When I arrived at the palace, I was struck breathless.
I had never seen anything like it.
Mighty stone walls towered into the sky, etched with histories I did not understand. Massive gates loomed ahead, carved with snarling wolf figures frozen in eternal dominance. Wolf statues lined the palace grounds, their eyes cold and watchful, as though judging every soul that passed through.
This was not a home.
It was a fortress of power.
The lead guard escorted me inside, his presence commanding silence from every corner. I was taken to a room, one that seemed specially prepared for me.
It was enormous.
Not the kind of enormous meant to comfort, but the kind that reminded you how small you were. The room alone was larger than my entire home back on the outskirts of the human quarter.
I stood there for a moment, unsure of what to do.
Slowly, I traced my fingers along the edge of the bed, feeling the soft fabric beneath my touch. Only then did I sit.
My eyes drifted to the wolf portrait hanging on the wall.
Its gaze was cold, powerful—watchful.
Is this what it feels like to be among wolves?
To live in their world… their luxury… their dominance?
A soft knock sounded at the door, pulling me from my thoughts.
A maid entered, carrying a tray of food. I knew instantly she was a wolf ,I could sense it but she was a woman like me, and somehow that made me feel a little less alone.
"Eat," she said gently. "There's also a change of clothes for you."
I looked beside the tray.
The garment laid out was a modern royal robe—rich fabric, flawless stitching, the kind of clothing meant for queens, not criminals.
Is this how a condemned person is treated before execution?
I stared at the food… then the dress… my mind at war with itself.
How long would I be here?
What had I done?
Would I ever see my parents again?
My thoughts rushed back to Mom. To Dad. To the people who had raised me, protected me, hidden me.
By now, the news must have reached them.
Had they been told I was to be executed?
Outside my door, a loud voice thundered.
"No one goes in. She doesn't leave."
My heart slammed against my chest.
A prisoner.
After a while, hunger won over fear. My stomach growled loudly, betraying me.
I might as well eat before my execution, I told myself bitterly.
I devoured the meal.
It was unlike anything I had ever tasted—rich, warm, flavorful. Even cold, it held a luxury my life had never known. I ate until not a single crumb remained.
When I was done, exhaustion swallowed me whole.
I lay back on the bed, my thoughts spiraling… until sleep claimed me.
A loud bang shattered my rest the next morning.
My eyes flew open.
This is it. My execution day.
The door opened, and the lead guard stepped in, followed by another maid.
"Dress her properly," he ordered. "Prepare her. She will be presented before the king today."
The king.
Derek—the ruthless Alpha King.
The man said to kill without hesitation.
I had already died a thousand times in my heart.
Fear wrapped around me like chains.
The guard left, shutting the door behind him. The maid remained.
"Get up, my lady," she said softly.
My legs trembled as I stood.
She dressed me, fixed my hair, applied makeup with careful hands. When she stepped back, I barely recognized the woman staring back at me.
I looked… unreal.
Before she left, panic surged through me. I grabbed her hand, clinging to it like it was the only thing anchoring me to life.
Though she was a wolf, she understood.
"It will be fine," she whispered.
Then she gently freed herself and walked out.
The door closed.
And my chest collapsed.
Moments later, I was escorted into the court.
The human court.
The wolf councils sat elevated above all others, cold and unmoving. Noble wolves filled the hall ,rows upon rows.
One mighty seat remained,the Alphas seat.
Then I saw them.
Mom. Dad.
My breath caught painfully.
My mother was shaking, tearing at her headscarf in silent agony. My father stood rigid, his face pale, his eyes fixed on me.
The guards flanked me tightly, as though my fate had already been sealed.
The court was silent.
And yet, it felt like a battlefield.
No words were spoken but a thousand judgments echoed through the hall.
Before executions, family members are allowed to witness ,to offer final respects.
Watching my mother break… felt like a blade piercing straight through my heart.
Then…
The massive doors creaked open.
Everyone stood at once.
My breath stopped.
Alpha Derek entered.
The man I once saved.
The stranger whose life had once rested in my trembling hands.
Now stood as the one to decide my fate.
He no longer looked weak or pale.
Only deadly.
Only ruthless.
Power radiated from him like a storm, sending shivers down my spine.
He walked to the throne and sat.
The sound of his presence alone commanded the room.
"Sit."
His voice thundered.
Everyone obeyed instantly.
Then—
His gaze lifted.
And locked onto mine.
His gaze cut through me like a blade, sharp, commanding, unyielding. It was not the look of a man making a request. It was the gaze of a king delivering a verdict.
He did not waste time.
He did not soften his tone.
"Marry me."
The single word struck me like a blow.
My breath caught. My body froze, rooted to the ground as though the floor itself had claimed me. Mymind raced, scrambling for reason, for logic—for escape.
The man standing before me—the Alpha King, the ruler of Dark Heaven—was the same stranger i had found broken in the rain. The man whose life had once rested in her trembling hands. The man I had saved without knowing who he was.
And now… he stood above her, demanding her obedience.
I shook her head slowly, disbelief flooding her veins. "I—I can't," she whispered, her voice unsteady. "How could I marry you? I don't even—"
"Enough."
Derek cut me off without raising his voice. His expression did not change. No anger. No impatience. Only cold certainty.
"You will marry me," he said calmly, "or you will remain my prisoner."
A murmur rippled through the court.
"My wife," he continued, his eyes never leaving mine. "There is no third option."
My heart thundered in my chest.
Was this real?
Was she dreaming?
The hall seemed to tilt, the faces around her blurring as the weight of his words crashed down on her. A life i had never imagined. A fate i had never chosen. Forced upon me without consent.
She had saved him.
Risked herself.
Bled for him.
And that single act of mercy—of courage—had become the chains binding her now.
A cold realization settled deep in her bones.
My kindness had not freed me.
It condemned me.
She stood there, trapped beneath the gaze of a king whose will was law, whose power was absolute. No room to refuse. No space to run.
Forced into a marriage I had never wanted, bound to a man i barely knew,
I could only stare at him—uncertain whether she had been granted honor…
Or sentenced to a life she never chose