Ellery POV:
I shot up in bed, gasping for air. My heart hammered against my ribs, a frantic drumbeat trying to escape my chest.
Sunlight streamed through the window. Birds were singing. It wasn't the hopeless, bitter winter of the vision.
I looked down at my hands. They were pale, slender, and filled with life. Not the withered, branch-like claws of my memory.
Tossing back the covers, I scrambled to the vanity. The girl in the mirror was pale from a fever, yes, but it was my face. My twenty-year-old face. Young. Healthy. Before everything went wrong.
I was back. I had truly come back from that bloody, death-filled vision.
Maids rushed into the room, startled to see me on my feet. "Miss, you've had a fever for three days! The pack physician said you must rest!"
I ignored them, my mind fixed on a single, burning thought. I turned, my voice trembling with a fierce energy but absolutely clear. "Go and tell my father, Alpha Arlington Harrington, that I demand to cancel my 'Mating' ceremony with Auguste Sullivan. Immediately."
The maids stared at each other, their faces a mixture of confusion and fear. They thought I was delirious. "Miss, what are you saying? The emissary from the Sullivan Pack just arrived this morning to finalize the date for the ceremony."
Today?
A cold dread washed over me. The wheels of fate were already turning. I had no time to waste.
"Take me to him," I commanded, my tone leaving no room for argument.
I didn't even bother to change out of my nightgown. I stormed towards my father's study.
Servants stared as I passed, their eyes wide with shock. In their world, I was always the docile, obedient daughter.
I shoved open the heavy oak doors to the study. My father, the Alpha of the Vorrath Pack, sat behind his massive desk, his face etched with annoyance at the interruption.
"Ellery! What is the meaning of this!" he barked, the deep line between his brows, a permanent fixture of his authority, seeming to carve deeper into his forehead.
"Father," I said, meeting his cold gaze without flinching. I repeated my words, slowly and deliberately. "I want to cancel the engagement with Auguste Sullivan."
Arlington stared, dumbfounded. Then, his face contorted with rage. "Nonsense! Do you have any idea what you're saying? This is an alliance between the Harrington and Sullivan Packs! It is the cornerstone of stability in our territory! It is not something you can just cancel on a whim!"
I wanted to throw Blaire Mitchell's name right in his face, to expose Auguste's disgusting infidelity. But I bit my tongue. At this point in the timeline, Blaire's fiancé had only just died. She and Auguste hadn't officially started their sordid affair yet. Furthermore, I was absolutely certain Auguste wouldn't even be attending today's engagement meeting. In my past life, he had skipped this very event, using a flimsy excuse just so he could personally comfort the grieving Blaire.
A bitter laugh escaped my lips. "An alliance bought by selling your daughter? Father, I will not marry that man."
"You have no right to say no!" Arlington slammed his hand on the desk, the sound echoing in the silent room. "Your duty is to obey! For the honor of this pack!"
"My honor does not need to be purchased through a 'Mating' that is destined to destroy me," I shot back, my voice unwavering.
A flicker of surprise crossed his eyes, as if he couldn't comprehend why I would use the word "destroy."
But I offered no explanation. It would be useless. I just watched him, waiting for his verdict.
"You're mad," he finally concluded, his voice turning to ice. "The ceremony will proceed as planned. Now, your only task is to return to your room and reflect on your foolishness and insolence."
He didn't even ask why I was so adamant. In his eyes, I was just a disobedient tool.
I turned and left the study. There was no disappointment, only a chilling certainty. I knew this would be the outcome.
Relying on my father was pointless. I had to rely on myself.
Back in my room, I shut the door, blocking out the world.
My gaze fell on a document lying on my desk. It was the property ledger for my mother's Kensington estate. As the sole heir to the Kensington bloodline, I personally managed several massive private banks under my mother's name.
In the vision, this immense wealth had flowed seamlessly into the Sullivan family's coffers after my Mating, nourishing my enemies.
This time, I would not be so foolish.
I summoned my most trusted handmaid. "Ivy."
Ivy, my loyal Omega maid who had stayed by my side until my dying breath in the vision, stepped forward immediately. "Yes, Miss?"
"Take my signet," I said, pulling the Kensington family ring from my finger. "Go to the Kensington financial steward immediately. Tell him, effective today, to freeze all fund withdrawals made in the name of the Sullivan family from our private banks. Not a single coin is to be moved."
Ivy's eyes widened slightly, but she nodded firmly, rushing out to deliver the blow that would start my war.
