"She wolfed out and tried to kill me unprovoked." Kira shouted the moment she heard the sounds of footsteps approaching.
After being framed by her half-sister kira Ennis, Amalia Ennis was punished by the Alpha Council at the demand of her once doting brother and her deeply devoted mate, Ronan Vex. Her wolf was forcibly bound and weakened, leaving her unable to shift for months. Without her wolf, Amalia endured endless humiliation, as though part of her very soul had been torn away.
Upon her release, she explained herself countless times, but her brother Alaric looked at her with icy indifference. " Kira is pure-hearted. How could she frame you?"
Her mate, Ronan, firmly believed in whatever lie that was being sold. "Amalia, no matter how much you've changed, I'll still marry you, but kira is innocent."
And so, they allowed kira to take her home, seize everything she had and even destroy her mother's photograph.
Heartbroken and disillusioned, Amalia left the pack lands behind, disappearing completely.
Not long after, Ronan and Alaric nearly lost their minds searching for her.
——
"Your sentence is complete. You may shift again now. As someone of your bloodline, make sure to live decently from now on and stop harming others."
At the edge of the Moon Tribunal grounds, the elder dismissed her, shaking his head in disappointment.
Amalia was the only eldest daughter of the prestigious Maddox Alpha Family in the capital. Raised with love and privilege, she was said to be cruel and ruthless, even attempting to drive her own blood-related sister to death with her wolf. What a waste of such a beautiful face. Amalia stood on the steps, a shadow of sorrow passing through her eyes as she listened to his words.
A year ago, her father brought Kira, who had been living in another country, back to the pack. That was when Amalia learned that her father, who had always been deeply devoted to her mother, had long been unfaithful. He had a child with another woman and even brought her mother, Bonnie, into the Alpha House.
Bonnie had taken her mother's place, claiming her father's love, while her daughter, kira, not only took everything she had but also falsely accused her of shifting to attack her in a fit of jealousy.
Her father exploded in anger, "Even if you can't accept kira, she's still your sister, Bonnie's only child! How could you treat her like this?"
However, Amalia hadn't done anything.
Her father shoved a recording crystal at her, his fury boiling over. "Look for yourself. The witnesses already confessed and yet you still won't admit it."
Trembling, Amalia picked it up. In the projection, a rogue wolf immediately pointed at her with fear in his eyes. "It wasn't me. Alpha's daughter ordered me. She told me to help her wolf kill Miss kira."
Not only that, there were also claw marks staged across kira's arm, but Amalia wolf had been suppressed at the time—she couldn't have shifted even if she tried. She originally wanted to investigate, but her father ordered the Moon Tribunal to strip her wolf of its strength.
She still remembered the look of disgust in her father's eyes when her wolf's spirit was bound in chains of silver light. "I've spoiled you too much over the years. Let your wolf suffer, I want to see you survive without your wolf. Reflect on yourself!"
Now, thinking back, her heart ached as if being torn apart. Meanwhile, the pack reporters who had been waiting outside saw her and immediately brightened, rushing toward her.
"Miss Maddox, rumors say you're insanely jealous and deliberately tried to murder your own sister with your wolf. Is that true?"
Amalia staggered back under the barrage of questions. Her mind was foggy as she shook her head, saying, "No, I didn't do anything. This isn't true."
Before she could say another word, the reporters pressed her further. "Miss Maddox, if you claim you didn't do anything, then why was your wolf sealed away? And why was there no one to welcome you when you were released by the moon tribunal?"
Her lips trembled and before she could speak, another reporter jumped in, "Miss Maddox, your mother was a famous and well respected Luna. Aren't you worried that your actions will tarnish her reputation?"
The reporters' words cut into Amalia like sharp claws, each question piercing her heart. She was surrounded, struggling to breathe. And then, one of them shouted, "If you're really innocent, shift here and show us your wolf!"
Her pulse quickened. It had been months since her wolf had been allowed to surface. Slowly, she closed her eyes and summoned her spirit. Pain wracked her body as her bones stretched, fur spilling across her arms until her silver wolf emerged, trembling yet luminous beneath the moonlight.
Gasps echoed through the crowd. For a heartbeat, Amalia thought they might see the truth that her wolf was weak and not violent. But instead, the whispers turned vicious.
"Look at her eyes—so wild! She must have attacked kira like this!"
"Such a dangerous aura. No wonder the Council sealed her wolf."
Her wolf whimpered, pressing against her mind, and Amalia shifted back, her body trembling. Tears stung her eyes as the accusations piled higher.
Just as she felt she could no longer bear it, a hand grabbed her and pulled her away from the crowd. She looked up to see Ronan, her childhood friend and chosen mate.
Ronan, with his fair and handsome features, cast a cold indifferent gaze over the surrounding wolves. His voice, laced with chilling Alpha authority, echoed through the air. "This is over."
The reporters fell silent as a group of pack warriors in black seized their recording devices. Though they were furious, none dared to resist. After all, this was the son of the powerful Vex Alpha Family, who had recently been making waves and gaining more authority and power.
Ronan dragged Amalia away. Inside the car, the atmosphere was heavy with tension.
Amalia glanced at the man beside her. Today was the day she was released from her wolf's punishment, and yet, the only one who came to pick her up was Ronan. This made her heart ache with bitter irony.
Ronan tugged at his collar, his face cold as he turned to question her, "Did you shift on purpose in front of them? Were you deliberately trying to play the victim, to make them believe kira forced this narrative?"
Hearing his words, Amalia's heart felt like it was being torn apart. It was even more painful than when the reporters questioned her. "I didn't... I didn't say anything!"
But Ronan didn't believe her. He snorted coldly, holding his phone in hand as he casually spoke, "If I had come any later, who knows what you would've done with your wolf?"
Looking at his distant expression, Amalia's heart sank like a stone. How had everything ended up like this? So they all thought she was a vicious wolf capable of killing anyone.