Daphne's POV
Of course Father chose me for the arranged marriage. I was his legitimate daughter, the future Luna, the natural selection. Lyra already had her precious mate bond, so she was never really an option. This should have been my triumph. My moment to finally claim everything that belonged to me and escape this suffocating pack.
But the injustice of it all still burned in my chest. I had to accept an arranged marriage while Lyra got to keep her fated mate connection. She would always have that cosmic bond over me, something I could never touch or claim. And worse, once I became Luna of Ironfang, she would inherit Willow Brook as the honorary Luna.
Not if I had anything to say about it.
That's why I destroyed her completely. I convinced Cyrus to reject their mate bond. Made him believe running away with me was his idea. She thought we had eloped together, the perfect betrayal. She would lose her mate, I would avoid the wedding, and Kaelen would blame our pack for the insult. Father would face ruin, maybe even death. When everything fell apart, I planned to pin it all on that obsessed Sentinel.
But then Mother presented an even better opportunity.
She suggested using Lyra as my replacement bride. At first, the idea seemed ridiculous. But as Mother explained her vision, the brilliance became clear. We could frame Lyra for everything. Make it look like jealousy drove her to attack me and steal my position. Kaelen would be furious beyond reason. The pack would turn against her completely. And I would appear at the perfect moment, wounded but heroic, to save everyone from disaster.
I would still have to marry Kaelen, but now he would be grateful to me. Protective. And Lyra would be destroyed so thoroughly she could never recover.
So I became my own victim. I slammed my face into the bathroom sink until my lip split open. I punched the wall repeatedly until dark bruises bloomed across my cheeks. I tore my wedding dress into shreds. Then I locked myself in the supply closet and waited for the perfect moment to make my entrance.
Watching Lyra stand at that altar in my torn dress, her face exposed to the shocked crowd, their anger turning toward her like a tide, exceeded every fantasy I had imagined.
Now came the most satisfying part.
Father pushed through the crowd toward Lyra, and I could see the horror written across his face. The shame, the desperate need to protect his precious daughter. Of course he would try to save her. He always defended her. Always chose her mother over mine, even after all these years.
"Wait," Father said, his voice trembling with uncertainty. "There has to be some explanation. Lyra wouldn't do something like this."
"Wouldn't do what?" Mother interrupted him with razor-sharp precision. She positioned herself beside me, her hand resting protectively on my shoulder. "Wouldn't attack her own sister out of jealousy? Look at Daphne's injuries. Look at what she did to her."
Father's mouth moved wordlessly. He looked back and forth between me and Lyra, clearly struggling with impossible choices. Excellent. Let him feel the agony of having his world torn apart by decisions beyond his control.
"Daphne," he attempted again, his voice weaker now. "Are you completely certain that Lyra..."
"Are you actually questioning your daughter right now?" Mother's voice rang with righteous indignation. "Your legitimate daughter, who has been beaten and imprisoned? You're going to defend the girl who did this to her?"
The crowd murmured their agreement. Several pack members nodded with conviction. Father's face drained of all color.
I knew I had won. He might want to defend Lyra, but he couldn't do it. Not in front of the entire pack. Not when I stood before them with visible wounds and a clear accusation. His backbone had always crumbled under Mother's pressure. She had spent years ensuring that weakness, making him pay for his betrayal.
This was my moment to destroy Lyra completely.
I walked forward with deliberate slowness, making my limp clearly visible to everyone watching. Each step appeared agonizing. I had rehearsed this performance in the closet, perfecting exactly how to move like someone who had suffered a vicious attack.
Kaelen watched my approach with an unreadable expression, but I could feel the dangerous tension radiating from his body. The mate bond between him and Lyra must have been screaming through the air. I had to be extremely careful now. Had to make sure he blamed her entirely for this betrayal.
I stopped directly in front of Lyra. She stared at me with wide, bewildered eyes, like she still couldn't process the reality unfolding around her. Like she still believed this was some terrible mistake that could be explained away.
"What did I ever do to deserve this, little sister?" I asked, my voice soft and broken.
My words cracked on the endearment. Tears filled my eyes, genuine tears because I was thinking about everything she had stolen from me simply by existing. The legitimacy that should have been mine alone. The undivided attention I craved. The security of my position in this house. The fated mate bond I would never experience.
"I never did anything to you," Lyra whispered, her voice barely audible.
"I loved you," I continued, letting the tears stream down my bruised cheeks. "I tried so hard to be the sister you needed. Even though you were born from... even though your mother was..." I let my voice trail off, as if I was too compassionate to speak the cruel truth. "But I accepted you as family. I welcomed you with an open heart. And this is how you repay my kindness?"
The crowd was completely captivated by my performance. I could hear sympathetic whispers spreading through the gathering. Several women were openly weeping now.
"I wanted you beside me at my wedding," I said, my voice growing stronger with righteous pain. "I wanted you as my bridesmaid because you were my sister. I chose you to stand with me on the most important day of my life. And you... you..."
My knees gave out beneath me. I had practiced this collapse countless times, perfecting the exact way to fall that would look completely natural. My vision actually blurred from the rush of adrenaline and triumph flooding my system.
Mother caught me before I hit the ground. "Daphne! Someone help us! Please, somebody help Daphne!"
I let my eyes flutter closed. Let my body go completely limp. The perfect picture of an innocent victim, betrayed by jealousy and pure malice.
The last thing I saw before committing fully to my act was Lyra's devastated face. She looked utterly shattered. Like everything she had ever believed about herself and her place in this world had just been proven catastrophically wrong.
Absolutely perfect.