MINE TO CLAIM

“Breathe, sweetheart. This is your day.” Mrs. Moreles smoothed Ava’s veil with trembling fingers, her forced smile not quite reaching her eyes.

Ava’s reflection stared back from the mirror—pale, hollow-eyed despite the carefully applied makeup. Her mother’s words felt like shards of glass. “Your day”. If only she knew.

“If I can’t have you, no one else will. And if you go against me to marry Leandro, I will drag you across his corpse and fuck you there, his blood staining that precious white dress.”

Dario’s voice echoed in her mind, as cold and final as a death sentence. Her hands shook as she gripped the bouquet.

“Mum, I—”

“It’s time, Ava.” Mr. Moreles appeared in the doorway, his face lighting up at the sight of her. “You’re radiant. Leandro won’t know what hit him.”

“Neither will you, Papa.” The thought twisted her stomach into knots. She wanted to scream, to confess everything, but the words died in her throat. What could she say? That a monster owned her? That this beautiful day was built on a foundation of lies and threats?.

Mrs. Moreles pulled her into a hug that felt like a goodbye. “Everything will be perfect.”

“No. Nothing will ever be perfect again.”

-----

The cathedral doors loomed ahead, their carved angels seeming to mock her with their serene faces. Ava’s legs moved mechanically, one foot in front of the other, her father’s steady arm the only thing keeping her upright.

Sunlight streamed through stained glass, painting the stone floor in jeweled colors that should have been beautiful. Instead, they looked like bloodstains to her fevered imagination.

There he was—Leandro, standing at the altar with that proud, loving smile that made her heart shatter into a million pieces. He deserved better than this. Better than her. Better than the destruction that was coming.

“I’m so sorry,” she thought, forcing her lips into a smile as their eyes met. “I’m so, so sorry.”

The guests’ murmurs of appreciation felt distant, underwater. Ava floated down the aisle like a ghost in white silk, each step taking her further from safety and closer to her fate.

Leandro took her hand, his warm fingers intertwining with her cold ones. “You’re shaking,” he whispered, concern flickering in his dark eyes.

“Wedding nerves,” she managed, the lie burning her tongue.

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today in the sight of God to witness the union of these two souls in holy matrimony.” The priest’s voice boomed through the cathedral. “If anyone knows of any reason why these two should not be joined, speak now or forever hold your peace.”

Ava’s heart hammered against her ribs like a caged bird. “He’ll come. He promised he would. This is it.”

Seconds stretched into eternity. The silence felt suffocating, pregnant with unspoken dread. Maybe—just maybe—he had changed his mind. Maybe she could have this one moment of happiness before—

“Leandro McCarthy, do you take Ava Moreles to be your lawfully wedded wife?”

“I do.” Leandro’s voice rang clear and strong, full of a love that made Ava want to weep.

“Ava Moreles, do you take Leandro McCarthy to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

The words stuck in her throat like tar. Everyone was watching, waiting, smiling. Leandro squeezed her hand encouragingly.

“I…” The cathedral seemed to spin around her. “I do.”

His smile could have powered the city.

“Before we exchange rings, I ask once more…..does anyone object to this union?”

The silence stretched like a held breath.

Then the cathedral doors exploded inward.

“Unfortunately, I do.”

The voice cut through the sacred air like a blade. Ava’s blood turned to ice water in her veins as armed figures in black tactical gear flooded through the entrance, their weapons trained on the terrified congregation.

“No. Not here. Not now. Please, God, not here.”

But there he was, emerging from the chaos like a nightmare given form. Dario Santos— The king of Northshore city. Even in her terror, she couldn’t deny his terrible magnificence—six feet of lethal grace wrapped in a perfectly tailored black suit that seemed to absorb light itself. His pale blue eyes found hers across the cathedral and she felt something inside her chest crumble completely.

The guests screamed, some diving under pews, others frozen in shock. Mrs. Moreles had fainted in the third row. Children were crying.

A gun pressed against Leandro’s temple with a metallic click.

“What did I tell you about defying me, little bird?” Dario’s voice carried easily over the chaos, each word dropping into the silence like stones into still water.

Ava couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think, couldn’t do anything but stare as her worst nightmare materialized in her sacred space. “Please,” she whispered, but no sound came out.

“Get away from my daughter!” Mr. Moreles lunged forward, only to be slammed to his knees by two of Dario’s men. A gun barrel kissed the back of his skull.

“Papa, no!” The scream tore from her throat.

Dario moved toward her with predatory grace, each step measured and deliberate. “My beautiful little firecracker.” His leather-gloved fingers traced her cheek, coming away wet with tears. “Did you really think you could run from me?”

“Please let them go.” Her voice broke completely. “I’ll do anything. Just let them go.”

His smile was winter-cold and twice as cruel. “Oh, you will. But first…” His gaze shifted to Leandro, who knelt at the altar with his hands raised, defiance burning in his eyes despite the gun at his head.

“I have to admire your courage, McCarthy. Stupidity, but courage nonetheless.” Dario tilted his head like a curious predator. “Did you honestly think you could steal what belongs to me?”

“Ava belongs to herself!” Leandro’s voice rang out, strong despite his position. “She chose me. She loves me. That’s something your money and guns can’t buy!”

The words hit their mark. Dario’s expression shifted, something dark and primal flickering behind those ice-blue eyes.

His fist connected with Leandro’s face in a sickening crunch. Blood sprayed across the white altar cloth as Leandro’s head snapped back.

“Stop!” Ava lunged forward, desperation giving her strength. Her fingers found the grip of Dario’s backup weapon, yanking it from his holster before anyone could react. The gun felt impossibly heavy in her shaking hands.

“Stay back!” She aimed it at his chest, her finger finding the trigger. “I swear I’ll pull it!”

Dario turned slowly, and the look on his face made her blood freeze. Not fear. Not surprise. Amusement.

“You won’t.” His voice was silk over steel. “You know why?”

A figure was shoved forward from the crowd of hostages. Her father, now wearing a vest that definitely wasn’t part of his wedding attire. Wires snaked across the fabric like electronic veins, leading to a small device blinking red in Dario’s palm.

“Because you love them more than you hate me.”

The gun trembled in her grip. Around the cathedral, people sobbed and prayed. Her mother had collapsed into a pew, hands pressed to her mouth in horror.

“Choose wisely, little bird. The gun… or their lives.”

Time froze. At this moment, she could pull the trigger. End it all. But the cost…

Her father’s eyes met hers. “Do it”. they seemed to say. *

“End this.”

But she couldn’t. God help her, she couldn’t.

The gun clattered to the marble floor.

“Good girl.” Dario’s hand cupped her face almost tenderly before he swept her up into his arms. She didn’t fight him. What was the point?

As he carried her toward the shattered doors, she caught one last glimpse of Leandro struggling against his captors, blood streaming down his face, shouting her name with raw desperation.

Then the cathedral disappeared behind them, taking her old life with it.

The last thing she heard was her mother screaming.

~~~~~~~

Leandro broke free the moment the guns lowered, stumbling toward the exit on unsteady legs.

“Son, stop!” His mother caught his arm. “You can’t—they’ll kill you!”

“I don’t care!” He shook her off, wild-eyed and bloodied. “That monster has her! I have to—”

“Leandro, please!” Mrs. McCarthy’s voice cracked. “She made her choice. She could have pulled that trigger and didn’t. She chose him!”

“She chose to save lives!” He spun on his mother, fury and heartbreak warring in his expression. “She sacrificed herself for all of us!”

“And I won’t let you throw your life away for someone who—”

“Who what?” Mr. Moreles materialized beside them, his face gray with shock but his eyes blazing. “Someone who just saved every person in this cathedral? Your son proposed to a hero, Mrs. McCarthy. The least you could do is respect that.”

Mrs. McCarthy fell silent, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Leandro looked between them, then toward the empty doorway where his bride had vanished. “I’ll find her,” he said quietly. “I don’t care who he is or what it takes. I’ll bring her home.”

But as sirens wailed in the distance and the first police cars screeched into the parking lot, one question burned in everyone’s mind:

What did Dario Santos want with Ava Moreles badly enough to turn her wedding day into a war zone?

And in the silence that followed, none of them noticed the small device left behind on the altar—still blinking red, counting down to something none of them could imagine.