Bound by Deception

Chapter 4: The wedding ceremony.

"f**k" Alexander muttered under his breath before he sprinted in her direction. He knew that she wont be able to run that fast on her heels and even if she did get away, she had signed a contract and he was not going to allow her make a fool of him.

It didn't take long before Alexander caught up with her.

"Now now, beautiful, did you really think you could get away from me that easily?" He asked as he drew her closer to himself.

"Let me go!" Elena retaliated as she tried to break free from his grip. "Go and marry the b***h you claim to love so much."

"I would, but then again, I don't take instructions from you. Now, let me remind you once again that if you leave this place without getting married to me, your family and everything you love will be destroyed. Is that what you want?" He asked

Elena did not enjoy the fact that she was probably being used as a pawn in someone's game but at that point, she didn't think it mattered so much especially since she was also benefiting from the same company.

"I didn't think so. Now, lets put behind all these drama and think of something better for the both of us," Alexander said as he stretched forth his hand.

Elena hesitated for a split second before she finally slipped her fingers into his and her grip was colder than the diamond ring resting on her ring finger.

The ceremony was just as expected, lavish, extravagant and benefiting for someone from the Hawthorne dynasty. The cathedral was filled with social elites and the air smelled of fresh roses and old money. Photographers could not help but take pictures of Elena and Alexander as they walked down the aisle together. On paper, they looked like the perfect couple but only a few people knew that this was not the case.

The organ music playing in the background did little to sooth Elena’s nerves but it did help her keep her posture rigid. She had decided that if she was truly going to do this, she was not going to be the fragile and reluctant bride.

She would not cower, neither would she break. Alexander on the other hand had mastered his emotions and he stood flawless. To the whole world, he looked like a devoted groom but only Elena knew how wrong they all were.

"Smile, Elena," Alexander said through clenched teeth as he rested his hand on hers.

"I don't smile at circus events. But you can, you seem like the kind of person who can do it extremely well."

"Are you saying I'm your ring master?"

"Isn't that what you are?" She responded as they both kept moving.

As soon as they entered the actual hall, the crowd stood up and as Elena passed, she could hear the words coming out of everyone's mouth.

“Isn’t that Elena Moreau?”

“She looks… miserable.”

“Is this about the company?”

"I cant believe she will sell herself like that. She is so cheap."

"You can hear them right?" Elena muttered through gritted teeth as they kept walking.

"Allow them talk vixen, its what they always do," Alexander replied coldly. Elena did not like that name one bit.

The people kept talking and by the time Elena finally reached the altar, her heart was pounding so much that she could bet that Alexander had heard it.

The priest smiled at both of them and then began the ceremony. Elena’s could not concentrate through it all. His voice sounded like a background noise in a movie she did not want to watch.

Alexander noticed that she was far away and he leaned slowly to her and said "you still have time to back out you know."

Elena could not believe it. Was he truly giving her a free pass? She smiled as she turned to look at him, caught off guard by his words. "What did you just say to me?"

"I said, if you want to run away again, this will be a perfect time and trust me, I wont chase after you this time so you will actually get away with it."

"Are you serious?" Elena asked as she searched his face, trying to see if he was lying.

“As a heart attack.”

She was overwhelmed with joy but as soon as it came, it left. This was the same man that had chased her down to prevent her from leaving. Why did he change his mind all of a sudden, it made no sense to her.

"And what happens to my family’s company if I leave? What will happen to my father? Will you burn all those to the ground?" She asked.

A small smirked crept onto his lips. "If you run, yes."

That killed any sort of hope that she had and she faced forward again, "then I guess we are getting married."

Still, Elena could not help but wonder what it would truly feel like to be free from him. Before she could say anything more, the voice of the priest brought her back to reality.

“Elena Moreau, do you take Alexander Hawthorne to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

She looked at the priest with fear in her eyes. This was the moment that she feared and it now now here. She could not say a word. Her mouth had gotten dry and her jaw was suddenly tight.

“I do,” she said, flatly, seeing no other way out.

The priest smiled and moved on to Alexander. "Do you Alexander Hawthorne take Elena Moreau..."

Alexander did not even allow the priest to finish speaking before he said "I do," in a rush. His eyes never left Elena’s making everyone to believe that he was madly in love with her.

“And by the power vested in me—” the priest began to recite before they all heard a resounding BANG! The shot cracked through the cathedral like thunder. Gasps. Screams. Chaos.

Elena stood at the altar, frozen, wondering what was going on.

"What was that?" She said, asking no one in particular but hoping that somehow, Alexander would have an answer to her question.

Alexander didn't and then they heard another shot, which made him flinch. Alexander did not think of anyone else, he just grabbed Elena and pulled her down behind the altar.

"Get down. Now!" He said as he watched people scrambling around and his security team trying to find who the shotter was.

"Get her out of here!" He yelled at the few of them who had ran to his rescue.

"I don't need saving!" Elena reported back, not willing to leave the wedding hall like that.

"Listen to me, this is not the time for you to be stubborn. Just do as I say so that we can avoid you getting hurt."

Elena did not listen and she pulled her veil off with trembling hands, "was that bullet meant for you or for me?" She asked

Alexander could see that she was not willing to leave and somehow, he didn't want her to. Having her by his side actually made him feel much more calm.

"If you must stay here, you should be extremely quiet." He said and just then, they heard a voice behind them.

“West wing breach,” the voice said to Alex. “Sniper on the balcony. He’s gone now.”

"This is madness," Elena whispered. "We were almost killed!"

"Welcome to my world, Mrs. Hawthorne."

"Please don't call me that," Elena blurted out, making Alex to smile.

"Why? Too soon?" He said as he stood up and offered her hand.

"I don't want to be called that," she said as she slapped off his hand and stood by herself.

"Elena, don't!" Was all Alexander managed to say before the side doors burst open and they both heard a familiar voice.

"Really Alex? Did you truly think you could kick me out of your wedding and I would go like that?"

Elena knew that voice so well and when she turned, she confirmed that she was truly face to face with Victoria.

"Victoria Sinclair." Elena said

"Hey there darling," she replied. "Quite the way to make an appearance, wont you agree?"

"Victoria, what do you want?" Alexander asked.

"Just wanted to watch you get married to this trash here but your stupid guards didn't let me in so i had to find a way around that and tada!"

"You did this?" Elena said

"Oh no, I cant take the fall for this. You see, I am not this messy, just ask Alex here. But you marrying him, that was something I could not miss." Victoria smirked.

"Get out. Now!" Alexander growled, getting tired of her games.

"Fine, I'll leave. But I must inform you, I will be waiting for you at the hotel we were to meet after your wedding. Please don't keep me waiting, cause you maybe married to her but you are mine."

Elena did not need an interpretation to exactly what she was talking about. She looked at Alexander, with anger in her eyes, smiled and walked away.

On that day, she sworn. She was never going to believe a word he said. This was just a contract and not a marriage.