Till Death Do Us Part
1371 Words
~Camilla~
“Do you, Camilla Moretti take Axel Vasquez to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?”
That question was supposed to be the start of a happy ending. My happy ending but I knew the answer would cement my nightmare.
The theme of the wedding was black like the color of his soul.
Not in all actuality but everything felt and looked so grim. I had not taken my eyes off my sister, seated beside my father after he led me to the altar. Her guilt filled eyes were the only thing stopping me from screaming out. The whole world kept flashing in a blur.
It had taken me a moment to drag myself from the study. I took the box with me out of fear that he could be watching me. Twenty three years and one would think I would be used to it and I really thought I was accustomed to the blood and chaos.
This was different. Axel revealed a more monstrous kind of blood and chaos.
Lucion’s blank stare flashed in my head underneath the lid of the box currently sitting on my dresser as I tried to use my eyes to send a promise to Riley that I understood, that I would be fine.
I was lying and we both knew it.
The tension and anticipation in the air was so thick, more suffocating than the beautiful dress that had been forced on my skin. My reflection was that of a beautiful bride when I had forced myself to take a glimpse in the mirror.
Just one glimpse.
“Camilla.”
Axel’s hard tone had me finally snapping my eyes to him and I hated just how beautiful he was. His eyes narrowed, “Answer the question.”
The question.
I could feel the weight of the stares pressing down on me, as if they were all silently praying just like me for something—anything—to stop this union.
But nothing happened.
I glanced back at Riley and then my father whose face held a mixture of sadness and anger. I forced the vomit down my throat, looking back at Axel then whispered the words that sealed my fate.
“I do.”
Satisfaction glimmered on Axel’s face as the priest turned his gaze to him but not before his sharp, almost accusatory had bore into me, as if he too questioned why I hadn’t tried harder to escape this fate.
“And do you Axel Vaquez take Camilla Moretti to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?”
I watched his gaze flicker to my father, his lips curving up in a venomous smile. His voice was smooth, calculated, devoid of any warmth. “I do.”
No one objected.
No last-minute interruptions.
No miracle to save me from this living nightmare.
The words echoed in my mind, bouncing around in the hollow space where my hope used to be. Until death do us part. I knew what those words meant for me. Death was not just an eventual end—it was a promise, a certainty in a life with Axel.
“You may now kiss the bride,” the priest finally declared, his voice heavy with finality.
Axel didn’t hesitate. His lips crashed against mine with a force that was more a claim than a kiss, his grip on my waist tightening as if to remind me that I was his now.
Completely and utterly his.
The room erupted in applause, the sound hollow and distant in my ears. I barely registered it, my mind numb, my body moving on autopilot as Axel led me down the aisle. The smiles around us were forced, the congratulations empty, but no one dared to voice their true thoughts.
I caught my sister’s eyes where she stood with her friends. Friends. She had built a life, condemning to this fate and yet again, I wished I could hate her.
As we stepped out of the cathedral, the weight of my new reality settled on my shoulders. I was no longer Camilla Moretti, the daughter of Victor Moretti. I was now Camilla Vasquez, the wife of Axel Vasquez, the devil himself.
And there was no escape from the hell I had just been condemned to.
My lungs had barely taken enough air when Axel’s hand shot out, pushing me into the awaiting car the moment we stepped outside.
“One hundred and eight three seconds, that’s how long it took you to answer.”
His voice was a low grow, cutting through the oppressive silence that filled the back of the car. I swallowed hard, struggling not to shrink back from the intensity of his stare, “I’m sorry. I was just—“
“Just what?” He growled.
“I’m...I’m sorry,” I stammered, “It won’t happen again.”
Axel’s gaze didn’t waver, his expression cold and detached. “It had better not,” he said, his tone as sharp as a blade. Without another word, he turned away from me and barked an order to the driver. “Go.”
The car lurched forward, and I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. The silence that followed was thick, heavy with unspoken threats. I dared not look at Axel, my eyes fixed on my trembling hands in my lap.
The ring on my finger felt like a shackle, binding me to a fate I could not escape.
After what felt like an eternity, Axel spoke again, his voice icy and methodical. “Here’s how this will work,” he began, his words precise, calculated. “We will maintain appearances. You will play the role of the perfect wife. Obedient. Silent. Useful. We will be intimate on the nights I choose, and you will ensure that nothing—nothing—prevents me from securing an heir.”
I flinched at the word, my stomach turning at the cold detachment in his voice. To him, this was all a transaction, a means to an end. My feelings, my desires, my fears—they meant nothing.
“You should already know how our world works,” He continued, his tone laced with contempt. “But let me make it clear. Know your place, Camilla. Do not test me. You exist to serve a purpose, and if you fail, there will be consequences.”
My heart pounded in my chest, a frantic rhythm of fear and anger. I opened my mouth to respond, to say something, anything that might appease him, but the words caught in my throat.
“Axel, I—”
But before I could finish, everything happened at once.
A deafening crack split the air, and something warm and wet splattered across my face. My breath caught in my throat as the driver’s head snapped back, a bullet ripping through his skull. The world slowed to a crawl, and with dawning horror, I realized it was his blood—his life—spraying onto me.
The tension that had been simmering, the hope that something would stop this cursed union, detonated in that split second.
More gunfire erupted, shattering the car windows. Glass exploded around us like deadly confetti. I screamed, the sound ripped from my throat, but it was swallowed by the chaos.
The car swerved violently, tires screeching, as Axel’s body lunged over mine, shielding me. My mind barely registered his protective move before my head slammed against the roof. The car skidded out of control, and then everything flipped. The world turned upside down as the car somersaulted, metal crunching and twisting.
The door was ripped open by the impact, and suddenly, I was airborne. I felt myself being thrown from the wreck, the ground rushing up to meet me.
The last thing I heard was a scream and I wasn’t sure if it came from me before my entire world went dark.
- Writer
