Chapter 6

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.

Kaelen did not look at me. He just stood there, cold and patient, like he had all the time in the world.

"I accept," I whispered.

The elder nodded. "Then it is done."

And just like that, I was married.

Wolves murmured among themselves. Some looked surprised, and others looked pleased. But no one cheered, and no one smiled.

Kaelen turned to me. "Come," he said.

He did not hold my hand this time. He just walked, and I followed.

The hallway was long and cold. Torches flickered in iron brackets along the walls, and guards stood at every corner, with their eyes following me as I passed. I kept my head down and my shoulders hunched, the same way I had walked through Cresswood for fifteen years.

Those were old habits I had adapted over the years, in other to be invisible and avoid the anger of Vivienne and Celeste.

Kaelen did not look back to see if I was following. He just walked, and I followed, because I did not know what else to do.

The room that was allocated to him was larger than any room I had ever been in, here in Cresswood.

A bed big enough for four people sat against the far wall. A fire burned in the hearth, casting orange light across the stone floor, and the walls were dark and cold, just like him.

A desk sat in the corner, covered in papers I could not read. A wardrobe stood against the opposite wall, taller than me. The fire crackled and popped, sending sparks up the chimney.

Everything in this room looked expensive. From the furs on the bed, to the silver candlesticks on the mantle, and the thick rug beneath my bare feet.

I had never stood on a rug before. It felt soft, like walking on clouds.

"There is a bath through that door," he said, pointing. "You may use it."

Then he left.

I stood alone in his room, wearing a white gown, and officially married to a stranger.

I should have been afraid. To be precise, I was afraid. But I was also tired. I was tired of hiding, of surviving, and I was tired of waiting for a mother who might never come back.

I walked to the bath.

I touched the water, but it was already warm. Obviously, someone had prepared it while we were at the ceremony.

I removed my gown and stepped into the tub. The heat wrapped around me like a blanket. I closed my eyes and let myself breathe.

My fingers touched the silver chain, and my mother's voice echoed in my head. “Never remove the glamour charm before your twentieth birthday.”

It was two more days until my birthday, and I could wait two more days, but the water was warm, and I was tired. I wanted to feel like myself again, even if it was just for a moment, without any weight pressing on my skin.

So I pulled the necklace over my head.

For the first time in fifteen years, I took off my mother's necklace in the spur of the moment.

I set it on the edge of the tub, and the silver chain caught the firelight and glowed.

I looked at my reflection in the water, and I saw the real me.

I stared back in shock at my real face.

The glamour charm had been hiding her for so long that I had almost forgotten what she looked like. I saw bright eyes, soft skin, and lips that were made for smiling, even though I had forgotten how.

I was beautiful.

I had always been beautiful.

I raised my hand and touched my cheek. My real cheek. The skin was soft, and smooth, unlike the rough, dull texture the glamour charm showed the world.

I traced my jawline, my lips, and the curve of my brow. This was my mother's face. She had given it to me, and she had hidden it to keep me safe.

I wondered if she would recognize me now.

What would my mother think if she saw me now? Married to an Alpha, bathing in warm water, and wearing a white gown that did not smell like potatoes and old wood.

She would probably laugh, or cry, or do both.

I pressed my palm flat against my chest, feeling my steady heartbeat. I was still here, and still alive. That was what mattered, and that was what she would want me to remember.

I wondered if she was watching me from wherever she was, and if she knew what had become of her daughter.

I hoped she was proud of me, she was safe, and I hoped she was still alive.

Because if she was not, then all of the hiding, the waiting, and the surviving was all for nothing.

So i needed her to be alive.

And now I also understood why my mother made me wear the charm. With this face, Celeste and Vivienne would have ended me a long time ago. They would not have just locked me in a storage room, they would have destroyed me completely.

Without the chain against my skin, I felt lighter, and freer.

I washed my hair, scrubbed my arms, and I let the water wash away the smell of Cresswood.

And then I heard a sound, like someone had knocked something over.