Chapter 76
Somewhere deep within the palace, white panic and chaos claw through the halls over a dying girl, Lady Celestia twirls in place behind gold–lined walls and satin curtains. She moves like a giddy child playing queen in a dollhouse, her silken robe cascading over her shoulders like a crown of its own.
As she hums and glides across the room, she trails her fingers along the glass surface of her vanity, lips curled into a wicked smile. The flames in the
fireplace flicker and dance, casting shadows that make her look more devil than
“There’s no fucking way she survived it,” Celestia says aloud, her voice practically skipping with glee. “Not after my father’s blade pierced her heart. It’s the deadliest weapon in existence for a reason.”
Her grin stretches wider, her eyes gleaming with triumph.
She saunters to her private wine shelf–home to the kingdom’s most prized and expensive collection. From it, she selects a crystal bottle dusted in gold, a rare vintage reserved for coronations or victories in battle.
Well, this counts.
She pops the cork, pours herself a generous glass, and lifts it high in the air, as though toasting death itself.
“To the bitch’s funeral,” she whispers, clinking her glass against the bottle before taking a long, indulgent sip. Her eyes flutter closed in satisfaction. “Before it even begins.”
Opening her eyes, her gaze drifts across the room and lands on the large, ornate gift boxes stacked neatly on her dresser. She strolls over, her heels clicking against the marble floor, anticipation curling in her toes.
“I wonder if her head will fit,” she murmurs sweetly, brushing a finger over the ribbon of one box. “Or maybe I’ll put the heart in this one… and Jack can receive it as a wedding gift.”
She giggles–soft and girlish–so at odds with the darkness of her words.
“Jack won’t do anything, even if he finds out,” she says with a shrug. “I’m the Alpha King’s only heir. He wouldn’t dare lay a finger on me. He knows the consequences.”
She spins slowly, lifting her glass again as she basks in her fantasy.
“Today… is the happiest day of my life,” she sighs dreamily. “Finally, Jack will be mine now that his little bitch is gone. Whether he wants it or not.”
A flicker of something darker passes over her face.
“Thanks to Uncle Malrik,” she adds, voice dipping to a near–reverent tone.
Even speaking his name sends a chill down her spine–half fear, half devotion.
Uncle Malrik, who is also Jack’s uncle. There’s a hatred between them that Celestia has never fully understood. She remembers the story–how Jack, even as a child, shattered Malrik’s leg in a fit of rage. Malrik still walks with a limp, a twisted cane always in hand.
Celestia often wonders why he supports her so fiercely in marrying Jack, despite J something deeper… and darker.
open loathing for him. Perhaps it’s about power. Or control. Or
She chuckles to herself as her eyes drift to the window, moonlight pouring in like an omen.
“Poor little Kali,” she murmurs, swirling the wine in her glass. “Did you reall
think fate would be on your side?”
Her smile falters slightly as an old memory surfaces–half–buried, half–haunting.
She had been just a child then. Wandering. Empty. No name. No family. No past.
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Chapter 76
Until he found her.
Until Uncle Malrik brought her home and whispered the truth.
“You’re royalty, child,” he said in that deep, dangerous voice. “You were lost. But now you’re found. You belong to greatness.”
From that moment, her loyalty belonged to him. Not to the crown. Not to her father. To him.
He had returned her to the Alpha King. He taught her how to manipulate. How to scheme. How to survive.
And it is he who promises her Jack–no matter the cost.
A dark spell. A dangerous one. And the requirement is simple: Kali must die. Celestia delivers.
She owes Malrik everything. That’s why she keeps his secrets, serves his will, and helps him climb the palace walls–embedding himself beside the King as the royal messenger.
But he is far more than a messenger.
He is a shadow that never leaves.
Celestia closes her eyes again, savoring the burn of the wine on her tongue, the crackling fire behind her, and the intoxicating weight of her own victory—
Click.
The door creaks open.
Her smirk deepens, though she doesn’t turn around.
“I knew you’d come to your senses, Father,” she purrs, lifting her glass. “Locking me up for her? For that little rat who means nothing-”
She freezes mid–sentence.
Her spine stiffens.
That scent. That presence. That aura.
It isn’t her father.
Slowly, she turns.
Standing in the doorway, cloaked in black robes, a cane clutched tightly in one hand, is Uncle Malrik.
A messenger of death.
The flames behind her seem to dim in his presence. His silhouette looms tall and sharp, half his face hidden beneath the curve of his hood.
He steps inside slowly, his limp dragging behind him like a second shadow.
Celestia’s lips part. For orice, she forgets to smile.
“…Uncle?” she breathes, her voice trembling slightly. The glass in her hand quivers.
Malrik doesn’t answer.
He closes the door behind him with a soft click–a sound that echoes like the sealing of a tomb.
No smile.
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Chapter 76
No warmth.
Just the cold, merciless gleam in his eyes.
He is her partner in crime.
Her maker.
Her monster.
And he never appears without reason.
Which can only mean one thing: Something is very, very wrong.
His eyes sweep the room–over the wine, over the boxes, over her fading smirk.
Suddenly, the fire doesn’t feel so warm.
Celestia swallows hard. She holds her ground but keeps the wine glass in hand. Her expression remains composed, but her knuckles whiten around the
stem.
“You shouldn’t celebrate yet,” Malrik says at last, his voice heavy and cold. It carries the weight of command–a tone that always unsettles her, especially since, technically, she holds power over him as the Alpha King’s daughter. “Not until you hear and confirm that she’s truly dead.”
Celestia forces a smile, but it doesn’t reach her eyes.
“She is dead,” she says sharply, then tries to soften her tone with a light chuckle. I killed her myself. I made sure of it before I left. She didn’t even have the strength to breathe when I walked away. She’s gone.”
Malrik steps further into the room, his presence swallowing the light as he moves. His cold eyes scan her face.
“And how did you get in?” she asks, unable to mask her irritation this time.
“You forget who I am, girl,” he murmurs, almost amused. “Locked doors and dumb guards don’t stop me.”
Celestia lifts her chin. “Father had them lock me in like some criminal–on my birthday, no less.” She snorts. “As if I’d feel guilt for killing that pathetic
girl.”
Malrik’s eyes darken.
“You fool,” he hisses, his voice low but dripping with venom. “You weren’t supposed to kill her yourself.”
She frowns, her voice rising. “I did what had to be done! Plan A failed. Father hesitated. I had to move fast. He was too weak to do it, Malrik! He looked at that kali like–like she was everything to him! He wouldn’t lift a finger even when I-” she laughs bitterly, “even when I threatened to kill myself right in front of him. He was possessed by her. Obsessed. That’s when I knew–I had to do it. I couldn’t miss the only opportunity.”
“You ruined everything,” Malrik snaps.
His voice cracks like a whip. Celestia flinches.
“The plan was for him to spill her blood. To make it look like justice. A royal decree. Not a jealous daughter acting out of rage. You’ve destroyed everything.”
Celestia glares at him. “You’re just a messenger. Why do you talk to me like I’m your servant?”
“You are,” Malrik growls.
“I’m the Alpha King’s daughter, and I won’t keep tolerating your-”
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Crack!
His cane strikes the side of her head.
The glass slips from her hand and shatters on the floor. She stumbles back, clutching her temple as blood trickles down her face.
“Watch your mouth.” he growls, towering over her. “Don’t forget–I brought you here. I made you the Alpha King’s daughter. I could’ve tossed you into the filth and sold you off to a rogue den. I could’ve made you an omega’s whore.”
Célestia breathes hard, eyes wide with disbelief. “Stop… stop talking like you did me a favor. You only returned me because I am his daughter. Because you had something to gain.”
Malrik leans down slowly, his lips curling into a cruel smile.
“You really believe that, do you?” he whispers. “That you share his blood?”
Her knees go weak.
“What… what are you saying?” she stammers, her voice suddenly small. Fragile.
Malrik straightens again and turns away, his tone colder than ice. “If you want to keep your place, your crown, your little future with Jack… then never make a move without my word again.”
Her voice trembles now. “What do I have to do?”
He stops at the broken glass on the floor and taps it gently with his cane.
“There’s a necklace,” he says slowly. “Buried within Alpha Jack’s house. In Blood Fang Pack.”
“A necklace?” she repeats.
“It belonged to her–the true Alpha Queen. Your so–called mother. With that necklace, you can convince the world that you’re her daughter. That you belong to this family. That the Alpha King didn’t make a mistake by accepting you… whether you’re blood or not.”
He turns to her, eyes gleaming like the Devil himself.
“Without it… your little fairy tale ends. And everyone will know you’re nothing but a stray pup pretending to wear a crown.”
