Chapter 3

-[Nyxra’s pov]-

I stared at Elowen's message until the words blurred.

My fingers were still wrapped around my phone beneath the dining table.

My heart was pounding so hard that my wolf could feel every beat.

I wanted to scream.

I wanted to tear apart everything in front of me.

But one question kept clawing at my mind.

How long?

How long had Dravos been betraying me?

I couldn't swallow the lump in my throat. My hand moved before I could stop it. I opened Elowen's chat and texted.

“How long has it been ongoing?”

I stared at the screen impatiently. The three dots appeared almost immediately. Then her reply came.

“Oh, Nyxra. You really don't know?”

My stomach twisted.

“Alpha Dravos has been visiting me ever since I came back to the pack. He truly loves me and has already forgiven me. You can imagine how often we've seen each other in twelve months.”

I stopped breathing.

A whole year.

My fingers began trembling, my wolf let out a violent growl inside me. A deep, furious sound that vibrated through my bones.

My eyes burned.

I gripped the edge of the table. For an entire year, my fiancé had been sneaking away to meet his first love while I waited for him at nights and planned our wedding.

Every time he kissed my forehead and promised that I was the only woman he wanted.

Lies.

All of them.

My wolf howled in agony. The sound was so loud inside my head that I almost covered my ears. My eyes filled with tears, I pushed my chair back.

The scrape of the wood against the floor made everyone look at me. “Nyxra?” Alpha Laurent asked.

I forced a smile.

“I... need a moment.” My voice cracked, I didn't wait for permission and walked away.

The moment I reached my room, I slammed the door shut and leaned against it. My knees weakened and I slid down, my back pressed against the door.

Then I broke.

A sob tore out of me.

I covered my mouth, but it didn't help. Tears poured down my cheeks, my chest heaved violently.

My wolf whimpered.

She curled inside me, trembling.

“Our mate...” I whispered. “He chose her.” I squeezed my eyes shut and pressed my fists against my chest. “He chose her for an entire year.”

I had been so blind.

So stupid.

I had defended Dravos whenever he came home late and my mate chose to cheat on me. And tomorrow was supposed to be our wedding.

My wedding.

I looked up and my tears were still falling but the hysteria slowly changed into something else.

I remembered Dravos telling me to know my place. Now I will show him his place in my life. I will make sure Alpha Dravos knows how he has hurt me.

My hands slowly curled into fists.

I was done.

I wasn't going to let the luna and her son control me anymore. I wasn't going to stand at that altar and pretend I didn't know about his infidelity. And I certainly wasn't going to beg Dravos to choose me.

I stood up and wiped my tears then walked towards my wedding gown placed in the room. The beautiful white dress hung beside the wardrobe.

I'd spent months choosing it, imagining Dravos seeing me in it, his eyes filled with love.

Now I only saw a lie.

I grabbed a pair of scissors and made the first cut through the fabric. The long skirt fell apart from my thighs, I didn't stop until the gown became short.

“There won’t be any wedding today, Dravos. I will celebrate my freedom!” I grinned and looked around to add bolder colours. I found a black ribbon tied around curtains, I grabbed it and made a belt out of it.

Then I braided my hair and tucked matching white lilies flowers in it. I stared at myself in the mirror, my eyes were swollen and my face was pale. After I was done putting on a darker shade of grey on my eyes and painting my lips in maroon, I didn't look like a heartbroken bride anymore.

I looked like a woman who had finally woken up.

My wolf's eyes glowed faintly beneath mine. “Let's go,” I whispered.

When I entered the wedding hall, conversations died instantly. Hundreds of eyes turned toward me in gasps.

Everyone had gathered to watch me marry Alpha Dravos. Instead, they watched me walk in wearing a short wedding gown.

Whispers erupted.

“Is that her wedding dress?”

“She cut it?”

“What happened?”

“Where is Alpha Dravos?”

I walked straight down the altar, my heart was pounding. Every whisper felt like a mock but I didn't lower my head. I reached the front and turned toward the crowd.

“Thank you all for coming here.” I inhaled. “Today isn't my wedding day.” My voice grew stronger. “It's my celebration day.”

Gasps spread through the hall.

“I am celebrating the end of a marriage that never deserved to begin.”

Someone whispered my name.

Someone else asked what had happened.

Then Luna stormed toward me, her face turning red. “Nyxra!” She grabbed my arm. “What are you doing?”

I pulled my arm away. “I'm leaving the pack and dissolving this event’s purpose. What else?”

“You don't get to humiliate my son like this!”

Her voice rose.

My eyes glowed. “I didn't humiliate him.” I stared directly at her. “Your son humiliated himself. Do you even know why he’s not here?”

Her expression twisted.

“I don’t care why you two have fought now. But if you want Dravos back, then apologize properly. Your family will need to add another twenty thousand dollars to the wedding gift.”

I almost laughed.

She continued coldly. “Otherwise, forget about Dravos forgiving you for humiliating him in his absence.”

I stared at her.

I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

“I think you didn’t hear me properly, I'm not marrying Alpha Dravos. And I'm leaving this pack today.”

The hall erupted.

“What?”

“She’s leaving?”

“Where will she go?”

I didn't care. “There is no point in adding another twenty thousand dollars to a wedding that isn't happening.”

The Luna opened her mouth to rebuke me. But before she could speak, the hall doors suddenly opened.

Dravos walked in.

My heart stopped.

He looked perfectly composed, his gaze found me. A smile immediately appeared on his lips. He walked toward me. “Nyxra.” Before I could react, he leaned down and kissed my cheek. “Sorry I'm late.”

My stomach twisted.

The audacity.

My wolf snarled so violently that my head almost exploded. I pushed him slightly away.

Dravos frowned.

“What happened, love?”

I stared into the eyes of the man who had spent a year betraying me. The man who had left me crying while he ran to another woman.

I smiled.

“I know where you were, Dravos. I know why you’re late. Let’s not push this act further.”

His expression changed.

And for the first time, I didn't feel afraid of losing him.

I felt relieved.

Because I had finally stopped losing myself for him.