Chapter 2

“Sister, are you ready?” Seraphine’s voice cut through the door, so sickly sweet. It made me suck.

When she stepped in, her eyes flicked over me, and her lips curled. “Well… my dress looks good on you.”

I glanced down. The gown really was beautiful, far more elegant than anything I’d worn since my father remarried. But it wasn’t mine. It was Seraphine’s cast-off. Something she’d been ready to throw away.

She leaned against the doorframe, her grin sharp as a knife. “Congratulations, sister. I heard your soon-to-be husband is ruthless. A man covered in battle scars, with a face so fearsome you’ll wet yourself just looking at him. And the best part? He hates this marriage as much as you do. Maybe he’ll blame you for it.”

She laughed, high-pitched and cruel. “Maybe you’ll die pathetically in his hands. Not even your curse will save you.”

Her words slithered under my skin, chilling me to the bone. What if she was right? What if this marriage was the end of me? That thought alone would be her greatest joy.

“Let’s go!” Lucian’s voice came from behind her. He was holding the small bag that carried everything I owned.

I didn’t get to say goodbye to my friends. They marched me straight to the driveway, straight to him, the man who would take me away.

He was tall, broad, built like a wall of stone. Dirty blond hair. A long, claw-shaped scar down his cheek. His presence was heavy, almost suffocating. Beta Rowan. Alpha Dimitri’s right hand.

My father’s voice rang out, formal but cold: “Beta Rowan, this is my daughter, Nyra Dorn. Please tell Alpha Dimitri that we entrust our daughter to him.”

Entrust. As if he cared. His eyes never once met mine.

I swallowed hard, my hands trembling as I finally forced myself to speak. “Are… are you going to hurt me?”

Rowan blinked, almost surprised by the question. His brows furrowed before he answered, voice flat. “No. As long as you follow the rules.”

Rules. My stomach twisted.

“Get inside the car,” he ordered.

I turned to my father one last time. His face was carved from stone. Not a flicker of love. Not a shred of concern.

“Goodbye, Father,” I whispered. He only nodded, like I was nothing.

Isolde, my stepmother, smiled that mocking smile of hers. She waved at me as if I was a child leaving for school. “Goodbye, Nyra. We’ll try to attend your wedding, but you know resources in Shadowfen aren’t what they used to be.” A lie. They never intended to come. They were glad to be rid of me.

“Goodbye, my beloved sister!” Seraphine chirped, grinning from ear to ear.

I bit my tongue before I rolled my eyes. They were all putting on a show for Rowan, pretending to be a happy family.

Then my gaze met Lucian’s. He frowned. He didn’t want me gone, but not out of love. No, his eyes told a different story. And maybe, just maybe, I’d be safer away from him.

Maybe.

I took a shaky breath. Be strong. You’ve always been strong. You can survive this.

But deep down, fear twisted in my gut. The Alpha King had ordered me to marry Dimitri Draven, the most feared Alpha in Varenthal. Why me? My pack wasn’t powerful. I wasn’t special. To them, I was nothing but a curse.

“Yes, Alpha. We have her. We’re leaving Shadowfen now.”

Rowan’s voice rumbled low, speaking into his phone. My stomach flipped at the word Alpha. He was reporting to Dimitri. My future. My fate.

I sat in the backseat of the car with Rowan beside me, two warriors in the front. Every second carried me farther from my home. From everything I’d ever known.

My eyes drifted to the window, and my heart stopped. Elias. Sabine. My best friends. Running after the car.

A sob tore from me. I pressed my hand to the glass. “Please, stop the car. Just for a moment. Please, let me say goodbye.”

Rowan’s jaw ticked, but he finally signaled the driver. The car slowed.

I threw myself out and ran into their arms. Elias. Sabine. My family when my blood family wasn’t. Tears streamed down my face as I clung to them.

“My mother says my father will try to speak to the king,” Elias whispered urgently. “Maybe there’s still a way out.”

I shook my head, my chest heaving. “I don’t know, Elias. I don’t want your parents to suffer because of me.”

Sabine leaned closer. “What if we told them about your, ”

“Shhh.” I hushed her quickly. No. Not here. Not now. The truth about me could only bring more trouble. “It doesn’t matter. Not yet. I’ll decide what to do when the time comes.”

I hugged them tighter, memorizing their warmth. “Take care of Aunt Cressida. Uncle Theron. Aurelia. Orin. Promise me.”

Rowan’s voice cut through the moment like a blade. “We need to leave. Now.”

I pulled back, my throat raw, my eyes swollen. “I’ll miss you. Goodbye.”

The car door shut, sealing me in. As we drove away, I pressed my forehead against the glass and watched them fade into the distance. Watched my home disappear. Watched my bond to my pack weaken until I felt it snap, leaving only emptiness behind.

And all I could think was: In the hands of Alpha Dimitri Draven… what will become of me?

Two days later, the answer still haunted me as we finally reached the Nightfall Pack.

It was massive. Larger than I ever imagined. The territory stretched endlessly, warriors everywhere, strong and unyielding. This was Dimitri’s world. A world built on blood and iron.

They said he’d been Alpha since twenty. That he’d fought countless battles, conquered entire territories with his own claws. That he killed without hesitation. That his body was covered in scars, his face ruined, his heart colder than stone.

They said no one dared defy him.

I told myself maybe, just maybe, he wouldn’t care about me. Maybe he’d ignore me, keep mistresses, leave me alone. Maybe I could just survive quietly at his side.

The car rolled up to the packhouse. A massive red-brick mansion, four stories high, surrounded by towering pines. My chest tightened as they led me inside.

Straight into his office.

He stood at the window, broad shoulders filling out a white shirt, sleeves rolled to his forearms. Tattoos inked across his skin, curling down to his wrist.

“Alpha, Nyra is here,” Rowan announced.

I shut my eyes, bracing myself. This is it.

The room shifted when he turned. The air thickened, heavy and hot. My skin prickled. I forced my eyes open.

And the moment I saw him, everything inside me froze.

My heart pounded. My cheeks flushed. My mind emptied, leaving only shock.

This… this is Alpha Dimitri?