She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Of course. Clans, alliances. What she felt or wanted did not matter.
It was not like he was a bad man, her uncle. He just had the wrong ideas about what she should and should not do with her life. He had already married off her twin sister, Emma, and that was a sin she could never forgive.
She and Emma had been inseparable until they were forced apart. Their uncle had gotten in the way too many times for Ava’s liking, so she took her fate into her own hands.
“I daene care for alliances,” she said, her eyes searching for her groom once again. Where was he?
“I need nae remind ye that ye’re doing this for the clan,” her uncle scolded, before forcing a smile. “Ye ken we need this alliance to keep our clan safe. I willnae let ye ruin this.”
Ava had actually liked the fool once… before her father died. He was not bossing her around and reminding her of her responsibilities all the time. She missed spending time with her animals and reading her books in solitude. She even missed liking her uncle. Now, shedespisedhim.
“I ken me duty, Uncle. I’m still getting… married.” She swallowed back a curse.
Her eyes scanned the pews on either side of the aisle. Pure disdain for the people watching her and saying nothing curled through her stomach.
“Daenae think that I daenae suspect ye’re up to somethin’.” Her uncle squeezed her arm so hard it hurt. She knew she would have a bruise later. “I ken ye hate the idea of this marriage, or any marriage. But if I find out that ye planned something to wiggle yer way out of this, it’ll be Thalia up next, ye hear?”
“I daenae ken what ye mean.” Ava felt like throwing up her breakfast. Surely not Thalia. Not her little sister, and the only thing that was pure and sacred in this world.
She continued scanning the crowd, trying hard to ignore her uncle’s threats. She doubted he suspected that she and Finlay were not planning on consummating their marriage.
She notwas not worried about her fate anywhere near as much as she was about her younger sister’s. Her marriage to Finlay would appease her uncle, and that was all that mattered. As long as Thalia was safe and free.
Finally, she laid eyes on her sisters, who were standing in the front pew on the right. The knot in her chest loosened, and she drew in a deep breath.
Emma and Thalia stood side by side, their faces tight, strained smiles playing on their lips.
Thalia stood nearly half a foot taller than the twins. She was stunning, and Ava, much like her twin, would do anything to keep that light in her eyes. Emma’s husband, Jack, stood on her other side, holding his daughter.
Initially, Ava had hated Jack, but she had grown to love him and his baby girl, Stella. They were family. Nothing got between family, especially not nosy uncles who did not know what was good for them.
Their encouraging smiles made her heart sink, but she decided to put on a brave face for them. She knew they supported her wish to be free, never to marry, and to spend the rest of her life with her animals. She wondered if her favorite sow had already gone into labor. She hated the thought of the sow giving birth for the first time alone.
On the other side of the aisle stood the MacCabes. Ava was surprised by the sheer number. Finlay had not said this would be a clan affair.
Before she realized it, her uncle pulled her to a halt at the altar. She could finally see the back of her groom. Only, his long brown hair was too dark, his figure too tall and broad.
He slowly turned around, revealing a stranger wearing a black mask that covered the right side of his face.
Ava could not help but gasp. Dark brown eyes, instead of Finlay’s hazel, looked at her only for a moment before flicking away.
“Ye’re late,” he said in a deep and rich voice.
notAnger flared in Ava’s chest.
“Excuse me?”
“I said, ye’re late.”
“Whoareye?” she whispered-hissed.
The stranger, who looked like Finlay but was definitelynotFinlay, turned back to her. He looked vaguely familiar, but she could not place him with that mask on his face.
“I’m yer groom. And ye’re late to our wedding, lass.” He raised an eyebrow. The one she could see anyway.
Then his words registered like a gong struck in her skull.
“Me what?” The air rushed from her lungs. The kirk started to spin.
