Chapter 8

Scarlet’s POV

It was the day.

The day I dreaded.

The day I had been waiting for.

I sat before an old and intricate mirror. In it,  my reflection was almost unrecognisable. The room buzzed with movement og maids, stylists, and attendants. All fussing over me as if I were the most important person in the world.

How ironic.

They say that when you die, people ultimately pay attention. Even those who never cared find something kind to say. Maybe that was why they were all looking at me now.

But I wasn’t dead. Not yet.

Their attention on me was suffocating. Every touch, every whispered word, felt like I was being shaped into something I wasn’t. Something I would never be. Something I wished to escape at any cost. Even if the cost was death. 

"Is she ready?" My mother’s voice cut through the noise.

"Yes, Mrs. Rosetti. Miss Rosetti is ready," the makeup artist said.

I turned to look at my mother, standing tall in a gown of deep champagne, diamonds and pearls glistening against her beautiful skin. Next to her was Alyssa, my sister, my maid of honor. She was stunning in her shimmering dress as if she were the true bride.

I wondered what it felt like to be the most beautiful woman in the room. I supposed I would never know.

Today, I had asked them to make me beautiful. Just for once. Just for today. I deserve this little happiness, right? I deserve to look my best self today. 

"Alyssa, bring your sister out in ten minutes," my mother said. "Your father will be here soon."

Alyssa barely looked at me as she was too busy perfecting her lipstick.

A maid whispered something to her, and I saw her face light up.

"Miss Alyssa, Alpha Juno is just outside."

Without hesitation, she smiled and hurried out. 

The makeup artist followed, leaving me alone.

Finally.

I turned to the maids who remained. "Will you let me know when my sister returns? And… could you bring me some water? My throat feels dry. I might not be able to say my vows otherwise."

They rushed off to fulfill my simple request.

If only they knew.

If only they had understood that vows were the last thing on my mind.

I had nothing to say. No final words, no goodbyes. There was someone whom I wished to address before leaving.  Red. My wolf.

She was asleep inside me, quite unaware of what I was about to do. I whispered, "I’m sorry, Red. This world is too cruel to us. We will never be accepted, never be loved. I know that I am a coward, but I can’t live a life where every day is a battle just to survive. I know that the day where we are treated better will never come. Forgive me for taking this step. I am just too helpless.."

She stirred while sensing my intentions, but she was too weak to resist. Our souls were connected, and she knew that I was trying to end both of us.

I reached into my wrist cuff and pulled out a single tablet. It was enough. A painless and quick death. It was easier than dragging myself through a meaningless and painful life.

Just as I was about to place it on my tongue, the room shook with a deafening explosion. The impact jolted me, and the tablet slipped from my fingers, rolling out of reach. Before I could react, the door burst open.

A group of masked men stormed in, and their presence suffocated the air.

"She’s Hector’s little bride. Get her."

The cold and final order rang out. 

Before I could process what was happening, rough hands grabbed my hair and yanked me forward. A sharp pain shot through my scalp as I was dragged across the floor.

"Who are you?" I gasped.

They only laughed mockingly. 

Terror seized me as I was pulled outside. The sight before me turned my blood to ice.

Dead bodies.

Our pack warriors lay lifeless, their blood staining the ground.

"Hector ran away," someone spat in disgust.

Coward.

The man leading the attack tensed as he sensed a new presence. And then, he was there.

Alpha Juno.

Without hesitation, the leader turned to his men. "Take the girl and go!"

"Beta, we can’t leave you!" one of them protested.

"I can take this bastard down myself!" the leader snarled. "If we lose her too, this mission is pointless. Now go! That’s an order!"

The soldiers obeyed while dragging me along as the battle raged.

The stench of blood filled my lungs. My dress, once white, was now streaked with red.

And then, I saw them.

My mother and father, fighting for their lives.

Alyssa was near them, frozen in fear. A blade came toward her.  And in that split second, she turned. She used my mother as a shield. The sword cut through her like she was nothing. My mother’s body jerked as dark and endless blood spilled from the wound.  The droplets splattered across my wedding gown, staining it forever.

"Mom!" Alyssa shrieked.

My father turned at the sound but didn’t move towards her. He was too deep in the fight to care about the woman who had just given her life for his daughter.

Then, a roar shattered through the chaos.

I turned just in time to see that the leader of the invading group was murdered in cold blood. His blood splattered across my skin, my dress, my face. 

"Beta Killian!" someone whispered, voice filled with grief.

As he lay dying, his lips parted with his final words.

"Don’t let my death be in vain… Tell Alpha Dante…I will always be grateful for the life he gave me… I died for my brothers… Go."

And just like that, the war swallowed him whole. Not us him but all of us. In one way or another. 

The wedding had turned into a battlefield.

And the suicidal bride was now a prisoner of war.

This was not the fate I had imagined.

But this was the fate I was forced to live.