"Apologize to Lucia and leave," Caleb said, his voice tight with anger. "Now."

I looked into his eyes and suddenly felt as if I didn't know him at all.

My father spoke next, "Lyla, this is your last chance. Apologize."

I looked at him. Then at Caleb. Then at all the faces around me filled with disgust, disappointment, and open contempt.

"Fine," I said.

I set my glass down on the table and turned toward Lucia.

I took a deep breath and bowed my head.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I shouldn't have ruined your dress."

Lucia buried her face against my father's chest and cried even harder.

Caleb shot me an impatient look. "Get out. You're not welcome here."

For a moment, I found myself envying Lucia, protected inside the circle formed by Caleb and my father.

Then I turned and walked out of the hall.

The memory slowly faded.

Back in the square, the third elder, Theo Marshall, spoke up. "She apologized."

"Because she knew she'd been caught," Russ replied immediately.

"But the juice in her glass didn't spill," someone said quietly.

Everyone turned toward the speaker, a young warrior standing near the edge of the crowd.

He immediately lowered his gaze.

But it was too late. The words were already out.

Caleb snapped toward him. "What did you say?"

"I-I just meant..." the young warrior stammered. "Her glass was still full. If she pushed someone, the drink should've spilled."

"Maybe she kept her balance," Russ said quickly.

"But Ms. Lucia crashed into the table," the young warrior continued, gathering courage. "With that much force, the glass shouldn't have stayed steady."

My father turned to Caleb, whose face had gone pale.

"Caleb," my father asked, "did you really see it happen?"

Caleb's lips parted.

His gaze shifted to me. I was shaking under the flames, my body trembling from the pain, but I forced myself to lift my head and meet his eyes.

"I..." Caleb hesitated for the first time. "I was accepting congratulations. When I turned, I caught it out of the corner of my eye."

"Out of the corner of your eye?" my father pressed. "Not clearly?"

"It was crowded. I was far away," Caleb admitted, his voice lowering.

"And you're sure it was me?" I asked.

He didn't answer.

"Caleb," my father said, his tone heavy, "answer her."

Caleb closed his eyes.

"I believed it was you," he said at last. "You were the only one standing in front of her."

"So you didn't actually see it," I said. "You just assumed."

"Lucia had no reason to destroy the most important dress she owned!" Caleb snapped, frustration breaking through.

"Other than you, I can't imagine anyone wanting to hurt her!"

"You see?" I said slowly. "The moment she cries, you believe her. All of you do."

"But why would she frame you?"

"Because she's afraid of the prophecy!" I shouted. "She's afraid my bloodline will awaken. Before I could even find my footing, she needed everyone to hate me. She needed to bury me completely!"

"Enough with these baseless claims!" my father cut in sharply.

"Then what about these memories?" I struggled against the chains, metal clattering loudly.

"First, the moonstone. Then the dress. Every time, she was the one who approached me first. Dad, did you never question it?"

My father's expression stiffened.

"But none of this proves you didn't betray the pack," he said hoarsely. "Continue the trial."

"Alpha..."

"Continue!" he roared.

The collar tightened again.

Pain swallowed me whole once more.

This time, the pain was different.

It didn't just burn my skin anymore. It drilled deeper, burrowing into my bones.

Cold sweat poured down my face as my body shook uncontrollably.

The sky lit up again.

"This was two months ago," Russ said, disgust heavy in his voice. "The time Lucia almost died."

Before the image fully formed, Lucia's crying echoed through the square.

"Dad... I feel awful..."

The memory sharpened.

It was the pack's medical lodge.

Lucia lay on a stone bed, her skin tinged purple, lips dark and trembling.

The healer kneeled beside her. "Wolfsbane poison. If the dose had been any stronger, we wouldn't have saved her."

My father stood nearby, his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles cracked.

"Who did this?"

Caleb stepped forward, holding a bowl. "Lucia said Lyla brought this to her."

My voice came from outside the frame. "I didn't!"

The memory shifted.

I saw myself standing at the entrance, two warriors gripping my shoulders.

"I never brought Lucia anything!" My past self struggled against them.

Lucia spoke weakly from the bed, "Lyla, do you hate me that much?"

Caleb lifted the bowl toward me. "A servant witnessed you carrying this into Lucia's room."

"Which servant?" I demanded.

A thin young maid was pushed forward.

She kept her head lowered, trembling. "I... I saw Ms. Lyla carry a bowl into Ms. Lucia's room."

"When?" I asked.

"In the afternoon."

"Where did I get the bowl?"

"Fr-from your own room..."

"My room?" My voice rose. "My room is on the far west side of the pack grounds. Lucia's is on the far east side. You're saying I carried poison across the territory, and nobody else saw me?"

The maid froze, unable to answer.

"M-maybe someone saw but didn't say anything..."

"Then bring everyone who walked that path!" I turned toward my father. "Question them one by one!"

My father studied me for a long moment.

Then he said, "Investigate."

Half an hour later, five warriors returned.

"Three pack members passed through that area this afternoon," the lead warrior reported. "A she-wolf fetching water and two patrol guards. None of them saw Ms. Lyla."

My father looked at the maid.

Her face went pale. "M-maybe I remembered the time wrong..."

Lucia suddenly broke into violent coughing.

"Dad," she whispered weakly, reaching out, "I feel terrible..."

My father immediately returned to her side and grabbed her hand.

"Healer!"

"The poison hasn't fully cleared. She needs to keep purging," the healer said.

"Use the strongest medicine we have," my father ordered.

"Okay."

He turned back toward me.

"Lyla," he said, "this only proves you might not have walked that particular path."

I spoke slowly, every word deliberate, "Someone paid that servant to lie."

"Who would do that?" Caleb asked.

"Wolfsbane only grows in the Northlands. The pack doesn't even have it. If I poisoned her, when would I have gone to gather it? I haven't left the territory since returning."

My father turned to the healer. "Do we have wolfsbane anywhere in the pack?"

"No," the healer replied, shaking his head. "It can't grow here. It's native only to the Northlands."

I continued, "And if I wanted her dead, why would I do it in broad daylight where someone could see me? Do you really think I'm that stupid?"

Caleb frowned, uncertainty creeping into his expression.

My father turned back to the maid.

"What was Lyla wearing when you saw her?"

The maid froze.