One day, when we were twelve, Victoria came to me with excitement in her eyes. "Sunshine, let's go hunting in the forest!"
I yawned, still sleepy from our late-night adventure the day before. "I think I'll stay home and sleep, Victoria. I'm too tired."
She patted my head affectionately. "Alright, little lazybones, I'll go by myself then."
I watched her leave, never imagining that it would be the last time she looked at me with such warmth. She went missing that day, and the entire pack was thrown into a frenzy. For two days, we searched, our hearts heavy with fear and worry.
When Victoria finally returned by herself, everyone was surprised and overjoyed. I ran to her, tears streaming down my face. "Victoria! You're back! I was so scared!"
But something had changed. She looked at me with a cold, distant expression. "I'm fine, Vienna," she said, her voice void of emotion. Even her smile seemed forced, a shadow of its former brightness.
From that day on, she was different. No more games, no more shared secrets. I thought she was angry because I didn't go with her that day. I tried everything to make it up to her. Handmade gifts, cooking her favorite meals, but nothing worked. She never called me Sunshine again—until the day she died.
End of Flashback
I clutched the blanket tighter, my tears soaking the fabric. "I'm sorry, Victoria," I sobbed. "I should have gone with you that day. Maybe things would have been different."
The guilt weighed heavily on me, a constant reminder of my failure. I remembered her cold eyes and distant smile, and I couldn't help but wonder what had happened in her missing two days. What had changed her so drastically? And why did she wait until her final moments to call me Sunshine again?
As I lay there, the pain of the past mingled with the agony of the present. My body ached, my heart ached, and the future seemed like an endless tunnel of despair.
Tonight, all I could do was cry and remember the days when I was still Sunshine.
VIENNA'S POV
It had been a year since I became the slave of the Lockheart Pack—a year of relentless suffering, humiliation, and pain. Today was supposed to be a day of celebration for them, the day their Alpha, Luther Casimir, turned eighteen and came of age. It was his coming-of-age ceremony, the day he was supposed to awaken his wolf and his mate.