Page 55 of The Alpha's Cursed Queen

I can’t even scream anymore, strained gasps leaving my mouth, my body twitching. My muscles have gone limp now.

I feel empty. My wolf is fading.

That’s right. You should go, too. Abandon me. Like Darian, like my pack, like my parents.

I should have believed my pack. I don’t deserve even a lick of happiness. They always told me that, but I never wanted to believe it, still living in a fantasy that one day I would be happy, that all my problems would go away.

But now I’m going to die. I know it. I want it to happen. Just let it all be over with. All the dreams I had, the hopes I built up, none of them took place. I lived a miserable life, and I died a dog’s death. Is this what my parents wanted for me?

My eyes meet those of the king. His face is pale. Confidence in myself? Is that what he said to me? I’m no better than an insect in his eyes. He must be having a grand time right now.

Soundless laughter bubbles out of me.

What a fate! Despised to this extent. What a life to live.

My eyes are only half open as I stare at the brightly lit chandelier above me. I can’t move anymore. I can’t scream anymore. I can feel my body growing cold. Is this what death is like? Will I finally be at peace now?

The pain stops.

I close my eyes, wanting to laugh miserably. Why is it that every time I am on the cusp of death, I am not allowed to die? Even now, I’m still breathing.

Why?

Someone is holding me to them, lifting me up. I hear Mary’s cries. “Alice! Alice, look at me!”

I open one eye, but I can’t focus at first. I don’t want to focus. I want this to end.

“The sealing is complete. We will brand her now. Step aside, please. We are going to remove her clothing.”

“That’s enough!” I hear Jason say angrily. “She’s been through enough. You can do that later!”

“Your Highness—” I see the witch closest to me turn toward Darian.

“Does she have to be stripped of her clothes for the branding?” Darian asks calmly. It’s almost as if he’s unaffected by the agony I just underwent. Of course he is. He orchestrated this.

“Yes,” the witch insists.

He’s going to agree, isn’t he?! He wants me to suffer. Having me naked and branded like an animal, like livestock, would be the last nail in the coffin.

I can feel my mind begin to fragment.

Hide me.

Hide me where I can stop feeling.

“Your Majesty!” Jason raises his voice again. “Even if the prince does not care about his fated mate, she’s still a young girl. There’s no need to subject her to such humiliating torture. She has done nothing. If the branding is absolutely necessary, it can be done later, once she has recovered, and in a private setting.”

“Why are you trying to save her?” Willow retorts. “She’s not a shifter. She’s a dark witch—”

“Shut up!” Jason snarls at her. “I am not talking to you!”

“Are you going to let him speak to me this way?” Willow demands of Darian.

My fated mate, the man who so skillfully manipulated me, stirs at the insult to his intended. “Willow is to be the future queen. Watch your mouth, Alpha Marrock.” His tone is harsh.

“Supposed to be,” Jason snarls. “And I was talking to your father, not you. Your Majesty, please!”

“I agree with Alpha Marrock,” King Edward says, his voice uneven. “There’s no need to humiliate the girl. Take her to her room.”

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