Chapter 2
589words
Kayla turned pale, speechless.
He walked toward me and offered his hand. I hesitated, then accepted his help to stand. His touch sent a strange electric current through me, but I quickly pushed the feeling aside.
"What's your name?" he asked, his voice surprisingly gentle.
"Lena Grey," I answered, looking directly into his eyes without lowering my head. "Dr. Grey's daughter."
His eyes widened slightly. "Dr. Grey's daughter? I've heard about your father."
I nodded, waiting for the mockery or pity that usually followed. But he only frowned.
"Kayla, apologize to Miss Grey," he commanded. "Then leave."
Kayla stared at him in shock. "But Alpha, she's just a—"
"Now." His voice left no room for argument.
Kayla reluctantly mumbled an apology, then left with her followers. The Alpha turned to me. "Go clean yourself up, then come to the ceremony. No one will bother you again."
"Thank you for your help," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. When his eyes met mine, my heart beat faster than it ever had before.
He smiled slightly. "Even the strongest wolves need help sometimes."
I nodded gratefully and quickly left the square. Once inside my cabin, I collapsed against the door as tears burst from my eyes. Not from pain or humiliation—those I was used to. But because for the first time in three years, someone had stood up for me. Thinking of his amber eyes, my chest felt warm and my heart raced. I hadn't felt this way in years.
*"He's powerful,"* Silver said in my mind. *"And he seems to care about you."*
*I know.* I touched my chest where that strange warmth still lingered. *No one has looked at me that way before... like I actually mattered.*
*"Maybe he could help us?"* Silver suggested, her voice unusually hopeful. *"And maybe..."*
*Don't say it.* But even as I protested, I couldn't stop thinking about his amber eyes, his gentle voice. *We need to be careful, but... I want to see him again.*
I changed into my only decent outfit—a simple gray dress that had belonged to my mother. I carefully applied the herbs the old healer Eirina had given me to mask my true scent and the burns from the wolfsbane.
As I looked at myself in the cracked mirror, I made a decision. Tonight, at the Moon Ceremony, I would finally take the first step toward justice. Three years of hiding and planning had led to this moment. With the new Alpha's arrival, perhaps things would finally change.
With a deep breath, I opened my door and stepped out into the moonlight. Whatever happened next, I was ready to face it.
The Moon Ceremony was already in full swing when I arrived. At the center of the clearing, Elder Victor stood on a raised platform, his silver robe gleaming in the moonlight.
"Tonight, I am proud to announce a breakthrough in our healing research!" Victor's voice boomed across the clearing. "We have developed a treatment that can heal even wounds caused by silver and wolfsbane."
My chest tightened with each word. This was my father's life work—stolen after Victor murdered him.
*"He's stealing your father's work,"* Silver growled in my mind.
Something snapped inside me. Three years of hiding, of swallowing my pain—it all came pouring out.
"That's my father's research!" I shouted, my voice cutting through the cheers. "You stole it from him after you killed him!"
