They Stole My Wedding to Save Her, Not Knowing They Were Sacrificing Me to the Mountain God Novel – Chapter 1 On the day of my wedding, Evelyn said Callum Whitaker and I were a cursed astrological match. Then she took my custom bridal gown and let Sienna stand in as the bride. Everyone in the family accepted it. It was as if they had all forgotten that the Sutton elders had chosen me years ago to become the Guardian’s Bride. According to the old covenant, if I failed to marry within three years of coming of age, it automatically meant I consented to marry the Mountain Guardian. And this year was the third year.
That night, begging begged him to take me away. He only comforted me. “Elara Sutton, you’re the only wife I’m going to have in the end,” he said gently. “What I’m giving her is just a ceremony.” “As for that Guardian’s Bride nonsense, it’s just something your elders made up to scare you.” “Be good and wait at home. Once Sienna and I finish the ceremony, I’ll come back and take you with me.” Then Callum told my parents I had gone to him. Afraid I would ruin the wedding, they locked me in my room. Through the crack beneath the door, I heard them talking outside. “What Guardian’s Bride? It’s nothing but an old family superstition the elders use to frighten people.” “Callum, just go through with the ceremony with Sienna first. The psychic said she has to be married today, or something terrible will happen to her.” Callum agreed without hesitation, playing the part of the perfect future son-in-law.
Outside my room, laughter filled the house as they celebrated. I was the only one left alone. What they did not know was that the senior Sutton line had already come to me. They told me that if I did not marry today, someone from Blackpine would come to take me away. From that day on, as the Guardian’s Bride, I would be bound to the mountains until death. Without permission, I would never be allowed to leave the mountains again. …… My phone rang. Patriarch Graham Sutton’s voice came through the line. “I heard your fiancé has decided to go through the ceremony with your sister after all.” “I told you before. Your fate matches this generation’s Mountain Guardian. If you still fail to marry, then you must…” My throat felt painfully dry. It took me a long while to swallow down the weight in my chest and force the words out. “I know, Patriarch Graham.” “You can send someone to pick me up now.” This was already the third wedding Callum and I had planned. We had been together for three years.
Every year, he proposed . And every time, Sienna ruined it. The first year, on the day of the wedding, Sienna broke her ankle after one of her reckless stunts. Callum and my entire family left me at the venue and rushed to the hospital. The second year, halfway through the ceremony, Sienna posted a video saying she was going skydiving. Callum and my family panicked, abandoned me again, and searched the whole city for her. This year, some psychic appeared out of nowhere and declared on the spot that Callum and I were an incompatible match, while Sienna had a volatile aura that required her to marry by tomorrow to save her life. The best solution, he said, was for her to stand in as the bride. Once the ceremony was over, everything could go back to normal. My parents and Callum agreed without a second thought. From beginning to end, not a single person asked what I wanted.
Even though I had told them again and again the dire consequences of leaving me unmarried. Outside the window, Sienna was beaming radiantly. She was wearing my bridal gown. Standing on either side of her were the bridesmaids and groomsmen I had invited. The wedding officiant and the photographer looked at the scene and directed everyone into position. “Bride, look this way.” “Groom, give us a smile. Kiss the bride…” Callum froze for a moment. He seemed to want to look up toward my window, but in the end, he held himself back. Then he lowered his head and pressed a kiss to the corner of Sienna’s lips. In that moment, my heart broke. Every bit of love I had ever felt for Callum shattered into pieces. He had once told me he would only ever kiss the girl he loved. Now, he had kissed someone. It just wasn’t me.