Alice's POV
"Three years ago, you professed your love to me at the coming-of-age ceremony. Now, you're in a rush to move out. So, do you no longer care for me? Or have you fallen for someone else, eager to live with your Jesse?" His malevolent gaze evoked my memories of the director fastening silver shackles onto me.
On that day, I cried relentlessly, clinging to the iron railing, pleading with him to believe that I didn't truly intend to harm Selena, begging for mercy. But he remained coldly indifferent, as if I were a disposable piece of trash.
"Yes, I don't care for you anymore." I thought that by confessing, Robert would leave. Little did I know that Robert would suddenly press closer, pinning me beneath him.
"Let me see if you truly no longer care for me," he whispered. I turned away, tears streaming down my face, whispering to him. "Uncle, we're family. Behaving like this will surely incur the Moon Goddess's wrath. Please, don't do this."
I clenched my thigh tightly, the pain a constant reminder that I had to exhibit profound understanding in front of Robert. His gaze trailed down my face to the bruises on my leg, and his eyes darkened.
"Alice, do you truly prefer Jesse from the Solar Crown pack?"
He soon pulled away from me, adjusting his slightly disheveled shirt.
"Jesse, he's too immature, incapable of treating his Luna as a mature Werewolf should. You should at least choose a mature Werewolf to be with to find happiness."
"Robert, I've had enough! Please don't speak to me in such a condescending tone. It makes me feel like a pitiful clown."
I snapped at him, "What am I to you? A pet or a daughter?"
Mature Werewolves? How could they ever marry someone like me? I'm a Non-Werewolf, incapable of shifting into a wolf form, unable to sense Alpha's love. I'm nothing but a burden, and only Jesse doesn't despise me. Only he has firmly chosen me.
"Alice, you need to think this through. If you move out of the mansion, I won't provide you with any financial support. Can you endure the hardships of life without money?"
Robert's voice turned icy, sending shivers down my spine. I nodded meekly. Robert stood by the bed, silently observing me.
Thankfully, after a while, he turned and left.
Once he was gone, I immediately retrieved a silver dagger and ran it across my arm. The pain made me convulse all over, instantly reminding me of the time I spent in the sanctuary.
"You and Robert are family, any intimate contact between you is sinful. You should feel guilty."
"A woman without guilt is lowly and deserves punishment."
The director tied me to a small stool and lashed me with a whip soaked in wolfbane, over and over.
Why did Robert have to reappear? I had already made up my mind to marry Jesse.
Why did he have to torment me again?
Soon, everything went black, and I knew nothing.
When I woke up again, it was Robert calling me.
"Alice, you don't look well. Are you sick?"
He reached out to touch my forehead, but I quickly evaded him.
"No."
The hand that had been about to touch my forehead lingered in the air for a moment.
"Good then, get up and eat."
After instructing me, Robert left.
After finishing the meal, Robert drove me to my rented place in the suburbs. It was a two-hour drive from the mansion. During the ride, he engaged me in conversation.
"How have you been at the sanctuary?"
"Good."
"Okay. In these past three years, have you ever thought about me?"
"Forget it, you don't have to answer," I hadn't yet responded when he told me not to.
When Robert dropped me off at my rental, I thanked him and hurriedly closed the car door. He was unpredictable now, and I didn't want any further interaction with him.
Huddled in my tiny twenty-square-meter room, I suddenly remembered the day I had an argument with Selena. Three years ago, I just wanted to drive Selena away from Robert's side, as I always had.
But Selena called me a jinx and I couldn't help but strike her. No one knows how terrified I am of this word. I was born, and my mother died in childbirth. When I was five, my father died trying to save Robert. Later, someone said that I had jinxed my parents. When Robert found out, he, always calm and self-possessed, beat someone half to death for the first time. I think that's when I fell in love with him.