Chapter 3
Daphne's POV
Dead.
The word echoed in the infirmary, a perfect, exquisite chime. Helena's pale, lifeless body lay on the table, surrounded by Romie's utterly shattered grief.
I watched him sob, clutching her cold, limp hand, and the feeling of triumph was so overwhelming it nearly made me dizzy. The little princess, the final obstacle to my Luna title, was gone.
I had earned this. I had risked everything. I stood tall, savoring the scent of Romie's despair. He was weak now, consumed by guilt, but soon, that grief would fade, and he would realize the only strong, capable woman left was me.
My smile was frozen on my lips as Romie, blinded by tears, reached for the tacky necklace around Helena's neck—the only thing he had left of the dead girl.
Helena has worn this necklace since birth. According to rumors, her mother placed it on her before passing away, with a wish that she would never remove it. True to her mother's last wish, Helena has kept the necklace on ever since.
Daisy, the old, meddling maid tried to stop Romie, babbling about the dead mother's wish. Romie ignored her, snatching the chain away.
The moment he took it off, the room plunged into an unnatural, heavy darkness, even though it was mid-day. A visible ripple of energy, cold and sharp, passed over Helena's body.
She jolted upright, her eyes wide, before collapsing back onto the table.
What was that? My breath hitched, and the triumph curdled into a terrible, cold dread. Why did she move? The doctor said she was dead! What just happened?
Just then, the temperature dropped further. I felt a familiar, cold presence behind me. I turned slowly, my heart pounding, knowing this was something only I could perceive.
Lisa, the ancient sorceress, stood there, invisible to everyone else, her face contorted in a dark, ancient fury.
"What are you doing here?" I hissed, my voice low and frantic so no one could hear me over Romie's confused shouts. I had hoped to avoid her until my payment was ready.
Lisa didn't look at me. She was staring at Helena's still form with an unsettling mix of malice and recognition. "I have finally found you, Zephyr, my rivalry." Lisa laughed, a sound like grinding stones. "History will repeat itself."
Zephyr? Rivalry? The words were alien to me. What was she talking about? I only cared about one rivalry—mine with Helena. She was supposed to be my powerful ally in securing the Luna title!
Lisa's dark, powerful eyes snapped to mine, and the laughter was gone. "The power suppressor failed. She's alive, but uncontrolled. I sense her power growing."
"Alive?" I whispered, my voice thick with fear. "But... the silver... the whip..."
My mind flashed back to the small, windowless shack where I had met with Lisa last night, before the punishment. Romie ordered me to prepare the whip… it was the only chance I had, so I needed to do something that will guarantee Helena's death:
*****
I knelt before Lisa, the silver-laced whip held out to her. "I want Helena dead," I stated, my voice shaking with anticipation.
Lisa, the sorceress who had helped me lure and kill Hector, studied the whip. "A simple silver whip will not kill her unless she's truly weak. It can only cause injuries."
"Then enchant it!" I demanded, my voice shrill. "Do something that will guarantee her death during the whipping. I need her gone before Romie makes her Luna. I must be Luna!"
Lisa agreed, her eyes fixed on me with a strange, knowing pity. "The price for tampering with fate is high, Daphne."
She handed me a small, dark vial of potent, greasy ointment. "Rub this on the whip one hour before it is used. It accelerates the silver poison. It will guarantee her death." She paused, her eyes turning cold and sharp. "I will collect my price tomorrow: Beta Raph."
"Raph?" I frowned. "Why Raph? He's useless. He's grieving the injured Ava."
"He is the key to my long-awaited revenge on this pack. Bring him to the Whisperwood," she commanded.
I didn't care about Raph; all I cared about was watching Helena bleed out. I smiled, agreeing instantly.
I left and did exactly as I was told.
*****
"The ointment was meant to work!" I stammered to Lisa in the present, still whispering frantically. "It should have killed her instantly, Wolf or no Wolf!"
"The ointment only speeds up death for the Wolf-less. It couldn't kill a true Zephyr," Lisa sneered. She then delivered the command that secured my ruin. "My payment. Get Beta Raph to come see me. That is my request for your continued deception."
I staggered backward, my head reeling. "Raph is too loyal! He won't just come! He doesn't know you!"
"Then lie, cheat, and manipulate him, Daphne," Lisa stated, her voice a cruel promise. "You failed to kill your rival. You will deliver my payment, or you will be the next one on Romie's silver whip." She vanished, leaving behind the heavy scent of ozone and ancient magic.
My triumph had turned into a nightmare. Helena was alive, powered by some terrifying lineage I didn't understand, and Romie would kill me the moment he knew I had orchestrated the silver whip punishment.
I needed Raph gone, and I needed him gone now so I could fulfill my debt to Lisa and secure her continued silence.
I quickly left the infirmary, my face a mask of false grief, searching for Raph. I found him in the hallway, distracted and guilt-ridden over Ava's injury.
"Raph," I whispered, touching his arm, feigning deep distress. "Alpha Romie is paralyzed by grief. Helena… She is afflicted by a terrible, ancient curse that Dr. Justin cannot understand. He believes it is a lingering illness that must be purged with powerful herbs."
Raph looked up, his eyes bloodshot with exhaustion and guilt. "A curse? What kind of herbs?"
"The sorceress, Lisa," I lied smoothly, dropping my voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "The old crone near the Whisperwood. She has the ancient knowledge needed to craft the cure."
Romie is too proud to ask for help, but he needs you, his Beta, to secure the cure. You must go immediately, before the illness consumes her."
Raph, driven by a desperate need for redemption and fueled by guilt, swallowed the bait whole. "I'll go now. For Helena."
"The old crone near the Whisperwood." My voice echoed as I watched him ride off into the night, the final sacrifice needed to save myself.
I had sealed Raph's fate, and now I had to rush back to Romie. Helena was coming back. And when she did, I needed to make sure Romie was distracted enough by his political crises to finally make me his Luna.
I needed that title before Helena—that terrifying, mysterious…. Zephyr—could wake up and realize I was her true enemy.