Chapter One
Hazel – POV
I scrubbed the floor harder, tears stinging my eyes as the wine soaked into my rag. Natasha had spilled it on purpose again. The tile was already spotless before, but she didn't care. None of them did.
The moment I was done, she kicked the glass over again, laughing cruelly.
"Oops," she giggled, and Lilian and Sophia joined her, their laughter echoing through the room.
"Use your face this time," Natasha snapped, her voice sharp like broken glass.
I froze. "What?" I hissed under my breath.
That was enough to set her off.
Her hand flew to my face, the slap ringing loud in the silent tension that followed.
Natasha had always been that daughter. Our father's pride his firstborn, his mirror, his perfect little she-wolf. And me? I was nothing. Less than nothing. An accident. A reminder. A mistake. A human.
I whimpered as Sophia and Lilian yanked my arms behind me, holding me down while Natasha shoved my face to the floor.
"Scrub it properly," she snarled.
The wine burned against the fresh cut on my cheek, and some trickled into my mouth. I choked, gagging.
"That's what your ugly face deserves," Natasha spat.
Sophia laughed beside her. "Poor floor," she mocked. "Imagine having to be kissed by that."
When they finally let me go, I scrambled to the far corner of the room. My face was bleeding. I could see strands of my brunette hair on the floor where they'd ripped it out.
"Ew," Lilian sneered. "Her hair's disgusting. Let's chop it off."
Panic gripped me. No not my hair..they can damage my face but never my hair!
I watched in horror as Natasha reached for a pair of scissors, her eyes gleaming with cruelty.
"Don't worry, sister," she said in a sugary-sweet tone, tilting her head. "Maybe next time, don't come back as a human."
They all howled with laughter.
Before I could run, Lilian and Sophia grabbed me again.
"Hold her," Natasha said, stepping closer with the scissors in hand
And then the door slammed open.
A normal child would've felt relief seeing their father. But not me. Never me.
The moment his eyes landed on me, my heart dropped.
He didn't ask if I was okay. He didn't care about the blood or the fear on my face. His lips curled in disgust.
"Father," Natasha purred.
"What, darling?" he answered gently, his expression soft only for her. Then he glanced at me, eyes narrowing. "Why is there noise?"
"Nothing, Dad," she said with a smile. "Your maid daughter just doesn't know how to play."
He looked at me the same way he always did. Like I was a stain on the family name.
The former Beta of the mighty Blue Moon Pack once feared, now just bitter cursed with four powerful she-wolves… and me. A pathetic human mistake from the night he slept with a woman outside the pack when we first moved to New Orleans. A woman they all erased.
And I? I was the leftover.
"They were going to cut my hair, Fa—"
Before the word even left my mouth, his hand struck me.
"Don't you ever call me that," he growled. "You should be grateful they even want to play with you. Not scream like we're torturing you."
"Play?"
The tiny voice stopped all of us.
Ariel stood in the doorway, her wide green eyes filled with horror. She was the youngest of us, and the only one with a heart. She ran to me without hesitation, wrapping her arms around me.
"Father! They wanted to cut her hair!" she cried.
He yanked her away from me. "And so what?" he snapped.
"She should be thankful. That horrible hair needs a fix anyway. Natasha's just being generous."
"NO!" Ariel screamed, struggling in his grip.
But he didn't listen.
Instead, he turned to my sisters.
"Go on," he said.
They all shrieked like they'd just won the damn lottery.
Before I could even move, they were on me. Lilian and Sophia grabbed my arms, pulling me forward as I thrashed and screamed.
"No! Stop!"
But they didn't care.
Natasha yanked a handful of my hair my long, beautiful black hair and with one brutal slice, she chopped it off.
The sound of the scissors echoed in my head like a scream, but it was nothing compared to the hollow silence that followed. I stared in disbelief as strands of my hair fluttered to the floor.
And then... they laughed.
Not just the sisters.
My father too.
He threw his head back and chuckled like it was a comedy show.
Like my pain was entertainment.
Ariel broke free from his grasp and ran to me, her face pale and soaked in tears.
"Hazel!" she cried, kneeling beside me. Her tiny arms wrapped around my trembling frame as her voice cracked. "Oh my God…"
But I wasn't crying anymore.
No.
Something inside me snapped.
My vision blurred—not from tears, but from rage.
Blazing. Pure. Unfiltered rage.
I stood up slowly, trembling like a live wire. I could hear the blood pounding in my ears.
Natasha was still laughing, flicking my severed hair with her fingers like it was a trophy.
"You—" I whispered. Then I snapped.
I lunged.
My hands shot out and grabbed Natasha by her fake blonde waves. She shrieked, trying to pry my fingers off, but I was too far gone.
"You bastard!" she screamed. "Let go! I'll kill you!"
"No," I growled, grabbing the scissors from the floor. "I'll go first."
And with one clean slice, I cut a large chunk of her precious golden hair. She let out a blood-curdling scream.
"MY HAIR! YOU FREAKING BITCH!"
But before I could move again, I felt his hand.
My father's monstrous grip clamped around my arm, yanking me back like I weighed nothing.
Then CRASH.
He threw me.
My back slammed against the wall with a crack. My vision went white.
For a second, I didn't feel anything. Not the pain. Not the screams.
Just emptiness.
Like my soul floated above my broken body.
From somewhere far away, I heard Natasha's sobbing.
"She ruined my hair!" she wailed. "Oh my Goddess..Cayden won't love me anymore! I I was supposed to be Luna! Look what she did!"
Lilian and Sophia rushed to her side, comforting her like she was the victim.
And then he came at me again.
Heavy footsteps. A looming shadow.
I could barely breathe before his hands were around my throat.
Choking. Crushing.
"You dare touch my daughter?" he growled. "You disgusting little mistake"
"FATHER!" Ariel screamed. "She's human! She can die!"
That stopped him for a second. Barely.
Then
BANG.
A thunderous voice cracked across the room like a whip. Every single person froze.
I knew that voice.
We all did.
The air turned cold.
Standing in the doorway, dressed in sleek black silk and dripping with quiet fury, was the only person my father ever flinched at:
Stepmom.