Chapter One- An Ulterior Fate

Amara's POV

I should have known this day would come. Where most women imagined their trek down the aisle, I imagined just how I would be taken. It was inevitable considering my father's reputation and the enemies he made along the way. If this wasn't reason enough then what came with the promise weighing heavy in the form of a three carat diamond in my left hand had.

I was left wondering how it would happen. Would it be swift and silent or boisterous and a spectacle? Would they ask for a ransom or kill me before I could understand my situation?

I learned the answers to my speculations would be given the night of my rehearsal dinner.

They must have spent thousands of dollars on this dinner alone. It was a thought that made my stomach twist with the uncertainty of what the actual wedding would amount to. The details were ones I entrusted with my fiance's family and those he hired to execute the sham of an event as I simply wanted it over. I didn't even have a sliver of care about the cake, the dress, or the music as this- like most things, was beyond my control. I would simply nod whenever asked a question and count down the minutes until I could begin the rest of my Godforsaken life.

"You could at least smile..." A nasal tone chided as I fixed the resting bitch face that must have been the reason for the remark. But if I was expected to smile for the next sixty years, I was going to spend my last night of freedom doing what I damn well pleased. So I simply collected a glass of champagne from the edge of the tower making up a fountain before glaring at my fiance and swallowing it down quickly.

From the outside looking in Andrew Fraser was a dream for any young girl to find viable for a marriage prospect-forced or not. He was the heir to a whiskey fortune, educated, and handsome enough. But for those who knew him as I did, being bound to him for any duration was a sentence. I was without a choice as it was time to pay my dues as a Brady. It didn't mean I had to smile. At least not all of tonight.

Working on my second glass and already thinking of where I could get my third, I made my way to the balcony of the hotel for a moment alone. My naked skin chilled to the brittle Boston air that was expected for this time of year. A smart woman would have at least brought a shawl, if not stayed inside all together. But since I was one signing away her life in less than twelve hours, I wanted to feel something that was my own choice. Even if it invoked pain.

The landscape beneath was that of a pond wrapped around the back of the hotel that was interrupted by a pathway leading to a gazebo at the center of the water. It was a focal point for Mrs. Fraser for photo opportunities as I preferred the body of water surrounding it as a method of drowning myself if the event became too much.

The idea sent me to finishing my second flute and returning inside for that third, but just before I could, I was overcome with a sensation of being watched. It wasn't surprising or uncommon since this was a hotel. Still, it was unsettling. One quick gander proving my paranoia above all else, I returned with the thought pushed back in my mind.

The hours that followed were unnecessary and dragged out. I gave enough fake smiles to win an Oscar and still Andrew's fingers ate into my ribs as if I was scowling. It made it tempting to slip up just once, but still I refused for the sake of my own stubbornness. As much as I didn't want to marry him, I didn't want them to see how it affected me even more. So I played my part when it was expected before sneaking away down the hall.

My phone was taken by Mr. Fraser at the beginning of the night which meant my only source of distraction came in a moment I could steal alone with my thoughts. I was desperate for it. Almost enough to pick up smoking, and I never had. Maybe if I got drunk enough they would postpone or cancel the wedding to spare themselves the scandal. Of course, I knew it would only make it a dangerous situation for my own family, so once again I just took a short moment for myself.

"Excuse me..." A voice apologized as I was too distracted to notice anyone else in the hallway.

I stepped sideways to give them access before feeling a set of gloves fingers wrap around my bicep. I was only allowed a single swipe of my gaze to notice a masked man and a cohort blocking my exit before I was lifted over a shoulder and taken out of the rear doors.

They were intimidating but not violent as there was no use of a weapon, even as they pulled me to the side of the building and towards a car with completely tinted windows. Instead, they used their brute force as a gag was shoved in my mouth just before I could understand my circumstances and call to anyone for help.

"Fuck!" One of the men exclaimed as I managed to slip free and use the heel of my Stiletto to pierce through his shoe. As he began to nurse the wound, I sprinted back in the direction of the hotel but was quickly apprehended. Although I was determined, they were stronger, and there would be no victory if I was exhausted.

"I thought he wanted her in the front..." The man holding me asked in confusion as the wounded took a tight hold of the back of my hair and led me to the trunk of the car.

"That was before the bitch pierced my goddamn foot!" I was shoved inside as if I was a disposable piece of garbage, locked away in darkness, and forgotten by the party above. Still, it was a better fate for tonight than faking another smile as the future wife of a cold blooded killer.