CHAPTER 9

Autumn's POV

"You're the one who did it?" Agatha asked, blinking like she didn't hear me well.

I folded my arms and tilted my head. "Yes. Is that surprising?"

Her mouth opened and closed again. She looked so shocked it was almost funny. I wished I had my phone out to record her stupid expression.

"You did that to your own best friends?" she asked again, voice dropping like she was scared of saying the wrong thing.

"My former best friends," I corrected her, making sure the word hit hard. "Don’t ever say that word around me again. It makes me feel sick."

Agatha stared at me like I’d just confessed to murder. "Wow… you really are a hypocrite. You always acted like you were so kind and innocent. But now you’re showing who you really are."

I smiled slowly. "And you’ll see even more. You’re next."

Her eyes widened. "What? You're still saying it?"

"You heard me," I said, stepping closer to her. "You think I don’t know all the times you tried to frame me? You lied so many times and made it look like I was the one causing trouble. And guess what? Nobody cared to hear my side. You enjoyed it, right?"

She didn't respond. She just looked confused and scared

"From now on, things will be different," I continued.

You're not as smart as you think, Agatha. You should’ve ended me properly in the past life. But you didn’t. So now? You’ll regret it. Even the moon goddess could not take your hypocrisy and brought me back.

"You better not step over your boundaries," she warned, folding her arms. "Don’t forget that the Alphas healed you. They let you back in. You're still standing here because they allowed it."

I laughed bitterly. "Healed me? Allowed me? I never asked for their pity. I never asked to like me! If I had a choice, I wouldn’t be in this damn pack anymore."

"Autumn—"

"No," I said, cutting her off sharply. "Don’t speak like you care. Just wait your turn. You’ve enjoyed seeing others in pain. I wonder how you’ll look when it’s your turn to cry."

She flinched like I slapped her, and for a moment, I saw the real Agatha. No confidence. No smug smile. Just fear.

She walked away quickly without saying anything else. I stood there for a moment, breathing deeply. That went better than I thought. She didn’t even deny trying to frame me. She’s really not as smart as she pretends.

After making sure no one was around, I made my way to the infirmary. It was time for the next part of my plan.

I paused at the door, adjusted my face, and pushed it open with the sweetest expression I could fake. Inside, Ivy and Rowan were lying on separate beds, looking pale and bandaged.

"Autumn!" Ivy said, surprised to see me. "You’re here?"

"Of course," I said softly, walking over. "I was so worried when I heard what happened. Are you okay? Both of you?"

Rowan nodded slowly. "They said we broke the rules and we were punished... but we didn’t even know anything. Someone told us the teacher called for us."

"Yeah," Ivy agreed, wincing in pain. "I don’t understand what’s going on. I don’t even know who would do something like this."

I sat on the chair beside them and reached for Ivy’s hand gently. "It must’ve been a mistake. Or someone playing a really cruel game."

"You think someone did this on purpose?" Rowan asked, confused.

"Maybe," I said, giving a small frown. "I mean… things have been strange lately. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone was trying to mess with you two."

"But why us?" Ivy asked. "We didn’t do anything to anyone."

I gave a sad smile. "Sometimes you don’t have to. Some people just hate seeing others happy."

They both looked disturbed. But they didn’t even suspect me. That was the best part.

"I’ll help you find out who did this," I promised them, pressing Ivy’s hand gently. "I swear."

"Thank you, Autumn," Ivy said weakly.

"You’re the only one who came to see us," Rowan added.

"Of course I did. You’re my friends," I said with a fake soft voice.

In my mind, I was laughing. They had no idea. This was just the beginning. They hadn’t seen anything yet.

I stayed with them a little longer, pretending to be all warm and supportive. I even wiped Ivy’s face when she winced in pain and promised to bring them food later. When I left, I waved gently, like the most caring friend in the world.

But inside, I was burning with satisfaction. The first punishment was just a test. Now I knew how easy it was to fool them. I was going to break them down slowly, piece by piece. Just like they did to me. Except I won’t leave them alive in the end—not mentally at least.

When I got home, I was in a good mood. But that didn’t last.

As soon as I stepped in, a maid walked up to me nervously. "Alpha Dante wants to see you… immediately."

I frowned. "Why?"

"He didn’t say. But all three Alphas are there. You should hurry…"

All three? That was unusual.

I walked slowly to the Alpha’s meeting room. My heart beat a little faster. Not because I was scared. But because I didn’t know what trick they were planning now.

When I opened the door, they were all there—Dante, Knox, and Adonis. And in the corner… was Agatha.

She was sitting in a chair with a bandage on her head and her arm in a sling.

What?

"Autumn, come in," Adonis said in a serious tone.

I stepped in, eyes on Agatha. What the hell happened to her?

"Why is she like that?" I asked.

"Don’t play dumb," Dante snapped. "You know why she’s like that."

I blinked. "Excuse me?"

"She told us what happened," Knox added. "She said you pushed her."

"What?"

"You hurt your stepsister, Autumn," Adonis said coldly. "And we need to know why."

I looked at Agatha again. She looked down, acting like she was too sad to speak. Oh, so this was the game she wanted to play?

For a second, I thought about denying it. Telling them I never touched her. Telling them I didn’t even go near her after we spoke earlier.

But then I smiled.

"You’re right," I said calmly. "I did it."

All three of them looked at me like I was insane.

"You’re admitting it?" Dante asked in disbelief.

"Yes," I said simply. "I don’t like being lied to. And I definitely don’t like being threatened."

"Autumn!" Knox shouted. "She’s your stepsister! Why would you hurt her?"

I looked at Agatha. "You told them I pushed you, huh?"

She didn’t say anything. Just stared at me with her usual fake sadness.

"Well, that’s fine," I said, turning back to the Alphas. "Punish me if you want. You always find a reason to, anyway."

Adonis stood up. "We don’t want to punish you, Autumn. We want to understand what’s going on. You’ve been acting strangely since you a few days."

"I’m not strange. I’m just done pretending," I said sharply. "And if she gets hurt in the process, then maybe she should stop acting like a victim when she’s the real problem."

Dante clenched his jaw. "This isn’t the way to fix anything."

"I’m not trying to fix anything," I said. "I’m trying to survive."

There was a long silence. No one said anything for a moment. The room felt tense and heavy.

Agatha finally spoke, her voice quiet, "I didn’t mean to make you angry, Autumn. I was just trying to protect you."

I gave her the most disgusted look I could. "Protect me? From what? Happiness?"

Knox ran a hand through his hair, frustrated. "This has to stop. You can’t keep doing things like this."

"Then let me leave," I said again. "I don’t want to be here. Let me go and you won’t have to deal with me anymore."

"No," Dante said firmly. "You’re not leaving. You’re staying here where we can keep an eye on you."

I stared at him. So that’s what this was about? They wanted to control me again?

"Fine," I said, backing away. "Then you better watch me closely. Because I’m not stopping."

And with that, I turned around and walked out, not bothering to look back.

Let them think they’ve seen the worst of me. They haven’t seen anything yet. I'm going to make them give up!