*1: marriage without a groom?

**Chapter 1: Wedding Without a Groom?**

Hanna stood on the brink of a significant milestone in her life, although it wasn't exactly by her own choice. An arranged and hurried marriage was far from the romantic scenario she had always dreamed of. Yet, given the circumstances, it was the only option she had to get what she needed at that moment.

That morning, Hanna had already received everything she needed to prepare for the wedding. A legion of servants was at her disposal, ready to attend to her. She wondered why all this apparatus was necessary for a marriage that, in the end, was only to fulfill a contract.

"All this expensive clothing and dedication to make me presentable makes me wish my marriage was with someone I love. After all... why put in so much effort and care into planning something that's false?"

"One day when this agreement ends... if I think of getting married, I'll never be able to overcome the impeccable organization of the Farrugias. I didn't even have to move for anything," she thought, sighing several times whenever those people touched her, doing her makeup, her hair, she would never have the resources to hire so many people for this moment.

Although she wasn't enthusiastic about the idea of marriage, Hanna couldn't deny the anxiety she felt. After all, the Farrugias were a family of great importance in the city, and at that moment she had no choice but to get married, it was as if she were in a dead end.

"Mrs. Ortiz, you only have two days to make the deposit." She read the message on her cell phone while chewing her nails, then checking her bank balance.

"Goodness..." she grumbled as she saw that everything her mother had left was already gone, she didn't even have a penny in her bank account. "Would it be too much to ask for a miracle that isn't the damn loveless wedding?" she murmured softly as she lamented.

If she didn't fulfill this agreement by a certain date, she couldn't have the benefits and she wouldn't be trimmed in that family, Hanna didn't understand why it was so important to fulfill this agreement, then she remembered that even in the hospital bed, her mother still had a stable and secure life without worrying about anything, her treatments were always paid for and she never had anything to worry about, supposedly the Farrugia family kept them and paid all their expenses.

"Please, let everything go well..." she murmured a prayer, with her hands clasped near her heart, while one of the servants sent combed her hair, several times she hesitated thinking about talking to them, but she didn't even face them, it was like they were robots only following orders.

The Farrugia family is a powerful and very rich family, she still couldn't understand why her mother had an agreement with that powerful family even being a simple woman and without noble origin and not the reasons for her mother to reveal about the agreement only when she was on her deathbed.

She had no idea who her groom would be, except for the basics she managed to research through gossip sites, but the photos they had could barely see Davis Farrugia's face, a 26-year-old man, apparently he is good looking, which relieved Hanna more, nothing worse than having to be thrown to an old man, so being young even considered the idea of falling in love with him.

However, the Farrugia mansion is in turmoil. It seems someone has disappeared.

"How is it possible for the groom to disappear at such a critical moment?" In the office, Morgan growls furiously, while the servants run around the mansion in despair.

"What are we going to do?" asks a fifty-year-old woman, walking back and forth, impatient.

"Find him!" Morgan responds dryly.

"Morgan..." she sighed, impatient. "It was already a pity that this woman contacted. If it weren't for that... maybe we wouldn't be forced to fulfill this agreement."

"I know! We all know what the conditions of this marriage have been since our grandmother died ten years ago. But I never thought that this woman, whom we haven't even seen, would contact us to demand that we fulfill the agreement," Morgan grumbled, pacing back and forth without idea where to be his son.

"And to our misfortune, she decided to demand this just one day before the agreement expired. I really believed the agreement would be revoked, but Part B spoke up before that," he smiled cynically. "She was very clever, timing it at the last minute to prevent us from trying anything to stop compliance."

"It seems we're not dealing with just any woman. We have to be careful, she might be coming just to destroy our family," suggested the middle-aged woman with a weary look of concern.

"Abigail..." he sighed heavily. "Old Melin already did that the moment she made this agreement with a maid!" he asserted grumpily. Abigail then sat in silence.

After searching the entire house that morning, they didn't find Davis. He had indeed run away.

"It was expected that he would do this, after all... he was the one left. No one would want to marry without love, especially with a disfigured woman. Just thinking about the times I visited that woman still in the hospital bed, I think it will be a martyrdom to live alongside her daughter," mused Morgan thoughtfully.

"Yes! I don't blame Davis!" announced another stern-looking woman, entering the office without even asking for permission. Morgan simply turned away to face outside the window; if his mood was already bad, it had now worsened considerably.

Seeing that woman every day was his martyrdom. Liara, Morgan's ex-mother-in-law, rarely left her mansion. It was customary for her to be there like a tick, sucking every drop of humor from Morgan. However, no one dared to throw her out, since being the wife of a deputy, she had considerable influence in the city and thus in the Farrugia family as well.

"What are you doing here?" Morgan asked.

"Well... everyone is worried, supposedly about your son Davis's escape. The wedding will have to be canceled after all... he was one of the few young men in the family who could accept the agreement," she suggested, observing him with a certain disdain.

"Yes, we have no one else now," he sighed restlessly. However, Liara didn't seem bothered.

"Morgan, you have to sort this out!" Abigail announced desperately.

"I don't know what to do..." he sighed, glancing at the clock. There was only half an hour left until the wedding. "We'll have to postpone until tomorrow. I'll inform the bride!" he announced, leaving the office with heavy steps, taking his cellphone with him.