2. The Solitary Bride

My fingers clenched around the bunched fabric before I reluctantly let go, the hem once again brushing the floor. I ducked my chin as the woman kept walking, leading the way to what I assume as the alpha Isaac’s room. The tight bun and her light blue midi reminded me of Ms. Hannah, our housekeeper. A whirlwind of emotions was swirling inside my chest, a thousand questions circling my mind. But I did not dare to voice them. Astrid lay dormant, as she had been for the past couple of days. The woman walked gracefully, and I wondered if he was in charge of the other house helps. 

The corridor was long and seemed never-ending, lined with portraits adorning either side which I could see from the corner of my eyes, occasionally there were a few vases, large ones and albeit expensive or ancient. It had branched into different directions on the left, but I couldn’t see anyone in these hallways. The place, however, looked much brighter than I imagined. We crossed a small balcony and as I gazed out of it, I saw that it looked over to a garden. We turned a corner and crossed a few rooms which were all closed. I wondered why. 

“We are here,” she suddenly announced when we reached the room at the end of this short hallway. She turned around, her small eyes looking straight at me, her petite face neutral. I swallowed thickly, only managing a short nod. She didn’t dawdle or wait for me to say anything else. Instead, she pushed open the heavy black door, ornately carved and polished. Even with my current predicament, I couldn’t help but admire the gigantic room, so well kept and clean. 

“Your luggage has already been brought and a maid will be here shortly to dress you in proper clothes,” she intoned. However, the way she emphasized ‘proper’ made it sound as if this gown was anything but that. I bit my lower lip from retorting. I couldn’t possibly taint my pack’s...I ceased the thought there. 

“If that’s all then I shall take your leave.” Before I could even open my mouth, she bowed and left the room. When the doors closed with a thud, I heaved out a weary sigh. I finally lifted my veil, feeling ridiculous at doing the task, a ritual that was usually reserved for the groom. My eyes burned at the patheticness of the situation. The huge room looked as if it hadn’t been used for a long time, there was no trace of personalization which seemed odd to me. 

I padded to the bed positioned in the middle of the room, facing the door, and carefully placed my veil atop the neat beige blanket. My black clips came off next. I kept the bun intact and then sat down at the foot of the bed, waiting for whoever would come up and dress me up. A strange lethargy and numbness came over me. The strangeness and the seriousness of the situation suddenly sat heavily upon my shoulder. 

Was my family even worried? Probably not. Would I keep living a life that is worse than death? Probably yes. A loud knock on the door jolted me out of my moroseness. “Come in.” I was thankful for the steadiness in my voice. 

The doors opened and a girl about my age walked in with a small food trolley and was followed by another girl who carried what probably was my ‘proper’ attire. I stood up, while the petite one brought the trolley to a halt, the other woman, a black haired, average height woman laid the dress on the bed just beside my veil. 

“We will help you with the dress and then you can have some food,” the black-haired woman murmured, averting her gaze. The petite one didn’t even utter a word, silently waiting behind the other one. I decided to not pay any heed to this. These people might have a hundred reasons to dislike me or be disappointed in me. However, the way the short girl stole glances as quickly lowered her gaze made me feel suspicious. She almost looked guilty. 

“Alright,” I murmured, ready to get over with this. With a lot of difficulty, I had managed to come to terms with the fact that marrying alpha Isaac or being his bride would entail bonding, and bonding meant mating. When I laid my eyes on the dress, it solidified my thoughts. The dress was made of fine silk, purple in colour, spaghetti straps and a deep neckline that would hardly keep anything to the imagination. I was not surprised when I saw the lack of underwear. With reddened cheeks, I hurried to the ensuite washroom. The silk felt soft against my skin and I was grateful to have finally stepped out of the gaudy dress. When I came out of the washroom, the short girl was preparing a plate for me while the taller one was near the dresser. My veil and clips were probably moved to another place because they were no longer on the bed. 

They must have sensed my arrival for they both looked up at me, their eyes wide. “You look beautiful,” the short girl exhaled before she quickly lowered her gaze. “Thank you?” It should have been a statement, but I was never really called beautiful back in...Once again I actively stopped myself from thinking. The taller one came up to me and took the gown from my hand.

I was guided to the dresser. The taller one, put some light make-up on me and styled my hair into a fishtail braid. Despite the praise, all I saw in the mirror was the reflection of a girl who had easily given up, one who was equivalent to a commodity to be bartered. They left me with a few parting words of waiting for the alpha to arrive in the evening and that I should eat. 

I glanced at the food and nibbled on some fruit slices and biscuits before pushing the trolley to the farthest corner of the room, beside the dresser. I glanced at the huge wall clock on the far left of the room. I wouldn’t have to wait for long. I didn’t know whether to be relieved that the anticipation would be over or scared that I would meet someone whom the world has hardly seen in the past few years. I walked over to the window that overlooked the back of the palace, into another garden. 

Was this alpha’s garden? Well, he wouldn’t have time for this, would he? My thoughts wandered to these people’s shifty behaviour and attitude. Some were welcoming while some were scared, why? There was not a single picture of the alpha in this room and not even on the internet. Even though there was news of him conquering territories, there was no photo. In fact, the last photo was taken three years ago when he was 21. 

A gust of warmth caressed my face, bringing with it sweet scents of flowers and fruits. I kept the window open and walked back to the bed. My bone-deep tiredness suddenly made itself known and before long my eyes had drooped close. 

~~~~~~

The feeling of something wet touching my face and a distinct touch of muzzle startled me awake. A scream ripped out of my throat as I came face to face with a black wolf, his golden eyes staring at me. 

“Mine.”