MasukSold by the man who swore he loved her, Seren Ashvale arrived at Vord territory expecting death. Instead the twin Alphas wanted her for one purpose, an heir their dying bloodline desperately needed. But the bond that bound her to both men was forbidden by law and impossible to deny. Pregnant, hunted by the council, and finally chosen by two Alphas at once, Seren had to fight to keep a love the world said could not exist.
Lihat lebih banyakBab 1 Malam Pertama
"Saya terima nikahnya Anggita Larasati binti Amran dengan mas kawin tersebut di atas dibayar tunai."
"Saksi, apakah sah?"
"Sah."
"Alhamdulillah."
Suasana haru mengiringi doa yang diucapkan setelah akad nikah. Kebahagiaan dirasakan keluarga Pak Amran yang derajatnya mulai sedikit terangkat. Namun tidak dengan putri sulungnya yang berperan sebagai mempelai wanita. Gadis berparas rupawan, hidung bangir dan bulu mata lentik itu tengah murung. Meski berbalut kebaya putih dengan bawahan kain jarik serta sanggulan rambut sederhana membuatnya tampak mempesona, tetapi tidak dengan hatinya.
Rancangan demi racangan telah dirajut di otaknya. Bagaimanapun dia tidak menginginkan pernikahan ini. Dia ingin sekuat tenaga melarikan diri. Akad nikah berlangsung di ruangan yang terpisah untuk laki-laki dan perempuan. Kedua mempelai bahkan tidak ada inisiatif saling bertatap muka karena sedari awal mereka tidak menginginkan acara ini.
Bahkan Gita sendiri belum tahu dan tidak mau tahu siapa suaminya. Menghafal namanya pun tidak ada dalam pikirannya. Yang dia tahu suaminya adalah laki-laki bernama Atmaja, sudah punya istri dan anak sepuluh tahun lebih tua darinya. Artinya Gita akan menjadi istri kedua dan sekaligus ibu tiri untuk anak usia 28 tahun.
"Yang benar saja? Ini sungguh gila. Aku harus kabur malam ini. Tapi kemana?" Gita memutar otak sembari mencari tas jinjing. Ia memasukkan beberapa helai pakaian ke dalam tas, juga beberapauang yang dipunya. Tidak lupa ia membawa beberapa berkas penting untuknya mendaftar kuliah atau mencari kerja di kota pelajar.
Sibuk sendiri tanpa mempedulikan acara, Gita mencari adiknya yang masih menginjak kelas 1 SMP.
"Apapun yang terjadi jangan bilang siapa-siapa kalau kakak kabur ya! Ini demi kebaikan keluarga kita. Kakak ingin merubah hidup kita menjadi lebih baik. Kamu tidak mau membiarkan kakak terjebak pernikahan dengan orang yang sudah beristri, bukan?"
"Tapi, Mbak? Mbak Gita mau pergi ke mana?"
"Mbak belum tahu, yang penting jauh dari rumah."
"Mbak yakin tidak apa-apa?
"Tidak ada waktu lagi. Kamu cukup membawa tas ini ke gardu ronda. Mbak akan menyusul nanti."
Selepas Isya, Gita sudah berhasil keluar menuju gardu sekitar 300 meter dari rumahnya. Jantungnya mulai berdebar kencang saat kakinya melangkah ke halaman hingga sampai melewati pagar. Ia menoleh ke arah bangunan rumahnya. Bulir bening menetes membasahi pipi. Sejatinya, ia tidak tega meninggalkan orang tuanya. Namun, semua demi meraih cita-citanya memperbaiki kehidupan keluarganya yang saat ini sedang terpuruk.
“Maafkan, Gita, Pak, Bu! Gita janji, kalau sudah berhasil, Gita akan mengabari kalian.”
Langkah kaki semakin dipercepat, Gita akhirnya sampai di sebuah gardu. Beruntung gardu masih sepi. Biasanya ada rombongan bapak-bapak meronda, tetapi jam segini belum datang.
“Buruan pulang. Jangan sampai seisi rumah curiga sama kamu!” Gita memaksa adiknya segera kembali. Mereka akan curiga jika keduanya tidak ada di rumah.
Di sebuah kamar yang sengaja dihias sebagai kamar pengantin, seorang laki-laki gagah dan berwajah tampan tengah memandang sepucuk kertas yang terletak di atas meja terselip di bawah vas bunga. Dibuka kertas putih berhiaskan tinta hitam itu, lalu dibacanya dengan seksama.
Maaf, saya tidak bisa menjalankan tugas sebagai istri. Izinkan saya pergi!
Meremas kertas hingga tak berbentuk, laki-laki itu menggertakkan giginya, membuat rahangnya mengeras. Kedua tangan terkepal hingga buku-bukunya memutih. Rasa panas di dada pun menyeruak.
"Kurang ajar, jangan sebut namaku Bintang Lazuardi Atmaja jika aku tidak bisa menghancurkanmu! Sampai ke ujung dunia pun aku pasti menemukanmu."
Seren's POVThe house didn't go back to normal after Ashgrove left. It just went quiet in a different way. The kind of quiet that comes after someone shows you exactly how easily they could burn your whole life down, then walks out smiling about it.I spent the first two days of the thirty pretending I wasn't counting them.Caelum buried himself in paperwork I wasn't allowed to see. His jaw stayed tight every time he passed me, like he was holding something back with his teeth. Rysen tried harder to act normal. He dragged me into the training yard, tried to teach me to throw a knife properly, laughed too loud at things that weren't that funny. I let him. Watching him try to carry the fear off my shoulders was easier than carrying it myself.It was working. For two whole days, it was actually working.Then Della knocked on my door with a letter in her hand, and her face told me it was bad before she said a single word."It came by courier," she said, not quite meeting my eyes. "Address
Seren's POVSunlight. Warmth. Someone's arm heavy across my waist and someone else's fingers loose around mine, like even asleep he hadn't trusted his hand to let go.For one whole minute, I let myself have it. The quiet. The thread under my skin humming low and content instead of screaming. I lay there memorizing it, because some part of me, the part that had spent nineteen years being told I was broken already knew a morning like this one didn't come free.I was right.The pounding on the door ripped through the room and Caelum was up before I'd even processed what the sound was. Rysen came up half a second later, knife already in his hand, some animal reflex faster than his own waking brain."Alpha." A guard, voice cracking. "Council delegation. Already past the gate."Caelum went so still it scared me more than his shouting would have. "That's not possible. No one requested a visit.""They didn't request one, sir." A breath. "The wards flagged an unregistered shift signature two n
Seren’s POVThey came to my room together that night, and I already knew, the moment I heard both sets of footsteps stop outside my door, that whatever this was between us had stopped being an arrangement."You don't have to let us in," Caelum said through the wood, and I could hear how much the words cost him, how carefully he'd chosen to leave the choice with me even now.I opened the door myself.Rysen's hand found my jaw first, tilting my face up, and he searched my eyes for something before he kissed me slow and deliberate, like he had all the time in the world despite the way his hands shook slightly against my skin. There was none of his usual teasing in it, none of the easy charm he wore like armor. Just his mouth on mine, patient and certain. Caelum's palm settled against the small of my back a heartbeat later, and I felt the low rumble of his chest against my shoulder blades, patient in a way that undid me faster than urgency ever could have."Tell us to stop and we stop," C
Seren’s POVTwelve days into my stay, something inside me finally gave.It happened in the hallway outside the laundry room, of all places. A young maid named Della had brought fresh linens to my door, and I’d followed her a few steps to ask where the library was, a small, stupid attempt to find something to do with the hours that stretched endlessly in that house. She turned to answer me, and the moment her eyes met mine, the pulse under my ribs that had gone quiet since the night I left Davan’s flat woke up screaming. I was confused about what It was, what was happening to me there.It didn’t feel like a heartbeat this time. It felt like something clawing its way up my spine, and I doubled over, gripping the wall, a sound tearing out of my throat that didn’t belong to any human voice I owned.“Seren?” Della’s voice climbed into panic. “Seren, your eyes—”I didn’t hear the rest. Heat ripped through my bones so fast I thought I was dying, my vision splitting into something too sharp,






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