chapter four

**POV: Cassandra**

Sebastian rushed to us, his eyes widening at the sight of Emily covered in blood and the knife in my hands. He pushed me away from her, his gaze filled with anger. She had orchestrated everything perfectly: the white dress, the knife, the blood. I knew she wouldn’t be stupid enough to seriously harm herself, but the tight white dress made it look like she was losing liters of blood.

“Cassandra, what have you done?” he shouted, holding Emily in his arms. She seemed to be weakening, unable to stand.

“No, Sebastian, it’s not what it looks like! She… she did this to herself! She wanted to frame me!” I tried to explain, but my voice was trembling and the words came out confused. At that moment, Emily opened her eyes one last time, as if bidding farewell, and whispered:

“Alpha… I swear I tried to make amends with her, for our family, but she had a fit of jealousy when she saw me in a wedding dress. She ruined my dress and even tried to kill me.” Emily whispered with a faltering voice and then pretended to faint.

Everyone around us became concerned, thinking Emily had completely lost consciousness and needed to be hospitalized. But I had witnessed what she was capable of doing to get what she wanted.

Sebastian looked at me with contempt, not believing a word I said. “You’ve gone too far, Cassandra. This cannot continue. Your sick jealousy nearly killed my mate. From now on, you will be confined to the dungeon with no permission to leave. Neither water nor food will be provided to you for a week. That will be your punishment.”

He pushed me forcefully, making me fall to the floor on my back. “Guards!” he shouted, and two wolves entered the kitchen, looking at me with indifference.

“Take her to the east wing. Make sure she has no contact with anyone, and anyone who dares to feed Luna will be killed!” Sebastian ordered, his voice cold and indifferent.

At that moment, my false mother, Johanna, entered the kitchen. Seeing the blood-stained floor and Emily sprawled in Sebastian’s arms, she advanced towards me, her eyes filled with hatred.

“You ungrateful girl, you had the audacity to try to kill your sister after I raised you all these years. I should have killed you when you were still a child!” she shouted, every word laced with venom as she hit me.

Johanna continued to slap me, delivering kicks and punches to my body. I had no strength to defend myself, only feeling the impact of each blow. Every word, every hit dragged me deeper into despair.

“This is for betraying my trust, Cassandra!” she screamed, her voice filled with hatred. “You were never anything but a burden!”

The guards finally intervened, dragging me away as I futilely tried to protect myself. At that moment, the pack’s doctor and a nurse entered the kitchen, witnessing the brutality of the scene.

“Please stop!” the doctor pleaded, approaching Sebastian. “Even if Luna Cassandra has done something terrible, she shouldn’t be sent to the dungeon. She still has remnants of placenta that haven’t been expelled after the miscarriage she suffered,” the doctor explained urgently. “Leaving her in these conditions could condemn her to death. She needs medical care and urgent surgical intervention.”

Sebastian hesitated for a moment, his gaze shifting between Emily, who seemed weakly unconscious in his arms, and me, lying on the bloodied floor. It was then that Johanna grabbed his arm and said, “That’s not true, Alpha. The doctor and the nurse are saying this just to protect Luna. Please, my eldest daughter is a murderer who tried to kill your mate. Do justice for Emily!” Johanna caressed Emily’s hair, who stirred slightly, pretending to be weak and helpless.

“Take her to the dungeon,” Sebastian finally ordered, his voice still cold and authoritative.

“Alpha…” the doctor murmured, surprised by Sebastian’s decision, who had been excited about the arrival of the twins just a few weeks ago.

“Cassandra must remain in isolation, without water or food for seven days. If she survives that long, then she may receive medical treatment. But first, she needs to learn from her mistakes!” he snarled impatiently, carrying Emily in his arms.

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“But... Alpha...” the nurse said nervously, seeing my condition.

“Are you questioning me, nurse?” Sebastian narrowed his eyes, his Alpha authority imposing itself. “My decision is absolute, and anyone who dares to contradict me will be killed!” he said seriously.

“Yes, Alpha…” everyone replied in unison.

“Remain silent if you don’t want to die!” I heard the doctor whispering in the nurse’s ear, forcing her to accept the situation.

As he carried Emily out of the kitchen, the guards forcibly lifted me, dragging me out of the room while I sobbed, feeling my heart shatter. Sebastian’s cruelty was unimaginable. Emily had likely done this with the intention of making him reject me and finally make her the Luna of the pack. Unfortunately, he thought that locking me in the dungeon and seeing me writhe in pain every time he had sex with her in our room would be a worse punishment.

Arriving at the dungeon, I was thrown onto the cold, damp floor like a filthy animal. Chains were fastened to my wrists and ankles, and the door slammed shut with a deafening clang. The silence that followed was oppressive, but I couldn’t allow myself to crumble. I needed to find strength, even if it was my last, to fight against the injustice surrounding me.

I closed my eyes, trying to breathe deeply despite the pain. The image of Sebastian holding Emily, the anger on his face, and Johanna’s cold words echoed in my mind. I knew I had to be strong, but I was completely devastated inside.

“Luna... Cassandra...” I heard Amber’s voice, and when I turned, she was disguised with a black hood so the guards wouldn’t recognize her.

“What are you doing here? You could get into trouble trying to help me,” I murmured, signaling her to let me rot in this place for the seven days.

“Luna, please, we need to do something. You won’t last long like this,” Amber said, her voice full of concern as she saw my real condition. She couldn’t bear hearing me moan in pain and seeing the blood dripping from my body.

“You’re right, Amber...” I whispered, breathless. “We need to find the witch Ursula. Only she will be able to help me now!”

Amber nodded, determined. “I’ll do whatever it takes, Luna. I’ll find the witch Ursula for you.” She said, holding my hands tightly through the bars to comfort me.

Sebastian had tightened security throughout the pack since Emily’s arrival at our home. His dominance as Alpha was absolute over me; I had neither the permission nor the strength to challenge him. Amber approached and administered the medication that the doctor and the nurse had secretly given her. When I felt the needle piercing my skin and the liquid being released into my bloodstream, I thanked God for still having people who cared about me.

My only hope was Ursula, who had once favored me. How could I have imagined being betrayed by the only people I thought I could trust? I had done everything to protect my family since my father’s death, and now I was bedridden, suffering from relentless pain every day.

“I swear by my life, as soon as I find Ursula, Sebastian, Emily, and my mother, I will make them all pay!” I gasped before surrendering to the medication and falling into a deep sleep.