Part 1Snake Bride: My Husband’s Regret After Sending Me to the Island

At my own wedding, as my husband Alexis and I exchanged rings, my sister Gwyneth burst into the chapel, stark naked.

“Jenny,” she cried, tears streaming down her face. “I know you think I’m trash, I know you cut up all my clothes to stop me from coming, but I promised you I’d be here to see you married, and I always keep my promises!”

Alexis, furious that I had supposedly provoked my fragile sister, decided on a punishment. He sent me to Serpent Isle, the one place in the world I feared most.

There, I was transformed. I became a serpent-woman, a living curiosity, a plaything for men with… unique tastes.

Six months later, Alexis came to take me home. Our entire family praised my new, docile demeanor.

Until, that is, I caught a rat and, to their horror, swallowed it alive.

“The isle is a paradise!” Alexis raged. “It’s filled with harmless, gentle snakes! I sent you there for a little self-reflection, not for you to pull these disgusting stunts just to spite me!”

Just then, the scent of a powerful male pheromone filled the air. An insatiable hunger gripped me. My eyes involuntarily shifted, the pupils narrowing into vertical slits. My body contorted into an impossible arc as I lunged toward the cool, scaled body of a massive python.

—

When my husband, Alexis, came to collect me from Serpent Isle, he made a grand spectacle of it, bringing all our friends and family along on his private yacht.

I was dressed in a pure white dress and led out to meet their astonished gazes.

Alexis’s face was grim. “Jenny, have you learned your lesson these past six months? I expect you to leave Gwyneth alone when we get back. Do not disappoint me again.”

I flicked my tongue out, tasting the air, sampling the uninteresting scent of the man before me.

Alexis’s eyes fixed on my red lips, and for a moment, he seemed taken aback. Then, a flicker of satisfaction crossed his face. “I’ve never seen this playful side of you. It seems the island’s beauty has truly cleansed your wicked heart. I’ve prepared a welcome-home party for you on the yacht.”

He took my hand to lead me aboard the lavish vessel. The moment our skin touched, he flinched, nearly letting go.

“The sun is so strong here, why is your skin so cold?” He frowned, his brow furrowed in concern. “This temperature… it’s not human. Are you sick?”

His words were a meaningless drone. I couldn’t process his commands. As I stared blankly at him, Gwyneth rushed forward, her face a mask of anxiety. “Alexis, she’s been on the island for half a year. She’s acclimated. Of course her body temperature is different from ours.”

The sight of Gwyneth sent alarms shrieking through my mind. My blood ran cold.

“Hiss… Hiss…”

A warning sound escaped my throat as I backed away from her.

Under the confused and disturbed stares of the crowd, Gwyneth covered her face and began to sob. “Jenny… after all this time, you still hate me this much? You still wish I were dead…”

Alexis immediately pulled Gwyneth behind him, his eyes blazing with fury. “Jenny! And here I thought you’d finally changed. It didn’t take long for your true colors to show.”

“Gwyneth may have come from nothing, a charity case our family took in, but in her heart, she is a thousand times kinder and better than you will ever be!”

His words were a death sentence. Suddenly, every finger was pointed at me.

Even my own parents looked at me with bitter disappointment. “Jenny, this family’s entire fortune will be yours one day. Gwyneth asks for so little, just a place at our table. Why must your heart be so small, so unable to tolerate her?”

The party meant to celebrate my return had become a trial to condemn my sins.

I felt their malice pressing in from all sides. Overwhelmed by fear, I scrambled under a nearby banquet table to hide.

“What, Jenny? A monster like you can feel fear?” Alexis’s voice dripped with contempt. “Who do you think you’re fooling with this pathetic act?”

His hand landed on my shoulder, intending to drag me out from my hiding place.