Chapter 1: A Lifechanging Reality

Isadora’s POV.

“Prisoner 734,” the guard’s harsh voice called out. “You have visitors.”

Visitors.

My breath caught.

I stood up slowly, brushing the dirt from my worn prison clothes as I followed the guard through the winding hallways. The prison walls didn’t feel like a cage anymore. The cold stone floors seemed almost warm beneath my feet.

The guard stopped in front of a visitation room. “You have fifteen minutes.”

The door opened and my eyes landed on three people seated at a table with grim expressions on their faces. My mother, Odessa, was dressed in an expensive silk blouse, pearl earrings with her hair perfectly styled.

Beside her was my father, Edmund. He just sat there, staring at the wall with a blank expression on his face and his jaw clenched tightly.

And Mason, my brother. He was seated close to the edge, his hands clasped in front of him. When our eyes met, he flinched and looked away.

Without a word, I walked to the table and sat down across from them.

“Isadora,” Mom said warmly, her smile stretching wider than it should. “We’ve missed you.”

I remained silent.

She waited for a response. When none came, she continued. “We’ve been trying to get you released for years. You know that, we’ve done everything we could.”

“You never visited.” I responded flatly. “Not once in four years.”

Mom’s lips pressed into a thin line.

It’s been four years of silence, four years of wondering if any of them even remembered I existed.

Dad cleared his throat, “we’re here now, Isadora. That’s what matters. And we have a way to make this better.”

“A way to make this better?” I repeated, my brows furrowed slightly.

Mom leaned forward, her voice dropping. “We want you to have a future, Isadora. That's why we went out of our way to arrange this marriage for you. Imagine what it’ll mean to be the Luna of Shadow Fang pack.”

I blinked, unsure of what I’d just heard.

Shadow Fang was one of the leading packs in the entire realm. They dominated most of the other packs and everyone knew not to ever mess with them but about a year ago, rumors began to spread that their ruthless Alpha had suddenly fallen into a coma.

No one knew why. Some say he was cursed while others believed his enemies finally found a way to bring him down.

“You want me to marry a man that is practically dead?” I chuckled, a dark, hollow sound that sounded nothing like me.

Why wasn’t I surprised?

“Which is why this is a perfect opportunity,” Mom chipped in with a serious expression on her face. “You’ll be his wife in name only. You’ll live in comfort and enjoy every benefit that comes with being his Luna.”

I couldn’t believe it. They hadn’t seen me in four years and the first thing they did the moment they lay eyes on me was try to get rid of me.

Mom’s expression tightened. “Think about this carefully, this is your future we’re talking about here.”

“I don’t have a future.” I snapped, standing up sharply. “I gave up my future when I walked into this prison. I gave up everything for this family. And none of you—“ I looked right at Mason, who still wouldn’t look at me. “None of you even visited me.”

“Isadora, please—“

“No.” My firm voice cut through the air, loudly. “I’m done sacrificing myself for this family!”

“You don’t get it, Dora.” Mom yelled angrily. “You cannot refuse Alpha Caelen of Shadow Fang, not when your name appeared on the moon stone.”

I raised a brow at her. “Moon stone?”

“Yes. The elders believe your fate is tied to his and you can heal him. So if you refuse to marry him, you’ll only bring disaster on your own pack.”

I stared at her. “You’re saying, if I refuse, ShadowFang will target our pack?”

“They’ll target everyone connected to you.” Mom added coldly. “Mason has worked so hard to build his career and is so close to becoming a council member. But if ShadowFang decides to retaliate because you refused their Alpha, everything your brother has worked for will go down the drain along with the pack’s safety.”

“You want me to sacrifice myself again?!”

Mom’s expression hardened. “We’re only asking you to help your family.”

I shook my head slowly.

“I spent four years in this prison because I took the blame for Mason. Four years of my life—gone. And now, you want me to do it all over again?”

Angrily, I spun around and made for the door.

“If you walk out that door, you’ll never see your daughter again.” Mom threatened and my hand froze on the door handle.

My heart skipped a beat but I didn’t turn around.

“W-W did you just say?” I slowly turned around. My face was still blank but my hands were shaking.

“If you agree to marry Alpha Caelen then you’ll be reunited with her. You’ll have full custody and you’ll be able to raise her yourself.” She rose to her feet and began to walk toward me. “Refuse and you’ll never see her again.”

At that moment, something inside me broke.

All the walls I’d built around my heart. All the coldness and indifference I’d used to protect myself crumbled away at the thought of my daughter, a child I’d never gotten to hold.

She was ripped away from my arms barely five minutes after she was born on the cold hard floor of my prison cell.

I opened my eyes and looked at my mother.

How could she threaten me with my own child?

“You have a choice, Dora. Make the right one.” Mom added and I almost lost it if I hadn’t forcefully held myself back.

There was no point arguing. Alpha Caelen was in a coma, it didn’t matter if I decided to marry him or not, he was going to die anyways.

If marrying him would bring me my daughter then there was no use fighting it.

“Where is she?” I whispered, my voice cracking. “Please. Just tell me where she is.”

“Sign the contract first.” Mom handed over a piece of paper to me. “Then everything will be sorted out.”

I looked at the contract.

It was the only way to see my daughter again so without hesitation, I picked up the pen and signed it because I was willing to do anything for her.

Almost immediately, the door opened and a large man walked in. He was tall, broad-shouldered with a scar running down the side of his face. His eyes were cold and his expression was hard.

My parents and Mason scrambled to their feet as soon as they saw him. Mom stepped forward with her head bowed.

“Beta Ronan,” Mom began, her voice trembling lightly. “We weren’t expecting you so soon.”

The man didn’t even acknowledge her. His eyes were fixed on me.

“Isadora,” he said, his voice rough and flat. “I’m Ronan, Alpha Caelen’s Beta and I’m here to escort you to ShadowFang Pack.”