Kira's POV
"Morgana is your grandmother?" I stared at Zander like he'd grown another head.
Everyone in the cabin went dead silent. Even Derek stopped growling, his mouth hanging open in shock.
Zander looked like someone had punched him in the stomach. "That's impossible. My mother was human. She died when I was five."
"Your mother was half-witch," Elder Seraphine said quietly. "Morgana's daughter who fell in love with your father and tried to escape her mother's influence. Morgana killed them both when she found out."
"No." Zander shook his head hard. "Rogues killed my family. I saw the bodies."
"You saw what Morgana wanted you to see," Seraphine amended. "She needed you to hate rogues so you'd become the perfect tool. Strong, angry, willing to do anything for payback."
My mind reeled as the pieces clicked together. "She's been manipulating him his whole life."
"Both of you," Seraphine looked at me sadly. "Do you really think it was a chance that you and Mira went to that river? The same river where Morgana's magic is strongest?"
Ice filled my chest. "What do you mean?"
"Someone whispered in your ear about the banned place, didn't they? Suggested it might be fun to explore?"
I thought back to that horrible day. There had been someone... a traveling merchant who'd told stories about the beautiful secret river. She'd made it sound so wonderful, so tempting.
"The merchant," I whispered. "The old woman with the crystal jewelry." "Morgana," Seraphine agreed. "She planted the idea and waited for you to act on it."
Papa stepped forward, his face twisted with rage. "You're saying the witch planned my daughter's death from the beginning?"
"She planned both their deaths," Seraphine said. "But Kira's survival ruined everything. The magic couldn't finish properly with one target still alive."
"So she's been slowly killing me for ten years," I said, understanding rushing through me. "Keeping me weak so I couldn't discover my real power."
"What real power?" Derek demanded. "She's just a rogue!"
Seraphine smiled at me. "Tell them what you can really do, child. Not just shadow-walking. What happens when you touch someone who's dying?"
My heart stopped. She knew. Somehow, this ancient woman knew my darkest secret.
"I don't know what you mean," I lied.
"Don't you?" Seraphine's eyes twinkled. "What about the pup who fell from the cliff last year? The old cat who had a heart attack in the woods? The wounded bird you found as a child?"
Everyone was looking at me now. Even Zander looked confused.
"Tell them," Seraphine urged softly.
My voice came out as barely a whisper. "I can help people. But only if they're almost dead."
The silence stretched on forever.
"Impossible," Derek finally said. "Healing magic died out centuries ago."
"Not died out," Seraphine amended. "Hidden. Protected. Passed down through very specific genes." She looked straight at me. "Like the Blackthorne line."
Papa's face went white. "The family stories. About our grandfather who could bring people back from death's door. I thought they were just tales."
"Every legend has roots in truth," Seraphine said. "Kira inherited the healing gift, but it's been repressed by Morgana's death magic. That's why she can only use it when someone is dying - it's the only time her power is stronger than the curse."
"But if she can heal people," Zander said slowly, "and I have death magic..."
"Together, you could theoretically raise the dead properly," Seraphine finished. "Not the broken resurrection Morgana offers, but true healing. Life and death balanced perfectly."
My head spun with the consequences. "Is that why she wanted us both dead? Because together we're a threat to her?"
"You're not just a threat," Seraphine said grimly. "You're her replacement. With the right schooling and the proper bond, you two could take over all her power. Become the new guardians of life and death magic."
Derek snarled. "This is crazy! We came here to kill a rogue, not listen to fairy stories!"
"Did you?" Seraphine asked gently. "Or did Morgana speak in your ear too? Plant seeds of doubt about your Alpha? Make you think this coup was your idea?"
Derek's face went slack with fear. "No. We decided this ourselves."
"When did you first start doubting Zander?" Seraphine pressed. "Was it after you met that helpful rogue who told you about his midnight activities? The one who seemed to know exactly where to find him?"
I watched Derek's confidence fall as he realized he'd been played too.
"She's been moving all of us around like chess pieces," Papa said angrily. "For years."
"Decades," Seraphine amended. "This plan started before any of you were born."
"So what do we do now?" I asked. "How do we stop her?"
"We don't," a new voice said from the doorway.
We all spun around to see a figure step into the cabin. At first view, she looked like a harmless old woman with silver hair and kind eyes.
But the temperature dropped twenty degrees when she entered, and shadows bent away from her like they were afraid.
"Hello, children," Morgana Vex said sweetly. "I see you've finally figured out my little game."
Zander stepped in front of me protectively. "Stay back, Grandmother."
Morgana's laugh sounded like breaking glass. "Oh, my dear boy. You still don't understand, do you?"
She waved her hand, and everyone except me and Zander froze like statues. Papa, Derek, the other dogs, even Elder Seraphine - all trapped in some kind of spell.
"The prophecy wasn't about you defeating me," Morgana continued, walking closer. "It was about you joining me. Willingly."
"Never," Zander growled.
"Oh, but you will," Morgana smiled. "Because I have something you both want more than anything else."
She snapped her fingers, and the air shimmered.
A small figure appeared between us.
Seven-year-old Mira stood in the house, looking exactly as she had the day she died. Confused, scared, and very much living.
"Kira?" Mira's voice was small and scared. "Why is everyone so angry? Where have you been? I've been waiting for you to come play with me."
My heart shattered into a million pieces. "Mira..."
"I brought her back properly this time," Morgana said happily. "Not a creation or an echo. Your real sister, with all her memories intact. She's been living in my realm, waiting for her big sister to come home."
Tears poured down my face as I stared at the sister I'd lost. The sister whose death had destroyed my life.
"All you have to do is come with me," Morgana said gently. "Both of you. Let me teach you to use your combined skills properly. Help me keep the balance between life and death. And Mira stays alive forever."
"What's the catch?" Zander asked hoarsely.
Morgana's kind mask slipped for just a second, showing something ancient and hungry underneath.
"You help me kill every other supernatural thing on earth. Wolves, vampires, fae, dragons - everyone. Until only witches remain to rule the world."
She smiled at our terrified faces.
"You have one minute to decide. Save your sister and rule beside me, or watch her die again. This time permanently."
Mira looked between us with innocent, trusting eyes. "Kira? I'm scared. Please don't leave me again."