Chapter 5

Claudia's POV The woman who woke up from the coma opened her eyes. To my surprise, she had a very rare pair of eyes, with purple pupils that emitted a faint shimmer. She looked at me in a very strange way, which was a mixture of shock and confusion. The woman stared straight at me and didn't say a word. I was a little scared, this beautiful and strange woman was not a werewolf at first glance. What was she doing at the edge of the pack? The woman suddenly spoke at that moment and startled me. "I can tell you're a witch's child. Don't be afraid, I'm a witch too." Usually, witches didn't reveal their identities to others, because there were many people who caved their power and many who feared them. Usually, only if they trusted you very much would they tell you their true identity. Hearing her say that made me drop my guard at once. A lot of my trust in witches came from my mother, who used to be hated by lots of people when she was in the pack. But my father had always protected her, and my mother had been nice to everyone, at least everyone outwardly respected my mother. Seeing no reaction from me, she then said, "Anyway, thank you for saving me. Is there anything you want? Within my power, I can help you get it." The moment I heard those words, "Leave the Crimson Shadow Pack!" Those words came to my mind. However, I looked at the witch and she was still badly injured, so it wasn't realistic to ask her to take me away. And she was such a powerful witch, yet she was badly injured and fled here, so maybe she was still in danger, and I was just a small slave who couldn't do much to help her. The words that almost came out of my mouth were swallowed back. The witch saw through my thoughts, "I should have taken you with me, in every sense of the word. But I'm in a state of being hunted, and it's too dangerous for you to follow me. But when I escape the danger, if you're still willing to come with me, I'll be sure to come back for you." I nodded lightly. The witch in front of me was soft and tender, and she felt like a mother to me. Then she offered to give me another gift and urged me to accept it. Seeing how determined she was, I had no choice but to accept her kind offer. The witch placed her hand over my eyes, while hiding my eyes over the years had formed a habit in me. I hurriedly lowered my head to avoid her hand, and she gently cupped my face and said to me gently, "Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you." I closed my eyes and the witch put her hand on them, her voice seemed so close, yet it also felt so far away somewhat. "I give you a key that will unlock the hidden door in your bloodline." After she said that, it was as if I was in a warm ocean, where my body was sinking under the warm water wrapping around me, and only my eyes were glowing faintly. It wasn't until my senses returned to normal levels that I opened my eyes and the witch was gone. What had just happened was like a dream, no trace of it was left behind, and I didn't notice any change in myself. As I returned to the wolf pack, I heard the jeers from those who walked past me again. And those who brushed past me, deliberately bumping into my shoulder and leaving a "Bitch." I just wanted to escape into my basement immediately, and I walked quickly with my head down only to bump into someone in the doorway. "Don't you have any eyes?" I thought that I was done, and my heart tightened at the tone of voice, as the girl I bumped into was one of Fiona's friends, and she often bullied me along with Fiona. The girl nudged me. "I'm asking you a question, little dummy." I looked at the girl through the slit that covered my hair, hoping she wasn't the one who was strong. I ended up feeling a strong wave of emotion the moment my eyes met hers. That great disgust and hatred filled my heart. "Fuck, my new dress is all ruined by this bitch!" echoed in my ears. But the girl in front of me didn't open her mouth. Did she know ventriloquism? I looked at the girl next to her again, and the same disgusted, even more disdainful voice rang in my ears. "The traitor's daughter is screwed, it's Jessica's new dress, how should she be punished?" But again, she didn't open her mouth. This wasn't right. They were all just staring at me and waiting for my response. It was like no one but me heard what they said. Then the witch's voice rang in my head, "Every witch is born with a gift, and your power has been hidden. Now I give you the key to unlock your gift, you can use your powers from now on." Receiving too many negative emotions made my head spin and my stomach flip up. I covered my mouth and fled the scene, still hearing the sounds of the girl and her friend cursing behind me. Running back to the basement, I laid on my bed and shrunk myself into a ball. The hatred was so strong that it was as if their minds were living in my ears. I thought back to what had happened. I had felt such strong emotions just by looking at the girl and hearing what was going through her mind. So, my inherited witch's ability was the ability to read people's inner thoughts? Gosh, I had only ever heard of this ability to read minds in legends. And what could I do if I really got this ability? I tried to calm myself down and thought. This ability seemed to have a trigger condition. I came back from the lake and ran into a lot of people along the way, but only 2 girls' voices were read to me. Maybe it was because I looked into their eyes? It's supposed to be like that. To prove my suspicions, I walked upstairs and made a point of looking at a lot of people. Again, intense disgust flooded into my ears. I heard that adults walking down the road seeing me "Ah, the traitor's daughter, she's filthy, I'd have thrown her out in the wild if I were Alpha", and the children were led by adults, "This slave is the daughter of the traitor whom Dad mentioned. No one would scold me if I hit her with a rock". Finally, it was proved that almost everyone in the wolf pack thought of me in the same way. I always knew people in the pack didn't like me, but this was the only place I could call "home". Until today, when I heard what they were really thinking, it hurt so much. When I turned an adult, I would never spend another second in this pack. I took the ring which my parents gave me before they left from the basement floor tiles. My mother told me it was her family heirloom. I knew that it was tied to witch power. The moment I held it in my hand, I drew the witch's power from that ring, and I would need that power when the day came for me to leave the pack.