Chapter 80
Chapter 80
Violet
I expected a lot of things when the music changed, signaling that it was my turn to walk. I thought I would be nervous. I thought I would hesitate, and yet I walked forward without thinking about it. I even thought that I would miss my father in this moment, but I didn’t.
The whispers rose around me as we made our way to the altar, soft and insistent like the rustling of leaves in a
storm.
“How does she know the High Priest?”
“It probably wasn’t her. It was definitely Alpha Nightshade.
“But he seemed so surprised….”
“Who’s the woman with the High Priest? She looks foreign.“‘.‘
“Quiet! She’ll curse you. She’s the High Priestess of those people.”
It was entertaining to hear them talk about her so openly like this, considering how much power she wielded and how much respect she had, even from the higher priest of our temple. After all, the two temples were not easily separated not even due to prejudice.
I didn’t have to look around to know all eyes were on me. The tension in the air was palpable. Each murmured question was heavier than the last. Seeing them all congregate around the altar with Theodore, Tyron, and Dahlia made me smile. The fake priest whom Owen had set up looked deeply uncomfortable being up there with them, and it served them right. At my sides, the High Priest and the robed woman walked with quiet authority, their presence a shield I hadn’t known I needed.
Owen sat in an area that had been sectioned off, despite my instructions, for him and his family. It was neither a part of my side of the ceremony or Theodore’s. Just as well, it hardly mattered. All three of them had expressions like curdled milk. Owen, in particular, looked as if he’d bitten into something rotten. Almost wanted him to say something.
I caught sight of Lucas, who had pushed towards the aisle to make sure he could be seen. He looked furious and with good reason. We’d been married by a general priest of the country, not the High Priest the way my parents
had.
My heart picked up as I thought of them. They had been married in a ceremony just like this. Sure it had been at the temple, but given the whispers that Midnight Park had been built on an old temple site, it hardly mattered.
When we reached the altar, I glanced at the man posing as the priest. He looked uncomfortable, his hands fidgeting and his eyes darting to the High Priest like a trapped animal. He wasn’t fooling anyone anymore.
Owen shifted, forcing a smile as the High Priest smiled at me.
“High Priest,” Owen greeted, his voice carefully measured. “This is an unexpected honor.”
The High Priest didn’t return the smile. Instead, he regarded Owen with a calm, piercing gaze.
“Alpha King Owen,” he said, his tone formal but carrying an edge that was unexpected for a man of hi position. “I don’t remember seeing your request for a priest to preside over this ceremony…
“}
Owen hesitated, clearly caught off guard. “Ah, well, there must have been a mix–up. Perhaps you were simply too busy… Though to have you come here is a bit uncalled for. Is there really a need for
“>
“Do you question the Goddess‘ will?” The High Priest interrupted smoothly, his gaze shifting to the fake priest.
1/2
Chapter 80
“Of course not.”
+25 BONUS
“I did not think so. She called for me to be here. Practically delivered the invitation to my door. Lady Donovan has always been a special interest to the temple… I married her parents myself.” He turned to look at me, smiling and his eyes twinkling. “To be able to marry you in this way, with all the circumstance and reverence that I was able to confer upon your parents‘ most blessed union… is truly the highlight of my life. It is more than well–known how much they loved each other.”
The fake priest paled, his nervous movements freezing under the High Priest’s words. Owen looked trapped. My lips curved into the faintest of smirks. Whatever Owen had planned, it had just crumbled to ash.
“I could not have said it better myself,” The High Priestess said, smiling at me.” Even if I am only here for ceremony.or purposes.”
As the High Priest turned to face the gathered audience, I allowed myself a brief glance at Theodore. He was watching me, his expression unreadable, but there was a flicker of something in his eyes–pride, maybe? Respect?
