Chapter 18: Perfect dream

~Hazel’s POV~

I didn’t ask for this. Not any of it.

Not the fate that chained me to wolves. Not the marks that branded me like a possession. And certainly not a wedding that felt more like a punishment than a promise.

I never wanted to belong to a world where my value was discussed across council tables, where elders debated my worth like I was a commodity. A pawn on their board. Disposable. Replaceable.

What happened yesterday... shouldn’t have happened.

I had gone to Cayden with one purpose—to reject him. To sever that bond before it rooted too deeply. Before it swallowed me whole. But things didn’t go as planned. The room had felt too small, his presence too consuming, and the fire that passed between us—whether it was fate or foolishness—ended up sealing us instead of freeing me.

I could hate myself for it, but what use was hate now?

The deed was done.

And now... we move forward.

I stood before the tall mirror in the bridal chambers, surrounded by chaos. Maids pulled and tugged at my limbs as they tried on one gown after another. Silk scraped my skin, lace scratched at my ribs, and every dress felt like a costume tight, suffocating, all wrong. Not a single one made me feel like a bride.

Tomorrow was the wedding.

My wedding.

I tilted my head, staring at the reflection. Who was this girl staring back? She looked like a ghost pale, lifeless, silent. The two bite marks on her neck stood out like fresh ink on parchment. One from Cayden. One from Caspian. Proof that I no longer belonged to myself.

Step-mom Selene finally snapped.

"Which one of these will suit you, you shapeless girl?" she hissed, her eyes scanning me like I was a problem that couldn’t be solved. Then she pointed toward the corner of the room, to a faded yellow gown folded on a stool. It looked dusty and old, something pulled out of a forgotten closet.

"That one should do." NovelFire

I nodded.

Not because I agreed, but because I was tired of fighting. Tired of caring.

I might not want this wedding, I might hate everything it stood for, but even I deserved more

the voice in my head reminded me don’t give her

Don’t beg...Don’t cry.

her see

I would wear that dress with a smile on my face, chin held high, because I had something

I had them.

I had their marks.

her precious daughter Natasha wanted so

the dress over my shoulders and zipped it up. I turned to the mirror. It wasn’t hideous, just wrong. It clung to me in all the wrong places, didn’t complement my body,

the dress I

barefoot on a beach, a soft breeze playing with my veil, a man waiting for me at the altar with his arms outstretched and eyes only

that girl was

stitched together with silent grief and

the

and Sophia. The scent of money and malice filled the air as they swept in like

twirled, wearing a white gown that sparkled with beads

like

I looked for help.

It was predictable. I was a human. She was a pure-blooded she-wolf. I couldn’t bear their heir—not unless a miracle occurred. But still, seeing her flaunt it, seeing the way she relished in my pain, made my throat

this our whore of a wife,"

I simply ignored it.

mirror, silently coaching myself.

the gown in my fists, grounding myself. I wouldn’t let them break me.

a long white box in both hands. She bowed

The room stilled.

and she snatched the box from the maid’s

is this?" she

tore it open

box slipped from her hands and clattered to the

forward. "What?! What

then... she saw

So did I.

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