Astrid's POV
“You have to go, Astrid.” Aidan’s voice in my ear, cut through my terror. I turned to stare at him, his eyes were hard but held a mix of regret and steely resolve. "This punishment is as much for you as it is for the pack. You need to show them that disrespect against you won’t be tolerated."
My knees trembled, a bone-deep tremor that threatened to send me sprawling on the ground. Internally, I screamed in protest, but I knew he was right. Besides, I couldn’t disobey Zane in front of the entire pack. To do so would be to show weakness, to prove the rumors true. Taking a shaky breath, I forced myself to move, to put one foot in front of the other, and climb the podium. Every eye was on me, a thousand and one gazes burning into my back. I felt exposed, vulnerable, and despite
