Chapter 26
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Charlotte felt hollow as she walked down the aisle with her uncle.
Although she had tried to convince herself that she was all right, especially now that she had been given new memories of her mother, Charlotte was broken.
She felt hurt beyond repair. She felt hopeless and empty.
A part of her had gone into hiding to protect itself from the trauma she constantly faced, not that there was much of anything left to protect.
Her uncle had made sure that he stripped her of every will she had to live for herself.
A part of her wanted to fight, but the other part had chosen to give up.
After all, what was there to fight for? Everything that could have gone wrong in her life had indeed done it.
She could see William waiting for her with the priest at the front.
It was the first time she was seeing him in a long time, and it ignited a deep-seated hatred within her.
As she got closer and closer to her husband-to-be, all she could think about was how she would rather kill him or end herself instead of being married to a demon like him.
In fact, the only person she considered more disgusting than he was the man with his hands wrapped tightly around hers, almost as if he thought that letting it be a little looser would give her the opportunity to run away.
Charlotte could not understand how they had gotten a priest to agree to this.
Had he been so greedy that he was willing to do this despite the circumstances, or had he been tricked into believing that this was a marriage both parties had consented to?
Knowing the men who currently thought that they controlled every aspect of her life, it was probably the former.
Charlotte could not believe William had agreed to marry her after all these years.
Was he so desperate to wed her and finish what he started?
Well, he was in for a shock if he tried to touch her.
William's face was stoic and unsmiling when he turned toward her as she stepped next to him.
Charlotte could never forget the memory of him, no matter how much she tried.
He had changed for the worse, if that were possible.
The last time she had seen him all those years ago, his sandy blonde hair had been longer and sat comfortably on his shoulders.
Now it was shorter, barely reaching his nape.
His slim build had bulked up, and he seemed to have lost even more of his soul.
Now, as she stared at him waiting for her at the altar, she was both repulsed and scared.
Charlotte had experience with dangerous men, but seeing William chilled her in a way her uncle never could.
She could sense the danger lurking in him, ready to be set free.
His dark eyes which seemed to pierce into her soul troubled her if he was reading her every thought.
Charlotte was frozen in place while his eyes raked up her body.
She willed her legs to move but found that she could not.
Her uncle pushed her closer to William, breaking the spell he had wrapped her in.
Charlotte tried to move discreetly away from him.
She took a step in the opposite direction and stopped when he glanced at her from the corner of his eyes.
Charlotte fixed her gaze on the priest as William said his vows.
She couldn't figure out why this farce of a ceremony was taking place.
Everyone, including the priest, knew she was being held against her will.
When she continued to stare at him, the short, stocky man in a robe turned his eyes away from hers, looking uneasy.
Charlotte couldn't understand a word William said.
Her thoughts kept returning to what her uncle had told her and how different her wedding would have been when she was younger.
She imagined her mother sitting in the front, beaming as her father walked her down the aisle, the two of them looking proudly at her.
She had pictured herself smiling up at the man she would swear to love and respect because she already did, and she had chosen him for herself.
She had envisioned a beautiful sunny day with birds chirping as her friends and family celebrated her wedding.
She hadn't had those silly dreams in a long time. She had given up on the idea of ever marrying. When she heard someone clearing their throat, Charlotte came to. She looked around, trying to remember where she was. When she noticed William was staring at her again, her heart rate increased.
"You need to say your vows," the priest said, looking slightly irritated. Charlotte was confused. What exactly did they want her to say?
"Please say your vows so we can proceed with the ceremony.
" Now it was Charlotte's turn to be irritated.
What ceremony was he speaking of? This was the furthest thing from that.
He was a priest, and yet he was not doing what he was called to do.
He hadn't even spared her a single glance before now because his silence and his conscience had been bought.
Was this how things had become when you couldn't even trust those who were appointed for that very purpose?
Charlotte's mind flashed to Owen, her monk.
She had ruined what they had. Sure, he may have set fire to his enemies, and one of them who happened to be her dad, but she had ruined it.
She had met no one more honest and sincere than he was.
She had known that she could trust him from the very beginning, even though she did not know him.
He had taken care of her and made sure she was comfortable, even though he did not know her.
Charlotte brought her hand up to her aching heart.
She should have stayed back and listened to what he had to say.
She should not have left. It had been difficult to hear that he was responsible for her father's death, but they had hurt him as well, and he was responding from a place of pain and hurt.
Besides, he had not known that he was her father.
The one thing she was certain of, which she had been too blind to remember because pain and rage blinded her; Owen would never do anything to hurt her, not if he could help it.
She knew he cared for her. She had seen it in his jealous outbursts.
She had seen it in his looks and most definitely seen it in his actions.
Owen might not have been a true monk, but he was what every monk and priest should aspire to be, instead of this corrupt man putting on the appearance of a priest when in his heart, he was anything but that.
There was nowhere Charlotte would rather be in that moment than back in the healer's room with the man who cared for her.
She would not be in this mess if she had stayed there instead of letting her anger rule her.
Was it too late for her? Would she ever be able to get out of this bind she had placed herself?
Or would she die trying to escape the terrifying life she knew awaited her if she could do nothing to stop this man?
Charlotte opened her mouth to speak words she was uncertain of.
She could see her uncle in the corner becoming agitated, his face red as he directed his hate at her.
She could see William Dodd's eyebrows raise, as if her reluctance surprised him like he had expected her to be docile and simply accept her fate.
She did not care for the farce of a priest who glared at her as opposed to his inability to look at her in the first place.
Time slowed within the next set of events.
The doors flew open and everyone turned to look in shock.
It was clear that neither of them had been expecting anyone.
She could see the shock as clear as day on William Dodd's face as his stoic expression disappeared and was replaced with surprise.
She had thought him incapable of emotions until that moment.
She looked back at the open door and saw Owen walking in with his family and a bunch of soldiers.
Relief burst through Charlotte, but she was also worried.
The last time she had seen Owen, but a few hours ago, he had been beaten unconscious and had woken up in such crippling pain.
She knew that was the only reason he had not run after her to explain everything to her.
She knew he would never let go of her so easily because he loved her, which was why he was here.
She hoped he was good enough to be standing and that they would not bruise him any more than he already was.
Her eyes raked over his body, as she tried to make sure that he was not bleeding from anywhere and would not be keeling over in pain anytime soon.
Owen! She called out to him in her heart as he looked up at her.
Her heart skipped a beat when she saw the relief in his eyes.
And she hoped he could see in hers that she was happy to see him and that she forgave him.
She wished to tell him so many things, and she hoped she would have the opportunity to do so.
She saw William's men immediately leap into action, blocking off the Elliotts.
It was not long before a fight ensued, as the Elliotts fought to defend themselves and get to Charlotte.
"How dare you intrude upon a sacred ceremony as this?
" William's low voice interrupted her thoughts.
Charlotte hoped the Elliotts could combat him and his men.
She may not have known them for long, but she had seen how they were with each other, and they had treated her in the same manner.
She had come to care for them in the short time that she'd known them.
She felt like she had people on her side for the first time in a long time. It felt like love and family.