CHAPTER 001

—DAPHNE:

I once believed love was meant to feel safe, like no matter how cruel the world became, there would always be one person standing beside you through it all. For five years, I believed that person was Roth Vermont. Every promise and every soft word he whispered, made me think I was deeply loved and chosen completely.

I stood in front of the mirror while one of the older women adjusted the sleeves of my dress. The deep wine-colored ceremonial fabric hugged my body perfectly, and silver embroidery shimmered beneath the candlelight. My hair fell in soft curls over my shoulders while the moonstone necklace resting against my throat completed the look. I touched the necklace gently.

Roth gave it to me during our second year together after our first real fight. We had argued because he kept throwing himself into dangerous pack business without thinking about himself, and I spent half the night terrified something terrible would happen to him.

The next morning, he showed up outside my door with the necklace hidden behind his back. I still remembered how nervous he looked standing there with messy hair and exhausted eyes, almost like he had not slept the entire night because he hated fighting with me. “You’ll wear this when you become my Luna someday,” he told me while fastening it carefully around my neck.

Back then, those words made me feel safe and loved in a way I had never experienced before. Now they made me feel sick. Looking back, I realized maybe love had made me blind and stupid. I had planned to surprise him before the ceremony. Nothing improper.

 I just wanted to show him I was wearing the necklace and spend a few quiet moments alone with him before we walked down the aisle. Roth had been restless all week, constantly complaining about the pack traditions that prevented us from sharing a bed before the mating ceremony.

A smile spread across my face as I walked upstairs. The hallway was strangely quiet when I reached his private chambers. At first, I smiled to myself, thinking maybe he had finally fallen asleep after spending the entire week buried in pack matters.

Then I heard a woman moan softly behind the door. I stopped walking immediately. Something cold settled deep inside my stomach while my heart began pounding painfully against my ribs. The door was slightly open, and before I could stop myself, I moved closer. There had to be another explanation because Roth would never do this to me. He loved me. He was about to marry me in a few hours.

My shaking hand pushed the door open wider, and the moment I looked inside, my entire world shattered. Roth was completely naked, thrusting into another woman against the wall. Her legs were wrapped tightly around his waist while his trousers hung around his ankles like he had not even cared enough to remove them properly.

For a second, I stopped breathing. Tears filled my eyes as my heart broke into pieces. Her shocked gasp made Roth turn around immediately. The moment his eyes met mine, all the color drained from his face. “Daphne, it’s not what you think,” he said heavily.

A quiet laugh escaped me through my tears because I genuinely could not believe he was saying that while another woman still stood half naked beside him. “What exactly does it look like then?” I asked.

Neither of them answered me. The woman could not even look me in the eyes. At least one of them still felt ashamed. I stayed loyal while women threw themselves at him. I loved him so completely that I stopped seeing myself outside of him. I had kept myself pure, promising myself he would be the first man I gave myself to.

I turned around because if I stayed there any longer, I was going to collapse right in front of them. My chest hurt so badly it felt hard to breathe. I barely made it halfway down the hallway before Roth grabbed my wrist from behind. The same hands that had just touched another woman. “Don’t touch me.”

His grip loosened slightly, but he still refused to let go. “Daphne, wait.”

I yanked harder, finally freeing myself before turning to face him. Tears were already burning behind my eyes, and I hated that he could see them.

“I can explain,” he said quickly, desperation creeping into his voice.

“There’s nothing to explain,” I snapped, my voice breaking despite how hard I tried to hold it together. “You cheated on me.”

His jaw tightened immediately. Instead of guilt, irritation flashed across his face. “She’s nothing to me. You’re being dramatic.”

That hurt more than the betrayal itself. Because he said it so casually, like my heartbreak was exhausting him, like catching him with another woman on our wedding day was somehow an overreaction. “You slept with another woman on our wedding day,” I whispered in disbelief.

“It was a mistake.”

I laughed bitterly through my tears. “A mistake?”

“Yes.”

“No.” I shook my head violently. “A mistake is accidentally putting salt instead of sugar into tea. A mistake is forgetting the flowers at the ceremony because you were nervous. A mistake is saying the wrong thing during an argument and regretting it afterward.” My chest tightened painfully as I stared at him. “But this?” My voice cracked. “This wasn’t a mistake, Roth. You didn’t accidentally fall into bed with her.”

He exhaled harshly, already looking frustrated with the conversation. “Daphne—”

“No, let’s talk about mistakes since you’re so determined to call it that.” Tears spilled freely down my cheeks now, but I didn’t care anymore. “Did you mistakenly remove her clothes too? Mistakenly kiss her? Mistakenly stay long enough for me to walk in and hear her moaning?”

His expression darkened. I kept going because now that the pain was pouring out, I couldn’t stop it. “Or maybe the mistake was when you looked me in the eyes last night and promised you loved me while planning to sleep with someone else behind my back.”

“Enough,” he snapped.

“No, not enough!” I shouted back, my voice echoing through the hallway. “You don’t get to reduce this to one stupid word just so you can feel less guilty about it.”

Roth dragged a frustrated hand through his hair before staring at me impatiently. “You kept pushing me away.”

I looked at him in disbelief. “What?”

“You wouldn’t sleep with me before the mating ceremony.”

For a second, I genuinely thought I misheard him. “You’re blaming me?”

“I’m saying I’m still a man, Daphne.”

That was the moment something inside me truly died. Not when I caught him with her. Not when he lied to my face. It was hearing him justify betraying me like it was somehow reasonable. I slowly removed the moonstone necklace from my neck and shoved it into his chest. “ It's over. I’m going downstairs right now, and I’m telling everyone what kind of man their future Alpha really is.”

For the first time since I met him, Roth looked genuinely afraid. But I did not care anymore. I turned away and headed toward the grand hall, my entire body shaking with every step. The guests had already arrived, everyone looking happy and completely unaware that my world had just collapsed upstairs.

My throat tightened painfully. Should I really humiliate him in front of everyone? Maybe I should speak privately with Julian first. His older brother would know how to handle this quietly. Despite everything, part of me still hoped this nightmare could somehow be fixed. I spotted Julian among the guests and walked toward him.

“Hey, soon-to-be sister-in-law,” he greeted warmly.

I forced a smile, though it barely stayed on my face. His expression immediately changed.

“What’s wrong?” he asked quietly after stepping away from the others.

My breathing turned uneven. “It’s Roth. He was with another—”

Suddenly, the microphone screeched through the hall. I froze. Roth stood on the stage, calmly adjusting his cuffs like he hadn’t just destroyed me upstairs. “Hello, everyone. Thank you all for coming to celebrate with me,” he said smoothly.

“We love you!” someone shouted. The guests laughed warmly.

Roth gave a strained smile. “I wish I could share in this happiness,” he continued sadly, “but something devastating has come to my attention.”

The hall fell silent. Then his eyes landed directly on me. A horrible feeling settled in my stomach. “The woman I was supposed to spend my life with has betrayed me,” he announced. “She has been secretly sleeping with one of my youngest guards for months.”

Gasps spread through the hall as every head turned toward me with disgust. “I always knew she was a slut,” someone sneered.

The truth hit me instantly. He was framing me. If everyone discovered he cheated just hours before our wedding, he would lose everything. So he decided to ruin me first.

 “No! That’s a lie!” I shouted desperately. “I swear!” But the silence around me told me everything. Nobody believed me.

“Leo,” Roth called calmly. “Tell them what you told me.”

The young guard stepped forward nervously. “She said if I refused to sleep with her, she would ruin my life,” he muttered quietly. “I had no choice. My family depends on me.”

The room exploded with horrified whispers. I stared at him in disbelief. I had barely even spoken to him before. Leo was only seventeen. What did I possibly have to do with a minor? “He’s lying!” I cried. “I swear he’s lying!”

“How long has this been happening?” Roth asked coldly.

“For several months,” Leo answered without lifting his head.

“Shameless bitch!” The insult rang through the hall. I looked up and saw the same woman Roth had been sleeping with glaring at me smugly.

“Ungrateful slut.”Soon the crowd joined in. “She deserves to die!”

Then suddenly, a champagne glass slammed against my head. I cried out as sharp shards scraped my scalp. Warm blood trickled beside my temple, but the pain in my chest hurt far more. My vision blurred while cruel voices surrounded me from every direction. People I had known for years stared at me with hatred like I was disgusting.

“Enough!” Julian’s voice thundered across the hall. He stepped onto the stage and looked at me carefully. “Daphne… is this true?”

“No,” I whispered weakly.

“I have evidence. What more do you want, brother?” Roth interrupted sharply.

Julian hesitated. That hesitation destroyed whatever little hope I had left.

“By the pack’s laws, I, Roth Vermont, hereby reject Daphne Crimson as my mate,” Roth declared. “She is hereby banished from the pack and forbidden from ever returning. Take her away.”

I had done nothing wrong. He was lying, cheating, and twisting everything. Two large guards grabbed my arms immediately. I struggled wildly, kicking and fighting, but their grip was merciless. They dragged me outside and threw me onto the cold street.

And just like that, everything was gone. Only moments ago, I had been a happy bride preparing to marry the love of my life. Now I was rejected, humiliated, and banished. How did my world collapse this quickly? 

Tears spilled uncontrollably down my face as the cold night air brushed against my skin. My head throbbed painfully where the glass struck me while blood continued sliding slowly down the side of my face. After five years of courtship, Roth Vermont had destroyed me.