The Abusive Wedding Day

Sienna

Five years have passed.

The heavy white wedding dress feels exactly like suffocating iron chains locked tightly around my neck as I stand completely frozen, staring at my hollow-cheeked, ghostly reflection in the massive floor-to-ceiling mirror of the bridal suite. The woman looking back at me does not even look human anymore. She looks like a hollowed-out shell, a pathetic, broken thing that has been slowly and methodically crushed into absolute nothingness. My foundation is caked on incredibly thick today, layered over and over again by trembling hands. It is a strictly necessary mask to completely hide the dark, ugly, purple fingerprint bruises stamped deeply into the pale skin of my arms and shoulders.

Maura, a quiet, submissive omega helper from the pack, carefully and nervously adjusts the delicate lace of my long veil. Her hands are shaking slightly, her eyes completely avoiding the heavily powdered, yellowish-green swelling right along my left cheekbone. She steps back, swallowing hard before she finally speaks, her voice barely above a terrified whisper as she passes on Maddox’s sudden, controlling demand.

"The Alpha... he requested that you wear your hair down today, Miss Sienna," Maura murmurs, her gaze dropping quickly to the plush carpet. "He said it is mandatory."

I close my eyes, feeling a fresh wave of blinding nausea wash over me. For the past three entire years, Maddox had aggressively insisted that I strictly wear my hair tightly pulled up in a severe bun, demanding that I look completely professional and unremarkable so I would never draw another male's attention. But today, on our wedding day, he suddenly wants it down. It is just another invisible, choking string in his massive, suffocating web of absolute control. He constantly shifts the rules, constantly moves the goalposts, just to remind me that he owns every single strand of hair on my head, every single breath in my lungs, every single beat of my terrified heart.

Suddenly, the heavy wooden door to the bridal suite swings open without a single knock.

When Maddox confidently steps into the room, looking devastatingly handsome and utterly powerful in his sharply tailored, expensive black tuxedo, sheer, primal fear immediately steals every single ounce of air right out of my lungs. My entire body physically locks up. My heart slams against my bruised ribs like a trapped, desperate bird. To the rest of the oblivious pack, Maddox Carver is the absolute perfect Alpha—strong, commanding, a brilliant leader who protects his own. But I know the truth. I know the vicious, terrifying monster that hides perfectly behind that flawless, charismatic smile.

Maddox doesn't even look at the omegas. He simply flicks his wrist in a sharp, dismissive gesture. "Leave us."

Maura and the other helpers instantly scramble over themselves to obey, their heads bowed low as they practically sprint out of the room, firmly shutting the door behind them. The distinct, heavy click of the lock sliding into place echoes through the sudden, deafening silence of the suite like the sound of a prison cell closing forever.

The moment we are completely alone, Maddox slowly walks up behind me. He doesn't say a word as he stops right behind my chair, his towering, broad-shouldered frame completely dominating my fragile reflection in the mirror. His large, heavy hands suddenly settle heavily onto my bare, powdered shoulders. I bite down on the inside of my cheek hard enough to taste copper, desperately fighting the overwhelming instinct to flinch away from his burning touch. His thick fingers slowly curl around my collarbone, his grip tightening just enough to make a very clear, agonizingly painful point without leaving fresh, visible marks for the upcoming ceremony photos. The pressure sends sharp, burning spikes of blinding pain shooting directly down my spine.

"Perfect," he murmurs softly, his deep, rumbling voice sending terrified shivers down my arms. He leans in closer, his warm, deceitful breath grazing the sensitive, bare skin of my ear. "You look absolutely perfect."

*Perfect for what?* I think with deep, biting bitterness, my stomach twisting into violent, nauseating knots. *The perfect, silent victim? The perfect, beautiful little punching bag for the great Alpha?*

"I know the past few weeks have been... difficult," he says smoothly, his tone dripping with that terrifying, calculated calm he always uses right before he hurts me. His fingers tighten their painful, crushing grip on my collarbone, digging brutally into the tender muscle. He is silently, violently warning me that the second tonight is over, the second that magical mating bond is officially sealed in front of the entire pack, I will belong to him completely and inescapably. There will be absolutely no way out. No running. No hiding. "Ten minutes. Don't be late, Sienna. And do not disappoint me."

He releases my aching shoulders with a final, rough pat, smoothing his perfectly pressed tuxedo jacket before turning on his heel and confidently strolling right out of the room.

Left completely alone with my violently trembling legs, I slump forward in the chair, desperately gasping for the air he just stole from the room. I am shaking so hard that my teeth are practically chattering. Ten minutes. In ten literal minutes, my entire life will officially end.

Suddenly, the sharp, jarring buzz of my phone vibrating against the glass vanity table makes me jump completely out of my skin.

I stare at the glowing screen with wide, terrified eyes. It's a string of text messages from a completely unknown number.

*Thinking of you today.*

*You deserve happiness.*

*You're stronger than you know.*

My blood runs entirely cold. Pure, unadulterated terror instantly floods my veins, completely paralyzing my lungs. Who is this? Who is texting me? I don't have any friends left. Maddox systematically and brutally isolated me from every single person in the entire pack who ever showed me an ounce of kindness. He made sure I was completely, utterly alone.

If Maddox walks back in here. If he physically grabs this phone from the table. If he even for one single, paranoid second suspects that I have a secret friend reaching out to me behind his back... I know exactly what he would physically do to me. The last time he vaguely accused me of smiling too warmly at a pack guard, he dragged me by my hair into the basement and beat me until I couldn't open my right eye for a week and a half.

Terrified beyond belief of the brutal violence he would rain down upon my already broken body, I snatch the phone off the table with violently shaking, clammy hands. I frantically and desperately delete the messages, my thumbs slipping over the screen in my panicked rush. I block the unknown number immediately. I ruthlessly scrub every single piece of evidence from the screen, my heart pounding so hard and so fast I genuinely think I might pass out right here in the bridal suite. I shove the phone deep into my beaded clutch, my chest heaving with frantic, shallow breaths.

Another knock at the door completely shatters the heavy silence.

"Miss Sienna?" Maura's timid voice filters through the thick wood. "It's time. The Alpha is waiting at the altar."

I force my trembling legs to stand. I take one last, desperate look at the hollow, broken ghost in the mirror, and I walk out the door.

Walking down the impossibly long, heavily decorated aisle feels exactly like marching deep underwater directly toward my own violent execution. Every step I take toward the front of the massive pack hall feels like wading through thick, suffocating cement. The heavy, sickeningly sweet scent of hundreds of white roses cloys at the back of my throat, making me want to violently gag. The gathered pack members stand up as I pass, their faces absolutely beaming with genuine excitement. They smile brightly and weep happy, emotional tears of joy, entirely oblivious to the vicious, terrifying monster standing and waiting for me at the very end of the altar.

They look at Maddox Carver and they see a hero. They see a strong, handsome Alpha securing his legacy. They do not see the blood on his knuckles. They do not see the bruises hidden beneath the thick layers of silk and foundation. They do not know they are happily cheering for a hostage walking directly into a slaughterhouse.

Maddox stands at the end of the aisle, his hands perfectly clasped in front of him, a gentle, incredibly warm, fake smile plastered flawlessly across his handsome face. But as I draw closer, I can perfectly see the cold, ruthless, terrifying promise burning deep in his dark eyes. He is looking at me like a massive predator watching a trapped, bleeding rabbit crawl right into his jaws.

I take my place beside him. He immediately reaches out and grabs my violently shaking hand, his grip crushing my delicate fingers just tight enough to hurt, silently commanding me to smile for the massive crowd.

As the elderly pack officiant clears his throat and happily drones on and on about the ancient, sacred bonds of mating, the unbreakable unity of the pack, and the profound, beautiful blessing of creating a new family together, the words completely blur into deafening static in my ears.

*Family.*

The word echoes in my empty, shattered mind. The absolute sheer hypocrisy of the word violently tears my chest wide open. All I can physically and mentally feel in this exact moment is the agonizing, hollow phantom pain of the unborn baby I just lost. My hands instinctively twitch, wanting to press against my flat, empty stomach, but Maddox’s crushing grip on my fingers strictly forbids it.

The horrific memory violently completely overtakes me, dragging me kicking and screaming straight back to hell.

It was only two short months ago. I had rushed back to our penthouse apartment, practically bursting through the front door, bubbling with overwhelming, intoxicating joy to announce my unexpected pregnancy. I had been terrified of Maddox for years, but in my naive, desperate, completely stupid mind, I thought a baby would finally fix everything. I thought giving him an heir would finally calm his vicious rage. I thought he would finally love me.

I walked straight into the kitchen, a brightly wrapped little gift box holding the positive pregnancy test clutched tightly in my shaking, excited hands. But the words of happy announcement violently died in my throat.

I found Maddox violently taking his secretary, Coraline, bent right over our own kitchen marble counter. His expensive suit pants were shoved roughly down around his thighs, and his huge, hard cock was thrusting brutally and deeply inside her wet pussy. Her tight pencil skirt was hiked all the way up around her waist, completely exposing her bare ass as my Alpha, my supposed mate, slammed his hips forcefully against her like a wild, rutting animal. The wet, slapping sounds of his groin violently hitting her flesh echoed loudly through our kitchen.

"Sienna," he said smoothly, completely unbothered. He didn't even flinch. He didn't even bother to stop his relentless thrusting or pull his thick cock out of her dripping cunt when he saw me standing there frozen in absolute horror.

Coraline actually threw her head back and laughed loudly, a vicious, mocking sound that completely shattered my soul. She slowly pushed herself up off the counter, casually adjusting her wrinkled clothes, her swollen cunt still dripping his semen right onto our kitchen floor. She wasn't sorry. She wasn't embarrassed. She just smirked right at my shattered face and walked out the front door.

My entire world completely collapsed in a matter of seconds. When we were finally alone, I tearfully held up the positive pregnancy test in confrontation, my hands shaking so violently I dropped the little plastic stick onto the floor.

"We are having a baby," I sobbed hysterically, completely broken.

Maddox stared at the test on the floor. Then, he actually threw his handsome head back and laughed. It was a cold, cruel, completely heartless sound. He stepped toward me, aggressively pulling his pants back up and zipping his fly. He cruelly and viciously accused me of lying just to trap him.

"You really think I am that fucking stupid?" he spat, his eyes flashing with dark, violent rage. "You think you can trap an Alpha with a fake pregnancy? You are weak. Pathetic. Clingy," he sneered right into my sobbing face, his spit hitting my cheek. He blatantly admitted out loud, without a single ounce of hesitation, that he was only marrying me because the pack elders demanded it. He blatantly admitted that an Alpha strictly needed a mate to formally secure his political position, and I was just the most convenient, easily controlled, completely broken omega available.

"I am pregnant, Maddox! It's yours!" I screamed desperately, frantically backing away from the terrifying, murderous look in his eyes.

"Get rid of it," he had snarled viciously, his voice dropping into a demonic, terrifying Alpha command that physically shook the walls.

Before I could even react, before I could even turn around to run for the door, he lunged at me. His heavy, brutal fists ruthlessly and mercilessly connected with my fragile ribs. I heard the sickening crack of bone snapping instantly. I doubled over, violently gasping for air, but he didn't stop. He grabbed me by my hair and threw me hard against the wall. His fists slammed into my spine, my back, and then, with absolute, terrifying precision, he drove his knee directly into my stomach.

I fell to the cold bathroom floor, curling into a tight, desperate ball, screaming and begging him to stop, desperately trying to protect my stomach with my arms. But he just kept kicking me.

Hours later, I lost my tiny, innocent baby lying alone on that freezing cold bathroom tile. The horrific, blinding cramps tore through my lower abdomen, completely paralyzing me in a pool of my own dark blood. I was completely and utterly alone in my agonizing, screaming physical and mental agony. Maddox had casually left for the office right after he finished beating me, locking the apartment door from the outside so I couldn't even crawl to a phone to call an ambulance.

When he finally casually strolled back home late that evening, reeking of expensive scotch and Coraline's cheap perfume, he walked into the bloody bathroom and found me lying there, barely conscious, slowly bleeding out on the white tiles.

I looked up at him through my swollen, black eyes. "You killed our baby," I whispered through my tears, my voice completely shattered and broken.

He had the absolute, sickening nerve to look genuinely shocked. He dramatically dropped to his knees, his hands suddenly gentle as he scooped my bleeding, broken body up into his arms. He desperately claimed he didn't actually know I was truly pregnant. He swore to the Goddess he thought I was just lying to manipulate him. He spent the next three entire days kneeling completely beside my bed, pouring out fake, empty apologies, crying crocodile tears, and making hollow, desperate promises to be a much better man, to be the loving mate I truly deserved.

But as I lay there, staring blankly at the ceiling with my dead baby flushed out of my body, I knew the absolute, terrifying truth: his words are just empty, meaningless air, and air cannot ever protect you from his flying, brutal fists. He didn't care about the baby. He only cared that his perfect, carefully constructed image might be ruined if I actually bled to death in his apartment.

Now, standing absolutely frozen at the beautiful, flower-covered altar, the sudden, deafening silence of the massive pack hall snaps my terrified mind violently back to the present moment.

"I do," Maddox declares loudly, his deep, confident, incredibly smooth voice echoing perfectly across the large room. He squeezes my hand tightly, playing the role of the devoted, passionately in-love Alpha to absolute perfection. He sounds exactly like an arrogant, powerful man who has never once in his entire miserable life doubted his absolute, divine right to own absolutely whatever he wants.

The entire crowd beams with absolute joy, some of the omegas in the front row actually wiping away happy tears.

Then, the elderly officiant turns completely away from Maddox. He smiles warmly at me, his loud, echoing voice turning directly to address me in front of the silent, waiting pack.

"And do you, Sienna Winslow, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband... until death do you part?"