Chapter1
1157 Words
Chapter 1: The Dying Wolf at My Door
*Seraphina's POV*
Blood dripped on my clean floor. Each drop made a small sound: plop, plop, plop. The wolf crawling through my door was almost dead. His stomach was ripped open. I could see things inside that should never be outside.
"Help me," he begged. His voice sounded wet and broken. "Please. They said you could fix anything."
I didn't look at him. I kept stirring my purple poison. The smoke from it reached up like little fingers trying to grab something. "I can fix anything. But why would I fix you?"
The wolf coughed. More blood came out. It was almost black. "I'm dying!"
"Yes, you are." I finally turned around.
The wolf's eyes got big when he saw me. My silver hair glowed in the candlelight. My purple eyes had little gold spots that moved when I was angry. And I am always angry now.
Three years ago, I was different. I was small and weak. I was an omega, the lowest kind of wolf. I tried so hard to make everyone happy. I thought if I was nice enough, good enough, maybe Alpha Zander would love me.
I was wrong.
Now I was something else. Something dangerous.
"What will you give me?" I asked the dying wolf. "If I save you, what do I get?"
"Anything!" The word came out with more blood.
I smiled. It wasn't a nice smile. "Your wolf. Give me your wolf's loyalty for seven years."
His eyes got even bigger. Every werewolf has a wolf spirit inside them. To give it away would hurt. A lot. But dying hurts more.
"Yes," he whispered.
I put my left hand on his torn stomach. Silver light poured from my fingers. The skin pulled itself back together. The blood disappeared. In five seconds, he was perfect again.
"You belong to me now," I told him as he stood up. "When I call, you come. When I tell you to do something, you do it. For seven years."
He nodded fast and ran away. Good. Another spy for me. Another pair of eyes watching the world.
I went back to my poison. Just a little more wolfsbane, a plant that can kill wolves, and it would be ready. Strong enough to kill an Alpha if I needed it.
Then the wind changed.
I smelled pine trees. Snow. And Alpha blood.
Blackwood Pack.
My hand squeezed the glass bottle so hard it broke. Purple poison burned my skin. I didn't care. I couldn't feel pain anymore. Only anger when I thought about them.
Three years. It had been three years since Alpha Zander stood in front of everyone and said I wasn't good enough. Too weak to be his Luna, his wife and queen. He picked Celeste instead. Beautiful Celeste with her red hair and fighting skills.
He threw me away like garbage.
Now his pack was dying. A sickness was killing them slowly. They couldn't change into wolves anymore. Even children were dying. Even his precious Celeste was sick.
Good. Let them all die.
But I knew they would come to me. Everyone knew about the Shadow Healer who lived at the edge of the dark lands. The healer who could fix anything for a price.
They just didn't know the Shadow Healer was the omega girl they threw away.
Someone knocked on my door. Not desperate like the dying wolf. This knock was strong. Controlled.
Alpha strength.
I put on my black hood to hide my face. Then I opened the door.
Four wolves stood there. Two warriors I didn't know. Marcus, who had always been kind to me. And Zander.
He looked different. Harder. The cute boy was gone. Now he was all sharp edges and anger. New scars covered his neck. The sickness was hurting even their Alpha.
Good.
"Shadow Healer," Marcus said. His kind eyes kept trying to see under my hood. "We need your help."
I said nothing. Sometimes silence is the best weapon.
"Our pack is dying," Marcus kept talking when Zander stayed quiet. "The sickness.."
"I know about your sickness," I said in a low voice. "Why should I care?"
Zander stepped forward into my house.
Everything exploded.
His wolf spirit, Kai was his name, went completely crazy. Zander's gray eyes turned gold. Then blood started coming from his eyes as he fought his wolf.
"MATE!" Kai screamed through Zander's mouth. "MATE! MATE! MATE!"
The two warriors jumped back in shock. Marcus went white as paper.
And me? I laughed.
I pulled back my hood slowly. Let them see my silver hair first. Then my purple eyes. Then my cold smile.
"Hello, Zander."
The warriors fell to their knees. Their wolves knew my power. It pushed down on them like a heavy blanket. Marcus whispered my name like he was seeing a ghost.
"Seraphina..."
"That girl is dead," I said. "You killed her, Zander. Remember? In front of everyone."
His face had no color left. "You're... different."
"Dying changes people." I stepped closer. He backed up until he hit the wall. "Did you think I would just disappear? Poor little omega Seraphina, too weak to be Luna?"
"The pack needs help," Marcus said quietly.
"The pack that threw me out in winter with no food, no clothes, no money?" I picked up a silver bottle from my shelf. The liquid inside sparkled like stars. "That pack?"
"You've been watching us," Zander said. It wasn't a question.
"Watching you suffer? Yes. It's been my favorite thing for three years."
"Please," Marcus begged. "Celeste is dying. The children.."
"I'll come back," I said. "But there's a price."
"Name it," Zander said through his teeth. His wolf was still screaming inside him.
I smiled my not-nice smile again. "You give up being Alpha for one year. You become my servant. You do everything I say."
"Never," he snarled.
I walked to the window. Outside, a raven sat on a branch. One of my spy birds. "Then go home. Watch your pack die. Watch Celeste die with your baby inside her."
Zander froze. "How do you know about…"
"I know everything." I turned back to them. "You have one minute to decide. Be my servant, or let everyone die."
The room was quiet except for Kai's howling inside Zander. Fifty seconds. Forty. Thirty.
"Fine," Zander said. The word sounded like it hurt him. "I'll be your servant."
Perfect.
But then something strange happened. When Zander said those words, I felt something pull inside my chest. Like an invisible string connecting us. It hurt. It burned. It felt like coming alive after being dead.
No. This couldn't be happening.
Our mate bond, the magical connection between true mates, was still there. The rejection didn't break it.
We were still mates.
And if Zander's wolf figured that out, if he realized I still felt our bond...
He would never let me have my revenge.
- Writer
