Thread Of Guilt
Mira sat on the cold stone floor outside Ella’s chamber, her hands clutched in her lap, stained with the Luna’s fevered sweat. Her eyes were wide, her body trembling. Ella hadn’t moved since she collapsed—her breathing shallow, her skin pale as snow.
The guilt was a gnawing thing inside her chest, clawing and howling louder than any wolf. She couldn’t eat. She couldn’t sleep. She could barely breathe without feeling like a monster.
I poisoned her. I did this.
Tears slipped down her cheeks.
She couldn’t live like this anymore.
\---
The Desperate Visit
That night, Mira sneaked through the pack house like a shadow. Cloaked in a dark shawl, she crept past guards and ducked into quiet halls until she reached the Gamma’s wing. The guard on duty knew her and nodded her in.
She found Sisi in the candle-lit sitting room, lounging across a couch like royalty, sipping from a silver cup.
Sisi looked up, mildly surprised, then smiled coldly. “Well, well. If it isn’t the trembling little maid.”
Mira’s voice was raw. “She’s dying, Sisi.”
Sisi didn’t blink. “And?”
“You promised she’d only get sick—just weak enough to be removed, not this. Not like this!”
Sisi sighed and set her cup down with an icy clink. “Promises are for fools. Besides, she’s still breathing, isn’t she?”
Mira stepped forward, her eyes wet with desperation. “Please… give me the antidote. I won’t say anything to anyone. Just let me save her.”
Sisi’s expression twisted into a smirk, her voice honeyed with venom. “And risk my life? Do you think I’m stupid?”
“I’ll do anything,” Mira whispered. “Anything.”
Sisi stood slowly, stepping close, her voice suddenly low and dangerous. “If you even think about opening your mouth, your brother will be sent back to you in pieces.”
Mira flinched as if slapped.
“You’re a servant. Act like one. You obey. Or your little brother bleeds.”
She leaned in close, her voice now a hiss. “And if you come here again... I’ll make sure you drink the rest of the poison.”
Then she turned away, dismissing her like dirt.
Mira stumbled out of the Gamma’s wing, heart racing, sobs stuck in her throat.
She had no one. No cure. No way out.
And Ella was dying.
\---
The Silence That Greeted Him
Damian stepped down from his black stallion, boots crunching over gravel as he approached the pack house. The sun was setting, but something felt… off. The usual lively buzz of warriors training, pups playing, and omegas preparing supper was absent.
Too quiet.
His wolf stirred uneasily in his chest.
He hadn’t even crossed the threshold when Beta Leo met him at the door, face pale, eyes heavy.
Damian stiffened. “Where’s Ella?”
Leo hesitated. “She’s… she collapsed two days ago. The healers can’t figure out what’s wrong. She hasn’t woken up.”
The world tilted. Damian’s heart slammed against his ribs. “Why wasn’t I told sooner?”
“You were in hostile territory. We didn’t want to risk—”
He didn’t hear the rest. He shoved past Leo and stormed inside.
\---
The Sight That Shattered Him
He burst into their room.
There she was.
His Luna. His mate. His heart.
Pale and motionless beneath a tangle of white sheets, her silver hair damp with sweat, her breathing ragged. Her glowing strength—the vibrant fire she always carried—was gone. She looked like a ghost of herself.
Damian dropped to his knees beside the bed, hands trembling as he reached out and cupped her cheek. “Ella…”
No response.
He pressed his forehead to hers. Her skin was burning.
“Who did this?” His voice cracked with fury and fear. “What the hell happened while I was gone?!”
He turned sharply as the healer entered quietly, a wrinkled older woman with kind but grave eyes.
“She’s been poisoned, Alpha,” she said gently. “A dark spell—one I haven’t seen in years. I had to dig deep into old scrolls and forbidden knowledge to find it.”
Damian’s jaw clenched. “Tell me everything.”
The healer hesitated. “The spell is slow... cruel. It feeds on love, on the soul. It’s why she kept smiling. Why she hid it. She didn’t want to worry you.”
“Who made this spell?” Damian asked, voice like thunder.
The healer’s gaze darkened. “The aura… it matches that of someone called Lila.”
Damian’s blood ran cold.
Of course it was her.
Ella whimpered faintly in her sleep. Damian turned back to her, brushing sweat from her brow, swallowing the lump in his throat.
“She’ll fight through this,” he whispered, more to himself than anyone. “I won’t let her go.”
His eyes blazed gold with fury. “And I’ll burn down the world to find the ones who did this.”