CHAPTER 003

Raven's POV:

My hands trembled as I turned on the faucet, splashing my face with water and hoping this was all a dream, but yet, the mark remained.

It seemed like the hundredth time I'd been calling, desperate for Kaelith to pick up, but the endless ringing only seemed to elevate my panic and despair.

"Pick up, please. Pick up, damn it!" I muttered under my breath, pacing the confines of the large bathroom that seemed too small now as claustrophobia closed in. I noticed my reflection in the mirror as it mocked me-disheveled hair, tear-streaked face, and that unmistakable mark on my neck that seemed to burn with every passing second.

The phone call went to voicemail again.

"Kaelith! I swear to the Moon Goddess, if you don't call me back right now, I'll make sure to end you in the most-" I cut myself off, knowing empty threats wouldn't summon her here. I tried again, my shaking fingers fumbling with the screen.

No answer.

The tears pricked at the corners of my eyes as reality hit me like a stone brick. I was marked-claimed by Beta Gilbert, a man who wasn't my mate, worse yet, was my twin sister's.

I knew this plan would fail from the start. This wasn't just a betrayal; it was treason.

I was scared, but what truly terrified me was the thought of Alpha Theodore. What would he do when he finds out I've been marked by another?

A wave of nausea hit me, and I rested my back against the door; that was when my phone rang. I picked up immediately, my voice filled with panic.

"Kaelith, what in the goddess's name? I've been calling more than a million times, and you didn't pick up. Where were you-"

"Oh, shut it, Raven. You panic too much." Kaelith replied coolly. "Since you're talking to me now, it means Gilbert hasn't found out. I called to get your lazy ass out of the bed and leave his chamber."

I shook my head, grabbing my hair tightly. "There's a problem, Kaelith. A huge problem. Gilbert marked me!"

My breath hitched as there was a long pause, a silence that didn't seem to be a concerted effort to seek.

"How did this happen?"

"I don't know. One minute I was pretending to sleep, and the next, he was kissing me. My memory is vague but I woke up this morning to find myself marked and taken by him. I don't know what to do now, Kaelith." My voice cracked as the unshed tears finally broke free. "We're in big trouble, Sis. We have to tell our father. We have to stop this nonsense now."

"Are you insane? Tell father what? Father would destroy us if he ever found out about this. Look here, just breathe, Raven. The best thing to do is play along until..."

"Until what?" I snapped, cutting her off as I began to dress up. I had to leave before he wakes up. "Until he realizes he slept and marked a wrong mate?"

"That's why I said you should chill out. I'm thinking here."

"Chill out? How on earth do you expect me to 'chill out'? What we have done is unthinkable; need I remind you for the hundredth time?" I sniffled, composing myself as I prepared to leave the Beta's chambers. "I'm coming home. You should find a way to fix this shit you've put me into, or else I'll tell Father everything. Right from the start." I threatened.

"You dare not-"

"Try me, Kaelith, and you'll see how serious I really am." I ended the call, breathing deeply.

I successfully sneaked out of the Beta's chamber and walked around the busy streets of the Fangborn pack, trying to dull time as Karlie fixed all her mistakes. Later that evening, a chauffeur picked me up and took me directly to the pack house. Today was the day Alpha Theodore said he would come for me, and as ceremonial rites, the Delta family was invited to dine with the Alpha. Likely, an invitation had already been sent if the chauffeur was taking me directly to the pack house.

I only hope Kaelith has changed into me, so no one would notice our switch.

The chauffeur parked by the driveway of the pack house, and a pack member led me through the grand mansion. As I arrived, two pack warriors stood before the large door. They didn't say anything, their gaze on me the entire time until I reached them.

"I'm here to see my parents-" I didn't finish my words as a silver cuff was placed over my wrist. A hissing sound apparent as it burned my skin.

"W-what's going on?" I questioned, staring in confusion, but they only yanked me away.

"What the hell is wrong with you guys? Don't you know I am the Delta's daughter? Let go of me!" I barked at the grim-faced security guards, but they remained stoic and silent.

There in the dining room, where I was supposed to be formally introduced to my true mate and Alpha, stood all the important figures in the pack, lined up as they watched the warriors drag me.

"FATHER?" I shouted when I noticed him standing by mother and Kaelith. Beside him was none other than him, Alpha Theodore, and several ministers.

I struggled to let the warriors free me but their grip was too tight. "Mother! Father! Help me. These guys have gone crazy." But none made a move to help me, they only watched with disappointment and disapproval.

"You disappointed us, Raven," Father said, his voice filled with suppressed anger and many more I couldn't decipher. "You not only betrayed the sacred law of the pack but betrayed your own twin sister. I am ashamed to call you my daughter."

What are they talking about? My gaze shifted to Kaelith and she looked more like herself instead of me as we'd agreed; straight hair, paler skin, and her eyes gleaming with fear, that's when it hit me.

Kaelith had betrayed me.

I shook my head, tears beginning to fall. "Momma, papa, believe me. I had nothing to do with all these. It's all Kaelith's who orchestrated-"

"Shut up, Raven," mother shouted, holding father's hand. "You've implicated your sister too much. Don't blame her for your crimes. You ceased being my daughter after committing such treason."

No, no.

"No, please-"

"You slept with my mate, Raven. How could you? I thought you were my sister?" Kaelith whimpered, falling into her mother's arms as she wept. "M-mother, I can feel the burn. My mate marked another. It hurts."

"You!" Kaelith pointed at me, her teary eyes filled with accusation. "You've always been jealous of me, right? So you took my mate from me, pretending to be me. How despicable could you be? HOW DARE YOU," she screamed as a few pack ministers consoled her.

I was too much shock as I stood there like a statue, watching her act her way out.

"Whose idea was this?" A deep voice I recognized all too well growled.

My attention snapped towards Alpha Theodore as he glared at me with pure hatred.

"You slept with a man who wasn't your mate last night, am I correct?"

"This is a trap. Kaelith convinced me to help-"

"YES OR NO!" Alpha Theodore roared, shutting me up instantly.

I nodded solemnly, my gaze to the ground, unable to meet his hatred-filled eyes. I glanced at Kaelith, hoping she would accept her mistake, but she was all quiet, adding layers to my guilt by crying.

I had to defend myself; I possibly couldn't be used as a dump now, not when a nightmare was unfolding before my eyes. "It's all Kaelith's idea. She feels she isn't pure to-"

"SHUT UP," Kaelith screamed. "Why on earth would I ask you to pretend to be me just so you can lay my mate? Make it make sense, Raven."

Now that she said it, even I wouldn't believe me.

Tears fell from my eyes as I knelt to the ground, pleading. "Alpha, mother, father, ministers. I swear I would never have done-"

Theodore raised his hands to stop me, his eyes filled with rage and disgust. "I would never accept a sl*t like you as a mate. You're not worthy of becoming my Luna. Disgusting," he spat. I shook my head, knowing what was coming next, but he said it anyway.

"I, Alpha Theodore Dreadclaw, Alpha of the Fangborn pack, hereby reject you, Raven Silvera, as my mate and Luna."

At that moment, I felt everything within me shatter. My heart squeezed as pain enveloped my chest, the mate mark from Gilbert burning.

"M-mother. Father...Help..." I screamed as the pain intensified, but through my blurry vision, I could only see their disappointment.

Alpha Theodore's voice tore through the cloud of pain that enveloped me. "Take her to the dungeon, for the laws must be obeyed. Raven Silvera shall be executed by full moon."

CHAPTER 004

Raven's POV:

The cold dungeon air wrapped around me like a wet, suffocating blanket as it seeped into my bones, and the smell of decay irritated my nostrils. How long have I stayed here? A day or two, maybe three, I don't really know, but the mark on my neck burned hotter with each passing day, a cruel reminder of my betrayal, my rejection, and the culprit that led me here.

I sat by the far corner of the dungeon, clutching my arms as if that could shield me from the despair sinking its claws into my soul.

How did everything succumb to this?

It seemed like a dream I couldn't escape.

All of these, it's all because of 'her.'

Kaelith's face flashed in my mind-her fake crocodile tears, the way she turned the entire pack against me with her deceit and lies.

'I was a fool,' I thought, hating the fact I trusted her, believing that this plan, as reckless as it was, would somehow come in our favor.

Another stream of tears fell down my face as I remembered my parent's disappointment, their disownment, the pack's discouraging glares, and his disgust. My mate, my Alpha, my Theodore.

I replayed his rejection in my mind, his words cutting deeper than any dagger.

"I'm innocent!" I shouted, my frustration getting the best of me as a new stream of tears fell.

"Shut it, girl. Everyone thinks they are." A grave voice spoke from the cell adjacent to mine. "You're to die in a few hours just like us, but do you see us crying? No! Stop your foolish whining and enjoy these few hours of your life."

I ignored them, as I had done for days now, scooting even farther into the wall of the cell, for I didn't want to associate with these rogues. They attacked our pack weeks ago and killed some of the pack warriors. They were criminals and savages.

Now, I was one of them.

I turned to the small window, and true to the rogue's words, it was almost a full moon.

Almost to the point of my death.

The deafening silence that gripped the entire dungeon like a second skin was shattered with a loud boom, shaking the very foundation of the whole place.

I clung to the cold walls as the ground trembled from the force of the explosion, debris falling from the ceiling. The dungeon was now enveloped with shouts, the metallic clatter of iron bars hitting the stone floor, and dust that blocked every view.

"What the hell was that?" The rogue across from me snarled, gripping the iron bar of his cell as another blast erupted, this time, closer to us.

The walls cracked as I scrambled to my feet, adrenaline surging through me as I peered through the iron bars of my cell.

Chaos. Pure, unrelenting chaos.

A wave of dust filled the whole place as a figure draped in black, the face covered by a hood, emerged from the wreckage.

The rogue in the cell opposite mine cackled, gripping the bars of his cell with wild excitement. "Hurrah, the great Beta has come to save us. Looks like the cavalry's arrived! Time for freedom!"

The stranger, the beta freed all the rogues and lastly opened the gate opposite mine, releasing the lousy rogue.

"Thank you, Great Beta." The rogue said, running away immediately.

The stranger didn't say anything, only turned to me as he stared. I didn't know what to do but stare at his supposed face, completely covered by the shadow of his hood.

He turned and was about to leave, causing me to scream, my voice filled with desperation. "Please, sir. Help me. I don't want to die, please."

The stranger stopped, his back now facing me. He was silent for a while before he spoke. "Why should I help you?"

His voice was strangely smooth yet strong, like a fine wine with a powerful alcoholic effect.

"B-because...because." I was speechless. He was a rogue, and I was his enemy, a member of the pack meant to destroy him. He had no reason to save me, but I was desperate. "Please."

He turned to me, and with a snap of his sword, the door sprung open, the key lock damaged.

"Run," he said, his back still facing towards me. "For if I see you again, I will kill you myself."

I need not be told twice, as he broke my cage and I ran as fast as my small legs could carry me, out of the dungeon and into the forest.

Chaos and panic filled the whole place as the Fangborn Pack warriors tried to subdue the rogues.

The icy wind whipped at my hair as I tore through the dense forest, dry branches tearing at my skin and legs, but I didn't dare stop.

I couldn't stop.

Shouts and growls followed behind me as the trees thinned suddenly, and I skidded to a halt, my heart sinking.

A cliff. I always hated that cliff.

The jagged edge loomed before me, the drop plunging into a dark, roaring river below as the moonlight reflected off the churning water, mocking my escape.

I made a move to find another way out to escape but as I spun around, my blood ran cold.

Standing there were two fully transformed wolves and Kaelith in the middle. She held a cruel smile that twisted her perfect face.

"Well, well, Sister." She poured, stepping closer, her voice dripping with venom. "Ever the coward you are. Running already? I thought you'd at least grow the balls to wait for your grand execution."

"Kaelith," I breathed, slowly backing closer to the cliff's edge as stone pebbles dropped beyond. "You... This is all your fault. You framed me? You turned the whole Pack, our parents, and my mate against me! Why?"

She burst out laughing, stepping even closer. "Oh, Raven. Always the dumb twin you are, how pathetic. But what do you want me to do? I can't have the pack against me, can I?"

"And after all, only one of us can be Luna."

My gaze narrowed. "You have your own mate," I hissed, "Stop this nonsense, admit your mistake and we can go back to the way it was, please, sister. For our sake. For my sake."

"Nonsense?" She laughed, a cold, mirthless sound that chilled my bones. How could I not have noticed so much evil in her? "I am to be Luna. I am the better twin; instead, I am stuck with an ordinary Beta as a mate. Either one of us was going to have Theodore as a mate, and when I saw Gilbert was my mate, I knew I had to intercede before Alpha Theodore could claim you."

"That's why you framed me. You had these planned all this while."

"Bravo, Sherlock. You're finally catching on."

"Y-you'll never succeed." I couldn't believe she would do this to her sister. "You'll never be Luna."

Kaelith smirked. "And who's to stop me? A dead girl?" She turned to the wolves beside her. "Get her."

As they lunged for me, I jumped away from the cliff end, narrowly escaping a swipe to the face and a fall to my death.

Before I could regain balance, I saw a blur as Kaelith lunged at me, her claws glinting in the moonlight. I barely dodged, but she was faster than I'd anticipated. Her nails tore through my arm, blood splattering the rocks as pain ripped through me.

"Stop running, Raven!" Kaelith snarled, her eyes glowing with predatory fury. "It's useless."

I stumbled back, clutching my arms, but she was relentless. She swung again, her claws tearing my chin. I screamed, falling to the floor as she climbed on top of me. I shivered from her cold claws on my face.

"Sister, please, let me go," I shivered as I pleaded, "I swear, I would be out of here, and you'll never see me again."

She smiled, which made my stomach turn, and not in a good way. "Nah, I prefer you dead."

She slashed her claws at me as she spoke, causing a blood-curdling scream to escape me, but she didn't stop.

"That way,"

Slash!

"My secret,"

"would never be..."

Slash!

"Exposed,"

Slash!

"And I can also take my position as Luna. It's a win-win."

My vision turned hazy as I felt my strength slipping. I couldn't move, only lying on the floor as my body was being torn apart by her.

"Are you going to kill your own sister?"

I couldn't recognize the voice that spoke, I was in too much pain to think.

Do they want to kill me? I was already dead. Killed by my sister.

Kaelith replied. "Nah, I can't possibly kill my blood, can I? Let the wild wolves finish the job."

In the course of a few days, I had undergone what I could never have imagined. I wasn't ready to die, not now and at least not in the hands of my sister and wild wolves. I began to drag myself to the cliff, bearing the pain that coursed through my veins.

I didn't know how far I'd gotten, but I felt the free edge of the cliffside.

I could hear muffled sounds from behind me, and I knew the wild wolves were ready to feast, but after everything, this wasn't how I wanted to be remembered on earth.

If I wanted to die, I would die by my own accord.

With the last remaining strength I had, I said my final goodbye to the world and pushed myself off the cliff.

CHAPTER 005

KAELITH:

I looked down the edge of the cliff, my crimson-stained hands trembling ever so slightly, though not from guilt-never from guilt. Raven's broken body had disappeared into the roaring darkness below, swallowed by the merciless river that churned and foamed as if eager to claim her.

For the longest moment, I stood still, my chest rising and falling with strange exhilaration. I had finally done it. The nuisance. The burden. The weakling twin who dared to think she could stand beside me-gone.

A small part of me does feel guilty. She was my blood; we grew up together. But I had to do what was necessary. I was to be Luna. Not her. Theodore is mine and mine alone.

"Luna Kaelith Silvera," I whispered, the title tasting sweet on my tongue, though my lips curled into a smirk. The wolves beside me showed their heads, eyes glowing with obedience. They had seen what I'd done, and none of them would dare speak against me.

"Is that really necessary?"

A figure came beside me, but I didn't turn my eyes away from the rocky river below. "There are other ways to get what we want."

"This is the only way," was my only reply. I continued staring below as the cold night air whipped against my skin.

A small flicker of unease crept into my chest.

'What if she survives?'

I shook the thought away. No. She's dead. She has to be. No one survives a fall like that. The river was as good as a grave, and even if her body were to wash ashore, it would be unrecognizable.

"So, what next?"

I turned back to the wolves and wiped the blood from my chin with the back of my hand, forcing a smile that mirrored the victory bubbling in my veins.

"My ascension." I said, my voice sharper than steel. "There is no Raven anymore. Theodore is mateless and soon... He'll see no other but me."

"It's not as easy as you say, Kaelith. You have to- "

I ignored him and made my way back to the pack. The sound of warriors chasing the rogues echoed loudly, but none of them concerned me. I had orchestrated chaos, and in chaos, the clever thrive.

The torches around the courtyard flickered against the stone walls as I stepped through the broken gates, the smell of blood and smoke hanging heavy in the air.

The pack warriors present all turned to look at me, their faces pale, weary, and uncertain. Perfect. They needed strength. They needed certainty. And I would give it to them.

"Lady Kaelith!" one of the guards called, rushing toward me. His chest was heaving; his uniform smeared with soot. "Where's Raven? Her cage is empty."

I forced my eyes to glisten, tilting my chin just enough for the moonlight to catch the streak of blood still clinging to my cheek. "She ran off. I... I tried to stop her." I whispered, my voice trembling just enough to seem genuine. "I wanted her to see reason, but she ran away with the rogue. I tried to reason with her. I tried, but-" my hands clutched my chest, as though the memory broke me.

A hush fell over the warriors as they stared at me with pity evident in their eyes. I lowered my gaze, hiding a smile that threatened to curl my lips.

"Once a traitor, always a traitor. Raven is a traitor to the pack, and we must see to it she is dealt with accordingly. Come on, let's take you to your parents."

I nodded solemnly, walking under the warm arm of the head of the pack warriors. From the corner of my eyes, I saw my companion slipping through the forest and away from sight, and that's when I saw him-Beta Gilbert-my mate. His muscular arms folded across his chest, eyes narrowed in on me as if trying to read the truth beneath my mask.

My stomach tightened at his stare, but I lifted my chin higher. Gilbert had always been too perceptive for his own good.

I stepped past him, reaching my blood-stained hands to his. He didn't step away. "Raven escaped. She abandoned me." I said, meeting his gaze with feigned grief. "But I'm still here. For the pack. For you."

Before I knew it, thick muscles surrounded me as he engulfed me fully. Sparks flew from the skin-to-skin contact, and I hated it. It only reminded me of the failure of the moon goddess in choosing a suitable mate. Raven was the one to be mated to Gilbert, and I, Alpha Theodore. Not the other way around.

"You're safe. That's all that matters now. Come on, it's late. Let's get you to bed."

I almost laughed at his pathetic excuse of being the caring mate. Such a pathetic man. Thinking he could get a perfect she-wolf like me as his.

It didn't matter though. Soon, Theodore would learn of Raven's 'death'. His rage, his loneliness, his broken bond-everything would lead him to me. And once he did, once he made me the Luna, no one-not Gilbert, not the rogues, not even the Moon Goddess herself-would ever strip it away.