Jacky’s POV
I was back in the dorms, but not before I noticed the prying eyes of the same girl who’d been watching me. I was sick of people trying to intimidate me. I had to put an end to this.
I rose, walking towards her. She got up and started walking outside. My hand was already on the dagger strapped to my waist, if she tried anything, she’d die.
She led me through the dimly lit corridors until we reached a secluded part of the garden, away from prying eyes. She stopped by a stone bench, gesturing for me to sit, though she stayed standing, arms crossed. Her expression was guarded, as if she held back a lifetime’s worth of secrets.
“Thank you for the warning,” I began, breaking the silence. “That note yesterday-it’s the only reason I made it through that challenge.”
She gave a quick nod. “My name is Valerie. I’m glad the note reached you. I thought if anyone was going to shake things up here, it’d be you. There hasn’t been a spark like this since…” She trailed off, eyes darting away.
I leaned forward. “Since my sister?”
Valerie hesitated, her gaze flicking over me as if weighing whether I was ready to hear the truth. “Yes. Since Eloise. But you’re different, Jacky. Stronger, more… unpredictable. And that’s exactly what Alpha Roman despises. He doesn’t like it when things go off-script.”
“Off-script?” I echoed, bitterness coloring my tone. “Is that all this is to him-a show?”
“To him, it is,” she replied quietly. “Every single trial, every death, every act of submission. Alpha Roman thrives on control, on knowing that every contestant bends to his will, in the end.”
I scoffed. “Malia’s been bending over backward to please him. I’d think he’d welcome that.”
Valerie let out a dry laugh. “Malia is… easy for him. She’s like a dog on a leash-obedient, predictable, never daring to question him. But you, Jacky? You’re a wild card. He doesn’t know what to make of you, and that threatens him more than you realize.”
Her words settled in me, a bitter truth beginning to take shape. “I don’t understand. If he values obedience so much, why would he let someone like my sister compete?”
Valerie’s gaze sharpened, and she drew a little closer, lowering her voice. “That’s the thing, Jacky. Eloise wasn’t always the shining star you remember. She didn’t start off beloved, she earned it by pushing the boundaries, by gaining the contestants’ loyalty over time. And that… that was her downfall.”
I frowned, confused. “But Eloise was beloved because she was compassionate. She… apologized before killing them. She was forced into it, wasn’t she?”
Valerie’s face twisted into a hard smile. “Apologies?” She let out a low sigh. “You’ve misunderstood, Jacky. Eloise didn’t apologize because she was forced to kill them. She did it because she wanted them to believe in her, to see her as a savior instead of a competitor. And it worked. Girls stopped fighting her in the end, offering themselves up, convinced she’d bring something better to them after this was over.”
I felt my world tilt as her words sank in. “You’re saying… she manipulated them?”
“Yes.” Valerie’s voice was steady, but there was an edge of sorrow. “Your sister was clever. She knew how to make herself a figure people would rally behind, even die for. She built up a following that was so strong, so unwavering, that when she walked into a challenge, most of the others would barely fight. They offered their lives to her willingly, convinced that, somehow, their families would be better off if she ruled.”
I shook my head, feeling my vision blur. “But… she helped them. She made sure their families were cared for-she said she’d help them.”
Valerie’s smile was bitter. “She might have had good intentions. But Alpha Roman saw it differently. In his eyes, she grew too big, too popular. Bigger than him, even. You don’t think he noticed the way the crowds cheered for her? The way they begged for her to win?”
I clenched my fists, a deep anger bubbling within me. “This was supposed to be a competition. I thought… I thought we all had a fair chance.”
“There’s no ‘fair’ when it comes to Alpha Roman’s rule,” Valerie murmured. “When Eloise started turning the contestants into her own supporters, Roman saw her as a threat. He couldn’t stand to watch her take the power he believed was rightfully his.”
The pieces were slowly falling into place, each one like a jagged shard tearing through me. “Is that why Malia killed her?” I asked, my voice hollow. “Was she… ordered to?”
Valerie’s gaze was unwavering. “We don’t know for certain, but I wouldn’t put it past him. Malia may be cruel, but she’s not ambitious enough to make a move like that on her own. If Roman saw Eloise as a danger to his control, I wouldn’t doubt he gave her a nudge. Malia was already his pet, and Eloise… she was the one standing in the way.”
A cold understanding washed over me. My sister’s death wasn’t just another casualty in the trials. It was orchestrated, calculated, made to look like a tragic end to a strong competitor. “And yet everyone cheered her on,” I muttered, mostly to myself. “The whole nation rallied behind her… and he couldn’t bear it.”
Valerie watched me quietly, giving me a moment to process. After a while, she spoke again, her tone softer. “Your sister fought hard, but in the end, she broke the unspoken rule: don’t outshine the Alpha. And I’m afraid you’re beginning to walk down the same path.”
I looked up at her, feeling the weight of my sister’s legacy pressing down on me. “Tell me something, Valerie. Did Eloise know how to fight? Really fight?”
Her silence, the way her gaze shifted away from me, said more than any words could. My heart sank, and I forced myself to ask the question that had begun gnawing at me. “Who trained Jessy?”
Valerie’s shoulders tensed, and her face turned unreadable. “Eloise,” she admitted. “Your sister was the first to team up with Malia, back when they were just learning the rules of survival here. That move Jessy used against you? That was Eloise’s trick-the oldest one in the book.”
The realization hit me like a punch to the gut. The sister I’d fought to honor, the one I thought had upheld a code of honor and fairness, was just as ruthless as the rest. All the while, I’d been clinging to a memory that was just that-a memory, shaped by my own desire to see her as something more.
Valerie placed a hand on my shoulder, a rare look of sympathy in her eyes. “Look, Jacky, I’m not saying this to hurt you. But if you’re going to survive here, you need to understand the truth. Eloise was many things-brilliant, fierce-but she was also flawed. She did what she had to do to survive. And if you’re not careful, Alpha Roman will do the same to you.”
I swallowed hard, my mind racing. Alpha Roman had crafted this entire game to keep himself on top, to ensure no one ever gained enough power to rival him. But I wasn’t here just to survive. I had a mission, and now, more than ever, I knew I couldn’t lose sight of it.
“Thank you for telling me this, Valerie,” I said, my voice steadier than I felt. “I’ll go apologize to Alpha Roman. But know this-I won’t be another puppet in his show.”
She offered a small nod. “I hope that’s true, Jacky. Just… be careful.”
As she turned to leave, I called after her, one last question weighing heavy on my mind. “Valerie… do you think Eloise loved him?”
Valerie paused, then looked back at me, her face inscrutable. “I think Eloise loved the idea of winning. And that was her downfall.”
With that, she slipped away into the shadows, leaving me alone in the cold. I took a breath, squaring my shoulders. If Alpha Roman thought he could control me, he had another thing coming.