Chapter 3

Amanda was finally done dressing me up and I couldn't deny that she really knew what suits me.

But more than admiring my own beauty, I had other things to worry about.

I stood up and Amanda walked me out of the room. My heart raced with fear as I didn't know what to expect.

Father joined us shortly and Amanda already had tears streaming down her face.

“I don't want you to go,” she sobbed quietly and I held her hand.

“If I live, I'll definitely reach out to you, I promise,” I answered.

“What do you mean by “if” you leave? You're definitely going to,” she cried and I smiled.

“I will,” I assured.

“Let's go,” father said the moment he hopped on the horse. My father's men were as well on their horses.

I wasn't allowed to ride my own horse. Father believed that I would hurt myself so I had to ride his horse with him.

I got on the horse and wrapped my hands around my father and off we went. At that point, my fate was in the hands of my father who rode smoothly along the path.

*********

The ride was quite long, but I guess my father's back was quite comfortable as well. For a while, I forgot everything that was wrong and just enjoyed the warmth of hugging my father. I didn't know when next or how long I would be getting that luxury.

Finally, we were at Ravenwood and father still didn't say anything to me.

“Father,” I called.

“This is hard for me, Lyra. It's very hard for me to let you go. Especially when it all wasn't planned earlier,” he answered.

“Let me go?” I asked. “I thought we were just going to meet him today. We'll have the wedding plans later right?” I asked and father turned to look at me.

“No, Lyra. You wouldn't be going back with me to silvermoon,” he answered. He couldn't even look into my eyes.

“What do you mean I wouldn't be going back with you to Silver moon? You're just going to hand me over to him? Someone that I do not know?” I asked, worried.

“Listen, Lyra, we do not have a choice. When it comes to Beta Ryder, I cannot risk anything. I do not want them to hurt you, and that's why I have to let you remain here.”

“There's no way I'm staying here. And what's the assurance that I'll be safe here? What if they don't like me, just like everyone in Silvermoon. What if they try to kill me or get rid of me like Beta Ryder!” I cried.

There was no way father would leave me there.

Even if I would get married, I needed some time to at least get prepared.

Father's voice was cold. “We do not have a choice, Lyra,” Father said, then he grabbed my hand.

“Father …” I called, trying to hold my tears but he didn't listen. Instead, he walked me into Alpha Ethan's palace.

They all parted ways for us like they were expecting us already.

“Father…” I called again.

“You wouldn't want Ethan seeing you cry on your first meeting,” he said and I was forced to wipe my tears.

We walked into the meeting room, and the guards waited outside. When we went in, I had my chest hitting against my chest. The feeling when you were about to meet someone you would spend the rest of your life with but you got scared because of how terribly people spoke about him.

Father and I were seated, waiting for Ethan's arrival and finally, a door at the last end of the room was pushed open, revealing a pair of perfectly long legs that made their way into the hall one after the other.

I slowly raised my head and his body was the most…. attractive one I had ever seen.

Maybe because I spent most of my time seeing wolves that were only as old as my father…but still Ethan still looked like he spent his whole life eating healthy.

He had muscles in the right places that were just the perfect size.

I finally raised my head to look at his face and just like I heard, his handsomeness was more than words could define. He had dark long hair that was packed into a ponytail but a few strands of hair were resting on his face.

His golden eyes held a level of authority and command that I just couldn't explain. His eyes were beautiful but they looked dangerous at the same time so I just couldn't stop looking.

I was finally forced to look away when father tapped me. I lowered my head …I couldn't explain if what I felt was attraction or fear.

“Alpha Damien, I had to prepare for your arrival the moment I got your message. It says you have something important to tell me, I didn't expect you to come with Lyra,” he said.

His voice was so thick that it traveled around my body.

He knew me ... .so father was telling the truth. Did Alpha Ethan truly want to marry me?

“I came here, mainly because of her, Ethan. I need your help with something and it's urgent. My daughter's life is at stake,” Father said with a sense of urgency in his voice.

Alpha Ethan Blackwood walked towards his chair and sat.

“You mean Lyra's life? Who would dare to try to harm your daughter? Say the same and I'll make sure they die before dawn,” Alpha Ethan coldly answered.

He cared….he cared about me?

My heart raced the moment he said those words. A part of me told me that he truly cared about me and it made my heart race.

“No, Ethan. It's not someone that we can kill. In fact, the people after Lyra's life are from my pack. They say she's a burden,” Father answered.

“Then what do you want me to do for you?” Alpha Ethan asked.

“I need you to marry my daughter. You do not have to love her….the marriage doesn't have to be real. I just need you to call her your wife so that she can be safe. It's the only thing that I can think of,” Father begged.

“Alpha Damien. We made a deal that I'll be of help to you when you need it. I do not think it is wise enough to use it when your human daughter needs help. You can just send her to the human cities. My help would be more useful during a war,” Alpha Ethan said and I guess I was wrong about him loving me.

He didn't …as usual, I was overreacting.

He called me a human girl…and told my father to send me to the human cities. He wasn't different. He was just like everyone else.

“Ethan, I am sure. My daughter's life is most important to me,” Father said.

Alpha Ethan stood up and walked towards me. He gazed at my dad for a while. “I can't refuse because I do not break promises. I will get married to your daughter just like you asked for but… I am afraid I wouldn't lay my hands on her. All she needs is the title as my wife and I'm willing to give it. And most importantly, you have done a good job in keeping her identity as human within your pack,” then he turned to me. “Be careful Lyra. Once anyone here at Ravenwood finds out that you're human, it's the day you die.”