Lilian’s POV
When consciousness returned,it came slowly,like wading up from dark water.
I was lying in my own room.
A soft quilt covered me,its familiar scent failing to bring any comfort.My shoulder throbbed faintly beneath fresh bandages,the gauze clean and carefully wrapped.Someone had tended to my wounds with professional care,almost reverently.
Footsteps sounded near the door.
“Miss…you’re awake?”the servant whispered in relief when she noticed my eyes open.“Alpha Herbert was very distressed yesterday after he ordered you taken down from the judgment tree.He told us to take special care of you.”
Her words washed over me without leaving a ripple.
She gestured toward a large box placed beside the bed.It was sealed with silver clasps,engraved with the Herbert Pack’s crest.
“Alpha Herbert had this delivered early this morning,”she continued cautiously.“It’s a wedding dress.It’s already been altered to fit you.He said…he wants you to try it on.The mating ceremony is the day after tomorrow.”
I turned my head.
The dress lay there quietly,pure white fabric folded with care,as sacred as a ritual offering.Once,I had imagined wearing it beneath the full moon,binding my fate to Brian’s as Luna of the Herbert Pack.
Now,my heart felt like a dead plain.
Without answering,I pushed the quilt aside and swung my legs over the bed.The sudden movement made my vision sway,but I steadied myself and stood.I didn’t spare the dress another glance as I walked straight for the door.
The hallway was quiet.
Halfway down the corridor,Adeline appeared.
She stopped when she saw me,her eyes flickering with surprise before settling into contempt.Her wolf aura flared subtly,sharp and invasive.
“Well,well,”she said,lips curving cruelly.“You’re impressive,Lilian.Hung from the judgment tree yesterday,and now you’ve somehow made Brian feel sorry for you again?”
She took a step closer,voice lowering.
“What’s your plan this time?Wear the wedding dress and seduce him?Ruin my marriage before it even begins?”
I didn’t slow.
“I don’t care about the dress,”I said calmly.“I’ll give it to you.I’m not fighting you for Brian.”
She froze.
“You’ll be the one marrying him,”I continued,my tone flat and final.“Not me.”
For the first time,Adeline looked genuinely shaken.
I brushed past her without another word.Each step down the stairs sent a dull ache through my body,but I forced myself onward and pushed open the mansion’s front doors.
Cool air rushed over my face.
The wind carried the faint scent of pine and distant wolves,clearing my head far more effectively than any medicine.Brian’s guilt,his hollow gestures of concern,meant nothing now.
I didn’t need his pity.
I needed time.
Two days.
Two days to leave.
Two days to prepare.
And two days to ensure that everyone who had torn me apart paid the price.
I pulled out my phone with steady fingers and sent a message to the few people I still trusted.
[In two days,release all evidence to every major media outlet.
Immediately sever all critical technology access to the Wyatt and Herbert Packs.]
I stared at the screen as the message sent.
To the Wyatt Pack.To the Herbert Pack.
I will make you pay.
I had barely lowered my phone when a hand suddenly clamped over my mouth and nose from behind.A sharp,chemical scent flooded my senses.My wolf surged instinctively,but my weakened body betrayed me.
The world tilted.
Darkness swallowed everything.
When I woke again,cold iron pressed against my spine.
My wrists were bound.My ankles chained.I was tied to a heavy iron chair in a damp,lightless room.The air reeked of rust and stagnant water.
In the corner,Adeline was there too.
She was tied up,her head bowed as she sobbed softly,shoulders shaking.The sight didn’t bring relief.It made my stomach twist.
Footsteps approached.
A tall man emerged from the shadows,a jagged scar cutting across his face.His wolf aura was savage and uncontrolled,the kind that thrived on bloodshed.
He picked up a phone,dialed a number,and turned on the speaker.
“Alpha Herbert,”he said lazily.“Come quickly if you want to save your woman.”
Ten minutes later,the door burst open.
Brian rushed in,his Alpha presence flaring violently as his gaze snapped to Adeline—and then to me.Panic flickered across his face before the scarred man stepped forward,twirling a dagger between his fingers with a grin.
“I heard one of them is your fiancée,”the man said.“Let’s play a game.Choose one.”
Brian froze.
The silence stretched,thick and suffocating.
“I…”his voice faltered.
“Stop wasting time!”the kidnapper barked.
He grabbed both of us by the neck,cutting off our air.My chest burned as my breath came in frantic gasps.
“Brian!”Adeline screamed,her voice shrill with terror.“I’m scared!It hurts!Please—save me!”
Brian’s fists clenched until his knuckles whitened.His eyes darted between us,his jaw trembling.
Finally,he spoke.
“I choose Adeline.”
The words struck deeper than any blade.
The scarred man laughed.
He yanked me forward by my hair and shoved me toward a dark pool beside the room.The icy water swallowed me whole.My lungs screamed,my body convulsing as I fought desperately for air.
Once.
Twice.
I was dragged up only to be forced back under again.
When they finally pulled me out and dumped me onto the cold floor,I coughed violently,gasping like a dying animal.
“Decisive choice,Alpha Herbert,”the man mocked.
Before I could recover,rough hands seized us both.
They dragged Adeline and me toward two massive iron cages.
The doors slammed shut.
And the darkness closed in once more.
