Chapter 0002

AMBER

Once I stepped inside, I found him sitting behind his mahogany desk across the spacious room.

“Y-you asked for me, Alpha?” I looked down at the hardwood floor. I couldn’t call him dad, both in public as well behind the doors. Once I called him ‘dad’ by mistake and they locked me inside the dungeon for days and starved me as punishment.

“Yes.” His deep voice rattled my bones.

“My apologies, Alpha..” My wobbly legs bent to kneel on the smooth floor, his powerful aura weighing on my body like a stack of bricks.

The more he ignored me and hated me, the more I craved his love and attention. Abby was lucky. Putting her life on the line wasn't required for his love.

“I called you because I have news for you. You’ll get married to the son of the Alpha of Valeford.” He declared.

I raised my head at lightning speed. “What?!”

Just then, Uncle Crux’s hand connected with my face, throwing me off guard. “How dare you look at the Alpha? Have you forgotten the rules?”

My left cheek burned with the sting of the slap. My eyes met Dad again. I don't care. “No. I can’t get married to him!”

The son of Alpha of Valeford, Raymond Dawson, was the most ruthless killer in history. I had seen it with my own eyes. A minor war had taken place two years back, between Raymond and our pack. Not a single warrior of our force was alive after it ended. Even some of our best warriors couldn’t stand against him. The mere thought made me shiver.

“You can’t do this to me! H-how did you even convince them to marry me?”

As far as I knew, the Dawson family belonged to the royal bloodline. They gave the title to the families whose ancestors shared blood with the Moon Goddess. Along with four other families, the Dawsons shared ancestral history with Selene. They had both generational wealth and the status of the largest army of ten thousand warriors.

Hence, the Wolf Weekly magazine termed them the ‘Elite of the Elites' in their front page.

Why would such a powerful family want a wolf-less girl like me for their son? Did they not care about Raymond’s status because he did not share royal blood? I heard he was their illegitimate son, titled as worthless and ugly.

“It was hard to approach them. But after a few months, Alpha Stephan put forward the proposal himself. As per his words, he needed his son to get married as soon as possible and since I had two girls, we could form an alliance. So I accepted the proposal.” He explained with a stoic face while I rose to my feet.

“But…why will they accept me? I am…” I asked.

“ I considered Abby marrying Raymond, but Stephan wouldn't let an illegitimate person be the Alpha. Abby will end up with no power over the pack.”

“So you sold me off to them? If they realize I don’t have a wolf—”

He smirked. “They will throw you off to the dungeon. Might even shun you from their pack. That is not my problem. Stephan has already signed the pact and he won’t be able to step down from it. Once I send you to them, how they deal with you is their problem.”

“They can kill me!” I screamed in rage.

“So?” He raised a brow.

I gasped and took a step back, my trembling legs looking for support. He didn’t care.

“How could you?I am your own blood, for Goddess’s sake!”

He scoffed, “You are a mistake. A mistake I shouldn’t have made. You killed my mate!” He slammed the table with his fist and his eyes turned glowed in a flash, showing his wolf.

I shuddered. “S-she was my mother, too. I don’t have control over what happened. You know that too.” My voice shook as my throat turned dry.

Every single day, I wished I could change the past. I wanted to bring her back.

“Shut your mouth, you murderer! You are a sin I have been carrying for years. It's best if you die. I would be the happiest to see you writhe in pain for killing my Isabella!” He spatted.

His ignorance was one thing. But to hear Dad wish for my death—it was the final blow to my hope. I couldn’t breathe.

Footsteps approached the office, and the door opened, revealing Abby. She strutted inside and looked at Dad. “Is it done? Did she sign the paper?” She asked as if she knew about it already. So they were together in this.

Dad remained silent and looked at me with a scornful look. Abby followed his sight and when she saw me, she sneered.

“Ah, I see. So the bitch is putting up a fight.” She sighed, “I am surprised. How can someone be so shameless? Especially after what happened at the wedding?”

I wiped my eyes with my arm. “You are right. I am shameless to believe that you people have a good heart.” I said, and her sneer disappeared.

She didn’t expect me to talk back to her.

“Aww, but don’t worry, sis. You will get lots of dick in the dungeon of Valeford. I heard the male there are very energetic. Or maybe you can warm the bed of that ugly beast who’ll be your husband soon. Be careful though. I heard he killed a woman who tried to seduce him.” She smirked, watching me sweat in sheer terror.

“I–I will not marry him!” I said, my trembling voice betraying me.

Her brown eyes hardened and her tone did a one-eighty as she said, “And I am done listening to your nonsense. Let’s get this over with.” She grabbed me by the collar of my gown and dragged me towards Dad’s desk.

“Abby, let me go!” I said, resisting her hold. I grabbed her wrist and twisted it.

“Ow! Bitch!” She turned around, hissing, and slapped me. I didn’t let the slap deter me from turning around and reaching for the door. But a sturdy pair of arms grabbed me from behind. It was Uncle Crux.

“Stop fighting or I will use my belt.” He warned. My body stiffened as it revisited the burning pain in my arms, legs, and back, the whipping sound of his belt buzzing in my ears. Blood pounded in my ears. No, not that belt.

My head slammed against the oakwood desk and a set of papers landed in front of my eyes.

“Sign it.” Dad’s booming voice held the power of the Alpha, one that made anyone submit to his demands.

“No–Ah!!!” I yelled as Uncle clutched the wrist of my right hand tight with enough pressure to snap it in half.

“Sign it. Now!” Dad growled and Abby pushed the pen between my fingers.

A piercing pain ran down my arm as Uncle increased his pressure on my wrist. The tip of the pen pressed over the line where I was supposed to sign.

Suddenly, something sharp and cold pricked my neck. It was a silver dagger.

“Sign it or I’ll slit your throat right now.” Abby pressed the dagger against the skin of my neck.

My hand moved on its own, its grip on the pen like an anchor on which I survived. Tears trickled down my eyes and soaked the paper on which my signature flashed in bold blue ink.

I had signed my death certificate, and now I was married to Raymond Dawson since his signature was already there.