Chapter 26 Atonement
The week passed quickly.
Alexander and Lucas mostly recovered from their injuries, though they insisted on being discharged early.
“Alicia, we’ve got a huge surprise for you.” Alexander said with a mysterious glint in his eyes, full of expectation.
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A surprise? I couldn’t care less about whatever surprise they thought they had for me. The week was almost up. It was time for me to leave.
“What are you two planning now?”
Lucas reached for my hand, but I stepped back, wary. He froze, then said quietly, “Alicia, come with us. This time, we won’t let you down.”
“Hah! Let’s see what kind of circus act they’ve put together,” Nova sneered in my head. If she wanted to see it, then fine. I was curious, too. What else could these clowns possibly pull? So I nodded silently and followed them.
I already knew this farce wasn’t over.
Some of me wanted to see what stunt they’d try
Tu next.
It didn’t take long to discover their “surprise.”
They had arranged a fully live–streamed public apology. An event broadcast across the entire continent for every werewolf to
Sec.
So dramatic. So sincere. It caused an uproar among the werewolf clans when it was announced.
The venue was grand, lit with dazzling stage lights. Cameras were locked on the central platform where Alexander, Lucas, Charles, and Elizabeth stood.
Their faces were weary, marked by visible pain and deep regret.
Alexander stepped forward to the mic, voice hoarse and low. Today, we’re not here to ask for sympathy. We’re here to confess to someone we owe everything to. My sister, Alicia.”
His voice echoed through the stream, broadcasting worldwide. Countless viewers held their breath, waiting for what would
come nex
And me? I watched it all unfold on the television screen, expressionles
“What a joke!” Nova scoffed. “Do they really think this will make you forgive them?”
“A performance, nothing more. I didn’t like this kind of grandstanding apology.
“Alicia, Alexander continued, voice trembling slightly. “No matter what we do, it’ll never erase the pain we caused you. But we still want you to know we’re truly sorry.” The sorrow in his voice, the pain in his eyes–it just made me feel even more
detached.
Because once upon a time, I was just a joke in his eyes.
Then, without warning, Alexander dropped to his knees before the camera.
“Alicia, this is what we owe you.”
His voice was barely audible, but the microphone carried it to every corner of the venue and every screen watching at home. Casps rippled through the crowd. Even online, viewers were stunned.
Alexander, the proud heir of the Twobound Pack, was kneeling. In front of the world. All for one person’s forgiveness.
And then, Lucas stepped forward, holding a whip coated with silver dust.
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Chapter 26 Atonement
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“Alicia,” he said, voice low and resolute. “Words aren’t enough. So I’ll take ten lashes to atone for the pain I caused
Before anyone could react, he raised the whip and brought it down hard on his own back.
Crack!
The sound of leather against flesh was sharp and brutal. A red welt split across his skin instantly. The silver dust ensured the wound wouldn’t heal.
His face turned ghostly pale, sweat beading on his forehead. But he gritted his teeth, refusing to make a sound.
“One lash for the times I ignored you.”
Crack
Two, for the times I hurt you.”
Crack:
Three. for the times I let you suffer.”
And on it went.
Lash after lash, his back was soon a bloody mess, his body shaking. But he never stopped.
The crowd was stunned into silence. Viewers online couldn’t believe what they were seeing-
Lucas Black, the renowned Alpha, was flogging himself with a silver whip.
Beside him. Charles and Elizabeth stood in tears. Silent, broken.
“Alicia, we know we’ve failed you,” Elizabeth said. “This is the gift we prepared for you back then. It’s the doll you loved as a child, and these photos are of us together before everything fell
apart.”
Her hands trembled as she held up an old, worn–out doll and a stack of faded photographs. Her voice cracked. “These years, we’ve missed you every single day. We’ve regretted every decision. Alicia, if you’re willing to forgive us, to come back and be our daughter again, we’ll do anything”
