Chapter Two

Myra's POV:

I let out a long gasp as I jerked up from the bed. I was sweating profusely, both my hands and feet were shaking terribly, my eyes readily scanned my environment  and slowly I realized that this was not the hospital.

I sat up and looked at my hands, there was no blood, it seemed okay even when I looked down,  there was no trace of the baby in my womb anymore. 

I frantically opened my shirt and gasped at what I found. There was also no trace of where my stomach had been cut open.

“This is a dream.” I muttered under my breath. My heart was still racing fast.

Somehow I could tell that all that happened wasn’t true, but yet it felt so real. I wasn’t pregnant for Ethan, at least for now. 

I walked to the mirror and stared at my reflection, my features were still the same, except for the fact that I looked like I had just come out of a battle. 

Just then, a knock jarred me back to reality.

"Come in." I answered sharply, as I threw on a robe. This was my late mothers room, now mine. 

The door opened and a young lady stepped in with her head slightly lowered. She was dressed in a maid's uniform and her long hair was neatly pinned back.

When she raised her head and smiled at me, a gasp left my lips, my eyes sparkled.

Sera?

My eyes went wide  as I tried to understand what was going on. 

"My lady." She bowed, but I pulled her in for a hug instead. My step-mother made sure I never got a personal maid, and Sera was my only friend in the pack house, but she was taken to a far away pack to serve as punishment after being accused of theft— something I know she didn’t do. 

“What are you doing here? When did you come back?” I threw questions as I pulled from my long hold. My voice cracked and my eyes heated up as I remembered how she was taken from me years ago. We are both so grown now, yet it feels just like yesterday. 

“This morning my lady.” She smiled gently. I could feel she was a bit distant. 

“It’s so good to see you again, and I’m sorry for not being able to protect you.” A single tear rolled down my cheek. She didn’t deserve to be treated that way, and I never for once stopped appealing for father to bring her back. 

She gave my hand a gentle squeeze. “It wasn’t your fault.” 

“We should catch up ok?” 

She nodded. 

"Your father asks that you begin preparing, Alpha Ethan will arrive in an hour—”

Oh yes.. it was my engagement party with Ethan today. I had much anticipated this day, but for some reason I was beginning to have cold feet. 

It must be that damn dream. 

How callous can the moon goddess be to let me have such a dream just a few hours to my engagement. She has taken everything away from me, yet she threatens my big day with such a cruel dream. 

Sera helped me get dressed and I asked my questions carefully, keeping my voice light with concern of how she had spent the last few years.

And with a few answers she gave, I was able to gather that she was never mistreated and my father sent for her a few days ago. My heart felt much at ease. 

Soon I was done getting dressed and stepped into the large hall. All eyes were fixed on me, there was a mixture of admiration and envy in their eyes.

But my gaze caught hold of only one person.

Alpha Ethan!

Ethan stood in the center of the room like he had been placed there by design. 

Tall, confident, carrying himself the way men do when they have never once doubted the world would arrange itself around them.

I felt a pang settle in my stomach at the sight of him. I could vividly recall the way he had stared at me and told me I was not worthy to bear his heir, but it was obvious he wasn’t the man from my dream— cold hearted. Dark. Apathetic. 

He was still the man I knew, the one I had fallen in love with. I immediately shove down the feeling and  I let out a deep  breath to regain my composure. 

Ethan's face lit up when his eyes locked with mine and he immediately walked towards me. 

My heart  leaped out of my chest, seeing the man standing in front of me in a well tailored suit that fit his features perfectly. Brown eyes, dark hair and a perfect jawline. Too handsome to behold, but he was mine. 

“Princess! You look so stunning.” His lips widened into a grin as he leaned close to kiss me. My cheek flushed and I shot him a gentle smile.

“You don't look bad either.”

“Listen Myra, I know that this might be an arrangement between your father and I, but trust me, I will take care of you and you are not just a contract to me.”

I felt warmth spread through my body. He spoke almost as if he knew just the nightmare I had woken up from. 

This is the man I know and I had fallen in love with. Reassuring. Gentle. Caring. I know Ethan would never betray me. 

I nodded my head.

“Ethan”

Just then, Tiara appeared out of the crowd. 

She hugged him first, longer than she should if you ask me, and then leaned in on me. 

“Try not to trip.” She whispered in my ear and pulled away. I forced a smile. I wouldn’t let her stupid tease throw me off balance. 

Not today. 

A sharp clink of metal against glass echoed through the hall, catching our attention, and the muttering dwindled into silence. 

My father stood tall on the podium with my step mother beside him. Her grin appeared almost plastered on her face. She must be so happy to finally get rid of me. 

“My honorable guest, today we celebrated  the beginning and union of two noble hearts. Let us all cheer to Alpha Ethan and his fiancée my daughter Maya" 

He raised his glass up after his short speech and the hall echoed with clicking glass. 

"Champagne, my lady.” Sera offered, holding a tray right beside me. 

“Permit me.” Tiara reached for the glass and stretched it out to me. “A toast to your happiness." She smiled gently. 

I nodded. 

I reached for the glass of champagne but her wrist suddenly twisted to the side and the entire glass spilled on my dress.

I stepped back with a gasp.

“My lady!” Her eyes popped wide with her mouth wide open.

She stretched out her hand to the glass that I had been holding trying to prevent it from spilling any further on me, but just as her hand caught a whiplash of it, I let go of my grip on it and at the same time, she also pulled away from it.

My mouth fell open at the realization. 

That black lotus bitch!

Her movement was so calm yet it seemed like it was calculated perfectly and timed. I couldn't even blame her because I had no evidence she did it on purpose.

As the glass came shattering right on the floor, shards flew to my dress, making me glance down in amusement. 

If I didn't know better, I would think this was an accident. 

I leaned down, wanting to take out the shards lodged in my dress before it hurt me.

But the movement and grip on a shard made me cut my fingers in the process.

I hissed softly.

Tiara's face turned pale in a mixture of fright and remorse. Her expression looked so real that I was so confused whether this was an act or not.

“Maya, forgive me!" She begged, tears already streaming down her cheek. "It was a mistake. I lost my balance because of her.” 

She glanced at Sera furiously. The commotion had caught the attention of everyone in the hall. 

“See what you caused.” She threw her left hand in the air about to hit Sera and I caught it just half way. 

“Don’t !” I held her hand, and next thing I found her falling to the ground even if I didn’t push her and she made me fall with her. 

Ethan who was standing beside me looked furious, reaching a hand out, and just when I thought he would come to my aid to check on me, he literally walked past me. 

“Tiara.”

Ethan quickly moved away from me like I wasn’t important, reaching to Tiara’s arm, his face etched with serious concern. “Are you alright? Did the glass hurt you?

Instantly, I felt gobsmacked.

It felt like I had been doused with cold water as I sat there bleeding. I watched him ask another woman if she was fine when clearly, she was perfectly fine but I wasn't. He had just humiliated me in front of everyone. 

Sera helped me back on my feet. 

Now, it was starting to dawn on me. Some things wouldn’t change regardless of marriage title or not.  I have always been the other woman, maybe that was what the moon goddess was trying to show me. 

Every image of my dream rushed in at once— Ethan telling me our marriage was nothing but an alliance. Tiara telling the doctor I didn't need anesthesia, kissing Ethan before me, while I bled out.

She had stood there watching me being pierced with a syringe; unable to speak or fight, the surgical knife digging into my skin like my body was nothing.

And she never blinked even once. 

Right before me, she ordered the doctor to kill my baby. A child who never got the chance to live. Because of her.

The demoness.

I took a step forward, walking toward Ethan and Tiara, a blank expression on my face.

“You look fine, Tiara,” I muttered plainly.

She looked at me with swollen eyes as she began to wipe away her tears. 

“You clearly dropped the glass on purpose and I got injured, yet you're the one crying?” 

My voice was laced with amusement and she looked at me in confusion.

“Don't talk to her like that.” Ethan said, getting up and I turned to him. “She's just—”

“Do not interfere.” I interrupted him, my gaze cold.

He looked taken aback. 

“Get up, Tiara.”

I watched as she got up and wiped her tears.

“Please you don’t have to argue because of me— I was just trying to..”

“Do not ever lift your hand on any of my maids. Do you understand?” My eyes hard as ice.

She nodded meekly with a mix of hatred. 

With that, I turned around to leave but ended up bumping into a solid chest.

I froze, expecting a guard, and looked up to meet the gaze of a middle aged man. I recognized his eyes immediately and it made my heart pick up weirdly.

Those eyes belonged to one man alive.

Alpha Aleric —the Lycan king and Ethan's father!

This man was barely ever seen, because as the rumors had it, he was cursed.

He stared into my eyes, but I couldn't find any tenderness in them, they were so cold yet something settled in my chest at his presence and time seemed to freeze as we stared into each other's eyes.

Without a word, he took my injured finger and began wrapping it with a bandage. He had a bandage like he was expecting something like this to happen.

The hall went quiet followed by some silent whispers. The whispers started at the edges of the room and moved inward. 

“The Alpha King. The demon wolf. Why is he here…?”

“He has never attended any event before.”

“Wherever he went, death followed!”

The voices speaking in the background grew, fading as his hand still held onto mine like something he had been longing for all his life.

And for some reason, I found myself drawn to his presence.