Thorn (Werewolf) ✔

Chapter Four

I can't stop shaking. I can't breathe. My mother holds me still while she forces me to look upon my wedding-ready self in the mirror but I am becoming dizzier. The dress is beautiful, not too long or hazardous and it only comes down to my ankles. It's ivory at my chest area but falls into a lovely soft blue colour at the waist. The bottom is loose and I feel bare underneath it. The built-in bra supports my breasts and there is a little piece of material connecting the two chest parts. The design is white flowers, stitched into the chest area and also spiralling down my thighs. In the light it looks like I'm wearing crystal diamonds, that's how good the design is.

My hair has been braided into a plait at the base of my head with a few curly strands left to float around my jawline. My eyes have been painted black and they make my eyes brighter. My lips are coated with a thin rosy pink gloss and my face is that thick with make up that I look unrecognizable.

"Beautiful," my mother murmurs. "The dress is so simple and elegant. Blue really compliments you well."

I clutch a hand to my stomach and I walk away from the mirror. I'm having a panic attack and I can't stop it. One of the servant girls guides me over to a chair and I hold my head in between my legs as I take deep breaths. I hear a knock on the door and then it opens.

"Is it safe to come in?" a familiar voice says.

"She's just having a moment," my mother says. "Now might not be the best time."

I'm having a panic attack. Not a moment, an actual nerve-wrenching spasm. But my mother ignores my panic and my pain, like usual.

"Can you give us a minute please?"

"Sure. We'll wait outside. Don't be long."

I gather myself and I look up to see my brother Coan folding his arms against the table. He is dressed in a navy-blue tux with a tie, he looks ready for a wedding. My wedding.

"You look amazing," he says.

"Thanks."

"Here." He brings me a glass of water and I almost rip it from his hand. I empty the glass in a few seconds. "I wish I could make this easier for you. I hate seeing you like this."

"Why? I've been preparing for this my whole life."

"Our parents have gone mad," he growls. "Lyle of all people. I hated him when we were kids and I still hate him now. The King has lost his mind. Someone should stop this."

I flick my eyes up and I narrow them with anger. "You could have stopped this."

Coan was once chosen as the fourth potential. Being from a high-born family, he was actually the King's first choice. Our parents pressured and pressured him into accepting but Coan somehow got away with declining. He stood up to our father which is something that I have never been brave enough to do. If he had accepted the King's request and trained as a potential then my parents wouldn't be marrying me off to Lyle today. I wouldn't have to go through any of this because the only thing better than having your daughter marry a future King is having your son become one.

"You know I couldn't do that," he says. "I don't know anything about being King and I don't care to."

"And you think I want to be the Queen?" I hiss at him. "Don't you think that I'd like that choice too?"

"I'm sorry. If I had known that they were going to make you marry Lyle then I never would have declined. But it's too late, the King won't accept substitutions and his final four are official."

I shake my head. "I can't marry him."

"You have to marry him."

"Why? Because our parents say so?"