John's POV
A few years ago, when I found out that Derek wasn't planning to hold a wedding ceremony, I was livid.
Tabitha was my only daughter. How could I let a man take her just like this?
Yet Tabitha kept begging me, saying Derek was her mate and she trusted him wholeheartedly.
As for the wedding thing, she didn't care about it. She told me that they didn't need such a superficial thing to prove their love for each other.
Since I never got the love I wanted in my life, I sincerely hoped that Tabitha would get hers, so I didn't insist on it.
However, I never imagined that my compromise was a huge mistake. Since there was no wedding, no one knew that Tabitha was Derek's mate.
How ridiculous!
Now that he was marrying another woman, he let the whole world know about it.
I felt so bad for Tabitha. She gave up everything for that man, and what did she get in return? Betrayal!
Even her hand was injured because of him!
He asked me and Tabitha to recover here. But in fact, he imprisoned us.
The more I thought about it, the angrier I became.
"John, this is already a done deal. Let's go back," Gary advised again.
I got out of the car before he even finished speaking. "Gary, I'm grateful that you came to pick me up. You can go back now. I won't do anything silly. I just need an explanation."
Gary looked at his watch and said, "It's late. I've got to go."
With a sigh, he left.
Standing in the bustling lobby, I felt so surreal.
In the blink of an eye, two years had passed, and I just realized that it had been ages since I last visited a place like this.
The previous Alpha of the Black Thorn Pack and most of the pack's management team were in other cities, so there weren't many of them here.
The people of the Amber's Eye Pack almost dominated this place.
I learned from Gary that Daphne was Mark's daughter, and I couldn't help but lament the misfortune of the Silver Moon Pack.
Speaking of which, I hadn't seen Holly for a long time. I wondered how she was doing now.
For such an occasion, Holly would definitely show up.
Thinking of her, I instinctively checked out my outfit. I was dressed quite casually as I had been trimming the flowers and plants in the morning. Even my shoes were stained with mud.
I looked completely out of place at such a fancy banquet, and I had gone bankrupt. Holly must feel lucky that she left me early.
Anyway, first things first, I needed to find Derek and figure out what was going on with him and Tabitha.
As I walked inside, I silently vowed, 'I must seek justice for my daughter.'
Tabitha's POV
Today I woke up exceptionally early. As the glaring sunlight shone into the room, it slowly pulled me from sleep.
As I opened my eyes, I found Derek had already gone.
The bed was empty, dust floating in the air, and the surroundings were eerily silent.
It suddenly dawned on me that today was his wedding day.
I tried to suppress the fleeting disappointment in my chest, got up, and walked towards the bathroom.
While brushing my teeth and washing up, I caught sight of my not-so-pointed chin in the mirror. In my mind, I kept telling myself: Derek and I were over. Whether he married or had kids with someone else didn't matter one bit to me anymore.
Without him, the sky would still be clear, flowers would still bloom, and I would definitely be happier.
After getting ready, I walked out of the room. Joanna had already picked a bunch of flowers from the garden, holding them in her arms. She smiled gently at me and said, "Good morning, Tabitha."
"Morning," I replied before habitually glancing towards the garden, where my dad would usually be tending the flowers and plants at this hour.
He was slower than normal people, so it would take him a long time to do it.
"Have you seen Dad?"
"John went back to his room early in the morning. It's strange, though. It's been so long. Why hasn't he come out yet? Tabitha, wait a moment. I'll go check on him" Joanna said as she arranged some flowers into a vase before heading toward John's room.
Watching those vibrant blooms, I felt restless.
"Crap, Tabitha! John's missing!"
My breathing hitched. "What? What do you mean by that?"