The ballroom erupted in applause.

Crystal chandeliers cast golden light over hundreds of elegantly dressed guests, while cameras flashed from every direction. Every smile in the room was fixed on the couple standing proudly at the center of the stage.

Selene Hart stood frozen.

Her fingers tightened around the silver tray she carried, the champagne glasses trembling so violently that she feared they would slip from her grasp.

“…I have waited for this day for a long time.”

The familiar voice echoed through the microphone.

Her heart stopped.

Slowly, almost unwillingly, she lifted her eyes toward the stage.

Derek Lawson.

The man she had loved for four years.

The man who had promised to build a future with her.

The man who had sworn that once he secured his position in the Lawson Group, he would return for her.

He wasn’t looking at Selene.

Instead, he reached for another woman’s hand.

“I would like everyone to meet my fiancée,” Derek announced with a proud smile. “The future Mrs. Lawson.”

Thunderous applause filled the ballroom.

The woman beside him leaned into his embrace, her diamond ring sparkling beneath the lights.

She was beautiful.

Elegant.

Confident.

And wearing the smile of someone who had already won.

Selene felt every heartbeat shatter inside her chest.

“No…”

The word escaped as nothing more than a whisper.

One of the waiters nudged her impatiently.

“Move.”

She couldn’t.

Her feet refused to obey.

The woman on stage suddenly turned.

Their eyes met.

Recognition flashed across the woman’s face before a slow smile curved her lips.

A victorious smile.

Then Derek looked over as well.

For a fraction of a second…

His expression changed.

Shock.

Guilt.

Then nothing.

His face returned to its usual calm indifference, as though Selene had never existed.

“As everyone knows,” he continued into the microphone, “our engagement will unite two powerful families.”

Every word stabbed deeper than the last.

Powerful families.

So that was the reason.

Not love.

Not promises.

Not forever.

Money.

Status.

Power.

She lowered her head, desperately willing herself not to cry.

Four years.

Four years of believing every promise.

Four years of sacrificing everything she had to help him chase his dreams.

Four years reduced to a single announcement.

Someone deliberately bumped into her shoulder.

The tray slipped.

Crash!

Champagne glasses exploded across the polished marble floor.

The music stopped.

Every head turned.

Silence spread through the ballroom.

Selene’s cheeks burned.

“I’m… I’m sorry.”

Before she could kneel to clean the broken glass, the hotel manager stormed toward her.

“What have you done?”

“I didn’t mean—”

“Do you know how expensive those crystal glasses are?”

“I’ll pay for them.”

“You?” he sneered. “With what?”

Laughter rippled through several guests.

Selene bit her lip until she tasted blood.

Then another voice interrupted.

“It’s only a few glasses.”

Derek.

For one impossible moment, hope flickered inside her.

Perhaps he remembered.

Perhaps he would explain.

Perhaps—

“But she’s no longer our concern.”

The hope died instantly.

He didn’t even look at her.

Instead, he wrapped an arm around his fiancée’s waist.

“Have someone remove her.”

Those four words were colder than winter.

Two security guards approached.

One grabbed her arm.

“Miss, please leave.”

“I can walk.”

They ignored her.

Humiliation burned through every vein as they escorted her across the ballroom.

Guests whispered.

Some laughed.

Others recorded everything with their phones.

No one stopped them.

The massive doors closed behind her.

The applause inside resumed as though nothing had happened.

Selene stood alone beneath the night sky.

Her breathing became uneven.

She looked down at the small silver necklace resting against her chest.

It was the only thing her late mother had left her.

“Never take it off,” her mother had once whispered. “One day… it will lead you home.”

Home?

She had never understood those words.

Now…

Crack.

A strange sound came from the pendant.

A thin silver line spread across its surface.

Then…

A blinding beam of moonlight shot into the sky.

The air trembled.

The ground beneath her feet shook violently.

Far beyond the city…

Deep inside an ancient forest…

A pair of glowing silver eyes snapped open.

A deep, commanding voice echoed through the darkness.

“I’ve finally found you…”