Evelyn's PoV

I stared at myself in the full-length mirror, feeling the corners of my lips and cheeks ache from smiling like an idiot.

"Tomorrow I will be Mrs. Adrian Leland," I said in a barely a whisper. My happiness was overflowing.

After five years with Adrian, the day had finally come when he and I would be united in the wedding I had dreamed of.

I was a little nervous, because, after all, Adrian and I came from different worlds.

Adrian was a werewolf, and not only that, he was the prime Delta candidate of the Moonveil pack.

I was a mere human, but somehow, I turned out to be his destined partner.

I stared at the ring on my ring finger, smiling broadly at the sparkle of the diamond on the stem.

It was no secret that many considered marriage between a human and a werewolf difficult, even though it was already commonplace in this day and age.

After all, the Moonveil pack was one of the oldest packs in the world, with its tightly held rules, traditions, and hierarchy.

However, I trusted Adrian and the love that had bound us for five years to make things easier.

"Eve, if you keep smiling like that, your lips and cheeks will cramp tomorrow."

I turned and saw Marla standing in the bedroom doorway with a glass of white wine in her hand.

Her short, perfectly straight black hair was now a little messy, and she was wearing butter yellow pajama.

I laughed in response.

"I'm happy, Marla. I'm getting married!"

Marla sighed, as if bored. "I know, honey. You don't have to keep saying it every second and making me feel even more frustrated as a single person."

"It feels like a dream," I said, pulling her hand away, bringing her to sit beside me on the bed.

"Then you'd better go to sleep now. Or tomorrow, you'll fall asleep at your wedding and actually have a dream. A nightmare," Marla said, patting my thigh.

I shook my head. "I can't sleep."

"Why?" Marla asked. "Too tense?"

"I miss my groom," I chuckled.

"You'll see him tomorrow," Marla said, clicking her tongue.

"Ridiculous, I can't even see him tonight? Uh, what year is it?" I muttered irritably.

Marla rolled her eyes. "It's Moonveil pack tradition. You have to respect it. You're marrying a werewolf of great standing."

"That's a tradition that isn't bride-friendly," I said stubbornly. "Who still has the rule that the bride and groom must be separated the night before the wedding?"

"They are," Marla said. "Not only are you marrying Adrian, but you're also marrying into his family and pack. After all, human marriages like ours and werewolves are common, but the Moonveil pack isn't as open and welcoming as other packs, accepting humans as part of their own."

I swallowed. I knew Marla was right, but I didn't want to think about it tonight.

I stood up and reached for my cream-colored wedding dress with gold beading in a floral pattern, which was hanging near the closet.

"Adrian is my destined mate," I said quietly, mostly to myself. "The bond is sacred to werewolves. They will accept me."

"I hope so," Marla said after a moment of silence. I caught a hint of doubt in my cousin's voice. "I still don't even understand why they have to separate their statuses into Alpha, Beta, Omega, Delta, and Gamma. Tsk!"

I sat down next to Marla again and took her hand. "Don't worry, Marla. I'll quickly learn to adapt. Besides, isn't this good for me? I used to be just a low-paid kindergarten teacher with a sick mother. At least with this marriage, I won't have to worry so much about hospital bills anymore.

Marla looked at me, then smiled and raised her glass. "Although your convictions make me afraid, I toast to you, my beloved cousin, who will be the most beautiful and sexiest bride tomorrow."

With that, Marla returned to her room. She'd had more than two drinks and was feeling a little high now, so she decided to go to bed early.

I glanced at the clock and decided to double-check my preparations for tomorrow before going to bed.

I hummed a tune as I checked, then was stunned to see the tie clip Adrian would be wearing tomorrow sitting at the bottom of my handbag.

I'd bought the tie clip as a gift for Adrian after he proposed and put a ring on my finger three months earlier.

Adrian had said he wanted to wear it on our wedding day.

I picked up my phone and called Adrian's cell phone, but it was switched off. Then, I checked his social media and saw a photo of him holding a golf club, posted an hour ago.

He was with his friends at the golf club. The caption on the photo made me smile.

"Tomorrow I'll be part of the not-single-guys group at this club."

I considered it for a moment, then decided to go to Adrian's house, which happened to be not too far from Marla's.

I need to deliver this tie clip to him so he doesn't get confused and upset because his appearance isn't perfect.

Ten minutes at most, and then I'll return to Marla's place.

There's nothing wrong with that, although Adrian insisted I stay at Marla's tonight, to uphold pack tradition.

He said that as a potential prime Delta, he must maintain a good image, and as his partner, I must also learn to understand all the pack's rules and traditions.

Adrian's residence seemed quieter than usual. I entered using the access I'd been granted long ago.

One of the maids greeted me, looking a little surprised.

"Ms. Evelyn?"

"Hi, Lena," I greeted the maid. "I'm just delivering something for Adrian."

"You shouldn't be here," Lena said quietly.

I picked up the tie clip. "He needs this tomorrow. Don't worry, I won't be long."

Lena nodded with a smile.

"But, Mr. Adrian not at home."

"I know. He's with his friends at the golf club," I replied. "I'll just put this in his study and then come back."

I walked toward Adrian's study.

But before I got there, I heard a voice coming from the back hallway.

Two senior servants were talking.

I didn't intend to listen. I almost passed them, until one of them called my name.

"Is Miss Evelyn here?"

I stopped.

"Does she still not know about Mr. Adrian and—?"

"Shhh, don't continue. It's dangerous."

There was a deep sigh. "She's marrying Mr. Adrian tomorrow. I feel sorry for her."

I stood behind the wall, my heart starting to beat faster. What was this about?

"Don't interfere. We're just servants. Anyway, what Mr. Adrian does is none of our business."

"I don't understand why Mr. Adrian would do such a thing, and Ms. Evelyn never even knew. She'll be standing at the altar tomorrow without knowing she was being used."

I gripped the tie clip in my hand. The metal tip pressed into my palm, but I barely felt the pain.

I unconsciously stepped a little closer.

"If it weren't for Ms. Sarah..." the voice trembled.

For a moment, it felt like my heart stopped beating.

Sarah? Sarah McDermont?

She's Adrian's best friend and will be my bridesmaid tomorrow.

I felt my palms grow cold. The name Sarah and the way the maids spoke of her made me insecure.

"What happened to Sarah?" I stepped out from behind the wall and asked bluntly.

The two maids gasped in surprise.

"Miss Evelyn..." one of them greeted nervously.

"What were you talking about?" I asked in a low voice.

"N-nothing, Ms. Evelyn. We were just discussing Ms. Sarah's recipe," the second maid replied.

I looked at them in turn. "I heard everything you said. Are you saying I was just being used? What is it?"

No one answered.

"What really happened?" I asked again, in a softer voice. They might give in and explain if I coax them. "What happened to Adrian?"

"Miss, we didn't—"

"Come on. I'm marrying him tomorrow, but you look like you've just been talking about my death."

The maids' faces grew paler, and they both bowed their heads deeply.

I waited. They didn't budge. They wouldn't answer me.

Finally, I nodded. "Very well. Now I'm going to Adrian's study to put this tie clip away. If you won't answer me, then you'll have to keep quiet while I find out for myself what truth I need to know based on what I just heard."

I turned around. Curiosity had already taken hold, and I couldn't just leave.

Adrian's study was at the end of the hall. For some reason, I felt like I could find my answer there.

I stood in front of the door. Hesitated. Adrian's words rang in my ears.

"This is my private room. Where I work and handle confidential matters. You're not allowed in without my permission."

I never objected, because I respected his personal space. After all, he was someone the pack relied on, so he must have a lot of secrets about the pack.

But tonight, I didn't care about that anymore.

I opened the door. The room was dark. I turned on the light and looked around the fairly large room.

Everything seemed normal. There was a clean walnut table in the west corner with several stacks of books and documents on it. The table was adjacent to a large bookshelf with neatly arranged rows of books.

In the center of the room was a leather sofa set with plush cushions.

Nothing looked suspicious.

I almost felt ashamed of myself. Maybe I'd heard wrong.

Maybe Sarah was just involved in something completely unrelated to me.

I put the tie clip on the table. Then, as I was about to turn away, my eyes fell on a photo tucked under some documents.

I pulled the photo out and was stunned.

It was Adrian. Standing imposingly, wearing a navy suit, smiling at the camera.

Beside him stood Sarah, her shoulder pressed against Adrian's, wearing an evening gown the same color as his suit.

In front of them stood a young boy, also wearing a navy blue suit. The boy was holding Sarah's hand.

However, my attention was more focused on Adrian, who had one hand on the boy's shoulder and the other on Sarah's waist.

Anyone would immediately know it was a family photo. With the matching navy blue dress code and the obvious affection.

My hands trembled as I flipped through the photo, but there was no caption.

The words of one of the maids rang in my ears: "If it weren't for Ms. Sarah..."

I gritted my teeth and opened the desk drawer.

There was nothing in the first drawer, just some stationery. The second drawer contained business documents.

However, the third drawer was locked.

My heart began to beat faster. I rummaged around the desk and found a small key under a book in the first drawer.

I wasn't sure, but my hand instinctively reached for the key, inserted it into the lock of the third drawer, and turned it.

Click.

The drawer opened.

Inside was a black folder.

The white writing on the front made my throat tighten. PRIVATE.

I hesitated for a moment. Wasn't it time for me to close and lock the drawer again and leave?

But I took the folder and opened it with full awareness.

There were many photos inside.

My eyes began to burn as I looked through them one by one.

Adrian and Sarah, in various places, posed very affectionately. Hugging, kissing, laughing together for the camera.

The beach, a ski resort, beside a Christmas tree, in front of a villa, on the sofa in the living room of this house, and...

The hospital?

Sarah was in bed, pale but smiling sweetly at Adrian, who was holding a baby wrapped in a blue blanket.

Adrian's eyes were puffy as if he had been crying, staring at the baby in his arms.

I stared at all the photos. My mind went blank.

"No..." I whispered hoarsely, my throat tight. "This isn't true..."

I opened the bottom of the folder and saw a report card from a renowned kindergarten.

My vision blurred when I saw the child's photo on the first page and his name, beautifully written as...

William Leland Jr.