Daphne’s intended mate, Hunter, kissed her with his lips, but not the way he kissed Jade. His kiss with Daphne had always been careful, light, respectful. She had mistaken his indifference for politeness, convincing herself that affection would grow between them. Their union was strategic, a marriage to unite two packs and secure survival for hers, especially now that her sister Diana, the true Alpha, lay trapped in a mysterious coma that no healer could explain.
Daphne needed Hunter. She couldn’t afford to refuse him. She had been relieved to feel an attraction develop, perhaps even affection. She certainly wouldn’t be crying right now if she felt nothing for him.
But it had all been a lie. Just a day before their mating ceremony, Hunter had kissed her goodnight, pressing her against the door, whispering that he would make her his. His lies had kept her warm. So when sleep eluded her, restless with nerves, Daphne went to find him.
He was awake. He just wasn’t waiting for her. He was moaning Jade’s name, gripping the other woman tightly. He didn’t even notice Daphne enter the room.
The worst part was that this wasn’t the first time. The first time had been weeks into his courting, when she’d caught him holding Jade, nose buried in her neck. Jade, a stunning beauty from his pack, was just a friend going through a rough time, he’d claimed. He swore it was over.
Daphne had turned a blind eye for the sake of the union everyone praised. Then she caught them again, Jade planted firmly on Hunter’s lap. And a third time. And a fourth.
Now, hours from the ceremony, he made no effort to stop when their eyes met. He didn’t care if she watched anymore. The truth hit her like a slap. She’d been a fool.
Hunter needed her pack, not her. In the quiet hours of the morning, Daphne confessed Hunter’s betrayal to her childhood friend Laura as if she were the one who had strayed. “You’re a fool if you think he’s ever going to stop sleeping around,” Laura said. “He’s an Alpha.
Women will always long for him, and no one has ever told him there was anything wrong with enjoying that. ”
“So I should leave him? ” Daphne asked. Laura laughed.
“Oh no, honey. Why would you deny him? He’ll be good for the pack. Besides, you can’t refuse an Alpha.
They refuse you, not the other way around. And you’ll see, he’s very good in bed. ”
In the bridal chamber, Jade brushed Daphne’s hair, carrying Hunter’s scent on her skin. Jade sighed, placing a hand on her abdomen.
“In my current state, I need plenty of rest. Pregnancy really takes it out of you. ”
Daphne’s heart raced. “I suppose Hunter’s the father.
”
Jade’s posture became defensive. “We didn’t mean for it to happen. You know how men are. ”
Daphne furrowed her brow.
“Are you saying you didn’t want it? ”
Jade slapped her. Daphne barely reacted in time to stop the second attempt, twisting Jade’s wrist. “How dare you imply that it isn’t an honor to serve my Alpha!
Of course I was willing! ”
Hunter entered. Jade clung to him, weeping that Daphne attacked her. Daphne remained calm.
“Congratulations on the pregnancy,” she told him. “You must be excited. ”
After Jade left, Hunter tried to soothe her. “Look, don’t worry about it.
Jade’s child will obviously not be my Heir. ”
“You said things were over between you two. ”
“They were, for a time. But you can’t expect me to remain celibate before we start sleeping together.
”
“And you can’t expect me to believe this affair will end once we do. ”
“I’m an Alpha, Daphne. I have certain needs. Trust me, you’ll be begging me to visit someone else’s bed just for a moment of peace.
”
“Fine. So you’re suggesting an open relationship. ”
When Daphne asked for the same liberty, Hunter slammed his fist on the table. “You will never be touched by another man.
Do I make myself clear? ”
At the ceremony, Daphne swore fidelity, grinding her teeth. Hunter was handsome, the perfect Alpha. She told herself this was for the good of the pack.
But when his teeth grazed her neck to give the mating bite, she couldn’t help it. She jumped away. “Wait,” she said, ignoring the gasps. “I need a moment.
”
She fled inside the reception house, her resolve crumbling. Her grandmother’s old advice echoed in her mind: trust your intuition. Diana had always been wary of Hunter, had rejected him even before her illness. Hunter had initially courted Diana, and it was after her rejection that she had fallen ill so mysteriously.
Outside her room, Hunter’s voice boomed angrily, mixed with Jade’s plaintive tone. Something within Daphne beckoned her to follow it. She climbed the stairs and heard them. “Why did you have to tell her about the baby?
” Hunter growled. “I told you, I thought she knew. Liar. You couldn’t wait until after I made it with her.
”
“We need this pack. They’re weak, we could have easily taken them by force, but you had to go and try to get with the sister. ”
“So this is about Diana then? You were obsessed with Diana.
Is that why you poisoned her? ”
Daphne’s heart stopped. Poisoned. “I want her pack, I want you.
Best of both worlds,” Jade replied. Daphne burst back into her room, shifted into her bird form, and threw herself out the window, flying towards the skies. An arrow pierced her wing. Another whizzed past.
She crashed into the forest floor, torn and bleeding, as footsteps approached. Daphne’s consciousness returned slowly in the softest bed she had ever felt. She was in a breathtakingly beautiful bedroom, bathed in eternal golden light. There was a pond, a waterfall, books, and a shimmering silver gown laid out for her.
Looking out the window, she saw a vast, sublime castle stretching before her, an architectural marvel of spires and turrets. She had never heard of such a place. She had died, perhaps, and traveled to the world beyond. But when she touched a perfect, beautiful rose, it had no scent.
And the gown disappeared, replaced by a t-shirt and jeans. Hunter, meanwhile, was furious. He hadn’t expected Daphne to get away. He had courted Diana first, seduced by her quiet strength and the desire to make her beg.
But she had refused him, claimed she wanted no mate at all. Then she’d fallen ill, and Hunter had discovered Jade was behind it. By then, he’d moved on to Daphne, the next best thing—Diana’s pack. Now Daphne was gone, and the thrill of the hunt excited him.
She would be his no matter what it took. Daphne wandered the corridors of the castle, trying to find an exit. The light never changed, stuck in an eternal dusk. She was hungry, and as soon as she thought it, she found a grand dining hall laden with food.
The food was delicious, but the hall was silent. She savored the solitude she’d never known. She kept telling herself it was time to go, but she found the castle enraptured her. Then she found a mirrored corridor, and in one mirror, she saw Hunter.
“I want her found! Search every acre of the forest. Bring me back Daphne at once! ”
Then, behind her, in another mirror, she saw Diana.
“Sister! How are you here? ”
Diana smiled. “Never better.
You are safe here in this palace. ”
“But what about you, sister? I’d miss you here. ”
“Why, we’re together now, aren’t we?
”
A large hand covered Daphne’s mouth before the vision faded, and she was pulled back into someone’s arms. A deep male voice whispered against her ear, compelling her to walk forward, to obey. “I’m taking you outside of the castle. I should have done so much sooner, but I didn’t think it would enthrall you so quickly.
”
“Are you the one who brought me here? ”
“Yes. You were injured. I thought it best.
I am sorry for shooting you. I was hunting for food; I didn’t know you were a shifter. I haven’t seen one in years. ”
The man explained the food in the castle was only an enchantment, an illusion that wouldn’t sustain her.
He gave her a pack of leftover meat. “Can I stay here a little while longer? ”
“That’s impossible. It’s not safe here.
”
“It’s not safe out there either. There are people who are after me. ”
“This is for your own good. I’m sorry you were ever here.
”
He compelled her to walk out of the gates for ten minutes without turning around. When she finally stopped, she turned. The castle was gone, vanished into thin air, leaving her in a part of the forest barely an hour north of her pack’s territory. Daphne wandered through the woods, confused.
She tried to retrace her steps, but the castle was nowhere to be seen. Only the pack of meat in her hand proved it had ever been real. A twig snapped. Hunter stood before her in wolf form, with at least two of his men closing in.
“I just want to talk,” he said, shifting back. “Is that why you have come accompanied? ”
Then a familiar voice echoed from behind her. Her father.
Her father, who could shift into a bird and had been sent to retrieve her. “You ran away from your own mating ceremony. We’ve come to take you home,” her father said. “If I don’t want to go home?
”
“Don’t be ridiculous. You’re a shifter. You belong with your people. ”
“Do you even care what I want?
”
“You’re the beta of your pack, the last remaining heir to your Alpha. This isn’t like you,” Hunter said. “What could have possessed you to leave during the most important event of your entire life? ”
“Is that why you got another girl pregnant?
To make me happy? ”
“Daphne, Hunter is an Alpha male,” her father said. “You cannot expect him to save himself for one woman. ”
“Are you so afraid of him that you are willing to bend to everything he says?
” Daphne pointed at Hunter. Her father grimaced. “We need him. More than you know.
”
“Diana didn’t think so. ”
“Enough,” Hunter stepped towards her. “You promised yourself to me. You’re mine.
”
He planned to force the mating bite on her, right here. Daphne backed against a tree, and his grin widened. He was enjoying this, her fear, the chase. “Freeze,” a voice said.
It was the castle owner. Daphne found herself unable to move as his command washed over her. Hunter’s eyes went wide. “Who’s there?
Show yourself! ”
“Bold of you to assume you could bear looking at me, shifter. But I wouldn’t afflict it upon you, despite how despicable I find you to be. Close your eyes, all of you.
”
Icy cold fingers wrapped around Daphne’s. “Come with me,” the man said. “The rest of you, keep still until the sun rises. ”
“If you think for one second I’m going to let you get away with this, you’re a fool,” Hunter growled.
“Daphne’s my mate to be. I’ll make sure you regret taking what’s mine. ”
” You can try,” the man replied without a trace of concern. The man led her away.
His name was Gray. He was the one who’d shot her by accident. He told her the castle was created by a powerful magician who drew his magic from a demon. “It’s a magical castle.
If you insist on hiding away there, we’ll need to come up with a plan to ensure your safety. It will thrive to make you content, but too much comfort isn’t always a good thing. This place isn’t Freedom, Daphne. It’s the illusion of Freedom.
”
“Why is it so dangerous? ”
“I paid a hefty price for my castle. ”
He agreed to let her stay, but only on a strict system. She could roam the castle freely during the day while he hid in his room.
At night, when she slept, he went about his day. He gave her a small golden watch so she could track time. “Everyone who looks upon my face becomes cursed,” he warned her. “One look has doomed more than enough unfortunate victims.
So whatever happens, we need to ensure you never accidentally catch even a tiny glimpse of my face. ”
Daphne followed his instructions, exploring, hunting, planting vegetables in the back gardens. One day, she sketched the castle as seen from above. The next day, she found a note beside it: *Is that what the place looks like from the skies?
*
A correspondence began. She drew more, and he left notes. Their friendship grew in the margins. Meanwhile, in the pack house, Hunter laid his groundwork.
He painted Daphne as the villain, claiming she had tried to harm Jade and her unborn child, and had poisoned her own sister, Diana. “She must be found, she must be stopped! Who is with me? ”
The crowd cheered.
Daphne’s father cheered too, though a little more reluctantly. In the castle, Daphne saw it all in the mirrors. She saw her pack turn against her. She retreated to her room, unable to eat, unable to move, drowning in despair.
Gray left food beside her door, but she didn’t touch it. One day, she woke to a blindfold tied around her face. “I would draw you something,” Gray’s voice came from beside her, “but I’m not very good at it. You’ll wither away if you don’t eat.
How about we play a game of Truth? I’ll tell you a story, and by the end, you’ll tell me if it’s real or not. If you guess wrong, you’ll have to eat a bite of food. ”
He told her stories, real or fictional, to coax her into eating.
Then his stories became more personal. “I once knew a man of noble birth, a count, who resided in a distant, isolated castle… he had a way of bending others to his will… Was the man a vampire?
”
“Yes. ”
“Was that man Dracula? ”
“That man was my father. ”
His father was a vampire.
Gray himself was a vampire. Daphne kept the thought to herself. Gray’s stories saved her. She began to live again.
She trusted him. Then, one day, Gray’s friend Adrien the magician arrived at the castle, his assistant secretly trailing him. Daphne had decided she had to retrieve her sister, Diana, to wake her from the coma. Adrien explained that the poison had to be administered daily to keep working.
If she could get Diana away from whoever was feeding her the poison, she would wake up. “I can’t accompany you,” Gray said, sounding sad. “My curse… I can’t risk inflicting it upon you, especially.
I can’t come along when you won’t be blindfolded. ”
The plan was set. Daphne snuck back into the pack house, shifted into her bird form, and carried her unconscious sister out. The world outside the castle felt harsh, dull, and lifeless compared to the warmth and light she’d known.
Gray waited for them by the agreed-upon tree, blindfolding both sisters. He carried Diana effortlessly. Back inside the castle, Daphne felt an overwhelming sense of relief and gratitude. But then, a voice boomed across the room.
“So this is where you’ve been hiding all this time, Daphne. ”
Hunter. He had followed them. He’d realized Daphne would return for Diana.
“Stay where you are,” Gray commanded. “I don’t think so,” Hunter smirked. “Not so confident now without your mind control ability? Do you want to know why it doesn’t affect me anymore?
”
The room exploded with violence. Daphne heard the sickening sounds of the fight through her blindfold. Hunter confessed he’d made a wish to Adrien, a wish for the means to kill Gray. He’d lost his title, his power, everything, because of Gray.
“I wished for the means to kill you once and for all, you undead freak! When I touch your face with this gemstone, it’s all over! ”
There was a sound of fabric being ripped, thrown across the room. And then silence.
Unable to take it, Daphne ripped off her blindfold. Gray’s back was to her. Hunter was staring directly into Gray’s exposed face, his expression frozen. Diana awoke a short while later.
Hunter was already professing his undying love for Gray, begging for his affection, completely overwhelmed by the curse. Gray was wracked with guilt and regret. They dragged Hunter back to the pack house, where they found his pack had been taken over by Jade. She agreed to a truce, but the victory felt hollow.
Diana insisted Daphne stay, but Daphne couldn’t. She couldn’t imagine a life away from Gray. Diana begrudgingly let her go. Two weeks later, Daphne waited for Gray at their meeting tree, ready to tell him she loved him.
But Gray never showed. Desperate, Daphne realized that since the castle was made of magic, she could make a wish to find it. She went to Adrien’s store. “I want to be able to find Gray,” she said.
“I gave you the power to locate Gray at any time,” Adrien said grimly. “Though for granting you this wish, I’ll be taking back the castle you love so much. You need to find Gray and get him out now, otherwise he’ll disappear along with his home to some place no one will ever be able to reach him. ”
Daphne shifted and flew.
The castle was disintegrating, crumbling into particles of color that floated away into the darkness. She found him in the room of mirrors, surrounded by floating, shattered glass. She saw him, and he immediately covered his face. “It’s too late, I already saw you,” she said, grabbing his wrists.
“It will be fine because I already love you. ”
“If your love for him is true,” Adrien had told her, “you’ll be spared the curse. Only someone truly in love can stand to look at Gray and not fall prey to his power. ”
“It’s all my fault,” Daphne confessed.
“I made a wish to find you. The price was the castle. ”
“You made a wish just to be able to find me? ”
“I thought I’d never get to see you again.
Please, let’s get out of here. We can find a new dream. ”
“I can’t. My curse…
”
“I think I found a solution for that. Diana entrusted me with a secret. Apparently, if you drink enough of my blood, you’ll lose your vampiric powers and become mortal. Without your powers, there is no curse.
”
“How can we be happy in a world full of liars? ” Gray asked slowly. “Sometimes it’s better to be alone. ”
Daphne threw her arms around him, burying her face in his chest.
“You’re not alone. You have me now. ”
Epilogue
“Do you think we’ll ever see them again? ” Iris, Adrien’s assistant, asked.
“I don’t know. Gray could have left that place at any time, but he never chose to. I don’t think he even knows how to live outside that castle anymore,” Adrien said. “It isn’t your fault.
He chose to make his wish. ”
“You’re ridiculously optimistic. ”
“All I’m saying is that it all gets easier with someone by your side. ”
“Well, prepare yourself a blindfold, then.
If they do come back, Gray will still be a vampire for a while. It would be a shame for you to get cursed now, wouldn’t it? “
