The groom ran away

“How much?” Cathleen has grown colder over the years. The sweet girl everyone knew was gone. Not even a man could soften her heart. It was as if the girl didn’t have a heart at all; she was stone cold. The two looked at each other and couldn’t answer. Cathleen is where she is today, with no one’s help, not even her own father. She worked part-time to pay for her studies. The two didn’t answer as she continued to stare down at them. Cathleen arched an eyebrow at them, asking them to say how much they had spent on her, but no one spoke.

Cathleen's once warm and kind demeanor has hardened into a chilling coldness over the years. Not even the presence of a man could thaw her frozen heart. It was as if she had no heart at all, made of stone and impenetrable. As the two faced each other in silence, neither able to answer nor understand this distant version of Cathleen, it became clear that she had clawed her way to where she was today on her own, without anyone's help or guidance—not even her own father's. She worked tirelessly to pay for her education, a burden that should have been shared by those who claimed to care for her. Cathleen arched an eyebrow at them, asking them to say how much they had spent on her, but their guilt-ridden faces remained mute. At that moment, Cathleen's frigid gaze held more power than any words could convey.

Cathleen's arms crossed tightly over her chest, her expression shifting from cold and distant to one of disgust and contempt. Her sneer revealed a flash of perfectly straight and white teeth. Her once warm brown eyes, now icy and unyielding, “You say I owe you. How much do I owe you?”

The silence in William's study was suffocating, heavy, and thick like a fog. Every sound was amplified, from the faint tick of a clock to the drop of a pin hitting the hardwood floor. Both individuals were rendered speechless, their mouths agape as they struggled to find the words to break the stifling stillness. But all that could be heard was the deafening echo of their own breathing, a reminder of their helplessness in this tense and oppressive atmosphere.

Cathleen continued, “That is my condition, or we wait for your precious daughter to finish what she started.” Dora's heart pounds in her chest, fear and determination swirling together like a deadly storm. She would rather face death than let her precious daughter marry someone like Finn, who possesses nothing but empty promises and shallow pockets. The very thought makes her blood boil, her maternal instinct driving her to protect at any cost.

“Fine!” Dora was quick to answer.

“Very well then.” Cathleen checked her watch. We still have 3 hours before the wedding. Let’s go to the Department of Civil Affairs to finalize the formalities.” William knew that his daughter meant every word, so he picked up his phone and called old Mr. Knight.

Old Mr. Knight: Hello William.

William: Old Mr. Knight, we have a problem. My daughter, Avery, ran away. Since we need this alliance, is it okay if I bring my other daughter, the one who was engaged to Finn before, to marry him?

There was a pause on the other line. Old Mr. Knight loved Cathleen more than Avery, and he loved the way she carried herself. He knew that Finn cheated because she never slept with him. While Avery was different and wild. The man saw Avery as a cheap girl. In reality, he could have loved it if Cathleen could marry his youngest son, Xavier. The man sighed and finally spoke.

Old Mr. Knight: William, let me get back to you. I will have to talk to Finn.

The man cut the call and asked one of the servants to summon Finn to his study.

After about 5 minutes, old Mr. Knight looked at his grandson, Finn. “Your bride ran away. It seemed like she had cold feet. So you will marry Cathleen.” Finn felt like a bucket of dirty, cold water had been poured all over his body. In horror, he looked at his grandfather.

“Grandpa, you know that girl hates my guts. She wants revenge. Not happening.”

“The problem is, you like easy women.”

“Not happening!” Finn's face contorted in anger as he yelled, his eyebrows furrowed, and his jaw clenched. He leaned forward in his chair, his hands gripping the arms tightly.

“That’s final! I don’t remember giving you a choice!” The commanding voice of Old Mr. Knight left no room for arguments, booming like thunder and reverberating through the tense air.

As he learned that Cathleen would take the place of his girlfriend, Avery, Finn's mind began to spin. He couldn't believe it, knowing how much Cathleen resented him for his past mistakes. How could they ever have a successful relationship after all that had happened between them? A strong sense of guilt and regret washed over Finn as he realized the consequences of his actions. He had always loved Cathleen, but Cathleen was a strict woman. ‘The, do not touch me or kiss me till you put a ring on it.’ kind of girl. She was a strict and naive woman, but he also knew that marrying Cathleen would be a fatal mistake.

He could sense the malice in her heart, silently plotting revenge. Yet his heart belonged to another woman, Avery Jackson, who happened to be Cathleen's sister. Finn's mind raced as he made a desperate choice; he fled. Without hesitation, he bolted from the limousine just as it stopped in front of the looming church gates. The weight of his decision settled heavily on his shoulders as he disappeared in broad daylight, leaving behind a shattered future.

Panic set in as bodyguards barged into the church, frantically informing the Knight family that their youngest son had disappeared without a trace. Old Mr. Knight's orders to block all airports and roads yielded no sign of Finn. But Finn was nowhere to be found. Then an idea came to old Mr. Knight. His youngest son, Xavier Alexander Knight,