Chapter 1
Lyra’s POV.
It’s been three months since I killed my mate.
Three months since my supposed coronation as Luna, and the same night my mate had claimed me.
You’d probably wonder why I killed my mate on the night I became Luna and officially his. That’s because on that same night, I caught him fucking my aunt’s mate—who was, by extension, my uncle—and my own aunt had turned on me and threw me in jail for killing the Alpha Consort.
My back slumped against the rough wall of my holding cell that had little sunlight which reminded me that it’s still daytime. I stared at nothing in particular, wondering where I’d gone wrong.
I shook the thought out of my head, ignoring the horrifying image of how I’d pounced on my mate and clawed his heart out of his chest and watched him die, and how I did the same for my uncle, killing them in such gruesome way.
It was a horrible experience, taking a life. I’d never thought I’d have to personally kill someone. And I felt the bond rip out of me as Knox, my mate, took his last breath while staring at me dead in the eye.
“Why are you here, wench?” The head maid barked, jolting me out of my thoughts. “There are more plates for you to scrub in the kitchen. So get to work, you lazy bitch!”
Without giving me time to respond, she barged into my cell and dragged me down to the kitchen.
Maids stared, gossiping and pointing fingers as I got shoved into the kitchen. I didn’t bother thrashing or fighting the assault; it wasn’t her first, or the first from anyone anyway. I simply let her smack me with a ladle and I began washing the heap of plates in the sink.
The sting of bloodied bruises burnt into my skin with an intense heat, and I could feel the blood streaming down my many wounds. Being demoted and orphaned automatically made me a wolf of the least status, and everyone in the forsaken pack made sure to treat me like it.
I fought my tears back and continued to wash the plates until a familiar voice came from the kitchen’s entrance.
“Look at you,” Aunt Larissa drawled, “You spent your entire life being pampered and cared for like royalty. And now, here you are, getting exactly the opposite of all that.”
I didn’t bother turning to face her. She did this whenever she’s bored or mad and needed someone to take it out on.
“It’s funny how quickly the tables can turn on people.” She added with a chuckle. “One minute, you have all the power in your hand, and the next…” She snapped her fingers, her rosy scent engulfing me as she moved closer to me from behind. “…you’re at the bottom of the food chain, exposed to every predator out there.”
She flipped me harshly, turning me to face her instantly. My breath hitched as I came face-to-face with her.
A cold chill traveled down my spine. She looked exactly like my mother, and the sight of her treating me so cruelly made me feel even more horrible.
“How’ve you been doing in your cell, little niece?” Her tone was mocking.
My lips trembled as I felt a sharp, burning sensation on my arm. The smell of my flesh slowly wafted to my nose and I bit my lip till I tasted blood, refusing to give her the pleasure of screaming in pain.
She dragged the silver dagger down my arm in a deliberately slow manner, and soon, blood began to stream down my arm uncontrollably that my vision began to blur due to blood loss.
“You know, I’d only put you in that cell for the sake of our relationship. But now, I don’t know if I still want the misery of your company. The Elders are talking, you know,” my aunt said. “They question why I haven’t executed you yet, when you’d committed a serious crime. They know I’m being biased. So now I’m going to give you a better option.”
Her free hand held up a pill, bringing it close to my tightly closed mouth while her fingers tried to wrench it open. I fought as hard as I could, but the silver dagger still buried in my arm still had the paralyzing effect that dulled my arms.
“The effect will be fast, it’s for the best.” She stated as something malicious flashed in her eyes. I refused to give in, determined to not take whatever she was about to feed me.
Suddenly, a guard said behind us, causing her to step aside for a moment. “The Alpha sends for the prisoner, Luna. Take her!”
The Alpha? Luna? I didn’t understand what was going on. Did she bond with a new mate?
Two guards bound me with silver handcuffs and dragged me out of the kitchen roughly. All my screams and struggles fell on deaf ears, and the burning sensation of the cuffs bit into my skin more, causing bone-shattering pain that made me scream in agony.
Finally, we came to a halt and I was thrown to my knees. We were outside, and a simple glance at the bloodied floor had told me exactly where I was.
The execution ground. My stomach sank.
“Have you been well, love?”
The voice hit me like a punch straight to the gut. I looked up to see Knox, my mate, blocking the sunlight, making him look as though he was shining.
He’s dead. He died. I…I killed him! I felt his heart stop beating in my hand, I…
Am I going insane?
“You look like you saw a ghost,” he said amusingly, his smile widening as he knelt to touch me. “Well, I suppose you did, knowing I’m somehow alive even though you’d killed me with your own hands.”
He yanked my head by pulling my hair, earning a sudden yelp from me.
“Did you miss me?” Something sinister flashed in his eyes. “Did you sleep well without me, knowing that you ripped my heart out of me?”
He removed the cuffs with his gloved hands and pressed something cool in my palm. Before I could realize what it was, a scream tore from my throat as agonizing pain blinded my eyes.
“Did you convince yourself that your anger was justified?” He looked at me dead in the eyes, his blue eyes icy and filled with nothing. “Because I’m about to do the same.”
The pain subsided, and so did my pain, only for a minute, before he withdrew the dark crystal from my hand and hung it around my neck like a necklace.
He rose back to his feet, staring at pathetic me once more and then he flashed a smile. He signalled and the guards dragged me to the execution table.
I took a final glance at the crowd, all of them staring at me with hatred, some pity. My aunt was nowhere to be found, only Knox and the Elders.
I closed my eyes as I felt the cold feel of the blade on my neck. I prayed to the goddess silently. Rebirth was a fairytale, but at this desperate moment, I couldn’t help but pray to the goddess for one and set things right.
If I could be reborn, I thought, I’d set things right.
If I could be reborn, I’d kill them all.
