Fate

EVE

Kolton stood tall in the doorway, his broad frame filling the space.

His cold, icy gray eyes swept over the room, taking in my father’s tense posture, my mother’s anxious smile, and Leora still sniffling on the floor.

"I am leaving early tomorrow morning," Kolton announced.

"My business here is finished, and I have urgent matters to attend to at the Hail Pack. If you are still offering a bride to seal our political alliance, she must be packed and ready at dawn."

My father nodded rapidly.

"Yes, of course, Alpha. Everything is already settled. The alliance stands, and the bride will be ready."

I could literally feel my hands shaking.

Kolton tilted his head slightly, his sharp gaze shifting away from my father.

"And which of your daughters am I taking?"

Slowly, Kolton’s eyes locked directly onto mine.

A cruel smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. There was no confusion in his eyes, no moment of realization.

HE KNEW EXACTLY WHO I WAS.

He had known the moment I stumbled into his woods crying hours ago.

He had taken my virginity against a tree, fully aware that I was the Alpha's daughter, and the one he was going to depart with.

My heart hammered violently against my ribs. Blood roared in my ears.

My father pointed his hand straight at me. "You will be taking my eldest daughter, Eve."

I blinked.

"No," I gasped, stepping back and shaking my head in utter shock.

"No, I can't. It can't be him."

My father shot me a fierce glare, his jaw clenching.

"Eve, stop this nonsense immediately! You already agreed to your duty. What is wrong with you?"

"I didn't agree to anything. I mean... I can't marry him!" I stammered, my hands trembling as I stared at the man who had thoroughly possessed my body in the dark.

"Father, please—"

My mother frowned, stepping forward and searching my panicked face.

"Why are you reacting like this, Eve? Have you met Alpha Kolton before?"

"No!" I blurted out too fast, my face flushing hot. "No, of course not! I just... we all know how cruel he is!"

Kolton let out a low chuckle that made me shiver. He took a slow step into the room, keeping his eyes fixed entirely on me.

"Cruel?" Kolton drawled, his tone dripping with subtle amusement.

"Calling me cruel right to my face, little bird? If I recall correctly, you should only have good memories of me."

My breath hitched.

What if my parents found out?!

What if everyone got to know?

My mouth went dry, but I forced myself to swallow the panic and lock my jaw, refusing to give him the satisfaction of seeing me tremble.

Kolton turned his attention back to my father, though his eyes still flicked to me.

"I assume you are giving me a non-combative daughter who is untouched."

What I felt next was anger burning away my fear.

He was mocking me!

He knew I was no longer untouched because HE was the one who took it, yet he stood there pretending to demand a pure, submissive bride.

"What do you mean by a non-combative daughter who is untouched, Alpha Kolton?" I demanded, stepping forward.

Suddenly, it didn't matter to me that he was supposed to be feared.

My parents gasped in visible terror.

"Eve! Hold your tongue!" my father barked, stepping in front of me, his face pale.

"You do not address the Alpha in such a manner! He is speaking to me, not you!"

Kolton simply raised a dark eyebrow, completely unfazed by my outburst. The smirk remained on his face as he looked past my father to face me directly.

"I mean exactly what I said," Kolton said calmly. "I want a woman who is quiet, non-combative, and untouched. Even in a political arrangement, I expect my bride to sit beside me and have zero say in my affairs."

I stared at him in disbelief. I had spent my entire life training to lead, to protect my people, and to rule alongside a husband as an equal. Now this arrogant tyrant was telling me to my face that I was meant to be nothing more than a silent ornament.

"If this is just a political arrangement, why must you look for someone docile?" I challenged, ignoring my father's warning glare.

"Are you not supposed to want a partner who can actually help you rule and support your pack?"

"I do not need anyone's support to rule," Kolton replied coldly, his arrogant stance unshakeable. "I have ruled the Hail Pack perfectly fine on my own for years. And wives, I find, are always completely useless.”

Every word he spoke crushed a piece of my childhood dreams. I had wanted love. I had wanted a real partnership with Jon, ruling our home together.

Instead, I was being handed over to a cold-hearted tyrant who who had no respect for the union of marriage.

Kolton turned on his heel toward the hallway. "Have her packed and ready at the front gates by dawn. We leave at first light."

Without waiting for a response, he walked out, his dark cloak disappearing down the corridor.

Silence fell over the room. I looked around at my family. My mother was fixing Leora's hair, Jon was staring at the floor, and my father was already turning back to his desk. None of them cared about the nightmare they were throwing me into.

"You are all terrible," I whispered, the heartbreak choking my throat.

Without another word, I turned and walked back to my bedroom. Deep down, a small, bitter part of me knew the truth.

As terrible as Kolton was, Leora would have broken in a single day under his thumb. She was unfit to survive a man like him. I was the only one strong enough to handle it, even if it destroyed me in the process.

Inside my room, a young maid was quietly folding my clothes and placing them into luggages.

My mind was spinning and I could barely even relax.

"I need some air," I told the maid quietly, stepping back out into the dimly lit hallway to clear my head.

As I walked down the quiet corridor, low voices floated up from the small sitting room near the stairs. It was my mother and father.

"Sending Eve away is the best decision we've made" my mother was saying, her voice laced with deep, bitter resentment.

"I have had to live every single day looking at her face, knowing she was the cause of my mother's death all those years ago.”

She exhaled as my father said nothing.

“She has been nothing but trouble since she was a child. Look at how she treats her own sister. She was never fit to rule next to Jon anyway. She spent years working for nothing."

My chest tightened. The old, painful wound tore open inside me. I wanted to step into the room. I wanted to scream at my mother and finally tell her the truth—that I hadn't killed Grandmother, that I had only taken the blame to protect Leora.

I raised my foot to take a step toward the doorway, but the soft sound of footsteps made me pause.

I turned around. Leora was walking down the hallway toward me, a smile playing on her lips.