Bride (Ali Hazelwood) by Ali Hazelwood

            I cock my head. Study his stern face. Ask, mostly out of curiosity, “Does it matter?”

            It must not, because the question isn’t acknowledged. Owen watches us leave, expressionless, then yells after us, “Hope you packed a lint roller. I hear they shed.”

            One of the agents stops us in front of the double doors that lead into the courtyard. “Councilman Lark, Miss Lark, one minute. They’re not quite ready for you.” We wait side by side for a handful of uncomfortable moments, then Father turns to me. In my stylist-mandated heels, I nearly reach his height, and his eyes easily catch mine.

            “You should smile,” he orders in the Tongue. “According to the Humans, a wedding is the most beautiful day of a bride’s life.”

            My lips twitch. There’s something grotesquely funny about all of this. “What about the father of the bride?”

            He sighs. “You were always needlessly defiant.”

            My failures spare no front.

            “There is no going back, Misery,” he adds, not unkindly. “Once the handfasting is complete, you will be his wife.”

            “I know.” I don’t need soothing, or encouragement. I’ve been nothing but unwavering in my commitment to this union. I’m not prone to panic, or fear, or last-minute changes of heart. “I’ve done this before, remember?” He studies me for a few moments, until the doors open to what’s left of my life.

            It’s a perfect night for an outdoor ceremony: string lights, soft breeze, winking stars. I take a deep breath, hold it in, and listen to Mendelssohn’s march, string quartet rendition. According to the bubbly wedding planner who’s been blowing up my phone with links I don’t click on, the viola player is a member of the Human Philharmonic. Top three in the world, she texted, followed by more exclamation points than I’ve used in my cumulative written communications since birth. I must admit, it does sound nice. Even if the guests glance around, confused, unsure how to proceed until an overworked staffer gestures at them to stand.

            It’s not their fault. Wedding ceremonies are, as of a century or so ago, exclusively a Human thing. Vampyre society has evolved past monogamy, and Weres . . . I have no clue what Weres are up to, as I’ve never even been in the presence of one.

            If I had, I wouldn’t be alive.

            “Come on.” Father grips my elbow, and we start down the aisle.

            The bride’s guests are familiar, but only vaguely. A sea of willowy figures, unblinking lilac eyes, pointed ears. Lips closed over fangs, and half-pitying, mostly disgusted looks. I spot several members of my father’s inner circle; councilors I haven’t met since I was a child; powerful families and their scions, most of whom fawned over Owen and were little shits to me when we were kids. No one here could even remotely qualify as a friend, but in defense of whoever came up with the guest list, my lack of meaningful relationships must have made seat-filling a bit of a challenge.

            And then there’s the groom’s side. The one that emanates a foreign kind of heat. The one that wants me dead.

            The Weres’ blood beats quicker, louder, its smell coppery and unfamiliar. They are taller than Vampyres, stronger than Vampyres, faster than Vampyres, and none of them seems particularly enthused at the idea of their Alpha marrying one of us. Their lips curl as they eye me, defiant, angry. Their loathing is so thick I taste it on the roof of my palate.

            I don’t blame them. I don’t blame anyone for not wanting to be here. I don’t even blame the whispers, or the catty comments, or the fact that half the guests here never learned that sound carries farther than shit.

            “. . . she used to be the Collateral with the Humans for ten years, and now this?”

            “I bet she likes the attention . . .”

            “—blade-eared leech—”

            “I give her two weeks.”

            “More like two hours, if those animals—”

            “. . . either stabilize the region once and for all, or cause full-out war, again—”

            “—think they’re actually going to be fucking tonight?”

            I have no friends on the left, and only enemies on the right. So I ground myself and look straight ahead.