Claimed by the Alpha’s Rival

A Father's Lie

The silence after Caspian's revelation felt endless.

Lily stood frozen in the corridor.

Marcus's voice still echoed through the communicator.

The words.

The guilt.

The blood.

Everything.

Her entire life seemed built from lies stacked upon lies.

Every answer uncovered three new questions.

Every truth arrived carrying poison.

For several seconds, nobody spoke.

Then Caspian gently placed a hand on her shoulder.

The gesture should have felt comforting.

Instead it felt like a spider crawling across her skin.

"You look overwhelmed."

No kidding.

"My adoptive father is dead."

Lily's voice came out hoarse.

"The man I blamed for it says he didn't know the truth."

Her gaze lifted.

"And you're telling me you orchestrated the entire thing."

Caspian didn't flinch.

Didn't apologize.

Didn't look ashamed.

"I did what was necessary."

The calm certainty in his voice made her stomach twist.

People who believed they were saving the world were always the most dangerous.

Because they never thought they were monsters.

They thought they were heroes.

And heroes could justify anything.

Murder.

Manipulation.

Sacrifice.

Especially someone else's.

"Necessary."

Lily laughed bitterly.

"That's a fun word."

Caspian sighed.

"You deserve the whole truth."

The phrase had officially become her least favorite sentence.

Every time someone said it, her life got worse.

"Fine."

Lily folded her arms.

"Surprise me."

The vampire lord smiled sadly.

Then led her deeper into the Council's inner chambers.

Past guards.

Past laboratories.

Past ancient stone walls covered in blood-red runes.

Until they reached a massive circular room.

The ceiling stretched hundreds of feet overhead.

Ancient murals covered every surface.

Wolves.

Vampires.

Battles.

Kings.

Monsters.

And one recurring figure.

A young woman surrounded by silver light.

Lily stopped walking.

The woman looked familiar.

Too familiar.

Because she had Lily's face.

Caspian noticed immediately.

"That is the First Lunar Blood."

A chill ran through her.

"The original?"

"Not exactly."

The vampire's expression darkened.

"She was the prototype."

Lily turned toward him.

"What does that mean?"

Caspian looked at the mural.

As if remembering something ancient.

Something painful.

"One thousand years ago, vampires and wolves discovered a common problem."

"Each other?"

"Essentially."

His smile returned briefly.

"Neither species could truly win."

He gestured toward the mural.

"Centuries of war. Millions dead. Entire bloodlines erased."

Lily stared at the painted figures.

"So you created a weapon."

"No."

His voice became quiet.

"We created peace."

That sounded suspicious already.

Caspian continued.

"The Lunar Blood project was designed to end the war."

Lily frowned.

"By creating me?"

"By creating a living Grail."

The words echoed through the chamber.

"A being whose blood could sustain both species."

Something inside Lily tightened.

Because she suddenly knew where this story was heading.

And she hated it already.

"The first Lunar Blood developed consciousness."

Caspian pointed toward another mural.

The painted woman's eyes glowed silver.

Entire armies knelt before her.

"She understood what she was."

The vampire lord's voice dropped.

"A resource."

The word hit Lily hard.

Because she'd spent the last several months feeling exactly that.

Not a person.

Not a daughter.

Not a woman.

A resource.

A weapon.

A blood source.

A prize.

"The First Lunar Blood cursed both species."

The next mural showed wolves and vampires tearing each other apart.

Endless war.

Endless death.

"The curse ensured that neither side would ever fully trust the other again."

Lily stared.

"That's why you're enemies."

Caspian nodded.

"For a thousand years."

The room fell silent.

Then Lily asked the obvious question.

"My blood can break the curse."

The vampire lord smiled.

"Yes."

A terrible feeling settled in her stomach.

Because there was always a catch.

Always.

"And what happens after that?"

Caspian looked away.

For the first time.

Just briefly.

That was enough.

Lily's heart sank.

"What happens?"

The vampire lord finally answered.

"If one species controls your blood exclusively..."

His voice grew quieter.

"...the other species will eventually disappear."

The words hit like a gunshot.

Silence exploded between them.

Lily took a step backward.

Then another.

"No."

"It isn't extinction immediately."

"I don't care!"

Her voice echoed across the chamber.

"You've all been fighting over me because whoever wins gets g******e?"

Caspian didn't answer.

Because he didn't need to.

The truth was written all over his face.

Every faction.

Every betrayal.

Every battle.

Every lie.

It all came back to power.

Always power.

Lily laughed.

The sound bordered on hysterical.

"Wow."

Her eyes burned.

"That is somehow even worse than I imagined."

—

Hours later she found Marcus and Jace inside a secured communications chamber.

Neither looked happy.

Neither looked rested.

Neither looked trustworthy.

At least they were consistent.

Marcus stood immediately when she entered.

"Lily."

She held up a hand.

"No."

The Alpha froze.

Good.

For once she wanted answers before emotions.

"I talked to Caspian."

Marcus's jaw tightened.

Of course it did.

"He told me his plan."

Neither man spoke.

Lily looked between them.

"He says he wants peace."

Jace barked out a laugh.

Marcus remained silent.

"He says he doesn't want wolves exterminated."

Still silence.

"He says he wants to end the curse."

Marcus finally spoke.

"And?"

The question felt dangerous.

Lily swallowed.

Then said it.

"Is that true?"

The room became deathly quiet.

Marcus stared at her.

Long.

Hard.

Painfully.

Finally he nodded.

Partially.

"Parts of it."

Not exactly reassuring.

Lily's frustration exploded.

"Parts?"

Marcus stepped closer.

"The curse exists."

"Great."

"The danger exists."

"Fantastic."

"The blood can alter the balance."

"Wonderful."

Marcus clenched his fists.

"Stop."

"No."

She pointed toward him.

"Because now I need to know something."

The Alpha's eyes met hers.

And for the first time she was afraid of the answer.

"Have you been protecting me..."

Her voice weakened.

"...or protecting access to my blood?"

The question shattered something.

Marcus visibly flinched.

Actually flinched.

The reaction surprised everyone.

Including him.

Several seconds passed.

Then Marcus answered.

"I don't know your father was innocent."

The words came slowly.

Painfully.

"I killed him."

Lily closed her eyes.

The wound reopened instantly.

Marcus continued.

"I can never undo that."

Silence.

Then he stepped closer.

"And I have never used you."

His voice hardened.

"Not once."

Another step.

"I have never wanted your blood."

Another.

"I wanted you alive."

Lily wanted to believe him.

God help her.

She really wanted to.

Then Jace spoke.

"He's lying."

The room froze.

Marcus turned slowly.

Dangerously.

Jace looked completely unbothered.

Which probably meant he had a death wish.

"The Shadowfang Pack has studied her blood for years."

Lily's head snapped toward Marcus.

"What?"

The Alpha didn't move.

Didn't blink.

Didn't deny it.

That silence was answer enough.

Jace smiled bitterly.

"Tell her."

Marcus's golden eyes darkened.

"How do you know that?"

The question came out low.

Deadly.

Jace's smile widened.

Not happily.

Regretfully.

Like a man digging up his own grave.

"Because I started the project."

The words landed like a bomb.

Nobody moved.

Nobody breathed.

Jace laughed softly.

"When I was your Beta."

His gaze shifted toward Lily.

"We researched how to maximize the power of Lunar Blood."

Lily felt physically ill.

Marcus looked ready to kill someone.

Probably Jace.

Possibly himself.

Definitely both.

The room exploded into shouting.

Questions.

Accusations.

Half-truths.

Excuses.

Lies.

Everything crashed together until Lily couldn't take it anymore.

"ENOUGH!"

The scream echoed through the chamber.

Both men stopped.

Finally.

Lily's chest rose and fell rapidly.

She felt exhausted.

Broken.

Used.

Every person she trusted carried secrets.

Every ally had an agenda.

Every protector had calculations.

Her eyes landed on the small vial still hidden in her pocket.

The remaining serum.

Half a bottle.

The last dose.

Without hesitation she pulled it out.

Marcus immediately recognized it.

"Lily—"

Too late.

She uncapped the vial.

And drank everything.

The liquid burned all the way down.

Marcus lunged forward.

Too slow.

The last drop disappeared.

Silence.

Absolute silence.

Then Lily wiped her mouth.

A strange calm settled over her.

"Now neither of you can smell my blood."

Marcus stared.

Horrified.

Jace looked equally stunned.

Lily laughed bitterly.

"Congratulations."

Her voice cracked.

"Nobody gets to use me anymore."

The words hurt because she wasn't entirely sure they were true.

But she wanted them to be.

Needed them to be.

Without waiting for a response, she turned.

And walked away.

Past Marcus.

Past Jace.

Past every warning they shouted after her.

Into the deepest levels of the Blood Council.

Alone.

—

The laboratory doors opened automatically.

Cold air spilled outward.

Sterile.

Artificial.

Wrong.

Lily stepped inside.

Then stopped breathing.

Glass tanks filled the room.

Dozens.

Hundreds.

Row after row disappearing into darkness.

And inside every tank floated a girl.

Her face.

Her eyes.

Her hair.

Her body.

All Lily.

All dead.

All failures.

The sight nearly brought her to her knees.

Behind her, slow footsteps echoed.

Caspian entered quietly.

Proudly.

Like an artist unveiling a masterpiece.

He stopped beside the largest tank.

The one positioned at the center of the laboratory.

The one clearly meant for her.

His expression softened.

Almost lovingly.

"These were failures."

Lily couldn't look away.

The dead girls stared back through the glass.

Frozen forever.

Caspian turned toward her.

"But you..."

His smile returned.

"My daughter."

The words felt wrong.

Poisonous.

Terrifying.

The vampire lord gestured toward a surgical platform nearby.

Bright lights hung overhead.

Medical instruments waited in perfect rows.

And scattered across the metal surface were dark stains.

Old blood.

Human blood.

The blood of the girls who came before her.

Caspian's voice remained gentle.

Patient.

Reasonable.

Like he was asking her to sign paperwork.

Not sacrifice herself.

"You are perfect."

He extended a hand.

"Now please lie down on the operating table."

Lily's stomach turned.

Caspian continued.

"Donate your marrow."

His smile widened.

"Only thirty minutes."

The bloodstains seemed darker now.

More visible.

More real.

"I can end the war."

His voice echoed through the laboratory.

"I can give you the finest prosthetics ever created."

Another step closer.

"You'll still walk."

Lily stared at the dried blood.

The surgical restraints.

The dead girls.

Then back at him.

One question escaped her lips.

Quiet.

Sharp.

Deadly.

"Those girls..."

Caspian froze.

For the first time.

"They came here willingly too, didn't they?"

The laboratory fell silent.

Lily looked directly into his eyes.

And watched something crack.

The smile.

Just for a second.

Just enough.

Just long enough.

To reveal the monster underneath.