“It’s the Alpha’s daughter.”
“Look how fragile she is. Such a pity.”
“The cursed star-born child is all alone now. No more under her father’s protection. What will she do now?”
The Great Hall smelled faintly of fresh earth, the kind meant for graves, and she wished it would open beneath her feet and swallow her whole.
Wrapped in a grey shawl that did little to keep out the cold, she edged farther back, away from the centre of the hall, away from the stares.
Her breathing was shallow, her skin too pale. Her legs trembled, not just from grief, but from the feverish weakness that had followed her since birth, clinging like a curse she could never outrun.
Whispers echoed through the hall like a rising tide, pressing heavily on her chest until it was hard to breathe.
She lifted her gaz
