the crystal chandeliers that crowned the grand hall. She noticed Alpha Alaric and me the moment we entered, her golden gown glittering like spun sunlight, her beauty magnified by the adoration of those gathered. She moved toward us with practiced grace, her smile dazzling enough to make the crowd sigh in admiration.
“Kaia, Alpha Alaric, you’re finally here! I thought you weren’t going to come.”
Her voice was sugar-sweet, but her wolf aura betrayed her, subtle, predatory, tinged with challenge. Then, as if remembering something, she pressed a manicured hand to her lips, her eyes widening with mock innocence. “Oh, I’m sorry, sis. I forgot, you’re deaf. I should have used sign language, but… I never learned. You won’t blame me for that, will you?”
The words dripped with syrup, but beneath the surface gleamed poison. Her smile was wide and angelic, yet her eyes glimmered with malice.
Behind her, Maera Blackthorn, my mother, crossed her arms, her lip curling into a cruel sneer.
“If it weren’t for her, you never would have been kidnapped in the first place. How could she possibly blame you? The only one at fault is her, for being deaf, for being weak, and shaming the Blackthorns in front of the whole pack.”
The Luna-blood in her voice made the insult sting all the sharper, cutting through me like a whip across bare skin. My father, Alpha Castor Blackthorn, remained silent, but the disdain in his eyes was more damning than words. His wolf stirred faintly, its judgment pressing against me, and I lowered my eyes, fighting to steady my breath.
It wasn’t the first time they had treated me like this. It would not be the last. But familiarity did nothing to dull the pain; it only deepened the wound.
Before I could find words to defend myself, Alpha Alaric stepped forward, calm as ever, his presence commanding. He placed a steady hand on Nyra’s shoulder and said warmly, “Kaia isn’t petty. There’s no need to apologize to her.”
His voice carried through the hall, smooth, reassuring, the voice of an Alpha everyone obeyed. And yet his words, meant to soothe, felt like a knife twisting deeper.