Chapter 7 : The Wedding Night
The ride to Nightfang Estate stretched on in suffocating silence.
Rain hammered against the car windows. Derek sat as far from Amanda as the seat would allow. He stared out into the darkness like she didn't exist.
Amanda watched the landscape blur past. Trees. Fields. The occasional glimpse of a house with warm lights in the windows.
She was leaving everything behind.
Not that she would miss much. Not her mother's cold disappointment. Not her sister's cruelty. Not the house where she had always been invisible.
But still. It was familiar pain.
Now she was heading toward something new. Unknown territory. Unknown pain.
The car turned onto a long private driveway. Trees formed a dark canopy overhead. Their branches reached across like skeletal fingers.
Then the estate came into view.
Even through the rain, it was impressive. A sprawling stone mansion with tall windows. Warm light spilled from inside. It looked almost welcoming.
Almost.
The car stopped at the front entrance.
Derek got out immediately. He didn't wait for her. He didn't even look back.
A servant rushed forward with an umbrella, but Derek waved him off. He strode toward the door, getting soaked.
Amanda climbed out more carefully. Her wedding dress was heavy. By the time she reached the covered entrance, the hem was wet and muddy.
Inside, more servants waited. They bowed to Derek. Then to her. Their eyes were curious but guarded.
The new Luna. The one nobody expected.
"Mrs. Hallowell will show you to your room," Derek said. His voice was flat. Empty.
He was already walking away. Toward what looked like a study.
Your room. Not our room.
Amanda shouldn't have been surprised.
"This way, Luna," an older woman with kind eyes said gently.
Amanda followed her up a grand staircase. Down a long hallway lined with portraits of stern-faced Livingstons from generations past.
They stopped at a door near the end.
"Your chambers," Mrs. Hallowell said. She opened the door.
The room was beautiful. Large bed with soft linens. Elegant furniture. A fireplace already crackling with warmth. Windows overlooking dark gardens.
Someone had tried to make it welcoming.
But it wasn't Derek's room. That much was clear.
"Alpha heir Derek's chambers are just down the hall," Mrs. Hallowell said carefully. "If you need anything, ring the bell."
She left Amanda alone.
Amanda stood in the center of the room. Still in her wet wedding dress. Still wearing the veil that suddenly felt like a mockery.
She moved to remove it. Her hands shook as she pulled out the pins. The veil came free. She dropped it on a chair.
Then she started on the dress. The buttons were tiny. Difficult. Her fingers fumbled.
Finally, she managed to get it off. She left it in a heap on the floor. She changed into a simple nightgown that had been laid out on the bed.
She should unpack. She should settle in.
Instead, she sank onto the edge of the bed. She stared at the fire.
This was her wedding night.
She was alone.
A knock at the door made her look up.
"Come in," she called.
A young servant girl entered with a tray. "Mrs. Hallowell thought you might be hungry, Luna. You barely ate at the reception."
"Thank you," Amanda said softly.
The girl set the tray on a small table by the window. Soup. Bread. Tea.
"Is there anything else you need?"
"No. Thank you."
The girl curtsied and left.
Amanda looked at the food. Her stomach was empty, but she had no appetite.
She forced herself to eat a few bites of bread. To drink some tea.
Then she heard it. Footsteps in the hallway.
They stopped outside her door.
Amanda held her breath.
But the footsteps moved on. Toward the room Mrs. Hallowell had mentioned. Derek's chambers.
A door opened and closed.
That was it. He hadn't even checked on her.
Amanda set down her teacup. Her hands were steady now.
She wouldn't cry. She refused to cry over a man who didn't want her.
But she needed to understand where she stood.
She stood. She walked to the door. She opened it and stepped into the hallway.
Derek's door was just a few steps away.
She knocked before she could change her mind.
Silence.
Then, "What?"
His voice was sharp. Annoyed.
Amanda opened the door.
Derek stood near a small bar cart. He had removed his jacket and tie. His shirt was partially unbuttoned. He held a glass of amber liquid. Whiskey, probably.
He looked at her. His expression was cold. "What do you want?"
"I thought we should talk," Amanda said. She kept her voice steady.
"About what?"
"About this. Us. What happens now."
Derek took a long drink. "Nothing happens now. You have your room. I have mine. We live separate lives under the same roof. That's it."
"That's it?" Amanda repeated.
"What did you expect?" He poured himself more whiskey. "Let's be clear. This marriage is a political arrangement. Don't expect romance or companionship. Stay out of my way, and we'll get along fine."
The words hit like a slap.
Amanda's chest tightened. But she forced herself to stand straight. "I didn't ask for this either."
"No?" Derek's laugh was bitter. "You got an upgrade, didn't you? From invisible middle daughter to Luna of Nightfang. I'd say you came out ahead."
"And what did you get?" Amanda asked quietly.
His jaw clenched. "A reminder of my failure."
The words hung in the air between them.
Derek turned away. He drained his glass. "Go to bed, Amanda. We're done here."
She should leave. She should walk away.
But something in her refused to back down.
"You don't know anything about me," she said. Her voice was quiet but firm. "You've decided I'm weak. Useless. Not worth your time. But you're wrong."
Derek turned to face her. His gray eyes were cold. "Am I?"
"Yes."
"Then prove it." He set down his glass. "But not tonight. Tonight, I just want to be left alone."
It was a dismissal.
Amanda turned and walked out. She closed the door behind her.
She walked back to her room. Her legs felt shaky. Her chest ached.
But she didn't cry.
She closed her door. She locked it.
Then she crossed to the bed and sat down.
Her birthmark tingled beneath her nightgown. Warm. Insistent.
Amanda pressed her hand to it.
Derek saw her as nothing. Her family saw her as nothing.
But she knew the truth. She had the Curse-Breaker's mark. She had seen his wolf when no one else could.
She was not nothing.
Amanda lay back against the pillows. Exhaustion washed over her. The day had been long. Draining.
She pulled the blankets up. The fire crackled softly.
Her eyes grew heavy.
She would find a way through this. She wouldn't spend her life being invisible here too.
That was her last thought before sleep took her.
The dream came fast and vivid.
Amanda stood in a forest. Not just any forest. The Sacred Grove.
She recognized it from old pack stories. Ancient trees with silver bark. A clearing in the center where moonlight always seemed to shine, even on cloudy nights.
But something was wrong.
The air was thick. Heavy. It tasted of rot and decay.
In the center of the clearing stood a massive silver wolf.
Derek's wolf.
But chains wrapped around him. Not normal chains. These were made of darkness itself. They pulsed with sickly green light.
The wolf was in agony. He threw back his head and howled. The sound tore through Amanda's chest.
Her birthmark burned. Hot. Painful.
She tried to move toward him, but her feet were rooted to the ground.
The chains tightened. The wolf collapsed. His breathing was labored.
"Free me."
The voice wasn't spoken aloud. It was in her mind. Deep. Desperate.
The wolf's gray eyes locked on hers.
"Free me," he said again.
The chains pulsed brighter. The green light spread. It crawled up the wolf's legs like poison.
Amanda tried to scream. Tried to reach for him.
But the darkness was spreading. Consuming everything.
The wolf's eyes began to fade.
"Please," he whispered. "Free me."
Then everything went black.
Amanda woke with a gasp.
She sat up. Her heart pounded. Sweat dampened her nightgown.
The room was dark except for the dying embers in the fireplace.
She pressed her hand to her chest. Her birthmark still burned. Faint but insistent.
It was just a dream. Just a dream.
But it had felt so real.