A powerful full drama movie filled with love, secrets, and unexpected twists.
Follow a powerful story where relationships are tested, hidden truths are revealed, and lives change forever. From romantic moments to shocking surprises, this drama keeps you engaged from beginning to end.
Featuring stories about CEO, billionaire lifestyles, family connections, and life-changing decisions, this movie delivers strong emotions and unforgettable scenes.
Watch the full movie and discover what happens in the end.
New full drama movies uploaded regularly. Stay tuned for more captivating and trending stories.
#drama #fullmovie #lovestory #dramatic #billionaire #ceo #family #relationships #movie #story
Follow a powerful story where relationships are tested, hidden truths are revealed, and lives change forever. From romantic moments to shocking surprises, this drama keeps you engaged from beginning to end.
Featuring stories about CEO, billionaire lifestyles, family connections, and life-changing decisions, this movie delivers strong emotions and unforgettable scenes.
Watch the full movie and discover what happens in the end.
New full drama movies uploaded regularly. Stay tuned for more captivating and trending stories.
#drama #fullmovie #lovestory #dramatic #billionaire #ceo #family #relationships #movie #story
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Short filmTranscript
00:00When I bowed before the Alpha, my sash snapped, my undergarments, my chest exposed, in front of everyone.
00:06My birth parents had just found me, brought me home to compete with my adopted sister Alice for the Alpha's
00:11bond.
00:12Before we left, Mother fixed my collar, then quietly pulled a thread from my sash.
00:18Indecent! Shameless!
00:20Alice swept off her jacket and draped it over my shoulders.
00:24Everyone praised her.
00:26The Alpha chose her.
00:27I knelt before my parents when we got home, swore it wasn't intentional.
00:31They didn't believe me, Father scoffed.
00:33You pulled that stunt for attention.
00:36You disgraced this family, and now you want to blame someone else?
00:40Mother sighed.
00:41You lost a bond, that's all. Don't be so dramatic.
00:44Alice married the Alpha in glory.
00:46I was exiled to the Frost border, and I died there frozen.
00:50Before I took my last breath, I found out Mother hadn't pulled that thread.
00:54She had cut it. On purpose.
00:56Then I was reborn.
00:58Mother smiled and reached for my sash.
01:01Let me tighten this.
01:04We can't have you embarrassing yourself.
01:06Her fingers slipped toward her sleeve.
01:08A blade that blade.
01:09I knew it.
01:10The one that ruined my life the first time.
01:12I could still feel the Frost border kneeling in the snow, freezing Alice standing over me in her fur coat.
01:17Eva, all I told Mother was I was afraid you'd outrank me.
01:23I never imagined she'd go that far.
01:25The cold never left me.
01:26I stared at her soft, well-kept hands.
01:28My heart hammered.
01:30She was still smiling.
01:31The blade already out, moving toward my sash.
01:36I let my knees buckle, threw myself forward, straight into her.
01:40She didn't see it coming.
01:41Her hand jerked.
01:42The blade cut through the air and caught the back of her own hand.
01:46The blade clattered to the floor.
01:48Ailee stood nearby, waiting for the show.
01:50She wore a gown of shimmering silk custom made by Mother.
01:52Her sash tied perfectly.
01:54Before she could react, my fingers found her sash one quick pull.
01:57It came loose.
01:58I straightened up fast and put on my most panicked face.
02:02Mother!
02:03Are you alright?
02:05I'm so sorry I slipped.
02:07Hissing through her teeth.
02:08Clumsy girl!
02:09We're about to walk into the Alpha's estate and you can't even stand on your own two feet!
02:16Alice stepped forward with a handkerchief and dabbed at the wound.
02:19She shot me a look of pure contempt, then turned on the sympathy.
02:23Don't be too hard on her mother.
02:24She was raised in a backwater farming pack.
02:27She's just not used to all this.
02:30Father stood in the doorway, hands clasped behind his back.
02:33He checked the hourglass, frowned.
02:34Enough!
02:35Do you have any idea what it means to keep the Alpha waiting?
02:38He didn't glance at me once.
02:40His eyes went straight to Alice, soft.
02:42You look beautiful today, Alice.
02:45Dignified.
02:46Keep an eye on your sister when we arrive.
02:48Don't let her embarrass us in the family.
02:50Of course, Father.
02:51I'll take good care of her.
02:53She lifted her chin like she'd already won.
02:55I kept my eyes down and smiled.
03:00Mother's hand was still bleeding.
03:01The handkerchief had soaked through.
03:02But we were running out of time and she never got around to my sash.
03:06Instead, she reached for a velvet box.
03:08Alice.
03:08This is the Hale family heirloom.
03:11Priceless.
03:12She lifted out a necklace, crystals catching the light, and clasped it around Alice's neck herself.
03:17Thank you, Mother.
03:18I'll wear it with honor.
03:19I stood to the side, empty-handed.
03:21Nothing around my waist but a plain white ribbon.
03:23Mother seemed to remember I existed.
03:25She rummaged through a corner drawer and pulled out a fistful of hair prints.
03:28Old ones.
03:29Most of them.
03:30The gold paint was already flaking off.
03:31Here, Eva.
03:32Put these on.
03:33Don't go saying I play favorites.
03:35Your dress is so plain anyway.
03:37These will match just fine.
03:39She dropped them into my hand without even checking if they'd work.
03:41Father watched from across the room.
03:43Not a word of objection.
03:44He nodded.
03:45Alice was raised with us.
03:47She has refinement.
03:49Grace.
03:49The heirloom suits her.
03:51Eva spent years in the farming pack.
03:54Putting something fine on her would just look out of place.
03:57I squeezed those cheap pins as my fist until the metal bit into my palm.
04:00The farming pack?
04:01Why was I even there?
04:03Because when my parents were running from their enemies, I was dead weight.
04:06So they left me behind.
04:07They only brought me back.
04:09Because the Alpha came calling.
04:11His family had an old betrothal agreement.
04:13The firstborn Hale daughter.
04:15Aelis was beloved.
04:16But on paper, she was adopted.
04:18They needed me just long enough to put Alice in the Alpha's bed.
04:20I never understood in my last life how my own parents could do this to me.
04:24Not until the very end.
04:25Dying at the frost border.
04:27Two guards stood nearby talking.
04:28They didn't know I could still hear them.
04:29Hale is cold-blooded.
04:31Leaving his own flesh and blood here to die, all for some adopted girl.
04:35That's his mistress's daughter.
04:37His actual blood.
04:38His wife found out years ago and she brought the girl home.
04:40Called her adopted.
04:41Then spent every year since grinding the real daughter into the dirt.
04:45So that was the truth.
04:50Mother sacrificed her own child to keep her husband.
04:53Father looked at me and saw nothing worth keeping.
04:56I crushed those pins in my hand and let them bend.
04:58Right in front of me, Alice on Mother's arm.
05:00Father looking on with nothing but warmth.
05:02A perfect, happy family.
05:04And then there was me.
05:07Father.
05:08Mother.
05:09We should go.
05:10Father's eyes cut to me.
05:11Nobody asked you to hurry us along.
05:13Have some manners.
05:15When you're in front of the Alpha, keep your mouth shut.
05:18Watch Alice.
05:19Follow her lead.
05:21If you ruin this, I will have you sent to the frost border myself.
05:25I said nothing.
05:25The frost border.
05:26I'd already been there.
05:27Already knelt in that snow until I couldn't feel my legs.
05:30Threats lose their edge the second time around.
05:32The carriage rolled toward the Alpha's estate.
05:34It was not a quiet ride.
05:36Alice had taken the best seat.
05:38She kept touching the necklace, turning the crystals in the light, admiring her own reflection.
05:43The Alpha's head steward, Zoe, was riding with us.
05:45Officially, she was there to attend to us.
05:47In reality, she was watching.
05:49Taking stock of who we were.
05:51Alice didn't seem to notice, or care.
05:53Zoe, what do you think of the necklace?
05:56Mother had it set aside just for me.
05:58Zoe said nothing.
05:59She was pale, an unhand pressed to her temple jaw tight.
06:02I recognized it immediately.
06:04In my last life, Alice had done the same thing.
06:06Talked the whole ride over, loud and relentless.
06:09But she'd gotten lucky.
06:11By the time we arrived, Mrs. Walker's migraines had cleared up, and Alice had been ready.
06:16She'd stolen my remedy formula months earlier, passed it off as her own.
06:19Mrs. Walker loved me for it.
06:21This time, Alice wasn't getting that chance.
06:27I reached into my sleeve and pulled out a small lacquered box.
06:30Inside were a few dark brown pellets, a remedy I'd learned from an old farmer back in the
06:35farming pack.
06:35I held them out to Zoe.
06:37You don't look well.
06:38These are cooling relief pellets, my own formula.
06:41Let one dissolve under your tongue.
06:43It should help.
06:44Alice's head snapped toward me.
06:46Excuse me?
06:47What is that supposed to be?
06:49You're gonna feed her some backwater remedy you cooked up in a barn?
06:52Zoe had been on the edge of nausea the whole ride.
06:55That shriek nearly pushed her over.
06:56She shot Alice one withering look, then turned back to me.
07:00Her nose twitched.
07:01A faint drift of mint and aged wood had already begun to fill the carriage cutting through the
07:05stuffy heat.
07:06She took the pellets, placed one under her tongue.
07:09Within moments, the tension left her face.
07:12She exhaled.
07:14Long and slow, color crept back into her cheeks.
07:17Where did you learn that, Eva?
07:19From a healer?
07:19I shook my head.
07:20Heat stroke was common on the farm.
07:22You learn what works.
07:24Nothing impressive, I'm afraid.
07:26Zoe smiled.
07:27If this is nothing impressive, our pack healer back at the estate should be embarrassed.
07:32Alice twisted her handkerchief in her lap.
07:34My sinless searing lust.
07:36She just got lucky.
07:38Zoe didn't even look at her.
07:39Mrs. Walker values silence.
07:41She has no patience for noise.
07:43That shut Alice up.
07:44Zoe lured her voice and turned to me.
07:46Today, the Alpha will also be present.
07:47He runs cold.
07:48He has no interest in women who perform for attention.
07:52And Mrs. Walker, she judges character above everything else.
07:55She has no respect for women who use their looks as currency.
07:58I'll keep that in mind.
07:59Thank you, Zoe.
08:00The carriage slowed.
08:01We had arrived.
08:12The moment Alice stepped out, every head turned.
08:15That shimmering silk caught the sunlight like it was made for exactly this moment.
08:19Is that Alice Hale?
08:20She's stunning.
08:22The whispers rippled through the crowd.
08:23Alice soaked up every word.
08:25She glanced back at me, slow, deliberate.
08:27A smirk, I was wearing a simple white dress, standing next to her.
08:31I looked like her handmaid.
08:32I wasn't worried.
08:34The best part of any trap is the waiting.
08:36The banquet began.
08:38Alice moved straight to the harp and played for Mrs. Walker.
08:41She was good, and she knew it.
08:43Mrs. Walker gave a small, measured nod.
08:46That was enough for Alice.
08:47She floated off the stage, spotted me at the edge of the room, and made her way over,
08:51wine glass in hand.
08:53Eva, stop hiding in the corner.
08:57Come toast the ladies with me.
08:58I knew exactly what she was about to do.
09:01Last time she had stumbled right here, or pretended to, she'd thrown wine all over me,
09:06dragged me down with her, and my sash had snapped on the way down.
09:09Sammy sat up, Sammy smiled.
09:11Sammy two steps away.
09:12Oh, Eva, watch out!
09:14She lurched toward me.
09:15I stepped aside.
09:16She caught nothing but air.
09:17The momentum took her straight down hard onto both knees, and the sash I had loosened back
09:21of the house, the one she never noticed.
09:24Finally gave way.
09:26That beautiful shimmering skirt slid straight down, all the way to her ankles beneath it.
09:30A pair of pink underwear embroidered with little devil motifs in plain view.
09:35Of everyone, the entire room went silent.
09:38Alice froze.
09:39She felt the cold air first.
09:41Then she looked down.
09:43And screamed.
09:44Chaos erupted.
09:46Women screamed.
09:47But above it all, I felt it.
09:49A gaze.
09:50Heavy.
09:50Cold from the shadow of the second floor balcony.
09:53He was watching.
10:00Alice scrambled to grab her skirt.
10:04Wine splashed up across her underwear.
10:06If it could have gotten worse, it just did.
10:08The ladies around her recoiled, fans raised.
10:10Faces turned away.
10:11Mrs. Walker's expression went stone cold.
10:13What exactly does the HAL family teach their daughters?
10:16I was already moving.
10:17I picked up an outer jacket and draped it around Alice's shoulders before she could catch her breath.
10:21Oh, sweetheart, how did this happen?
10:24I sighed.
10:24The kind that says I love you, but I told you so.
10:27I warned you about this dress.
10:28The fit was too tight.
10:30I said it would give way.
10:33But you wanted the silhouette.
10:35And now look.
10:36Alice looked up at me, pure venom.
10:39You did this.
10:40I know it was you.
10:41I blinked, spread my hands wide.
10:43Alice, I was across the room.
10:44Everyone saw you walk over.
10:46Everyone saw you fall.
10:47The women around us were already nodding.
10:49She made a spectacle of herself for attention, and now she wants to pin it on her sister.
10:53Lovely upbringing.
10:54Alice had nothing left to say.
10:56She covered her face and wept.
11:02The room dissolved into chaos.
11:04Maid swarmed Alice and rushed her off to change.
11:06The commotion had done exactly what I expected.
11:09Mrs. Walker's migraine had returned.
11:11She sat with two fingers pressed to her temple, face drained of color.
11:14That is when Lady Allen appeared, a family friend of the Hales.
11:18Father had personally asked her to smooth things over for Alice today.
11:23Please don't be upset, Mrs. Walker.
11:25I'm sure the dress was simply ill-fitted.
11:28Alice actually brought a gift for you today.
11:32Why don't we have her present it now?
11:35As an apology?
11:36Alice came back red-eyed, but she straightened up at that.
11:38She snapped her fingers and a maid brought out the gift box.
11:42I already knew what was inside.
11:43I knew this family too well.
11:45Whatever it was, it would be extravagant and entirely wrong.
11:48They measured worth in gold and gemstones.
11:50They assumed everyone else did too.
11:51What they didn't understand about Mrs. Walker, a woman who had lived in wealth her entire life,
11:56was that nothing irritated her more than excess for the sake of it.
11:59Alice lifted the lid with a flourish.
12:02Mrs. Walker, this is a ruby crystal crown, custom-crafted just for you.
12:08The artisans worked through the night for an entire month.
12:11Mrs. Walker stared at it.
12:13You had craftsmen lose sleep for a month over something completely useless?
12:18What a waste of people.
12:19Alice's confidence collapsed.
12:21She sank to her knees, trembling.
12:23Mrs. Walker pressed her hand harder to her temple and said nothing.
12:27I only wanted to show you how much...
12:29The silence stretched.
12:30I stepped forward quietly.
12:31Mrs. Walker, if you'll allow me, I may be able to help with the headache.
12:36She looked at me, skeptical.
12:38You practice medicine?
12:39Just some calming herbs.
12:41Something I picked up along the way.
12:45I lit one end of the incense powder and set it on the table beside her.
12:49The scent unfurled slowly.
12:50Delicate, cool herbal, Mrs. Walker drew a breath.
12:53The pain didn't vanish, but it pulled back enough to breathe,
12:55enough to relax the furrow between her brows.
12:57That's lovely.
12:58What is it?
12:59I heard you've suffered with headaches for years.
13:02I brought this back from the farm.
13:04It's what I always used.
13:05Nothing fancy, but it works.
13:07Mrs. Walker nodded slowly.
13:09The way she looked at me had changed.
13:10You're a thoughtful girl.
13:12Out of the corner of my eye,
13:13a tall figure had stopped at the moon gate at the edge of the garden,
13:16still watching.
13:17That had to be Nathan the Alpha himself.
13:19Alice was still on her knees behind me,
13:21eyes fixed on my back like two burning coals.
13:23Lady Allen whispered something to Mrs. Walker,
13:26who finally waved a hand.
13:27Alice could get up.
13:28She was directed to a seat in the corner.
13:30By the middle of the banquet,
13:32Mrs. Walker had my hand in hers,
13:33asking about my life,
13:34my interests,
13:35what I like to eat.
13:36She was already looking at Maliki,
13:38a daughter-in-law.
13:39She called over a maid to bring me a better pour of wine.
13:41The maid crossed the room and stumbled,
13:43just slightly,
13:44just enough to flash wine across my sleeve.
13:46My sincerest apologies, Miss Eva.
13:49Clumsy fool!
13:50Get out of my sight!
13:51The maid scurried off,
13:52head bowed,
13:52and as she passed Alice,
13:54their eyes met,
13:54quick, deliberate.
13:55The next second...
13:56My necklace!
13:58My necklace is gone!
14:01The family heirloom!
14:02Mother's necklace!
14:03Where is it?
14:07Every head in the room turned.
14:09Mrs. Walker's expression soured.
14:12Stop shrieking.
14:14If it's lost,
14:15have someone look for it.
14:16Alice turned to me,
14:17tears already forming.
14:19Just now,
14:19Eva was the closest one to me.
14:22Could it be that she...
14:24She let the sentence hang.
14:25Lady Allen stepped in,
14:26right on cue.
14:28If something valuable has gone missing,
14:30perhaps we should search everyone present.
14:33It would clear Eva's name,
14:35if nothing else.
14:36I held out both arms.
14:37By all means,
14:38search me.
14:40I won't have anyone saying,
14:42I put myself above my own sister.
14:44A flicker of satisfaction crossed Alice's face.
14:47She nodded to the maid,
14:48the same one who had spilled the wine,
14:49to come forward and search me.
14:51The maid ran her hands along my sides,
14:52patted down my sleeves,
14:53then reached into my inner sleeve pocket.
14:55She pulled something out.
14:56The room leaned in.
14:57It wasn't the necklace.
14:58It was a man's handkerchief.
14:59Deep blue silk,
15:00embroidered with cloud patterns.
15:02The room erupted.
15:02Alice pressed a hand to her mouth.
15:04Eva,
15:05do you have a secret lover?
15:07Our family holds a bedrothal with the Alpha.
15:09Do you understand what this means?
15:11A man's hand to catch.
15:13His most personal item.
15:14If father finds out,
15:15you'll hang for this.
15:18Eva,
15:19I would not have expected this of you.
15:21The ladies around me had already begun to whisper,
15:24eyes sharp,
15:24heads shaking.
15:25Ailey snatched the handkerchief.
15:27Wait,
15:27there's writing on it.
15:29She snapped it open and read aloud.
15:32I want to be tangled with you
15:34on every night the full moon rises.
15:38She looked up at me,
15:39triumphant,
15:40waiting for me to crumble,
15:40to drop to my knees,
15:41and to beg.
15:42I stood exactly where I was,
15:44calm.
15:44That's quite a performance, Alice.
15:47But you've overplayed it.
15:51I turned to face her.
15:53Since when do you have the gift of prophecy, Alice?
15:55She went,
15:56What?
15:57I don't know what you're talking about.
15:59The handkerchief was folded.
16:00The writing was on the inside,
16:02completely hidden.
16:04So how did you know there were words on it
16:05before anyone unfolded it?
16:07Did you write them yourself?
16:09Or did you prepare this whole thing in advance?
16:12Alice's face went rigid.
16:13Her pupils shrank.
16:14A bead of sweat traced down her temple.
16:17I...
16:17I...
16:18Nothing came out.
16:19And you?
16:20We both know you slipped that handkerchief
16:22into my sleeve yourself.
16:23So let's skip the act.
16:25Who do you belong to?
16:26Where did you get it?
16:27Who told you to plant it?
16:29She had already collapsed to the floor.
16:31She looked up,
16:31and her eyes went straight to Alice.
16:33Alice's composure shattered.
16:35Don't look at me!
16:36Your hands are dirty, not mine!
16:38Then a voice cut through the room
16:40from the doorway low,
16:41unhurried, absolute.
16:42Something went missing from my stables
16:44a few days ago.
16:46So that's where it ended up.
16:47The entire room turned.
16:48Nathan walked in
16:50like the air itself
16:50had decided to move out of his way.
16:52He stopped beside me,
16:53read...
16:54My words,
16:55embroidered in my hand.
16:57Tell me, Miss Alice,
16:58how exactly did you come
16:59to recognize them?
17:03Alice's knees gave out.
17:04She caught herself
17:05on the edge of a chair.
17:06You bribed a servant
17:07in my own estate.
17:08You stole my personal propriety,
17:10and you used it
17:11to frame my guest.
17:12Nathan said it quietly.
17:13That made it worse.
17:15Alice opened her mouth,
17:16closed it.
17:16There was nothing to say.
17:18Mrs. Walker rose from her seat,
17:20her whole body shaking,
17:21and slammed her palm on the table.
17:23She ran her schemes
17:24all the way up
17:24to the alpha himself.
17:26The audacity.
17:27Someone deal with her.
17:29But two older women
17:29moved in fast.
17:30They grabbed Alice
17:31by the shoulders
17:32and didn't hold back.
17:33The sound of it
17:34echoed through the hall.
17:35By the third strike,
17:36Alice's face had begun
17:37to swell blood
17:38at the corner of her mouth.
17:39Hair coming undone.
17:40She was sobbing,
17:41gasping,
17:42calling for her parents.
17:43I watched without moving.
17:45For the first time,
17:46it felt satisfying.
17:47Nathan glanced sideways
17:48at me just for a moment.
17:49I inclined my head.
17:52My respects, alpha.
17:53Thank you for clearing my name.
17:55What had started
17:55as a proper banquet
17:56had been reduced to rubble.
17:58When it was finally over,
17:59Mrs. Walker took my hand
18:00in both of hers
18:01and walked me
18:01to the entrance herself,
18:03apologizing the whole way,
18:04making sure everyone saw.
18:05The message was unmistakable.
18:07We're now circling back,
18:08all warmth and flattery.
18:09Funny how quickly
18:10the room turns
18:11when the alpha's mother
18:12is holding your hand.
18:16I settled into the carriage
18:17and glanced at Alice.
18:18Her face was swollen
18:19on both sides.
18:20She glared at me
18:21from her corner.
18:22One hand pressed to her cheek.
18:23Somehow,
18:24my parents had already heard.
18:25They were both in the carriage.
18:27Father sat with his chest heaving,
18:28jaw set,
18:29saying nothing.
18:29Mother was dabbing ointment
18:31on Alice's face,
18:32tears streaming down her own.
18:34You're a curse on this family.
18:36Wasn't it enough?
18:37Did you have to destroy
18:38your own sister?
18:38You knew what she was doing.
18:40Why didn't you say
18:40something earlier
18:41instead of letting
18:42the whole family be humiliated?
18:44I leaned back
18:44against the carriage wall
18:45and closed my eyes.
18:46That's interesting, Mother.
18:48When Alice was planting
18:49stolen evidence on me,
18:51did she stop to think
18:52of me as family?
18:53If that accusation had stuck,
18:54it would have been
18:55the hall name
18:55dragged through the dirt,
18:57not just mine.
18:58Father's hand shut up.
18:59I turned my head.
19:00His palm cut through empty air.
19:01He held it there for a moment,
19:03suspended,
19:03then dropped it
19:04and looked away.
19:05We'll deal with you at home.
19:07The carriage opened.
19:09Then it started moving long,
19:10the road had narrowed.
19:11The turns were sharper.
19:12We were climbing cliffs
19:13on one side,
19:14a sheer drop on the other.
19:15The horses screamed.
19:16Something had scooped them,
19:17or worse,
19:18and suddenly they were bolting.
19:19Full sprint,
19:20no control.
19:21What's happening?
19:22Stop the carriage!
19:23Someone stop it!
19:24Alice was thrown sideways,
19:26tumbling across the carriage floor,
19:27screaming.
19:28I grabbed the window frame
19:29and held on.
19:30The driver was gone,
19:31jumped,
19:32or thrown either way,
19:33no one was at the reins.
19:34My stomach dropped,
19:35and not from the road,
19:36this hadn't happened
19:37in my last life.
19:38They were moving faster
19:39than I'd expected.
19:40I'd rattled them today,
19:41and they were improvising.
19:45The horse had been drugged.
19:47I was certain of it.
19:48A staged accident.
19:50A body at the bottom of a cliff.
19:51But something didn't add up.
19:53Father valued his own life
19:54above everything.
19:55So did Mother.
19:56So did Alice.
19:58None of them would ride this carriage
20:00off a cliff unless they had a way out.
20:02Then I saw it.
20:03Father had already pulled Alice
20:04and Mother close.
20:05His hand reached beneath the bench,
20:07a hidden compartment,
20:08and came out with thick padded cushions.
20:11They came prepared.
20:13The plan wasn't to die with it.
20:14The plan was to throw me out
20:15and walk away from the grass.
20:17The carriage lurched.
20:18My grip slipped,
20:19and I went through the door.
20:21The fall never came.
20:22An arm caught me mid-air,
20:23iron solid,
20:24and pulled me hard against a chest.
20:26I knew that scent before I saw his face.
20:28The alpha.
20:30The carriage had ground to a halt behind us.
20:32A wolf had come out of the tree line
20:34and taken down the horses.
20:36Clean, precise,
20:37dropping them to their knees.
20:38I looked up.
20:39Nathan looked down.
20:40Those dark eyes held mine for a moment.
20:42Eva,
20:43it seems there are quite a few people
20:45with an interest in your life ending.
20:48He set me on my feet and stepped away.
20:51Not far from us,
20:52the three of them were crawling out of the wreckage,
20:55scraped, shaken, alive.
20:57Nathan walked to the nearest horse,
20:59ran a finger along its mouth,
21:01and brought it to his nose.
21:04Stimulant poison drives them into a frenzy.
21:07The horse would have been dead within ten miles.
21:09I stood and watched my parents
21:11check themselves over with trembling hands,
21:13relieved to be breathing.
21:14Relieved their plan had almost worked.
21:16Whatever had been left,
21:18whatever small,
21:19stubborn part of me
21:19had still wanted them to be my family.
21:21It went quiet.
21:22For good,
21:23Nathan came back to where I stood
21:24and held out his hand.
21:26Get in my carriage.
21:27I'll take you home.
21:33Maybe the carriage accident
21:34had simply been too terrifying.
21:36Three days later,
21:37the Alpha's wedding gifts
21:38arrived at the Hale House.
21:39An entire procession
21:40through the front gate.
21:41Boxes carried by uniformed attendants.
21:43The kind of display
21:44the whole street would remember.
21:45In my last life,
21:47this moment had belonged to Alice.
21:48Now, it was mine.
21:50Zoe stood in the main hall
21:51and read from the gift register
21:52item by item.
21:54Unhurried,
21:54with every entry,
21:55Alice lost a little more color.
21:57Mother kept shifting in her seat,
21:59throwing father-pointed looks.
22:01He cleared his throat
22:02and cut Zoe off mid-sentence.
22:03Zoe,
22:04regarding this marriage arrangement,
22:06is there any room
22:07for the Alpha to reconsider?
22:09Alice made some mistakes, yes,
22:11but she's accomplished.
22:12Well-bred.
22:13Eva grew up in a backwart farming pack.
22:15She doesn't know our ways.
22:16It's a lot to ask of her
22:18carrying the role of Luna.
22:20Perhaps Alice could accompany
22:22Eva to the estate
22:23as a companion to the Alpha.
22:28She could support her sister
22:30from within the household.
22:33A companion,
22:34so Luna was off the table.
22:35Now they were angling for mistress.
22:37Sammy goal,
22:38different door.
22:39Get Alice inside the estate,
22:41let her work her way up,
22:42and find a way
22:42to put me back at the bottom.
22:44Zoe closed the register.
22:45The look on her face
22:46made her opinion plain.
22:48If Mr. Hale truly wishes
22:50to put that forward,
22:51Alice will need to answer
22:52a question first.
22:53On behalf of Mrs. Walker,
22:55if a servant at the Alpha's
22:56as destate is found
22:57to be lazy, dishonest,
22:58or worse,
22:59disloyal to their master,
23:01how should they be handled?
23:02This was her moment.
23:03Forgiveness, of course.
23:05Servants are people too.
23:06The right approach
23:07is patience and reform.
23:09Casting them out
23:10would only make the Alpha
23:11look cold and unforgiving.
23:14She glanced at me
23:15when she finished,
23:16satisfied with herself.
23:20Father nodded along beside her.
23:22Zoe turned to me,
23:23Miss Eva.
23:25Your thoughts.
23:29Disloyalty is not a mistake.
23:31You forgive.
23:32Once a servant betrays their master,
23:33they are a liability,
23:35not a person to be reformed.
23:37It doesn't matter
23:37how close they are
23:38to the Alpha himself.
23:39If they break faith,
23:41they go.
23:41No exceptions.
23:44How can you be so ruthless?
23:45These are the Alpha's own people.
23:49That's exactly what
23:50Mrs. Walker wanted to hear.
23:52That's the kind of Luna
23:53this pack needs.
23:55Mrs. Walker's exact words.
23:57The second daughter
23:58of the Hale family
23:58is never to set foot
23:59inside the Alpha's mistake.
24:01Not once.
24:02Not ever.
24:03And just like that,
24:04I walked into the Alpha's
24:05estate as the one
24:06and only Luna Dot.
24:08Alice's hatred
24:09could have set the house on fire.
24:11That night,
24:11she broke everything
24:12she could get her hands
24:13on Dot faces.
24:14Ceramic jars,
24:15decorative paper,
24:15screaming and screaming
24:16and sobbing
24:17until her voice gave out
24:18between the crashes.
24:21Peasant.
24:23Worthless.
24:24Enough!
24:26Useless!
24:28Get a message
24:29to Mr. Allen.
24:30The old Duke
24:30is looking for a new mate,
24:32isn't he?
24:33Send Alice.
24:35I heard about this later.
24:36Mr. Allen was not simply
24:38an older man
24:38with a preference
24:39for young women.
24:40He was past 70
24:41violent by nature.
24:43At least three women
24:44in his household
24:44had died under his roof.
24:46What I couldn't understand,
24:47even knowing everything
24:48I knew about
24:48about my father
24:49was why he would
24:50throw his beloved
24:50and elder
24:51in a place like that.
24:52There was something
24:53he wasn't telling anyone.
24:55Not yet.
24:59The day of our bonding ceremony,
25:01the Alpha's estate
25:01was lit up
25:02for every window.
25:03It was exactly grand
25:04and auto
25:05draw every eye
25:05in the region
25:06and cover what was happening
25:07at the hill house
25:08at the same time.
25:09A plane carriage
25:10slipped out the back
25:10while no one was watching.
25:12Alice was inside Dot,
25:13bound.
25:14Gagged with a silencing tonic.
25:15Father had made sure
25:16she couldn't make a sound.
25:17The official story,
25:18she'd been sent
25:19to the Moon Temple
25:20for reflection.
25:21The truth,
25:21she was delivered
25:22to the old Duke
25:22through his back entrance
25:23like something being returned.
25:25In my last life,
25:26I was the one
25:26in that carriage.
25:28I had sat in that dark,
25:29jolting the claw
25:29hand-hounders
25:30of the Moon Temple
25:30and just said that.
25:31Now it was Alice.
25:38Turned,
25:38I thought of the way
25:39she had stood over me
25:40in the snow
25:40and I felt nothing
25:41but cold satisfaction.
25:42Your own affairs
25:43give to you,
25:44Alice.
25:44I hope you receive it well.
25:46The estate gates opened.
25:48Nathan stood in full
25:48ceremonial armor torches
25:50lining the path behind him.
25:51He was always severe,
25:52that face,
25:53those eyes Dot,
25:54but in the amber light
25:54of the altar,
25:55something in him
25:56softened,
25:56just at the edges.
25:57We completed
25:58the bonding ceremony.
26:02Dot afterward,
26:03I sat on the edge
26:04of the bed,
26:04gripping the sheets,
26:05my heart louder
26:06than I wanted it to be.
26:08I had clawed my way
26:09back to this moment,
26:10reclaimed everything
26:10they had taken from me.
26:12Dot,
26:13but this part,
26:13I had no memory
26:14to draw from,
26:15no experience.
26:17No,
26:17Nathan looked at me.
26:19Eva,
26:20from tonight.
26:22If the sky falls,
26:24I'll be the one
26:24holding it up.
26:25You are my only Luna.
26:27He tipped his head back
26:28and drained his cup.
26:29I watched his throat move.
26:32Why did you help me?
26:34Because you're sharp,
26:36and you don't flinch.
26:39I don't need someone
26:41to stand behind me,
26:42Eva.
26:42I need someone
26:43who can fight beside me.
26:46That day,
26:48till dawn,
26:49he did sapping down.
26:58Next morning,
26:59Mrs. Walker took one look
27:00at the shadows
27:00under my eyes and beam.
27:02She sat me down,
27:03lifted a crown from its box,
27:05and placed it on my head herself.
27:09This was mine once.
27:11It suits you better.
27:13I heard about Alice.
27:15Apparently she's been causing chaos
27:16at the old Duke's estate.
27:20Robert Allen.
27:21That man is...
27:22Well,
27:24she'll survive.
27:25Probably.
27:27But...
27:28But it won't be comfortable.
27:31I had stopped wondering
27:32about Alice.
27:33Whatever she was living through,
27:35it wasn't good.
27:35That was enough.
27:37Life inside the estate
27:39settled faster than I'd expected.
27:41I moved through
27:42the household methodically.
27:43One by one,
27:44I found the one skimming,
27:45betraying me,
27:46and smiling to hide it.
27:47I dealt with each of them
27:48cleanly, Dot.
27:50After that,
27:51this draft ran like water downhill.
27:53No one tested me twice.
27:55But Nathan,
27:56been off for several days
27:57running gray skies,
27:59steady rain,
27:59a steady light
27:59burned past midnight.
28:00He came to meet me,
28:01or not at all.
28:02His temper had a shorter fuse
28:04than usual.
28:05When I brought food
28:06to his study one evening,
28:07I found him with two fingers
28:08pressed to his temple.
28:12Face.
28:14The same look I'd seen
28:15seen on Mrs. Walker
28:16a hundred times, Dot,
28:16so it ran in the family.
28:18This headache
28:19that never quite left.
28:20I went back to my room
28:22and opened my remedy books.
28:24I adjusted the formula,
28:25added a measure of
28:26sacred pack spring water,
28:27and spent the better part
28:28of the night
28:28stitching a small sleep pillow
28:29by hand,
28:30packing the herbs
28:31inside myself.
28:32The next afternoon,
28:33while Nathan was out,
28:34I slipped into his room
28:35and swapped his pillow
28:36for mine.
28:37That night,
28:38Nathan came home late.
28:39I was already in bed,
28:41pretending to sleep.
28:41Half conscious,
28:42I felt the mattress
28:43sink beside me.
28:51When I woke the next morning,
28:53his side of the bed
28:53was already empty.
28:55From the outer room,
28:56I heard Zoe surprised.
28:59Alpha,
29:00you slept in today?
29:01Nathan's voice was unhurried.
29:03Slept deeply.
29:05No headache.
29:06I smiled to myself.
29:08The pillow worked.
29:09At dinner,
29:09he reached over
29:10and placed a piece of fish
29:11in my bowl.
29:12The pillow.
29:13You made it?
29:14I nodded.
29:16He looked at me for a moment,
29:18something unreadable in his eyes,
29:19and then the corner
29:20of his mouth lifted.
29:22The stitching is a bit rough,
29:24but the scent,
29:24I like it.
29:26The stitching was fine.
29:27He just wouldn't say
29:28what he actually meant.
29:29After that,
29:30the pillow was his alone.
29:31No one was permitted
29:32to touch it.
29:33He stopped walking around
29:34with that permanent scowl.
29:36Some evenings,
29:36he'd call me into the study
29:37and teach me calligraphy.
29:40My characters had always been crooked.
29:43I grew up on a farm,
29:44not in a classroom.
29:46He'd wrap his hand around
29:47Maneen Guide,
29:48each stroke his chest
29:49against my back.
29:50One evening,
29:51I knocked over the ink.
29:52He moved without thinking,
29:53sleeve down to catch it,
29:54and the puff soaked through black.
29:55I grabbed a cloth
29:56and dabbed at it.
29:57It spread worse.
30:01Leave it.
30:02It's just a robe.
30:03I took it back to my room anyway
30:05and stayed up embroidering
30:06a cluster of valyrian grass
30:07over the stain.
30:08Nathan saw it and scoffed.
30:11How childish.
30:12Then wore that robe
30:13every single day.
30:18I wasn't looking for news
30:20about the Hale family.
30:21It kept arriving anyway.
30:23Alice was miserable
30:24at the Duke's estate.
30:26Robert had particular tastes.
30:28The smallest inconvenience
30:30earned a lashing.
30:31Alice was covered in marks
30:32but she was alive,
30:34running entirely on hatred.
30:36All of it pointed at me.
30:38She had found her pudding,
30:39though.
30:40She gave the Duke.
30:41A tonic called it a stimulant,
30:42something rare.
30:43It worked well enough
30:45that he became very attached
30:46to her after that.
30:48I laughed when I heard
30:49what it actually was.
30:50It was the same compound
30:52used on the forced day
30:53of the carriage.
30:54The frenzy drug
30:54just watered down.
30:56Enough to make an old man
30:57feel young for an hour.
30:59He was devoted to her
31:00after that.
31:01But my informant
31:02sent different news.
31:04Alice's people had been
31:05quietly buying cinnabar
31:06and liquid mercury.
31:08Separately.
31:08both medicinal dot combined,
31:11a lethal poison.
31:12She wouldn't use it on Robert.
31:13He was her only shield,
31:15which left one other target.
31:17I set the letter down
31:18and tapped the table.
31:20Nathan's birthday
31:21was the 8th of next month.
31:23So that was her move.
31:25If she wanted to come for me,
31:26I'd make it very easy for her.
31:28I called my trusted mate over
31:30and spoke quietly in her ear.
31:33She nodded once and left.
31:35The 11th of next month.
31:36She said you will.
31:38She DUTS
31:38and saw her in the right
31:38almost there.
31:38No.
31:38I'm coming.