Chapter 2 Shattered Dream

• Yvonne's POV:
• Three years ago, not long after Bryan saved me from certain death, my life took an unexpected turn.
• The patriarch of the Lockwood family, a man who had once been as strong as an oak, suddenly found himself on death's doorstep.
• His old wounds, inflicted during the brutal war with the witches two decades past, flared up with renewed fury. The Lockwoods, desperate to save their elder, scoured the realm for the finest werewolf healers, but none could undo the dark magic that had taken root in him.
• Only a witch with the gift of healing could save him, yet the Shadow Pack had severed all ties with the witches long ago.
• But fate had dealt me a strange hand—I carried my mother's witch blood and the healing powers that came with it.
• It wasn't long before the Lockwoods reached out to my family, the Johnstons, with a desperate plea. They offered to fulfill any request in exchange for my help in saving their patriarch.
• My father and stepmother, ever driven by greed, saw their chance and seized it. They not only demanded a fortune in gold but also insisted that Bryan marry me.
• I wanted to protest, but the words caught in my throat.
• In the Johnston household, I had no voice, no power. My opinions meant nothing.
• The Lockwoods, understandably hesitant at first, reluctantly agreed.
• Their desperation to save their elder overpowered their distaste for the arrangement.
• And so, with barely a word of farewell, I was whisked away to the Lockwood estate.
• After I had healed their patriarch, one of the Lockwood elders, still wearing a scowl, informed me that a mating ceremony would take place between Bryan and me in three days.
• That was when reality truly set in.
• Despite knowing I was nothing more than a pawn in the Johnstons' pursuit of wealth and power, I couldn't help but feel a flicker of hope.
• I had waited so long for this moment, and now it was within my grasp.
• In the werewolf world, a mating ceremony was the closest thing to a human wedding. It was a sacred bond, witnessed and blessed by the pack, that united two souls as mates.
• As Bryan was the Alpha of the Shadow Pack, I would also gain the title of Luna, a position revered by all.
• I had always imagined this day in vivid detail.
• The ceremony would be held in the Shadow Forest, as tradition demanded, with the entire pack gathered to celebrate.
• The air would be thick with joy and blessings as I took my place beside Bryan.
• But the reality was far from the dream I had cherished. There was no grand ceremony, no outpouring of blessings from the pack. The event didn't even take place in the Shadow Forest but was instead held in the Lockwoods' courtyard, open to the elements.
• No one outside the Lockwood family even knew that the Alpha of the Shadow Pack was to be mated that day.
• It felt as though I were some shadowy creature, forced to hide even in the moment that should have been the happiest of my life.
• My excitement crumbled, replaced by a cold, hollow feeling.
• I told myself that becoming Bryan's mate was all that mattered.
• I was only a half-blooded Omega, after all. The fact that I was being joined to Bryan at all was more than I had ever dared to hope for.
• So, I waited in that modest courtyard, surrounded by strangers, my heart clinging to the last shred of hope. I forced a smile, determined to make the best of the situation.
• But as the minutes ticked by and the ceremony time slipped away, Bryan finally appeared, his face as cold as the night.
• The first words he spoke cut through me like a blade. "Yvonne, understand this—if it weren't for my grandfather, I would never have chosen you as my mate. "
• You may have used every trick in the book, just like those despicable witches, to force me into marrying you, but I will never recognize you as my Luna! The only Luna of the Shadow Pack will be Whitney!
• Whitney Flynn was the daughter of the Blue Moon Pack' Alpha. When the Blue Moon Pack helped the Shadow Pack drive out the witches, the two packs forged an alliance.
• Whitney and Bryan grew up together, and it was no secret that Bryan had feelings for her.
• Everyone in both packs assumed Whitney would become their future Luna.
• For any female werewolf, marrying an Alpha but not being acknowledged as his Luna was a humiliation beyond words.
• But even then, I compromised.
• If I couldn't be Luna, so be it. At least I was Bryan's mate.
• After all, he was the man I had fallen for the moment I laid eyes on him.
• There was a saying in the human world, 'Love grows with time.' Maybe, I thought, if we spent enough time together, he might change his mind about me, might even come to care for me.
• I knew he hated witches and their magic, so after we were married, I hid all traces of my abilities, living as though I were just a normal human.
• For the past three years, I have tried my best to be a good mate.
• Every night, I cooked dinner myself, hoping that when Bryan returned from his duties with the pack, he would have a hot meal waiting.
• No matter how late he came home, I would always wait up, unable to sleep until he was safely back.
• When he drank too much while socializing with other pack members, I would take care of him, never letting anyone else do it.
• When he was injured defending the pack, I treated his wounds with the potions I crafted myself.
• Though Bryan never acknowledged me as his Luna, I still wanted to help him strengthen the pack.
• While developing healing potions, I also worked tirelessly on an antidote for wolfsbane. If I could perfect it, we'd be much better prepared when enemies used it against us ...
• But that research was challenging and would take time, with no immediate results.
• For now, I decided to set it aside, because today was special.
• I wanted to prepare a grand feast to celebrate.
• "Today is our third wedding anniversary. Come home early tonight; I'm making a candlelight dinner for us," I texted Bryan.
• Even as I sent the message, I clung to a fragile hope that he might return, that we could finally start living like a real couple.
• But as the evening wore on, my phone remained silent.
• I reheated the food on the table over and over.
• I sat alone at the dining table, watching the carefully prepared feast grow cold once more. With each passing minute, the tiny spark of hope I'd kept alive flickered and died.
• Late that night, Bryan still hadn't returned. Instead, I was met with a piece of news—Bryan and Whitney had been seen together in the Shadow Forest, presiding over the new year's mating ceremony.
• To preside over the mating ceremony was a privilege reserved only for the Alpha and his Luna.
• In that moment, all the lies I had been telling myself crumbled away.
• The harsh truth hit me like a blow.
• Everything I had done over the past three years, every sacrifice, every effort, was nothing more than a pathetic delusion.
• I could never catch his eye, never win even the smallest piece of his heart.
• His eyes and heart had always belonged to Whitney, and Whitney alone.
• In the news, Bryan held Whitney gently, his gaze full of tenderness and love.
• He wasn't incapable of love; he just reserved it for someone else.
• A tear fell onto the back of my hand with a soft pat.
• And with it, my heart died completely.