The Alpha's Bride Swap

Chapter 2

Elowen

Fear. That’s what I felt. Alpha Corven’s gaze was locked on me, and the stern look in his gold eyes sent a shivering sensation down my spine. My lips quivered as I tried to answer his question, but the words wouldn’t converge. What would I tell him? That Alyssa was missing? He wouldn’t believe me. Nobody would.

“Don’t let me ask you twice, you freak,” he said, his voice as cold as his eyes.

I winced as the word “freak” resonated within me. There was a look of disgust on his face, but what else did I expect? He didn’t like me and always told Alyssa to stay away from me.

“I—I don’t know,” I said. “I dropped her off in her bed last night, and I haven’t seen her since then.”

Alpha Corven’s gold eyes burned in rage. He stepped into the room, taking powerful strides as he made his way towards me. I pulled backwards in fright as I watched him approach me. It felt like he was going to eat me, his suppressing aura leaving goosebumps on my skin.

“What did you do to her?” He demanded as he stood before me. I felt his aura crushing me making it hard to breathe. My lungs screamed for air, and a stabbing sensation plagued my chest.

“I-I don’t know,” I begged. “Please, Alpha. I will look for her right now.”

His stern look lingered for a moment before he took a step backwards. My chest expanded and oxygen flushed down my lungs. I coughed as I recovered from a potential hypoxia.

“There’s no time for that,” he said, glancing at his watch. “We only have a few minutes before the guests arrive.”

I looked at him in confusion. But then, his next words caught me off guard.

“You’re going to stand in for Alyssa until we can find her,” he said.

I looked at him, appalled by his words. Stand in for Alyssa? I could never do such a thing. It wouldn’t sit right with me. Alyssa was supposed to get married today. It was supposed to be the best day of her life. I wouldn’t dare try to ruin it.

“I’m sorry, Alpha. I can’t do that,” I said.

Alpha Corven glared at me. He took a step closer and I reeled backwards on the bed. He stooped over to bring his eyes to my level.

“Do you know who Alpha Draven Stormveil is?”

The rumors of how ruthless Draven was rushed back into my mind. I didn’t know why Alyssa chose to marry someone like him, but you could never reason with someone who was in love. I didn’t want to imagine the look on his face once he realized that I wasn’t his bride.

I nodded in reply.

“Then you know that we can’t disappoint him?”

I gulped hard and nodded with my eyes shut. I didn’t want to do this. But Draven would rain down hell on this pack once he realized that his bride was no way to be found. But what would he do if he found out I was impersonating his bride?

“Good. So get up, get dressed, and meet me at the hall,” he demanded.

I opened my eyes and found Alpha Croven standing erect. He was dressed in a black suit with a flower in his breast pocket. His chocolate brown hair which was infested with grey strands fell off his temples and his gold eyes were locked on me.

“Have I made myself clear?”

I tightened my jaws as I stared at him before giving him a subtle nod.

“Good,” he said, flashing a fake smile. He glanced at his watch and looked back at me. “You’ve got twenty minutes. If I were you, I'd start dressing.”

And with that, he stepped out of the room shutting the door behind him. I stared at the door, the silence ringing in my ears as I digested what had just happened.

I was about to replace Alyssa on her wedding day. This was the worst day of my life. Guilt weighed heavily in my chest and my eyes fell on the white gown lying on the chair by the dresser. I couldn’t bring myself to do this. But I didn’t have any other choice. It was either this or the pack would be destroyed.

I sighed and made up my mind. I was going to do it for the sake of the pack.

And for Alyssa’s as well….

***

The hall was filled with guests as I arrived. Standing at the door was Alpha Corven who glanced at his watch nervously. When he saw me, his expression softened. I was dressed in Alyssa’s wedding gown and I felt like an alien in it. In my hand was a bouquet and a veil that concealed my identity.

This was a terrible idea. If Draven took off the veil before the ceremony kicked off, there was going to be a tantrum. And I was going to be at the center of it.

Alpha Corven walked up to me hurriedly, beads of sweat gathering at his forehead. He looked anxious as he made his way over.

“Hurry up,” he said. “We don’t have time for this.”

He grabbed my hand and pulled me into the hall. The crowd turned their heads and the piano started playing the familiar melody of “Here comes the bride” as I made my way towards the aisle.

My pulse drummed in my ears and my stomach churned in guilt as I walked down the aisle with Alpha Corven holding me. This wasn’t how I wanted to get married. I was hoping that Alyssa would pop up before I made it to the altar and called off the wedding.

“Have you found her?” I whispered to Alpha Corven.

“No. But we are still looking,” he assured me. “Just relax and get this over with. It’s not like I wanted to do this with you anyway.”

That fueled the guilt and anxiety that plagued me.

Standing at the altar was a tall man with tousled jet black hair that hung loosely off his temples. His silver eyes were lit in surprise and his jaws were rigid as he watched me walk towards him. My heart shuddered in fright. He looked so intimidating in the black suit he wore.

I arrived at the altar with my pulse throbbing in my ears and Draven’s eyes locked on me. It felt like they pierced through my soul.

Alpha Corven let go of me and walked out of the hall with a phone to his ear. Now wasn’t the time to make a call. But maybe they had found her. I prayed silently that it was Alyssa.

The celebrant, a man with white hair with a pair of glasses that shielded his blue eyes smiled at the both of us.

“We are all gathered here to celebrate this wonderful union between these beautiful souls,” the man began. “But before we proceed, is there anybody here that would love to object to this union?”

The crowd was silent. They wouldn’t dare say a word. Outside, I could see Alpha Corven being animated by the door with the phone to his ear.

Alyssa should be the one here. This was her moment. And I was stealing it from her. I would never recover from such a betrayal.

“Good,” the celebrant said before turning to us. “Your hands.”

We each gave him a hand and he held it. He gave us vows to say and I did that hesitantly. Then, he tied us together with a sacred cloth and the crowd clapped in appreciation.

“It is done,” the celebrant said. “You may kiss the bride.”

My heart skipped a beat as I heard that. This meant that he was going to take the veil off.

I watched in horror as Draven grabbed the veil, pulling it off slowly.

When he saw I wasn’t Alyssa, his face fell and his silver eyes burned in rage.

“Somebody get me Alpha Corven!” He barked. “Now!”