What Is The History Behind Bride Snatching Traditions?

The Draghi Brothers Feared, Revered. Monsters. Those were the words papa had always used to describe them. Worthless, useless, good for nothing-those had been reserved for me. After my little stunt at 16, my papa had made sure I was under lock and key. He knew how to manipulate me, spin his lies and I had no say in whatever he did. When he informed me about my marriage to the second son of the Donovan Family, I knew I had no choice. After all, he was my father. Most girls in our family including my sisters had already been married. I stood at the aisle, looking into the eyes of my husband to be, my mind detached. Just before I could say I do, brain matter splattered on my face, his empty eyes staring at me. The culprits— The brothers I had heard so much about. The brothers that marked me when I was 16. In the heat of the struggle, I found myself tied and captured by them—a price for my family's survival. I knew my father would come save me. Yet, I couldn't help but surrender to the sin they showed me daily. I have a choice to make. A captured bride or a willing slave.

Irene Spencer was married to a bridegroom who never showed up to their wedding.Furious, she slept with an unknown stranger on that very night.The man started to follow her around, and she eventually discovered that he was the runaway bridegroom…

There's a tradition in the clan called bride heist. The groom has to infiltrate the bride's house in the middle of the night. There, he has to carry her on his back and rush for the exit while overcoming all the obstacles. I've waited for Nicholas Tanner for three years. Finally, the night when he and his buddies infiltrate the courtyard of my house arrives. Just as I'm about to bolt toward Nicholas, I hear him murmuring to the others in a low tone. "When the chaos breaks out, go for Tricia. We can't let her marry that good-for-nothing from the next village. If that happens, she won't be able to leave the mountains ever again. "As for Charlene, she's a wild and temperamental woman, so she'll definitely fight tooth and nail to stop anyone from abducting her. You all should protect yourselves." Nicholas' buddies swap glances with each other "I don't think this is a good idea, Nicholas. You and Charlene have already registered your marriage, after all. If she were to find out the truth, she'd definitely kick up a huge ruckus!" "Let her be," Nicholas replies casually. "It's way too dark for us to see anything during the bride heist anyway, so it's completely normal if we get the wrong bride. I'll just coax Charlene later if she gets mad at me. "Besides, y'all know that the marriage certificate is a fake one. I've already promised Tricia that I'll secure a residential slot for her in Capworth. Unfortunately, Charlene will have to bear with the grievances for now." I overhear every single word in the conversation behind the door. Instead of throwing a tantrum, I retreat back into my room quietly. Nicholas and his buddies think that I'll cause a huge ruckus and beat up the people involved in the bride heist once I find out that the groom is another man. But I just quietly recline on that man's back and become the bride of the other bride heist team.

On the day of our wedding, my husband's assistant deliberately found an excuse to make me step outside. She put on a wedding dress and walked onto the stage before I did. She officially played the part of the bride. When my husband found out, not only did he not stop her, but he even held her hand with their fingers intertwined. He gazed at her lovingly and completed the wedding ceremony with a look of pure happiness. When I finally realized what was happening and was about to confront him, my husband immediately lashed out at me, "You were the one who showed up late and delayed the wedding ceremony. Do you expect all those guests to just sit there and wait for you? Can you be any more selfish? "Mia was only trying to help us with the wedding. Don't act like you're the victim after benefiting from it. I'll just make it up to you and hold another wedding for you later!" My friends were all stunned. They thought I would throw a fit after hearing such ridiculous words from my husband. Instead, I nodded and said he was right. Seeing how calm I was, my husband became even more pleased with himself. He said that since we had already received our marriage certificate, he would hold a proper wedding for me once he had time. He seemed to have forgotten one thing. We had just signed our divorce agreement yesterday.

Everyone in this town knows that when a family gives a daughter away in marriage, the parents always have a grand bridal carriage custom-built for her, adorned with thousands of pearls. Every single pearl on that carriage must be personally harvested by her mother and father—the more pearls, the more cherished the daughter is, and the more her future husband will value her. My own bridal carriage was finished six years ago. But nineteen times now, my wedding date has been set, and each time, my younger foster sister, Lena Bennett, has found some excuse to stop it. This time, on the very morning of my wedding, she locked me in my room again. By the time I smashed through the window and stumbled into the banquet hall, bruised and bleeding, the ceremony was already underway. Lena was sitting in my carriage, led by my brother, Ryan Bennett, toward my fiancé, Nathan Sinclair. My parents stood by the side with tears in their eyes, pleading with Nathan to treat their daughter well. The moment my best friend, Megan Hayes, saw me, she blocked the entrance and pinned me down. "Yes," she confessed, "this whole bride-swap plan—we all came up with it together. Lena is seriously ill. Everyone just wants to grant her dying wish. Try to be understanding." Ryan hurried over and warned me, "Mom and Dad said that if you just behave this one time, not only will they give you ten times more wedding gifts later, but they'll also finally treat you and Lena exactly the same from now on. If not, don't expect to stay in our family estate." I clenched my fists and refused to let a single tear fall in front of them. What they don't know was that over the years, my adoptive parents, Daniel and Susan Ward, had already quietly prepared wedding gifts worth hundreds of thousands for me. So, whatever love and belonging my biological family promised? I don't want it anymore.

After leaving the ancient Vampire Academy, I spent a year hiding in the neutral zone with my mentor, an alchemist obsessed with sunlight resistance. No Senate laws. No secret family protection. My father is one of the Five Original Progenitors. Terrified I'd let some rogue sweet-talk me into a reckless blood pact, he forced a marriage on me. The groom? Julian Vance, Lord of the Crimson Clan in Nightfall City. I had no choice. I went to pick out a sunlight cloak fit for a Lord's wife. A cloak immediately caught my eye—woven with gold thread and night-spider silk, glowing in the dim light. Just as my fingers brushed the fabric, a gratingly sweet voice cut in. "I want that one. Wrap it up." Before I could look up, the manager snatched the display box right out from under my nose. I stood up slowly. "Ever heard of first come, first served?" I asked coldly. "Put it back." The female vampire turned around, looking me up and down with pure disgust. "This cloak is half a million dollars. Can you even afford it, you potion-stinking half-breed?" She smirked. "Julian Vance and I grew up together. We are blood-bonded. In Nightfall City, my word is law." Her almighty Julian was my fiancé. We hadn't even met yet. I pulled out my phone and dialed his number. "Good evening, Julian. Your pretty little childhood sweetheart just stole my cloak for our bonding ceremony. Tell me, how should we settle this?"