chapter one

I was sleeping when the door to my room exploded open.

The violent crash dragged me out of my sleep so quickly that I barely had time to understand what was happening before heavy footsteps thundered across the floor. I pushed myself upright, my hands searching blindly through the darkness for something familiar to hold onto, but before my fingers could find the edge of the bed, two strong hands seized my arms and yanked me to my feet.

“Who is it?” I cried, stumbling as they dragged me away from the bed. “What are you doing? Who are you?”Nobody answered.

My bare feet scraped helplessly against the cold floor as the guards pulled me toward the doorway. I tried to twist free, but their hands only tightened around my arms, their fingers digging painfully into my skin.

“Leave me!” I screamed, panic rising in my throat. “Let me go! Where are you taking me?” Still no one answered.

I had no idea what was happening. I could not see the faces of the men surrounding me, and without my sight, every unfamiliar sound felt twice as frightening. All I could hear were their heavy boots, the rustling of their clothes, and the hurried movement of people outside my room.

Something was wrong, very wrong.

“Please,” I begged, stumbling again as they dragged me into the corridor. “At least tell me what is happening.”

One of the guards shoved me forward without saying a word.

The corridor was strangely crowded. I could hear people rushing in different directions, warriors giving orders, weapons being moved, and the low growls of wolves coming from somewhere outside the palace. The smell of blood was strong enough to make my stomach twist, and beneath it was another scent I recognized immediately.

The entire palace smelled of fear.

“Father!” I suddenly shouted, because he was the only person I could think of who could make this stop.

“Father!” My voice echoed through the corridor, but nobody answered.

The guards continued dragging me. “Father, please!” i shouted as loud as i can.

A door opened ahead of us, and a rush of cold air touched my face. Then the ground beneath my feet changed from smooth stone to rough earth.

We were outside. The noise became overwhelming.

There were too many people gathered around me. I could hear the shifting of hundreds of feet, the clinking of armor, the growling of wolves, and voices coming from every direction. Some sounded like my own people, but many were unfamiliar, deeper and harsher, and I knew immediately that the Ashfords were here.

My heart began pounding. Why were Ashford warriors inside our territory?

Why had my father allowed them this close to the palace?

The guards suddenly released me. I fell onto my knees.

Pain shot through my palms as they struck the ground, and for a moment I remained there, confused and breathless, listening to the crowd surrounding me. I could feel their eyes on me even though I could not see them.

Then I heard my father's voice. “Yes, She is here.” I turned toward him immediately.

“Father?”

There was something strange about the way he said those words, as if he were confirming the arrival of an object rather than acknowledging his daughter.

I pushed myself up, stretching my hands toward the sound of his voice. “Father, what is happening? Why did they drag me out of my room? Who are all these people?”

Nobody answered, I took another step.

“Father?” Then a man's unfamiliar voice came from somewhere in front of me.

“So this is the King's daughter?” There was amusement in his tone. My father answered calmly. “Yes, she is.”

The stranger made a low sound of approval. “And this is the one you have chosen?” My breathing stopped.

Chosen? For what?

I turned toward my father's voice, my hands trembling as I tried to find him through the darkness.

“Father, what does he mean?”There was a brief silence, Then my father spoke.

“Take her.”The words were so simple that I didn't understand them at first.

My father continued speaking to the Ashfords as though I wasn't standing there.

“You have my word that once she leaves with us, our warriors will withdraw from your borders. There will be no more attacks against your people.”

The world seemed to tilt beneath my feet. My lips parted, but no sound came out.

I finally understood. They were not here to protect me. They were here to take me. I have been traded for peace.

“Father?”My voice trembled.

I stumbled toward him, desperately following the sound of his breathing until my fingers finally found the fabric of his clothes. The moment I touched him, I clung to him as though that small piece of cloth could keep the world from falling apart.

“Father, please,” I whispered. “What are you saying?”He didn't move. I tightened my grip.

“Please don't send me away. I don't know these people. They are our enemies. They hate us. What will happen to me when they take me?”

My voice cracked as tears began filling my eyes. “I don't want to go.”

I pressed my forehead against him, trying to remember what it had once felt like to believe my father could protect me.

“You are my father,” I whispered. “Please, I am scared.”

For one brief moment, I waited for him to put his arms around me, but He didn't.

Instead, he pulled his clothes out of my hands, and said “You should have thought about that before becoming useless.”

I froze, “What?” “You heard me.” His voice was cold enough to make me shiver.

“You have no wolf, Lily. You cannot fight, you cannot defend yourself, and you cannot even see. What exactly do you expect me to do with you while my kingdom is being destroyed?”

I shook my head, tears sliding down my cheeks. “I can still be useful. I can learn. I can—”

“You've had your entire life to prove that.” His words cut me short deeper than I expected.

“Father, please.” His foot kicked me hard away.

I crashed onto the ground with a cry, my hands instinctively wrapping around my stomach as pain spread through my body.

For several seconds, I could hear nothing but the pounding of my own heart.

“Father…”My voice was barely audible.

He stood over me.

“Blame yourself for being useless. At least you can serve as the price of peace.”

I stared into the darkness where I knew his face was supposed to be.

The man who had once carried me as a child was now giving me away because he had decided I was the daughter who mattered least.

I wanted to scream at him. I wanted to ask him how a father could look at his own child and decide that she was easier to lose.

But before I could speak, I heard another familiar voice behind him.

My sister, She walked closer, and I recognized her immediately from the soft sound of her shoes against the ground.

She stopped beside my father.

For one foolish second, I thought she might defend me. Instead, she crouched beside me and leaned close to my ear.

“Take good care of yourself, sister.” Her voice was sweet, almost affectionate. Then she whispered, “If only you survive there.”

A quiet laugh escaped her lips. She stood and walked away with our father.

“Please…”I stretched my hand toward them. “Father, please don't leave me.” His turned and left withiut looking back.

The chief guard suddenly spoke. “Take her, then two men seized me.

“No!”i shouted, Fear exploded through me. I twisted violently, trying to pull away.

“Father!” i cried, I could hear his footsteps disappearing.

“Father, please! I won't cause trouble! I promise! Just don't leave me!”

The guards dragged me across the ground, and desperation gave me strength I didn't know I had. I planted my feet and fought against them, but one of them suddenly struck me across the face.

The blow sent me crashing down. Before I could recover, a boot slammed into my stomach, Pain ripped through me.

I curled up instinctively, gasping for air, but another kick landed against my side.

“Please!” i cried, Tears poured down my face. “I won't run again! I'm sorry! Please stop!” The beating finally stopped.

I remained curled on the ground, shaking uncontrollably, one hand pressed against my stomach while I struggled to breathe.

The chief guard crouched beside me. His voice was disturbingly calm.“If you knew where you were going, you would save your strength.”

I didn't understand what he meant, and was too afraid to ask.

The guards hauled me upright and dragged me away.

This time, I didn't fight or make a sound. Moreover There was nothing left inside me to fight with.

My father had given me away, My sister laughed at me, and my own people had watched without stopping them.

Whatever waited for me beyond our borders, I knew one thing with absolute certainty.

I was going there alone.

The journey to the Ashford territory felt endless. My body ached with every movement, and the hunger I had been feeling before the guards came had become worse after the beating.

I spent most of the journey with my forehead against the cold surface beside me, listening to unfamiliar voices and wondering whether my father had even thought about what would happen to me after I disappeared.

When the carriage finally stopped, the doors opened. Cold air rushed over my face. The guards pulled me down.

Immediately, I knew I had arrived somewhere crowded.

There were voices everywhere, Both men, women, warriors.

I could hear wolves growling and people whispering as they moved around me. Unlike my kingdom, nobody here tried to hide their curiosity. They spoke openly, laughing as though my arrival were some kind of entertainment.

“So this is her?” A woman laughed. “This is the bride?”another voice answered, “They really sent her to Axel?” More laughter followed. I could do nothing but just to lower my head.

My fingers curled into the fabric of my dress. Then someone spoke loudly enough for everyone to hear.

“Can you imagine? They couldn't even send him a complete woman.”

Another person sniffed the air. “Wait, Why can't I smell her wolf?” Someone else laughed. “You can't smell it because she doesn't have one.” The courtyard erupted.

Their laughter surrounded me from every direction, and I stood there wishing I could disappear into the ground beneath my feet.

I had heard people call me useless before. I had heard them whisper about my blindness.

I had heard them pity me because I had never awakened a wolf.

But hearing an entire enemy clan laugh at me made every cruel word I had ever endured feel fresh again.

Then the laughter began to fade, as I heard Footsteps approached.

The people around me grew quieter. Someone called one name.

“Axel.” The footsteps stopped directly in front of me.

I could smell a sharp, expensive cologne, and I instinctively lifted my head.

“So this is what they sent me?” The man's voice was cold. The man my father had just sold me to. I swallowed hard, as he stepped closer.

“They promised me a royal bride.” A few people laughed quietly. “And instead, they send me a blind, wolfless wolf.” My hands tightened at my sides. I wanted to defend myself, but what could I say?

I couldn't see him, I had no wolf, and according to everyone around me, those two things were enough to make me worthless.

Axel suddenly grabbed me by the throat. A gasp escaped me as my feet left the ground. I immediately grabbed his wrist, desperately trying to loosen his grip, but his hand was like iron around my neck.

“Put me down.”My voice came out strangled. He lifted me higher.

“You are not even worthy of cleaning the floors in my palace.” I could hear my own desperate breathing.

Axel's grip tightened as he brought my face closer to his. “Do you understand how humiliating this is?” for the heir to be marched to a low life.

I shook my head weakly, tears slipping down my cheeks. “I didn't choose this, i never wanted this.” His fingers pressed harder against my throat.

“Neither did I.”he said then he threw me down. I hit the ground hard, coughing and clutching my throat.

Axel didn't spare me another glance. “Guards.” he shouted. Two men immediately stepped forward.

“Take her.” His voice carried absolute disgust. “And lock this filthy thing away from my sight.”

The guards seized my arms.

I was dragged away while the Ashfords watched, their laughter following me through the courtyard. I had been sold by my father. Rejected by my future husband.

Mocked by an entire clan, and as the heavy doors of the Ashford palace closed behind me, I finally understood the truth I had been too afraid to face.

No one was coming to save me.