Amelia POVThe woman in the mirror looked nothing like the person I once dreamed of becoming. Dream? Did I just say dream? It was something I couldn’t afford.I hardly recognized the woman before me, her—eyes swollen and rimmed red, hair tangled from restless nights, and a face that held no joy. I had become a shadow of myself, and today was no different. Today, I would take one more step down a path I never chose.I stared at the simple, ivory wedding gown that hung on my slender frame. It wasn’t the gown of a bride anticipating her happiest day, but a cold symbol of my captivity. My hands trembled as I adjusted the veil. This wasn’t how I imagined my wedding day—no laughter, no love, no one to hold my hand and tell me it would be okay. Just the suffocating silence and the crushing weight of duty.“Amelia!” My mother’s sharp voice snapped me out of my thoughts. “Stop dawdling and get out here. You don’t want to embarrass yourself more than you already do.”I flinched at her words, as

Amelia POVThe night stretched on endlessly. The clock on the wall ticked louder with every passing second, and its glowing numbers—12:15 a.m.—mocked me with their stillness. Maxwell wasn’t home. Again. It’s been two days since we got married and I haven’t seen him.I paced the room, the vastness of the mansion swallowing every sound except my restless footsteps. The staff moved about with mechanical efficiency, their faces betraying nothing. No one seemed worried about Maxwell’s absence, almost as if his late-night disappearances were a routine.But for me, this wasn’t normal.I hated how the unease coiled in my chest. I hated that I was waiting up for him, a man who had made it painfully clear that he wanted nothing to do with me. But most of all, I hated how my heart clenched at the thought of him out there, battling demons I didn’t yet understand.I didn’t know why I waited for him. I thought to myself, “Could it be out of duty, or maybe I just wanted to get to know the stranger I

Amelia POVThe massive chandelier in the dining room sparkled with cold light, its brilliance casting stark shadows across the long table where I sat, alone, poking at the untouched food on my plate. The grandeur of the Cole estate, with its towering walls and cold, gleaming floors, felt more like a gilded cage than a home. It had only been a week since I was thrust into this life as Mrs. Amelia Cole, and already I knew I’d traded one nightmare for another.The sharp clatter of heels against marble snapped me out of my thoughts. Rebecca Cole entered the room like a storm, her piercing green eyes narrowing as they landed on me. “Why is the table set like this?” she barked at one of the maids before turning her scornful gaze back to me. “Amelia, what are you doing just sitting there? Do you think you’re a queen now that you’ve married my son? What do you think you’re doing?”Her words were like knives, each one cutting a little deeper into my already fragile heart. “I… I thought the sta

Amelia POVA sharp knock yanked me from my restless sleep. My body ached from the weight of exhaustion, the bruises of yesterday’s silent battles pressing against my skin like invisible shackles. I forced my eyes open, adjusting to the dim light filtering through the heavy curtains. The mansion remained eerily quiet, the way it always was—cold, hollow, like an abandoned palace where ghosts whispered through the corridors.Another knock. More urgent this time.“Mrs. Cole.” The voice was flat, indifferent—one of the housemaids Maxwell had instructed to ‘handle’ me. “Get ready. Mr. Cole wants to see you.”Maxwell? At this hour?My gaze flickered to the old clock on the wall—6:00 AM. My stomach twisted. Maxwell hadn’t spoken to me in weeks. Not really. He tolerated my existence the way one tolerated an uninvited guest. Now, suddenly, he wanted to see me this early.I swallowed the lump in my throat and got dressed. A simple navy blue dress. Modest, forgettable. My fingers trembled slightl

Amelia POVThe woman’s smile deepened, her eyes glinting with something dark—something twisted.I took a step back, but the cold marble wall pressed against my spine, trapping me. My pulse hammered wildly, each frantic beat a warning.This isn’t real. It can’t be real.Yet, she stood there, flesh and bone, draped in the same elegant gown she had worn at the gala. Her presence was suffocating, her beauty laced with venom.“Who are you? What do you want?” I whispered, my voice barely audible over the rush of blood in my ears.She tilted her head, her blonde curls tumbling over her shoulder. “I just came to see how you were doing,” she mused, her tone dripping with false sweetness, ignoring the first question I asked. “After all, you took quite a fall.”A chill slithered down my spine.She’s toying with me.My nails dug into my palms as I forced myself to stay still, to meet her gaze without faltering. “You pushed me,” I said, my voice steadier now. “I know it was you.”She laughed. Not