Adriana held the wall for support, feeling like her world had come crashing down.

She couldn't deny what she had heard within this door.

Xavier was having an affair with her sister.

The realization hit harder than their words and her despair turned into rage.

How dare they?

How dare he deceive her and call what they had a convenience?

Adriana straightened and pushed the door open but what she saw made her chest wrench the more and Mia whined again.

Her sister was in Xavier's arms and his head was bent to her neck, nuzzling it.

Ashley was the first to notice her presence and she gasped. "Adriana."

Xavier stiffened and he slowly lifted his head and turned to face Adriana.

Adriana stared at them, feeling the tears threatening to pour but she held them in.

"Adriana..." Xavier stared back at her but his face held nothing Adriana was expecting.

No guilt. No shame.

Instead, he was staring at her as she had intruded on his special moment.

"What are you doing here?" His question made her stomach churn.

"That's what I should be asking you." Adriana's voice came out steady and controlled unlike what she was feeling inside.

"What's going on here Xavier? Why are you with my sister?"

Xavier's face set into a grim line. "Is that what they have been teaching you? On how to speak to your husband in an uncultured manner and act all rude?"

Adriana stared back at him in disbelief. Was he coaching her about manners? After what she had caught him doing?

She shifted her attention to Ashley who hadn't spoken a word since she had caught them.

"So you now lust after my husband?"

Ashley scoffed. "Point of correction, you did. Xavier was always mine from the beginning but you stole him away from me using your mate bond as an excuse. You don't know how much I hated hearing you talk about wanting him and marrying him."

"I met him before you and we fell in love but you just came out of nowhere using that damn mate bond. I was meant to be his wife not you, but father wouldn't hear my plea and only listened to your fucking whine, always choosing his spoilt first daughter over his other daughter!"

Adriana felt slapped across the face and her words got lost.

Xavier took hold of Ashley's hand and placed a peck there. "My beloved, don't stress yourself out, I don't like it when you shout. You know you have my heart and no one else."

Ashley smiled up at him and he pressed his lips on her forehead.

All of this in front of Adriana who still couldn't form a word.

The shock washed over her again. The betrayal is creeping into her.

How could she not have seen the signs?

Those few times Xavier had visited, he would disappear for some hours, and her sister was never around.

How he had avoided her touches and cuddles using stress as an excuse?

How had she been so blinded as to the extent of accepting his proposal?

A proposal he had flung in her face after she had spoken about not wanting to wait any longer.

Now her mate stood before her, holding her sister like she meant the whole world to him, ignoring the cry of her wolf that mingled with his.

"Why?" The word finally escaped her lips. "Why? If you knew you wanted my sister why did you propose?"

Xavier sighed. "Because you acted all too desperate. You don't care about anyone's feelings except for yours Adriana. Just because we are mated doesn't mean I would want you for a wife, not all mated wolves marry but you just couldn't wait to get a husband, could you?"

His words stung, and a tear slipped out.

Beg him. Mia's broken voice echoed in her.

Beg him, Adriana.

No! She said to Mia. I will never do that.

"You shouldn't have come in here Adriana, you should have just obeyed the marriage tradition and waited patiently for me at the Red aisle."

His words held no remorse and Adriana wiped the lone tear away from her face, feeling her anger creeping back.

"What was your reason for agreeing to the marriage?" She waited for his response but he clicked his tongue and humped.

"What was the reason?" She repeated.

"Is there any good in knowing why? You will just get hurt."

Then it clicked. The way he avoided this one question. It now made sense.

"The merger," Adriana whispered.

For the first time since she entered the room, Xavier's composure slipped.

She was right.

"You did this because of the merger my father promised you." Adriana scoffed as everything fell into place.

"My father wouldn't merge his pack with yours unless you married me, would he?"

"Well now you know, so go back to your room and wait for the wedding to begin so that we can please daddy."

Adriana's fists curled at her sides. "I would never get married to you Xavier. Never in my life. This wedding is never going to happen." She held her head high and she looked at her sister then at Xavier.

"Since you feel like I am a hindrance to your happiness and have come between your love."

Mia moved restlessly as if she knew what she was about to do and Adriana's heart ached with pain as she did the one thing she thought she would never do in her life.

"I, Adriana Eliana Blackwood, reject Xavier Leo Thornaxe as my mate."

Mia wailed inside her and Adriana felt like her insides were being clawed at.

Xavier's face turned into a sneer. "How dare you do that?!" His voice thundered and he staggered a little, the weight of the rejection hitting him and Ashley held him.

Adriana struggled to hold herself from falling to the ground. Mia's wails were getting to her.

She had to finish this and she can't afford to crumble to the ground.

She took a deep breath and continued coldly.

"And let me tell you this, I'll make sure this merger doesn't pan out. I'll tell Father every damn thing and about your betrayal." With that said she turned on her heels and left them there.

Xavier stared at the doorway long after Adriana disappeared.

Ashley paled.

"Xavier! What are we going to do? She is going to tell father, if she reaches him everything will be over. Father will disown me!"

His jaw tightened.

"Ton!" He called loudly and his head guard came rushing in immediately.

"Yes, Alpha."

"Adriana has found out everything and she is on her way to Alpha Raymond."

"What should I do to her?" Ton asked waiting for the order.

"Make sure she never reaches him."

Ton bowed and hurried out.

After Ton left, relief slowly spread across Ashley's face and a smirk formed on her lips.

*********

Adriana let the tears out now and they flowed freely. The weight of the betrayal and her rejection overwhelmed her and she struggled to walk, dragging her feet on the marble floor.

She needed to get to her father or Rita.

Maybe they could help with the burning in her chest.

She saw Rita talking to a maid and made to call her but a hand clamped over her mouth and dragged her off.

Adriana fought against the hand clamping heavily on her mouth but Ton was stronger and he succeeded in forcibly dragging her away.

Adriana's hands came up to the hand on her mouth and tried to remove it but it came down only an inch and she bit down hard.

Ton snatched his hand away mumbling curses and Adriana to face him and she saw his face.

"Ton."

Ton examined his finger where she had bitten him before looking at her, an evil glint in his eyes.

Adriana took a step back. "Did Xavier send you?"

But Ton didn't respond instead he walked quickly to her and grabbed her hand.

"Let me go!"

He didn't let her go, his other hand came up and landed a sharp blow to her neck.

Adriana felt the walls in her lungs tightening painfully and she gasped for breath but she couldn't breathe.

She held her throat gasping for air and her knees buckled not being able to hold her body which was growing weak in seconds.

Adriana slumped to the ground still struggling to breathe.

She saw Ton crouch low and he carried her in his arms throwing her over his shoulder.

She couldn't struggle against him, she couldn't move. Whatever he had done to her was making her weak.

She tried to shout for help but the words were not coming out, it was like her lungs were gone.

Mia. She called out to her wolf but only silence greeted her.

Mia! No response, just an emptiness Adriana dreaded.

Fear crept into her and the hallway Ton was walking through told her they were headed to the back door leading outside.

This was bad. Wherever Ton was taking her was not going to be good.

She was sure Xavier had sent him after all he was his head guard.

Was he trying to stop her from exposing what he had done?

Mia! She sent a desperate plea to her wolf but Mia didn't respond.

"Have you seen Lady Adriana?" A voice came out from the side opposite them and Ton halted, his body tensing.

Someone was looking for her.

Adriana tried to move against his shoulder but it was fruitless. The whack he had landed on her neck was still in full effect.

Her body felt numb and she couldn't move a limb and her lungs were still compressed together resisting words from slipping out.

Ton turned and took another corner.

He walked so confidently through like he knew every nook and corner of their mansion.

He got to the door and pushed it open and walked through.

A blast of air graced Adriana's face. They were outside.

Her eyes darted about trying to figure out where they were.

She saw the luscious buds and the flower blooms around them and she knew they were in the garden.

Ton moved quickly, her body bumping on his shoulder and he got to the fence of the garden and he threw her over it.

Her body landed with a hard thud on the ground and her elbows scraped on the hard ground.

Ton was at her side the next second, carrying her again and flinging her over his shoulder.

They were now outside the mansion away from her father, from Rita, from everyone.

Her lungs were already repositioning back to their right place but just enough for her to draw shallow breaths.

Adriana struggled to speak and when she did it came out like a broken whisper.

"Let me go...."

Ton didn't hear or pretended not to because he kept walking and then he stopped.

"Ton."

She heard someone call his name and he took a few steps and stopped again.

"Andrew." Ton greeted and Adriana could make out a pair of shoes on the ground.

"What's that over your shoulder?" Andrew asked.

"Something the Alpha wants us to take care of."

His words brought a jolt of fear into Adriana.

Something to take care of.

Could they... could they mean they want her dead?

********

Rita limped to Adriana's room and tapped gently on the door but no reply came.

She tapped again but still no answer.

She tapped again this time using her stick to rap on the door and it swung open revealing Adriana's maid; Kara.

Kara's eyes were red and puffy and she stared at Rita, nervousness written all over her face.

"Kara, what is taking my lady so long? The wedding ceremony is about to start."

"My... my lady... my lady...." Kara stuttered and Rita frowned at her.

"What's wrong?"

"My lady isn't in her room," Kara said finally and Rita raised a brow at her.

"What do you mean? Where is she?"

Kara's hands fumbled with one another nervously. "I don't know." She replied and bowed her head immediately.

"You don't know?!" Rita snarled and Kara's head bowed lower.

"I... I was going through my lady's wedding dress when I suddenly felt drowsy and I didn't know when I fell asleep."

Rita stared at the maid whose head was bowed and scoffed.

"You slept off and left my lady unguarded and unattended. Now you say you don't know where she is."

Kara kept her head bowed not daring to look up.

"If you know what is good for you, you'd better start looking for my lady. The Alpha must not find out about this unless you want both of our heads snapped from our necks." Rita's stick tapped the ground hard.

"Now get going!"

Kara scurried away and Rita also limped away to find Adriana before anyone got a wind of what was happening.

Kara asked the Butler if he had seen Adriana but received a negative response.

She had basically asked every maid and servant but no one had seen Lady Adriana.

Her heart thumped faster in fear and dread.

Where could her lady be?

How could she have fallen asleep and left her unguarded?

The Alpha won't forgive her.

Kara heard the chiming of the bell coming from the wedding hall and fastened her steps.

The wedding ceremony was to begin soon and Lady Adriana was still not in sight.

She was about to stop a maid when she heard the thunderous voice of the Alpha coming from somewhere in the hall.

Fear gripped her as she wondered if he had found out about Lady Adriana's absence.

She walked in the direction and saw Alpha Raymond of Blackwood, Rita, and Lady Adriana's soon-to-be-wed husband; Alpha Thornaxe standing in the middle of the hall.

People were also gathered and the look on everyone's face made unease wash over her.

What was going on?

Had he found out?

Her questions were answered by Alpha Raymond's voice which came out like a snarl.

"What do you mean Adriana is dead?!"