One Year To Burn

Chapter 7

Venessa’s POV

I woke drenched in sweat, my chest heaving as though I’d been running for my life. Fate was cruel like that determined not to let me forget. In my sleep, I had relived my judgment. My execution. The memory wrapped itself around me so tightly it felt real, as if it had only just happened and I had only just returned from the darkness.

I felt the blade fall again. Felt the moment everything went black. The damnation clawed its way back into my mind, sharp and merciless, and I broke down, sobbing into the sheets. Why did it have to be me? Why was I never allowed a normal life? Even knowing I was ahead of my enemies now didn’t ease the ache. The truth that they had won once just once still shattered something inside me.

Images flooded my mind. Denzel sprawled in his office, lying in his own vomit. Jalisa’s piercing screams. And then something else surfaced something I had forgotten until now. Words Denzel had spoken to me the day I served him tea. Words my trauma had buried deep.

He had told me he would make everything right. That he knew the truth.

I hadn’t understood what he meant at the time, but he had looked at me then really looked at me with a softness I had never seen before. For the first time, his gaze had held something close to love, and my stomach had fluttered with helpless butterflies. How could I have forgotten something so beautiful? The pain had swallowed everything else.

I pushed myself upright and cried again, this time in relief. I had been given a second chance. A miracle I hadn’t dared hope for. I prayed silently that I wouldn’t waste it that I would succeed, that I would save both of us. I didn’t know what the future held, but for the first time in so long, hope dared to bloom. Maybe just maybe it would be blissful.

We need to be strong, Venessa. We won yesterday, and I know we will keep winning, Nyla’s voice echoed in my mind.

I was still disoriented, but as I looked around and took in the chaos of my room, memory settled back into place. My thoughts drifted to Alesha. In the past, the entire pack had gathered in the field to decide my fate. Some had said I received nothing more than a slap on the wrist. Others whispered it was only because I was Denzel’s fated.

They were wrong.

There was nothing light about losing my freedom. I had been forbidden from leaving the pack and sentenced to eight months of unpaid labor. It had nearly broken me but people still claimed Denzel had gone easy on me. I wondered if they would say the same now that the culprit was Alesha, an old maid with bitterness etched into her bones.

I cleaned up my room, then showered, scrubbing away the remnants of the nightmare. As I dressed, Denzel’s voice rang through my mind deep, commanding, unmistakable. A public announcement. The same words I had heard while locked in a cell, waiting to be judged for theft.

“Everyone should gather at the assembly ground to witness the trial of Alesha Clarke.”

A laugh burst from my lips, shaky but relieved. In the past, that name had been mine Venessa Gordon. I whispered my thanks to fate for finally tipping the scales toward justice.

That was where everything had gone wrong for me in this pack.

I finished getting ready and made my way to the assembly ground, my eyes still swollen from crying. I didn’t mind. If anything, it would work in my favor. I had been framed and I had narrowly escaped ruin.

I was grateful.

As I walked, people smiled at me. Some looked ashamed. Others looked apologetic.

“Sorry about yesterday, Venessa,” Luan said softly. I nodded, telling her it was fine.

Tonya rushed forward and pulled me into a tight hug, which I returned without hesitation.

“Everyone suspected you,” she said quietly. “People were convinced you took it. It only got worse after Luna miscarried. Alesha is evil, Venessa. She saw what the theft did to Luna and still held onto it. How did she think she’d get away with it? All she did was demand they search your room.”

Tonya shook her head. “It didn’t add up, but I’m glad you’re cleared. Now Alesha’s crying, saying you planted it in her room. Alpha Denzel didn’t find that funny at all. Luna Jalisa believed her at first, but Alpha Denzel and the rest of us knew she was just being hateful. We all saw how she whipped you on your very first day, during breakfast. Her hatred for you is too much. I’m glad you were exonerated.”

Emotion clogged my throat. I hugged her again, wiping away my tears. As we walked, people greeted me warmly. Sympathy followed me like a shadow.

They knew the truth now.

We lined up as Alpha Denzel and Luna Jalisa took their place before the pack. Denzel wore a fitted white T-shirt that clung to his muscled torso and black jeans slung low on his hips. For one dangerous second, my thoughts turned sinful I imagined tearing the shirt from him, my hands tracing the strength beneath.

“Yesterday, a crime was committed,” Denzel began.

His eyes found mine, and his gaze faltered when he saw my swollen eyes. Guilt flickered across his face.

“Alesha attempted to frame Venessa,” he continued, his voice hardening, “but the Goddess exonerated her. I don’t yet understand everything at play, but I intend to uncover the truth.”

Murmurs rippled through the crowd.

“Alesha swore the item was in Venessa’s room. We would have arrested Venessa without hesitation if we hadn’t searched further. When the necklace wasn’t found, Alesha implied Venessa had sold it. Under normal circumstances, we might have believed that especially since Venessa went out with Gamma Rayon yesterday.”

My stomach clenched.

“She cleaned my room the day the necklace went missing. It was a convincing story,” he said grimly. “Alesha pushed us to search Venessa’s room, knowing we’d find nothing. Then she claimed Venessa sold it during her outing. If we hadn’t searched Kadian’s and Alesha’s rooms as well, Venessa would be in chains right now.”

His jaw tightened. “This is unacceptable. Today, I will make an example of Alesha Clarke. Let this serve as a warning to anyone who thinks they can commit a crime and blame the newcomer. From this day forward, everyone will be investigated. No one will be quick to point fingers again.”

His voice dropped, heavy with authority. “Venessa came to this pack seeking refuge. What was done to her was cruel. Wicked. And it will not be tolerated.”

Annoyance laced his tone, and beside him, Luna Jalisa’s face twisted into a scowl so sharp it was almost satisfying. I kept my expression neutral, though triumph pulsed through me.

I had won.

This time.