But as I stood here, alone and humiliated, doubt began to creep into my heart.
Telling myself to be calm, I turned to the joining priest and murmured.
“I’m sorry for the delay. I’m sure something must have come up. Let me reach out to him".
He nodded but didn’t look pleased. I closed my eyes and attempted to mind-link him once more.
“Cyrus, where are you? Are you alright dear? Everyone is waiting. I am waiting,” my mental voice was filled with desperation, but only silence greeted me.
I tried again and again, each attempt more frantic than the last, but to no avail.
The murmurs of the crowd grew louder and I could feel the weight of their stares. My cheeks burned with embarrassment as I realized the extent of my humiliation. I was a princess, soon to be Luna, and yet here I stood, abandoned at the altar like a common wolf.
Unable to bear their pitying looks any longer, I stepped down from the stage. Hurling the traditional Stormhowl wedding dress in both hands and began to march towards the pack house. I needed answers and I knew just who to ask.
Kane, Cyrus’s head warrior and closest confidant, stood near the entrance of the pack house. His usually hardened expression faltered as he saw me approach. I couldn’t blame him, my eyes were blazing with a mixture of hurt and fury.
“Kane,” I started, my voice low and dangerous. “Tell me why I am dressed in this wedding dress that weighs like a thousand pounds, have been standing in front of the wedding crowd for hours and yet my mate and my husband-to-be had disappeared into thin air. And may the goddess help you, if you dare try to lie to me,” I growled.
He shifted uncomfortably, avoiding my gaze. “Luna Elara, I…”
“I am not your Luna yet,” I snapped, my patience wearing thin. “And I may never be if you don’t tell me what’s going on. Where is Cyrus?”
Kane hesitated; I know most warriors were loyal to their Alphas but I didn’t care. I continued glaring at him until finally he spoke.
“There was an incident at the training grounds. Miss Nadia was injured and Alpha Cyrus is… taking care of her".
I stood there frozen with shock as I processed Kane’s words. Cyrus had abandoned our wedding, our future, to tend to Nadia? In a pack that had more than a hundred healers running around? The thought of it alone sent a wave of nausea through me.