Chapter 2

The witch doctor finished examining Serena's wounds, hands soaked in blood, her face paler than a corpse.

"The poison has reached her heart."

"The flame of her soul is fading fast."

"And in her womb, the venom's mutated into a tumor. It could burst at any moment."

"There's nothing we can do."

Morwenna collapsed onto Serena's body, letting out a wail that could shatter bone.

"The mate I handpicked for Kai—how could this happen to her!"

I stood in the corner of the tent, my eyes hollow.

By that point, I didn't even have the strength left to fake grief.

In the memory, Kai spun around and grabbed a fistful of my hair.

He dragged me to Serena's bedside, forcing my head down against the stone slab.

Once. Twice. Three times.

Pain exploded through my temple. Everything went red.

"Why?!"

"You cold-blooded monster!"

"What did this pack ever do to wrong you?"

"I gave you my whole heart!"

"Lilia, why are you so twisted, so cruel!"

His roar shook the tent walls.

Back in the present, I bit down on my tongue hard enough to stop myself from crying out.

I wanted to explain. But back then, he wasn't listening to anything I had to say.

Below the altar, the wolves bared their fangs, hungry for blood.

"Poor Serena, turned into a living corpse just to protect her unborn pup."

"And now she has to suffer the poison eating away at her from the inside."

"That filthy Omega didn't shed a single tear!"

"She must have been jealous of Serena's bloodline and set the whole thing up herself!"

Morwenna suddenly broke through the guards and leapt onto the altar.

Her claws raked across my cheek, and hot blood welled up instantly.

She grabbed the regression stone with both hands and shoved it deeper into my soul with everything she had.

"The heir I poured my whole life into is rotting away in the dark!"

"Who do you think you are, breathing moonlight, you piece of gutter trash!"

"Die already!"

Pain wracked my whole body. Blood spurted from my mouth, splattering across Kai's pitch-black robes.

He turned his head away, refusing to even look at me.

"Break down her mental defenses."

"I want to see every last truth buried in that vampire den."

His voice was as cold as a blade.

The image above the altar flickered violently, then shifted.

Damp, rotten air hit me first. That's how I knew—the vampire's underground fighting pit.

I hung there, stripped bare, chained with silver-dusted shackles that Kai himself had ordered.

Beyond the bars, a crowd of feral rogue wolves and low-ranking vampires pressed in, eyes locked on me like I was a piece of meat.

Kai's eyes burned crimson. He gripped my chin hard.

"Tell me."

"What's the name of the vampire lord who took Serena?"

"You'd rather let silver burn through your soul than give him up?"

The silver dust clung to my skin, searing through flesh. I still remember that pain like it happened yesterday.

But my whole body trembled, and still, I clenched my jaw shut.

"I… don't know."

My defiance sent Kai over the edge. His eyes turned as cold as ice from the far north.

"So you're that obsessed with those creatures who can't even stand in daylight."

"Fine. Today, I'll make sure you get your fill."

He turned to the guards, his voice unnervingly calm.

"Throw Lilia into the cage with the rogue wolves and the low-rank vampires."

"One drop of blood, one blood coin. No exceptions."

"Every coin goes toward the herbs keeping Serena alive."

Back in the present, I clamped my hands over my ears, letting out a broken sob, trying to shut the memory out.

But Kai wrenched my hands apart, his eyes dripping with contempt.

"Lilia, are you doing this on purpose? Playing the victim with this memory?"

"But you're the last person on this earth who deserves any sympathy."

"You harbored vampires."

"Every ounce of suffering you went through, you brought on yourself."

The pack around the altar showed no mercy. If anything, they got crueler.

"Shameless! Flaunting her body just to win sympathy!"

"Lady Serena lost her life, and this is what she's complaining about—getting bitten a few times?"

"Knowing her, that horny Omega probably enjoyed every second of it in that cage!"

"If she could endure all that and still not name her accomplice, then she's the mastermind herself!"

Morwenna had completely lost her mind. She grabbed my hair and slammed my head against the altar.

"Push the stone to its limit!"

"Drain every last memory out of this filthy whore!"

The witch doctor dropped to her knees, voice shaking.

"Alpha, you can't!"

"We're already at maximum output. If we push any harder, her soul will shatter permanently…"

Kai's face turned ashen, but he didn't hesitate for even a second. He pushed the stone's power to its absolute limit with his own hands.

"That's exactly what she deserves."

"She had this coming."

A flood of blue magic surged straight into my skull.

My body curled in on itself, every organ inside me twisting like it was being wrung out.

Warm liquid ran down my thighs. I lost all control of my own body. I'd lost bladder control completely.