3

The next day, at the mating ceremony venue. Flowers and decorations were arranged beautifully, with laughter and joy everywhere.

Ethan had prepared the pack's most grand mating ceremony to show how much I meant to him.

The place was filled with guests, the atmosphere incredibly festive.

Amid this joyful atmosphere, Dad showed up after all.

After more than three years, he had lost a lot of weight. His suit hung loosely on his frame, looking almost empty.

The wrinkles around his eyes and his gray-white hair made him look much older.

He kept his back straight, his face showing neither happiness nor sadness, his gaze following Ethan and me wherever we went.

I felt that even though Dad's eyes were looking at me, they didn't really see me. It was as if he was looking through me, thinking about something else.

It had been too long; I could no longer read the depths in his eyes.

At the Elder's invitation, Dad walked to the center of the venue, standing between Ethan and me.

Ethan, excited and emotional, promised Dad:

"Sir, thank you for coming to our mating ceremony."

"I swear I'll love and protect Skye for the rest of my life. I won't let her suffer even the slightest grievance. I will make her happy!"

The pack Elder, holding the ceremonial bone staff, smiled and asked Dad:

"As the bride's father, do you have anything to say to your daughter?"

Dad calmly replied:

"Nothing I want to say to her."

"I just want to say one thing to the groom."

After saying this, Dad stepped forward and whispered something in Ethan's ear.

After hearing it, the smile on Ethan's face suddenly froze.

He looked at me in terror, then ran like a madman toward the silver pit near the altar.

I hurriedly followed, running and shouting:

"Ethan! Stop! What are you doing?"

But Ethan seemed not to hear my screams. My ceremonial dress and high heels limited my pace; despite my best efforts, I couldn't catch up to him.

He was like someone escaping from something terrifying, jumping into the silver pit without hesitation.

A dull thud sounded from the bottom of the pit, and blood slowly spread outward.

Screams erupted from all around.

Everything happened too quickly.

By the time everyone realized what had happened, Ethan was already lying motionless at the bottom of the pit.

There was no more sound from him.

I fell to my knees at the edge of the pit, my white dress pooling around me like spilled milk. The pendant at my throat felt impossibly heavy.

The crowd surged forward, their shocked faces blurring together. Some tried to help, others just stared in horror.

But I saw only my father, standing exactly where he had been, unmoved by the chaos around him.

Ethan was dead.

Dead at our mating ceremony.

Dead because of one sentence from my father.

Once again, the most important person in my life had left me. The cruel pattern repeated itself, leaving me hollow and broken.

All the guests rushed toward the silver pit, their faces twisted with horror as they stared at Ethan's body below. Some covered their mouths, others turned away. The festive decorations now seemed to mock our tragedy.

"No, no, NO!" Ethan's mother's scream cut through the air as she collapsed to the ground. Her body convulsed with sobs, her claws digging into the earth as she looked at her son's lifeless form. "My baby! My son!"

My whole body trembled, my heart twisting in pain like someone had reached inside my chest and squeezed.

My wolf emerged uncontrollably, the shift rippling across my skin in patches of fur and human flesh.

"Ethan," I whispered, my voice breaking. "Please... get up."

This man who had just sworn to protect me for life had instantly become a cold corpse. The silver had already begun to burn his skin, leaving angry red marks that would never heal.

I couldn't accept this reality. How could he bear to leave me behind? Just minutes ago, he had smiled at me with so much love in his eyes.

"This isn't happening," I said to no one in particular, my voice small and lost. "We were supposed to start our life together today."

At that moment, Dad walked leisurely toward the silver pit by the altar. His footsteps were measured and calm, as if he were taking a stroll through the park rather than approaching the scene of a tragedy he'd caused.