Chapter 1: The Cold Night
Daisy’s Pov
The mud was freezing against my bare knees. My hands were tied tight behind my back, the rough rope cutting directly into my wrists with every small movement. The night air felt like needles hitting my bare face, but the cold inside my chest was much worse.
My inner wolf was completely silent, locked away by the heavy silver chain around my neck that burned my skin with every single breath I took.
We were deep in the forest, far outside the pack borders, where the trees grew thick and dark. It was a place where nobody would ever hear me scream, no matter how hard I tried.
Standing right in front of me was Cassian Blackwood, the Alpha-born male I was supposed to marry in just two days. I looked up at him, my heart hammering against my ribs, hoping to see a flicker of the man who used to hold me gently. But his face was a blank wall.
Next to him stood Victoria, my cousin, holding a flashlight that shone directly into my bleeding eyes. The bright light blinded me, forcing me to blink back hot tears of confusion.
"Please," I whispered, my voice shaking violently from the biting cold. "Cassian, why are you doing this? We are supposed to be pack. We are supposed to be family."
Victoria let out a loud, mocking laugh. The sweet, innocent expression she always wore around my father vanished completely, replaced by a twisted smile. She stepped closer, her boot swinging forward to kick wet dirt right onto my face. The grit got into my mouth, tasting of iron and earth.
"You were just born in my way, Daisy," Victoria sneered, her eyes full of pure hatred and years of hidden jealousy. "You always had everything without even trying—the Vanecrest bloodline, the wealth, the top rank in the family business. But after tonight, all of it belongs to me. Cassian prefers me now anyway. He always has."
She wrapped her arm around Cassian’s waist, leaning her body against his side. My stomach turned over with a sick feeling. I waited for him to push her away.
I waited for his wolf to growl at her for touching him, but he just stood there. He looked down at her with a gentle expression, then reached over to kiss the top of her head.
The sight fractured something deep inside me. I stared at the male I had loved for three whole years, the one I trusted with my deepest secrets. "Cassian? Tell me this is a joke. Please, just tell me it is a sick joke."
"It is not a joke, Daisy," Cassian said, his voice completely calm and level. He sounded like he was reading a financial report in a boardroom, not planning a murder.
"This was always the plan from the very start. Do you really think I could actually accept a weak wolf like you as my mate? It was all a setup to get close to your family's lands and corporate shares. You were just so desperate for love that you made it easy for us."
"You are a monster," I whispered. The tears finally spilled over my cheeks, hot against my frozen skin.
"Call me whatever you want," Cassian shrugged, completely unmoved by my sobbing. "In a few hours, the pack guards will find your car at the bottom of the deep river. Everyone will think you ran off the road in the dark. A tragic accident."
Fear gripped my throat, tight and suffocating. The reality of what was happening pressed down on me, heavy and real. I leaned forward in the mud, completely dropping the last of my pride. I did not care about looking strong anymore. I just wanted to save what was inside me.
"Cassian, wait! You can't do this," I begged, my voice cracking as I looked up at him through my messy hair. "I am pregnant. I am carrying your pup. It has been two months. Please, don't murder your own baby."
For a tiny second, Cassian froze. His wolf eyes flickered in the dark, and a small spark of hope rose in my chest. I thought the mention of his own blood would break through the ice in his heart.
Then, Victoria laughed again, louder this time, her voice echoing through the quiet trees. "Oh, look at her, Cassian. She is trying to use a fake pregnancy to save herself. How pathetic. She will say anything to stay alive."
I ignored her completely, staring straight into his amber eyes, begging with every ounce of my soul. "Cassian, please. Look at me. It is your pup. You know me. Please don't do this to us."
Cassian looked down at my stomach, his face unreadable for a long moment. Then, he looked back up to my face. The brief hesitation vanished, replaced by a cold, narcissistic sneer that made him look like a total stranger.
"It doesn't change anything," Cassian said softly, his voice dropping to a whisper. "If anything, it just makes things cleaner for the inheritance. I don't want any loose ends coming back to haunt me later."
My heart broke into a million pieces. The pain of the silver chain around my neck was nothing compared to the agony in my chest. The male I loved was going to kill me and our unborn pup without a single ounce of regret or mercy.
Cassian reached into his heavy jacket and pulled out a long, silver knife. The metal caught the light from Victoria's flashlight, shining brightly. He knelt down in the cold mud right in front of me, his knees sinking into the wet earth.
He reached out with a rough hand and gripped my silver-blonde hair tightly, pulling my head back so hard that my neck strained.
I tried to scream for help, to call out for my father, but my throat was too dry, and no sound came out. He pressed the cold edge of the silver blade directly against my bare skin.
Victoria watched with a triumphant smile, keeping the flashlight perfectly steady so he could see where to cut.
Cassian smiled, a cruel, wicked twist of his lips that showed his true nature, and sliced the blade deeply across my neck.
Hot, thick blood burst over my skin, soaking into my clothes and dripping onto the ground. The strength left my limbs instantly. My body went limp, slipping from his grip and falling backward onto the wet dirt.
As my eyes slowly closed, the dark forest began to fade away into nothingness, leaving me in total darkness and absolute agony.
