Chapter 13 - The Cathedral Walk
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The cathedral glowed with the warm light of a thousand candles and television-bright chandeliers. The restless shimmer of four hundred guests turning in their pews created a deafening rustle of expensive silk and tailored suits.
The heavy wooden doors swung open, and the organ music swelled, shaking the stone floors beneath my feet.
I began the long walk down the aisle alone. My father wasn't there to give me away, and I had refused to let anyone else take his place.
Every eye in the city was on me, but my vision was locked onto the altar.
Evan looked immaculate in a custom black tuxedo. He wore the confident, relaxed smile of a man who believed he had just successfully stolen the world. Beside him stood his groomsmen, and in the front row, Lucinda Mercer watched me with her chin lifted in triumph.
She thought I was walking into a cage.
I spotted Detective Alvarez sitting near the aisle in the second row. She gave me a nearly imperceptible nod. Two more plainclothes detectives were positioned near the cathedral's heavy side exits.
As I reached the altar, Evan reached out and took my hands. His skin was warm, his grip firm and possessive.
“You look breathtaking,” he whispered for the audience.
“So do you,” I replied, my voice steady.
The minister stepped forward, opening his leather-bound Bible, and the ceremony began. The traditional questions echoed through the massive nave. I responded mechanically, waiting for the deviation we had planned for.
Only the pulse jumping erratically in Evan’s jaw betrayed his anxiety when I deliberately skipped the traditional line about placing my trust “without reservation” in his hands.
May you like
Then, the minister closed his book.
“The couple has chosen to read personal vows,” he announced.
