Fated to the Alpha–And His Triplet Brothers-Chapter 302: Devil.

*~Aurora’s POV~*

I found myself standing in front of the altar. My breath hitched in a matter of seconds. I was dressed up, my fingers twisting hard as my stomach felt heavy. My gaze spun as the rain started, like it was pouring inside my head.

I looked around and only a few demons were present. Darius had made it clear he didn’t want many of them around. He didn’t want a crowd. He didn’t want distractions. Not today, not when I was ready to argue, ready to fight.

Then he came.

Darius and his demons started strolling down the aisle. I took a deep breath, knowing all of this was over. My journey with Leon was over. My journey with my family, with Ezo, with the triplets, with New Orleans... everything was ending because I was getting married today.

Tears burned at the bridge of my eyes, and the moment that monster started closing the distance between us, I swallowed hard. I watched as Darius approached me, long white hair falling over pale skin, blue eyes cold and calculating. He looked like hell itself, wrapped up like a promise made on the worst day of my life.

He won.

It was smeared across his face so clearly that it made fear curl in my chest. My stomach tightened, and I felt my baby’s heartbeat, steady and real, reminding me that I wasn’t alone.

Then the ugly emotions crept back in.

My Leon.

It should have been him. I should have been marrying him, the man whose child I was carrying inside of me. But my hope of ever seeing Leon again was crumbling into dust. I couldn’t touch him again, couldn’t feel his hands in mine, couldn’t even run back to my family, to my sister, to my parents, because I knew the truth.

The moment this wedding ended, they would take me far.

As far as they could.

And I didn’t know if I would ever be ready for that. The thought of raising my child beside a completely different man, forcing my baby to believe Darius was his father, made something twist violently inside me. I wondered if I would even live long enough to watch my child grow.

Because I would never make it easy for them to control me.

And if they couldn’t control me, if the only thing they truly needed from me was the child inside my body, then the moment I stopped being useful, they would kill me.

Darius climbed onto the altar and took my hand. He kissed it, and I felt a shiver run down my spine as his eyes scanned me like I was his next meal.

This was the second time I would stand at an altar, dressed as a bride... except this time, the groom wasn’t a man. He was a monster.

The first time, Leon came to save me. And I wondered if he could come this time too.

But they already had a fake clone of me. A perfect copy placed beside them so they could keep living like nothing had happened. Like they had won. And that gave me the smallest, most dangerous kind of hope, the kind that could destroy you from the inside out.

Because what if they never even noticed I was gone?

That was the worst part.

My own family, my own people, would think everything was finally fine. They would believe Aurora was safe, that Aurora was back, that Aurora was smiling, breathing, living. Not knowing it wasn’t even me.

The real Aurora was here. Trapped. Carrying a child.

And Leon would never know.

Leon would never know I was carrying his baby. He would never know that one day I would give birth to a child with his blood, his eyes, his existence, and he wouldn’t even be there to hold them. He wouldn’t even be there to look at me.

Then the ceremony began.

The priest was fast this time, like even he wanted this over with. Darius said his vows even faster, like the words meant nothing and everything at once.

And when the priest said he could kiss me, Darius leaned in.

I closed my eyes.

The kiss was cold. It dragged over my lips like a claim, like a brand. I felt my stomach tighten, felt the baby shift inside me, and it made my throat burn.

Even my baby knew this was wrong.

Even my baby didn’t want this.

He broke the kiss, and his blue eyes glittered with lust. Not love. Never love. I would never believe a man like Darius could love anything except power.

I almost crumbled right there, dizzy with disgust and shame, with the feeling of something sacred being ripped away from me.

"And now you are married," the priest declared.

I nodded, because what else could I do?

My last delusion, that someone would burst in and save me, shattered so quietly it almost felt like relief.

No one was coming.

No one ever was.

And even if they did... would they even be able to take me?

Not when I wasn’t officially theirs anymore.

And I was right, once again.

I sat inside the carriage, and they were already preparing to ship me away. Even if Leon and my family somehow realized the Aurora with them was fake, even if they came looking for me, even if they managed to find this hidden hideout... I would be long gone by then.

My fingers trembled as I stared at the wedding ring Darius had placed on me earlier. Diamond. Flashy. The kind of ring I used to dream about.

"At least it’s the diamond ring of my dreams," I whispered with a shaky smile, trying to convince myself it meant something. But the happiness wouldn’t stick. It slipped right through my hands like smoke.

Then Rebecca came closer to the carriage.

My body stiffened as her fingers slowly pulled the door open.

"Good day, our new bride," she greeted.

I couldn’t even look at her. Not after what they did to Sarah... and Sarah’s husband. Not knowing Sarah was pregnant when they destroyed her life like it meant nothing.