Chapter 1

In the middle of a bustling street stood Inez, a small girl, anxiously gazing around for her missing mother, who had promised to return in a few minutes.

She was adorned in a white dress gifted to her by her grandmother; however, her platinum blond hair ties in pigtails was disheveled and standing up on all sides. Adding to that, her green eyes shimmered with unshed tears as they carefully studied passing strangers for a glimpse of her mother, making her overall appearance quite forlorn.

"Hey, freak!" Someone called from behind her, and Inez jumped, startled by the shout. She immediately turned to look at the tall boy, around the age of ten, who was leering down at her.

Fear surged within her heart as she tightly clasped the sides of her dress.

She had hoped Billy would be too busy to pay attention to her today. After all, it was the day of the Fair and Prayer Ceremony arranged by the five packs to pay their respects to the Goddess of the Moon. noveldrama

Unfortunately for her, it seemed he intended to tease like he had three days ago.

Dominic, her best friend, had chased Billy away and warned him not to tease her. But being the big bully that he was, Billy didn t seem to care about that little warning.

Inez didn t want her pigtails to be pulled or her arms to be scratched, so she turned on her feet and dashed to the opposite side of the street before Billy could stop her.

"That rat is running away! Stop her!" The boy shouted from behind before chasing after her.

Inez quickly weaved through the crowd before coming to a stop in front of a stall at the very end of the fair. She was quick on her feet and was an expert at running away.

This was because she was the lowest of the low within the pack, a half-blood. It would have meant her death if she was not adept at escaping danger.

Upon stopping at the stall, she overheard a woman say, "How did you get your hands on this? I thought such a thing was too precious to be sold!?" The woman was intently admiring the vial in her hands. The pearly white fumes within had clearly impressed her.

The merchant manning the stall gave a cunning smile and chuckled. "Can t divulge all my secrets now, can I, Madam? But I assure you that this is the real deal. As long as you are willing to offer me a grand, this vial will be yours."

"A grand? Aren t you being a bit too greedy?" The woman remarked with a frown. Her eyes flashed with irritation as she looked at the man.

"Madam, Madam, Madam... you can see at first glance that it is real. Do you really think that this can be mimicked? Never." The merchant directed an oily smile at the woman. "Just a single sip, and even the most dangerous wound or disease will be healed."

"Do you honestly think that a grand is too much for a treasure like this?" the stall owner enticed.

Inez glanced at the vial within the woman s hands and sucked in a breath before picking up her skirt and walking away. She tried to look calm and collected while pretending to be ignorant.

Thirty steps away from the stall. Inez suddenly found herself lost in a dark alley.

"Where am I?" She mused while looking at the grimy,tall walls of the building.

"There you are!"

Inez stiffened upon hearing the familiar voice. She turned to look at Billy, who was jeering at her.

"You little rat! You had me in a pinch! I was looking for you for so long!" Billy stalked over to Inez with his group of friends following him.

They took three steps forward, and Inez took several steps back.

"How dare you tattletale to Dominic! Did you think that he will protect you all the time?" Billy sneered as his outreached hands violently seized her hair within their grasp and pulled harshly.

"Ahh! I didn t! I didn t tattletale. Inez s face was scrunched up

in pain as she tried to free herself. "I didn t tell him anything. Dominic saw me hurt and figured it out himself because you always bully me."

"Shut up!" Billy threw her on the floor. He turned to look at his group of friends and said to them, "Beat her up for me! Because of her, Eve came crying to me last evening."

He snorted before continuing, "I don t understand why Dom plays with this rat and refuses to play with my sister. She is the daughter of the beta of the pack!"

Upon hearing his order, they charged at her.

"No! Let go of me!" Inez shouted in pain as she was kicked and punched. With her hands covering her head, she tried to protect her face and body.

"What are you doing?" A voice interrupted and everyone paused to regard the silver-haired boy who intervened. His grey eyes were staring at them with a cold glint.

Billy was initially annoyed that someone stopped him, but once he recognised the person, all his displeasure vanished instantly. He then smiled flatteringly at the silver-haired boy.

"Killian, what are you doing here, mate?" He enquired.

Killian turned to focus his attention on him. "Do I know you?" He asked bluntly, and the smile on Billy s lips slipped away.

"We met at the Moon gala last week. I am William Cruz," Billy reminded Killian, who raised a brow.

"I don t remember you," replied the silver-haired boy with an apologetic smile, but it was one filled with derision. He glanced at the rest of the group before saying, "None of my friends or acquaintances hurt a girl to feel good about themselves."

"That... she is half-blood," Billy said to Killian as if it made everything acceptable.

"And?" Killian raised his gaze and looked at the boy with a wicked smile. "Just because she is half-blood, you think it s fine for you to beat her like this? I thought the strong were supposed to protect the weak. Or does your pack have different views? If that is the case, then I might have to tell my mother to stay clear of your pack."

Killian then turned to consider the little girl still sprawled on the ground and said to her, "Are you stupid? They stopped beating you. Why haven t you come over to my side yet?"

Inez snapped out of her daze; she glanced at Billy and his friends, and even though they were frowning, they didn t make any further moves to hurt her.

She got to her feet and ran towards the boy, who had his hand held out for her to take. As soon as he had her hand, he proceeded to drag her away from the alley. Inez had never experienced anyone protecting her, apart from Dom and her three best friends.

Having a stranger save her, Inez felt touched as a surge of warmth erupted in her heart before spreading all throughout her body.

"Stop crying," the boy sighed as he turned to look at Inez. However, his eyes widened before returning to normal. "You are ...ouch!"

The boy groaned painfully before releasing Inez, who had stomped on his foot.

However, Killian couldn t care less about the throbbing pain of his foot as he stared down at the wispy silver fumes that appeared instead of drops of water.

The exact same fumes that the merchant had been selling for a grand.

On the other hand, Inez continued running. She was tired and scared of the world that seemed intent on hurting her.

She turned to glance behind her, filled with worry that the boy would chase her after discovering her hidden identity, one that was meant to be kept secret from everyone, when

"Ouch!" She bumped into someone. Startled, she redirected her gaze towards the boy in front of her. "Dom!" She gasped.

"Why are you roaming alone?" Dominic asked. His gaze fell on Inez s split lip, and he frowned. "Did Billy beat you again? How many times have I told you to fight back, Inez?"

He pulled her towards him. "Let s go; your mother is looking for you."

"Is she?" Inez was surprised, as her mother never paid attention to her. But then she looked at Dominic, who was holding her hand and understood exactly why her mother was looking for her.

"Yes," Dominic sighed helplessly, "Really Inez, you are no longer a child. So stop running away from your mother just because you are angry. It s not a good habit."

"But I didn t."

"I know... I know.." the boy said but Inez could tell that he was patronising her and did not really believe what she was saying.

However, she remained silent because she did not want to fight with her best friend. If only she had known what Dominic s disbelief of her words would lead to, maybe Inez would have made another decision that day.