The woman who looked like me grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the wall.
"We have to go now," she said urgently. "Before they stop us."
"Who are you?" I asked, but she was already pressing something on the stone wall.
A hidden door swung open.
"Get in," she ordered. "All of you."
"I'm not going anywhere with you," I said, trying to pull away.
"You will if you want to save your sister," she said.
I looked back at Selene, who was on her knees now, holding her head in her hands.
"It hurts," Selene whispered. "The hunger hurts so much."
"The hidden room will help," the woman said. "It's the only place where Ruby Wolves can think clearly."
"Why should we trust you?" Dorian asked, stepping closer to me.
"Because I'm the only one who knows how to stop this," she said. "Now move!"
Alpha Raphael tried to follow us, but the woman waved her hand and the door slammed shut in his face.
"That won't hold him long," she said. "Come on."
We followed her down a narrow hallway I had never seen before. The walls were covered with strange symbols that seemed to glow in the dark.
"Who are you really?" I asked again.
"I'm Vera," she said without looking back. "Your grandmother. And the last true Ruby Wolf Queen."
"But you're supposed to be dead," Tobias said. "The history books say all the Ruby Wolf royalty died fifty years ago."
"The history books lie," Vera said. "I've been hiding, waiting for the right time to return."
"Why now?" I asked.
"Because my granddaughters are about to destroy everything I've worked for."
We reached another door, and Vera pressed her hand against it. It opened with a soft click.
"Welcome to the real Ruby Wolf throne room," she said.
I gasped. The room was nothing like I expected. Instead of being dark and scary, it was beautiful. Golden light came from crystals in the ceiling, and the walls were covered with paintings of wolves with golden eyes.
"These are your real ancestors," Vera said, pointing to the paintings. "Not the monsters Luna Morgana told you about."
"They have golden eyes," Selene said, her voice clearer now.
"That's because they weren't cursed," Vera explained. "The red eyes come from the hunger curse. But the golden eyes come from pure Ruby Wolf blood."
"Then why do we have red eyes?" I asked.
"Because someone poisoned your bloodline," Vera said strongly. "Someone who wanted to make sure no Ruby Wolf Queen could ever rule again."
She walked over to a large book on a golden stand.
"This is the true history," she said, opening it. "The real story of what happened fifty years ago."
The pages were filled with pictures of wolves and people I didn't recognize.
"The Ruby Wolves weren't monsters," Vera continued. "We were protectors. We kept the balance between all the supernatural creatures."
"But the stories say you killed innocent people," Marcus said.
"Those stories were planted by the Syndicate," Vera said. "They wanted to destroy us so they could take over."
"The Syndicate has been around for fifty years?" I asked.
"Longer," Vera said. "They've been working in secret, turning the other packs against us. The attack fifty years ago wasn't random. It was planned."
She turned a page and showed us a picture of a man with dark hair and cold eyes.
"This is Victor Blackwood," she said. "Raphael's grandfather. He led the attack on our people."
"That's impossible," Dorian said. "Our family has always been honorable."
"Your family has always been liars," Vera said harshly. "Victor made a deal with the Syndicate. He would help them destroy the Ruby Wolves, and in return, they would make sure his family stayed in power."
"You're lying," Marcus said angrily.
"Am I?" Vera flipped to another page. "Then explain this."
The page showed a contract written in what looked like blood. At the bottom were two signatures: Victor Blackwood and someone called The Shadow Master.
"The Shadow Master is the leader of the Syndicate," Vera said. "And this contract proves your grandfather sold us out."
"Even if that's true," Tobias said quietly, "that was fifty years ago. What does it have to do with us now?"
"Everything," Vera said. "Because the contract is still active. The Blackwood family is still working for the Syndicate."
"That's not true," Dorian said. "We would never..."
"Wouldn't you?" Vera asked. "Then why did you three bond with my granddaughter? Do you think it was coincidence?"
"What do you mean?" I asked, feeling cold inside.
"The bond ceremony was a trap," Vera said. "The Syndicate needed a way to control the Ruby Wolf bloodline. So they arranged for you to bond with the three princes."
"How?"
"By putting a spell on the bonding stones," she said. "A spell that would make you fall in love with them and trust them completely."
"No," I whispered. "That's not true."
"Isn't it?" Vera asked. "Think about it. You've known these boys your whole life, but you never felt anything for them until the ceremony. Then suddenly you're willing to die for them?"
I looked at Dorian, Tobias, and Marcus. They all looked shocked.
"The feelings aren't real," Vera continued. "They're just part of the spell."
"I don't believe you," I said, but my voice was shaking.
"Then ask them," Vera said. "Ask them if they knew about the spell."
"We didn't know," Dorian said quickly. "We would never..."
"Of course you'd say that," Vera interrupted. "The spell makes you believe your feelings are real too."
"Stop," Selene said suddenly. "You're making it worse."
I looked at her and saw that her eyes were turning red again.
"The more confused and hurt she gets, the stronger the hunger becomes," Selene said. "Can't you see what you're doing?"
"I'm telling her the truth," Vera said. "Something no one else has done."
"Your truth is making her dangerous," Selene said. "Look at her hands."
I looked down and saw that my hands were glowing with red light. The hunger was growing stronger, fed by my pain and confusion.
"I need to get out of here," I said, backing toward the door.
"You can't leave," Vera said. "Not until you understand everything."
"I understand enough," I said. "Everyone has been lying to me. Everyone wants to use me."
"That's not true," Dorian said, reaching for me.
"Don't touch me!" I yelled.
Red power exploded out of me, throwing all of them backward.
When the light faded, I was alone in the room.
But I wasn't really alone.
Standing in the shadows was a figure I recognized from the painting.
The Shadow Master himself.
And he was smiling.