Marked by Another at Our Wedding Chapter 05

Marked by Another at Our Wedding Chapter 05

Thorne could hardly believe his eyes. His heart raced, and he mumbled to himself, “It must be a mistake.”

“Ophelia was supposed to be on her trip. How could she be here?”

“It must be that I missed her too much, so this is just a hallucination.”

Liora was also in shock. She stared at me, unable to speak for a long time.

But in comparison to their shock, I appeared much more composed. I didn’t let any excess emotion show on my face as I handed her my bouquet.

It was like she had just woken up from a dream when she finally took it from me and handed me hers.

With a smile, I said, “May your love grow with time.”

The window slid up with finality, sealing us in separate worlds. Engines rumbled to life, our processions pulling away in opposite directions – a perfect mirror of how Thorne and I had diverged.

Just as distance began swallowing his car from view, a raw, animalistic scream tore through the air. My body turned toward the sound before my mind could stop it.

Xander’s hand covered my eyes before I could see the source. His breath warmed my ear as he murmured, “Ophelia, you can’t turn back now, not after you’ve promised me.”

Was it my illusion? Why did I feel some soft resentment in Xander’s tone?

—

Even though we’re sealing the mate bond today, we might as well be strangers. There’s no place for something as tender as resentment between us.

It must have been my mind playing tricks on me.

I gently pulled his hand away. “You needn’t worry,” I assured him. “I don’t break my word.” My gaze drifted to the retreating car. “And some things aren’t worth looking back for.”

Besides, Thorne… he wasn’t worth me to do that.

In the other car, Thorne’s anxiety grew as he thought back what had just happened. Ignoring Liora’s attempts to calm him, he immediately called the airline to check my status.

The answer was clear: I hadn’t boarded any flight.

His mind went blank. Trembling, he called the guide waiting at my supposed destination. “Did you pick up Ophelia?”

The answer was no, then he completely lost control.

“Ophelia!” His roar rattled the windows as he threw the door open, half-hanging out of the moving car. “Damn it, turn around! That was her! She lied!”

Liora clawed at his arm, her voice shrill. “You’re seeing things! That wasn’t her! Just some lookalike—”

But Thorne wouldn’t listen. He believed that woman must be me. With a shout, he ordered the driver to turn around and chase after my car.

“Turn this car around now or I’ll rip your throat out myself!”

—

The driver’s hands jerked on the wheel, never having encountered such a situation.

Liora shouted at the driver, “Don’t! Keep going forward!”

She leaned close to Thorne, trying to soothe him. “Thorne, whether that person is Ophelia or not doesn’t matter to us anymore. Today is my mating ceremony. Don’t let outsiders ruin my special day.”

“We can deal with that after we’ve sealed the mate bond, okay?”

But Thorne wasn’t listening. He shoved her away. “Get off!”

His eyes were bloodshot with fury as he shouted again, “Turn around. Now!”

The driver saw the dangerous look on Thorne’s face and immediately complied, turning the car around and speeding forward.

Liora was now completely panicked. “Thorne, this is our wedding day! Pack members and guests are all waiting! What are you doing?”

“Let’s go back! Everyone is waiting! You’re wasting time, making things difficult for our families!”

But Thorne was beyond reasoning.

“Then just cancel the wedding!”

Liora’s breath hitched, her face draining of color. “No! You can’t—” Her voice cracked like thin ice. “You swore to protect me! Without this mating bond, I’m as good as dead! After everything I’ve—”

Liora sobbed uncontrollably, but her desperate pleas and tears couldn’t move Thorne.

—

He glared at her with disgust.

“Protect you? Who’s going to care about me? My mate is going to bond with someone else! I can’t care about anyone else! I just want her back!”

Thorne kept urging the driver to speed up, while Liora kept shouting at him to turn around.

Liora lunged for the steering wheel in a blind rage, fingers clawing at the driver’s grip.

Thorne grabbed her, arms locking around her waist as the three of them twisted into a chaos.

Then came a deafening sound and the thunderous crunch of metal meeting metal.