Isla’s POV

“Say yes.”

I hear the words and feel nothing safe inside them.

The hall stretches wide in front of me. White chairs on both sides. White flowers on every

surface. Soft music moves through

the space, but it feels far away from my body.

Every face looks at me.

I feel watched from all directions.

My groom stands at the front.

Still posture.

Straight back.

Calm face.

Hands folded like nothing inside him shakes.

I hold my bouquet tighter.

My fingers press into the stems until pain builds in my palm.

A few petals bend and fall.

I do not fix it.

My phone vibrates.

I lower my eyes slowly.

The screen lights up.

Run or face death next.

My breath stops.

My chest tightens hard.

My body refuses to move.

The priest adjusts his book in front of me.

“Bride. Your response.”

The words feel far away.

The room holds silence like it is waiting to punish me.

I try to speak.

Nothing comes out.

My throat feels locked from the inside.

My groom steps forward at one pace.

My name leaves his mouth.

“Isla.”

It sounds sharp.

Controlled.

Not soft.

Not kind.

My phone vibrates again.

No second chance.

My fingers shake now.

I tighten my grip on the bouquet again without thinking.

My eyes shift left.

Exit doors.

One side has two guards.

The other has one guard.

Every exit looks blocked even if nobody says it out loud.

The air in the hall feels smaller now.

The priest repeats the question.

I still cannot answer.

My silence becomes loud.

I take one step back.

Then another step.

A chair scrapes somewhere behind me.

A whisper spreads through the guests.

I feel it rise in the room like pressure.

My groom’s face changes.

Confusion first.

Then irritation.

“Stop this.”

His voice rises.

I turn.

Not toward him.

Away from him.

Something breaks in the room the moment I move.

Someone stands too fast.

A glass hits the floor.

A seat shifts hard.

Noise spreads fast.

My groom says my name again.

“Isla.”

I keep walking.

Step after step.

Faster now.

My heels hit the floor with sharp sound.

Every step echoes inside my head.

Security near the side exit sees me.

One guard moves.

“Ma’am, stop.”

My phone vibrates again.

I ignore it.

The guard steps into my path.

My exit narrows.

People behind me rise from their seats.

Chairs scrape.

Confusion spreads faster.

I reach the last rows.

The guard raises his hand.

“Step back.”

My shoulder drops slightly.

I move before he fully blocks me.

I slip past his arm.

Gasps break out behind me.

The door is close.

My hand reaches the handle.

Cold metal touches my skin.

It resists at first.

For half a second I think it will not open.

Then it gives.

The door opens.

Cold air hits my face.

The sound inside the hall changes behind me.

Chaos stays inside.

I step out.

The door swings back.

I do not look behind.

I start running.

My dress pulls against my legs.

I lift it slightly so I do not trip.

Fabric still slows me.

I keep moving anyway.

Street air feels different.

Louder.

Heavier.

Cars pass close.

Voices mix.

I do not know where I am going.

I only know I cannot stay there.

A taxi slows near the curb.

I raise my hand fast.

It stops.

I open the door and get inside.

“Drive,” I say.

My voice sounds strange in my own ears.

The driver looks at me for one second.

He does not ask anything.

He pulls into traffic.

The car moves.

City lights pass outside the window.

I lean back.

My breath shakes.

My hands tremble on my lap.

I feel my heartbeat in my fingers.

My phone lights again.

Unknown number.

I delete the alert without reading.

Another call starts.

I press the power button.

The phone shuts off.

Silence fills the car.

My chest rises too fast.

Then slower.

Then fast again.

Minutes pass like they stretch too long.

Traffic slows ahead.

The taxi stops at a signal.

I look forward.

A black SUV sits behind us.

Another pulls beside us.

My body stiffens.

The driver notices.

“Problem?” he asks.

I do not answer.

The SUVs stay still.

Windows dark.

No faces.

One man steps out from the back of the SUV.

He looks toward my car.

I stop breathing for a second.

The light turns green.

The taxi moves.

The SUV follows.

I watch it in the mirror.

The second SUV moves beside us.

My eyes track both.

They do not leave.

The driver glances again.

“Still a problem?”

I stay silent.

Traffic becomes heavier ahead.

Cars slow.

Horns rise.

The taxi enters a crowded road.

The SUVs stay behind.

I turn my head slightly.

The distance between us feels too small.

My pulse rises again.

The taxi slows at another light.

Red.

We stop.

The SUVs stop too.

I grip the seat edge.

Time feels stretched.

My eyes stay locked on the mirror.

A man inside the SUV does not move.

The light changes.

We move again.

The SUVs follow again.

Closer now.

I lean forward.

“Take a side route,” I say.

The driver frowns.

“Traffic is heavy there.”

“Take it.”

He changes lanes.

The taxi turns into a narrower street.

Buildings feel closer now.

Shadows fall across the road.

The SUV follows the turn without hesitation.

My breathing tightens.

“They are still behind us,” the driver says.

I nod once.

The taxi moves faster.

The street narrows again.

Another turn comes.

The driver hesitates.

“Keep going,” I say.

We turn.

The SUV turns.

No delay.

I look down at my hands.

They shake.

I force them still.

Small shops pass by.

Dim lights.

Closed doors.

The SUV headlights reflect on walls behind us.

“Who are they?” the driver asks.

I do not answer.

Another turn comes.

We enter a wider road again.

Traffic returns.

The SUV stays close.

I see it again in the mirror.

Same distance.

No change.

My chest tightens.

The taxi slows at another light.

We stop again.

I close my eyes for one second.

Then open them.

Green light.

We move.

The SUV follows.

Closer than before.

I lean forward again.

“Stop at the next busy junction,” I say.

The driver nods.

We move into louder streets again.

More people now.

More movement.

The junction comes into view.

The taxi slows.

The SUV is still behind.

My hand reaches the door handle.

The driver notices.

“Wait.”

I do not listen.

The taxi stops.

The junction is crowded.

People everywhere.

I open the door.

Cold air rushes in.

The SUV behind stops too.

I step out fast.

Noise surrounds me.

I move into the crowd.

The taxi stays behind.

The SUV doors open behind me.

I do not turn.

I keep walking forward into the crowd.

My breathing stays fast.

My steps stay quick.

I disappear into moving people.

Behind me, footsteps begin to follow.