Jacky’s POV
The courtyard erupted in chaos as the girls surged forward, blades glinting under the late afternoon sun. They were barely trained, their strikes sloppy and reckless, but the rage behind each swing was real. Malia was trapped, her back against the old stone wall, her eyes darting with desperation as the group closed in.
“Back off!” she shouted, raising her sword defensively, but they weren’t listening.
Liana broke through the crowd first, her face twisted in fury. Her sword trembled in her grip, but the look in her eyes was unyielding. She closed in on Malia with a fierce determination that made the other girls pause. “You lied to us, Malia,” she spat. “You made us believe we were the same.”
Malia’s face fell, her sword lowering just a fraction. “Liana, please,” she said, her voice barely a whisper. “I never wanted to deceive you. I-I didn’t think it mattered.”
“Oh, but it does,” Liana hissed, her grip tightening on the hilt of her sword. “We spent night after night talking about survival, about how the privileged spit on us. I trusted you. We trusted you. And all this time, you were one of them.”
Malia’s mouth opened, words stumbling over each other. “Liana, please… You know me! I didn’t choose this. I didn’t want to be born a-”
“Save it,” Liana cut her off, her voice icy. “You can’t keep blaming others for your lies. We shared everything… and this is what you kept hidden?”
Malia’s eyes darted around, panic flooding her face. “It’s not like that! If I told you, you would’ve-”
“Would’ve what? Hated you?” Liana’s laughter was bitter, harsh. “Maybe I should’ve. Maybe all of us should’ve.”
The other girls closed in, murmurs of betrayal and resentment growing louder, but Malia’s gaze stayed fixed on Liana. Her shoulders sagged under the weight of their stares. “I didn’t want this. You have to believe me,” she pleaded, her sword trembling as she lowered it just enough to show her surrender. “I don’t want to hurt you, Liana. Please… don’t make me.”
The plea hung in the air, but Liana’s resolve hardened. “You don’t get to play the victim, princess,” she said, her voice breaking only slightly. “Not here. Not now.”
With a scream, Liana lunged forward, her blade aimed at Malia’s chest. Malia reacted instinctively, sidestepping and twisting, but the other girls pressed closer, their swords slashing at her from every angle. She fought them off with skill, deflecting their blows with desperation, but her eyes kept returning to Liana, pleading for her to stop.
“Please, Liana!” she shouted, dodging another blow. “I never meant to hurt you. You’re my best friend. This isn’t what I wanted!”
But Liana just laughed bitterly, circling her like a wolf cornering its prey. ” And Eoise was once your best friend, look how that turned out.” The mention of my sister’s name caught me off guard. “Stop blaming everyone else, Malia. Own up to who you are. A liar. A fraud. You’re everything we hate.”
Malia’s face contorted with pain as Liana’s words cut deeper than any blade. In a final act of desperation, she raised her sword to parry Liana’s attack, but her defenses faltered. Her sword twisted in her grip, and then-
The sickening sound of metal sinking into flesh echoed in the courtyard.
Time froze. Liana’s eyes widened as she looked down, seeing Malia’s blade buried deep in her side. Malia gasped, her face twisted in horror as she realized what she’d done.
“No… no, no, no…” she choked, her hands shaking as she dropped her weapon and caught Liana before she could fall. “Liana, I didn’t mean to… I didn’t…”
Liana’s breaths were shallow, her face pale as she gripped Malia’s arm weakly. Her eyes were full of betrayal, of pain that went beyond the wound. “You… you really are one of them,” she whispered, her voice barely audible.
The other girls stood in shock, their cries filling the silence, piercing and raw. Valerie held them back, her face a mask of sorrow as she held her trembling friends away from the scene unfolding before us.
Malia clutched Liana, sobbing openly as she cradled her. “Liana, please… I didn’t want this. You have to believe me,” she begged, her tears falling on Liana’s bloodstained tunic.
I took a step forward, every instinct telling me to act, to help in some way. “Malia,” I said, my voice low. “If you pull out the knife, Liana’s wolf might have a chance to heal her. If you leave it-”
Malia’s head shot up, her teary eyes locking onto mine, but they were filled with fury. “You,” she whispered, her voice thick with venom. She gripped the hilt of the blade, her hand steady despite the tears streaming down her face. “You did this. You twisted everything, you and your accusations.”
Her gaze turned ice-cold as she yanked the sword out of Liana’s body, ignoring the blood that spilled across her hands. She stood, turning to face me, her face a mask of cold rage.
“You,” she repeated, lifting her sword, the blade still slick with Liana’s blood. “I, Malia of the Blood Moon Pack, invoke the Bloodbound Code of Honor. I challenge you, Jacky, to a fight to the death.”
A murmur of shock rippled through the courtyard, the weight of her words sinking in. The Bloodbound Code was ancient, binding any who invoked it to accept or face shame and exile. It was a code no one dared invoke lightly-only in the gravest of betrayals, and only for vengeance that couldn’t wait.
I felt my throat tighten. Refusing wasn’t an option. But accepting would mean killing her or being killed.
My heart pounded as Malia’s gaze burned into me, daring me to accept. I took a breath, weighing the choice in my mind. This wasn’t just about her; it was about everything she’d hidden, everything she’d betrayed.
Before I could open my mouth, a voice rang out across the courtyard, silencing us all.
“Rejecting a challenge that invokes the Bloodbound Code is cowardice and an insult to the wolf inside you.”
The crowd parted, and Alpha Roman stepped forward, his gaze fierce and unyielding as he locked eyes with me. “Any woman competing for a chance to become my mate must not be fearful. Are you a coward, Jacky?”
He had this smirk on his face like he was proud. I didn’t know what to do.
“So, Jacky,” he pressed, his voice low and dangerous. “What’s it going to be?”
His words hung heavy in the air, and every eye turned to me, waiting, judging. The weight of the Bloodbound Code pressed down on me, demanding a response.
I swallowed hard, feeling my pulse thunder in my ears as I looked between Malia, her face contorted with rage and sorrow, and Alpha Roman, his gaze relentless and challenging.
Would I accept? Could I take her life-or lose my own?