The Vow...

Alice's heart stopped. It felt as though ice water had been poured over her, and her eyes widened in disbelief as she locked eyes with him.

Hades simply stared at her, his head tilted slightly to the side as if he were examining something—or someone—beneath him.

Her gaze snapped toward Pricillia, who was standing stiffly among the guests. Pricillia's piercing eyes bore into hers, silently screaming one message: Behave.

What the hell?!

When had this switch happened?

Had it always been this way?

Had she been deceived?

Alice's eyes drifted toward the Wildfire family's section. The matriarch sat there, her smirk practically dripping with amusement. Nearby, the youngest son watched with casual disinterest. But the heir—the one she'd been told was her groom—was nowhere in sight.

Instead, they had handed her over to him.

The man whose presence alone felt suffocating. The one whose aura screamed danger and chaos, like the devil incarnate.

Her chest constricted as panic set in. She could handle a lot—lies, schemes, contracts—but this?

"You may now say your vows," the announcer's voice cut sharply through her spiraling thoughts.

Vows?

What vows?

Her gaze shot back to Pricillia, who was still watching her with a mixture of warning, threat, and desperation.

Desperation.

That was the only thing that mattered to Alice now. It was her leverage.

"Hold on."

She stepped away from the podium, her heart pounding in her chest as she walked toward Pricillia. Every eye in the room followed her, wide with curiosity and confusion. Pricillia's face twisted in horror.

Without warning, Alice burst into loud, exaggerated sobs, throwing her arms around the woman. "I will miss you, Mother!" she wailed, clutching Pricillia's arm with an iron grip.

Through gritted teeth, she hissed, "You lied to me."

Pricillia's lips barely moved, but her voice was sharp. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Paula should be moved to the West, and Vivian should be transferred to a better hospital outside the North," Alice said quickly, her voice tight with urgency.

"What—" Pricillia's eyes flashed with fury, but she tried to keep it under control.

Alice leaned in, her words laced with quiet threat. "I can always walk away from this, since you broke the contract first. You decide now, or leave it."

The two women whispered harshly under their breath, exchanging terse words that only Alice could hear.

Their hushed argument drew curious glances, but no one dared to interrupt.

Alice pulled back, locking eyes with Pricillia. There was no mistaking the clear threat in her eyes. She wasn't joking. If this was the deal, she would rather risk losing it all than bind herself to a man like Hades without more assurances.

Finally, Pricillia's composure cracked. "Fine," she bit out, her voice low and venomous. "Done."

"Don't go back on your words," Alice whispered then she sniffled dramatically, wiping away imaginary tears before turning back to the podium, feeling her pause racing.

She hadn't prepared for any of this.

"I'm ready," she announced, her voice shaky but resolute.

This was not only for herself. It was for Paula. For Vivian. If it meant selling her soul to the devil himself, so be it.

But her body was still on edge, her heart hammering as she caught sight of Hades again. His expression remained unreadable, but the man with the gun at his side was another story. He stood like a predator, as if waiting for her to make one wrong move.

"Your... vows?" the announcer prodded nervously, clearly rattled by the tension in the room. His gaze was fixed on Alice, as though pleading with her to go first.

Alice blinked, momentarily thrown. She hadn't prepared any vows, especially not for someone she'd never met before—Dawin.

But this wasn't Dawin.

This was Hades.

And the memory of their first encounter replayed in her mind, vivid and unrelenting. She had fooled herself into thinking she could control this situation, but now, standing here under his gaze, she felt exposed and powerless.

Still, she was a writer. She could craft a story on the spot if she had to. And right now, her life depended on it.

"My love..." Alice began, her voice trembling and her eyes glistening with unshed tears.

Hades' brow arched ever so slightly, his expression unreadable.

"I cannot imagine doing life with anyone else but you..."

Okay. This was insane.

The weight of curious, wide, amused, and utterly confused gazes from the guests pressed against her. She could feel every set of eyes boring into her, waiting to see just how far she'd go with this charade.

"From the moment I saw you..." Alice hesitated, panic bubbling beneath her forced sincerity. "Your love hit my head like a brick—"

"Bahahaha!"

The loud burst of laughter cut through her speech like a blade. All heads snapped toward the source. It was Van, the youngest Wildfire son, leaning back on the table with tears of mirth glistening in his eyes.

The sound was short-lived. The gunman by Hades' side turned his menacing gaze on Van, and the room's atmosphere shifted instantly. Even the guests stiffened as if afraid of what might happen next.

But Van wasn't one to back down. He shot the gunman a glare so full of defiance it practically dared him to do something.

Alice ignored them, but her confidence took a hit when she caught the faint glimmer of amusement in Hades' dark eyes as he watched her.

"I lov... lo—" She faltered, unable to force the words out.

Her mind went blank, her throat dry. Finally, she blurted out a weak, "Thank you?"

A smattering of awkward, hesitant claps followed. The tension in the room felt unbearable.

"And the groom?" The announcer prodded cautiously, clearly desperate to move things along.

Alice flinched as the gunman stepped forward, his designer shoes echoing ominously in the silence. The guests visibly recoiled, some clutching their pearls in alarm.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a note, unfolding it with all the grace of someone forced into a chore. Holding it up like a script, he began to read in a monotone voice, like a child reciting a memorized poem they didn't understand.

"Dear Wife," he started, his voice rough and detached. "I will protect you. But try not to get too comfortable. Congratulations on your wedding."

The end. He stepped back.

The hell?!

Alice's eyes flew wide in disbelief. She wasn't alone; murmurs rippled through the crowd like... wildfire.

Her gaze darted to Hades. He stood there, completely composed, looking pleased—as though this entire absurd performance was his idea of entertainment.

He took one step closer, and she took one backward. His sharp gaze remained locked on hers. "Hi, little girl," he greeted calmly, his deep voice laced with dark amusement.

And then, to her utter horror, his lips curled into the slowest, most unnerving smirk she had ever seen.