Chapter 2

"Be good, and I’ll come visit you often."

"Tomorrow is my wedding anniversary with Molly. She’s been begging me for a romantic trip."

"The wolves in this pack are all my people. They’ll take good care of you."

I stood there like a statue, giving him no response.

My mother's gentle smile flashed before my eyes.

She lived her life with grace. Even when she found out her husband was cheating.

She never took her anger out on Molly.

How could she be dead?

Did Aunt Leona know about this?

Thinking of that name, I closed my eyes.

A gust of wind blew outside the window, shaking loose leaves from the trees near the door.

I silently clenched my fists.

Leona would never have stood by and let my mother be mistreated.

Now that he had confessed, Adrian stopped wearing Dane’s rough clothes.

He changed into a sleek black trench coat.

Adrian had always been incredibly handsome.

A sharp nose, beautiful eyes.

Many girls had crushed on him.

In the past, every time he received a love letter, he would buy me ten gifts.

He used to say, "I will only love Elena in this lifetime. If someone else shows me affection once, I’ll treat Elena ten times better."

The last gift he gave me was a bush of red roses.

I stared at him blankly.

He straightened his collar and smiled at his glowing phone screen.

His wallpaper was his wedding photo with Molly.

She was wearing a custom-made wedding dress, sporting an exquisite brooch.

I remembered what he had told me once.

He said if we got married in the future, he would take me all over the world to take wedding photos.

He would put the necklace on me himself.

He would hold my hand and kiss me by the ocean.

Back then, I had blushed just imagining it.

The old me loved watching *Titanic*.

I would cry my eyes out over the beautiful, tragic love story.

Adrian had walked past, quickly wiping away my tears.

"Why do girls like this stuff so much?"

"Fine. On your eighteenth birthday, I’ll buy you the exact same necklace."

He hadn't forgotten that promise.

But the girl standing next to him wasn't me.

I glanced at the woman's wedding dress again.

I looked down at the rough, shapeless gray clothes I was wearing.

Here, I only had two cheap, ugly shirts.

Life was miserable.

My so-called husband only showed me a shred of warmth during the late nights when he held me tight.

Over the seven years, he would say he had pack missions and leave for two or three months.

But I never cared.

Because I never saw him as my husband.

In my eyes, he was just a kidnapper.

Until last month, I finally saw a familiar figure at the edge of the forest.

But Adrian wasn't here to rescue me.

He wanted me to stay here.

Kept like a caged animal for the rest of my life.

Playing the role of Dane for seven years must have been exhausting for him.

My heart ached in sharp, stabbing waves. I could barely breathe.

On the other end of his phone call, a child's excited voice rang out.

"Daddy! Mommy helped me decorate the playroom in the new house you bought me!"

"It's so pretty! Like a castle!"

"Mommy said you got me a dozen houses like this. Why do houses come in dozens?"

A woman's laugh echoed as she pushed the child away. "Go play, sweetie. I need to talk to your father."

Adrian had a deeply fond smile on his face as he spoke into the phone.

"Hey, baby. I'm coming home soon."

"Yeah, I know. You bought the outfits already? Miss me that much?"

"Then don't even think about sleeping tonight. Begging won't save you."

Turning around, he caught me watching him and froze for a second.

He quickly hung up, glanced at the sleeping child on the bed, and walked over.

He stroked my hair, his voice softening.

"I have to go. Take good care of the baby. He’s only two, he needs his mother."

He grabbed my hand and slid a ring onto my finger.

"If you want a wedding, we can have one next month."