4- NEVER GIVE UP

CHAPTER ONE

-WILHELMINA-

"Wilhelmina, you can't beat me. Just give up," His voice was grating, like stones scraping against each other. It sent shivers coursing down my spine. But his words — his taunting — only served to ignite a spark within me, a spark that fanned the flickering embers of my will into a blazing defiance. The wolf inside me snarled, refusing to bow to the likes of Boris, refusing to be tamed by the tormenting poison.

"Never," I spat out, my voice raspy but charged with defiance.

Suddenly, without warning, my legs gave out from under me. I collapsed onto the forest floor, the icy storm soaking into my fur. My trembling muscles rebelled against every attempt to rise as the venom continued to spread its numbing tendrils through my body. Slowly, my body started to change. My fur disappeared, replaced by skin pale as the moonlight that filtered in through the stormy canopy overhead. My paws shrank, forming into hands and feet. My muzzle and ears shortened, the elongated snout fading into a nose, my wolf’s ears reshaping into petite human ones. The process was agonizing, each transformation pulling and stretching my muscles in ways they were not meant to move. The pain was blinding, piercing through every nerve, every cell. It felt as though I was being pulled apart from the inside out, reshaped and reformed under the cruel claws of a tormentor. I lay there, shaking from the cold, my body aching from the transformation.

The storm began to lose its rage, the thunder growling softly in the distance. The rain became a drizzle, and then it stopped altogether. The scent of damp earth, once filled with tension, now held notes of curiosity and fear. Boris shifted back into his human form, the change appearing much smoother and less agonizing thanks to the absence of Wolf's Bane in his bloodstream.

"Wilhelmina," Boris murmured, his voice losing its harshness but still echoing in the silence left behind by the waning storm. His once cold, dark eyes were now void of their cruel glint and instead flickered with a touch of his usual arrogance. "Your defiance and determination is so alluring. Even if we are against each other, I can't help but admire your lovely features."

I could feel his gaze on me, studying my human form. I couldn't help but snarl at his audacity. My words were a raspy echo of the wolf's growl that still rumbled deep within me. "Save your admiration, Boris. I didn't transform for your amusement."

Boris chuckled, a sound that seemed to ripple through the silence left by the storm. "Of course you didn't," he replied, a small grin playing at his lips. "But the sight is truly something."

The mocking tone in his voice rekindled my anger, and despite the pain that lanced through my every fiber, I managed to push myself up onto shaky knees. Our rivalry had never been a friendly one, but I'd be damned if I gave Boris the satisfaction of seeing me weak.

"I'm not done yet." The words came out fiercer than intended.

Boris neared me, kneeling on one knee in front of me, and gently brushed a lock of sopping hair from my face. His touch was unexpectedly soft, almost tender. His dark eyes met mine, a silent challenge passing between us. "You will be mine one day. It may not be today, but it will be soon." His voice was low, almost affectionate, but I could the arrogance glowing in his eyes.

His words should have incensed me. I should have wanted to snap back, to challenge his audacity, but my body was teetering on the precipice of exhaustion. The toxins were taking their toll, and every inch of me screamed for rest.

Still, I bit down hard on my lip, tasting the coppery tang of blood as my teeth cut through. "I'll never be yours," I hissed through gritted teeth, forcing defiance into every syllable despite the tremor in my voice.

His lips curled into a smirk at my response "We'll see about that, Wilhelmina," he replied, his voice like a velvet-wrapped blade. He stood up and marched over to the Alpha's Crown. My vision grew dark around the edges as the exhaustion grew. I needed to fight. I can't let him win. My body slumped over, and the ground rose to meet me, the damp earth a cold comfort against my heated skin. The earthy scent mixed with the fresh aftermath of rain was a raw reminder of my predicament, of my failed attempt to secure the Alpha's Crown for myself.

Boris turned back towards me, his silhouette outlined in the pale, ethereal moonlight that now dappled the forest floor. The Alpha's Crown glimmered in his grasp, an eerie glow highlighting the intricate carvings etched into its gilt exterior. Its power pulsed through the clearing, the air becoming almost tangible with it.

Just as Boris was about to slip the Alpha's Crown onto his head, a shadowed figure darted out from the treelines. It happened so quickly, it was nearly impossible for the eye to register. In an instant, my brother was crouched beside me, his face etched with concern.

"Wilhelmina," he breathed, his voice a soothing balm to the chaos around us. His large hands held my face gently, turning it towards him. "Are you alright? Your scent, something was off about it, so I ran here as fast I could."

I attempted a smile, but my lips felt frozen, numb. "I... I'm fine," I managed to croak out, my voice barely more than a whisper. The world around me was spinning, Weldon's worried face and Boris's triumphant figure blurring together into an indecipherable whirl of color.

Boris looked at us, his eyes flashing with annoyance. He seemed as if he wanted to barge in, the Alpha's Crown still clutched tightly in his hand. But for some reason, he didn't. Maybe it was the presence of my brother, or maybe it was something else entirely.

"I'm taking you to the healers." Weldon announced, more to himself than to anyone else. His voice was a low growl, filled with concern that betrayed his usually stoic exterior. He slid his arm beneath me carefully, lifting me with an ease that belied his lean build.

Before Boris could react, Weldon took off into the depths of the Dark Woods. The sudden movement made the world spin around me even faster, the rush of wind and smell of pine washing over us. Boris's infuriated roar echoed behind us, but was quickly swallowed by the haunting silence of the woods.

The trees blurred into a wall of green as Weldon's swift steps carried us deeper into the forest. My eyes fluttered, my vision spangling with dots as my consciousness began to wane. He was speaking again, his voice a low rumble that I felt rather than heard. The words were nonsensical, a cacophony of sound that further disoriented me.