The Carnelian Legacy

by Cheryl Koevoet

  “One suitor. The other doesn’t count.”

  “Oh, you know what I mean,” he joked. He set the mirror back on the table and sat down next to her.

  “Well I’m glad someone can laugh about it.”

  As he studied her face, his smile faded. “What’s wrong? Have you been crying?”

  She avoided his eyes.

  “Marisa, please talk to me.”

  She couldn’t hold the tears back a second longer. Her hands flew to her face as hot tears stung her eyes.

  Arrie gathered her into his arms. “Poor girl, you sure haven’t had an easy week, have you?”

  “I’m so sorry,” she wailed. “But it seems like my life has totally spiraled out of control these past few weeks.”

  He stroked her hair. “Shhh, I know.”

  She gently pulled away. “No, you don’t. You don’t know me, Arrie. This is not me. I don’t even know who this is any more. Right up until Dad died, I had everything under control. I got decent grades and was captain of our dance squad. I was vice president of the student body council.

  “But ever since I came here, I’ve turned into some totally different person that I don’t even recognize. I’ve become some weepy, wimpy girl who can’t get her freakin’ act together. Worse than that, I’m a dumb mute who can’t even talk!”

  “Don’t be so hard on yourself. You’ve had a lot to process over the past few weeks. Your father died. You leapt into a different universe. You fell in love with a prince who is going to be king someday. All of those things are quite significant in and among themselves and don’t usually happen all at once.”

  She smiled through her tears. “When you put it like that, it sounds pretty crazy, doesn’t it?”

  “All joking aside, you do have the right to question things and vent when you don’t understand what is happening around you. Believe me, I know. I’ve been there.”

  She smiled gratefully at him. “Arrie, I think that you’re a gift from heaven. No matter what happens, I’ll always be glad that I met you.”

  “And I am very happy that you dropped into our lives from out of nowhere,” he joked.

  “Arrie?”

  “Yes?”

  “I know it’s a stupid question, but do you think Darian would ever give up the throne for a commoner? I mean, I’m not presuming that he might do that for me, but just hypothetically speaking?”

  He digested that for a moment. “I don’t know. That is quite a lot to ask of a man, don’t you think? It’s a substantial decision with massive ramifications. Hypothetically speaking, that is.”

  “Yeah, I guess you’re right,” she said sadly.

  “I’ve known Darian all my life, and the only time that he ever made a hasty, irrational decision, he ended up paying for it dearly. Since then, he’s always followed his head and never his heart.”

  “What was the rash decision?”

  “He more or less blames himself for the death of his father.”

  “What!”

  “Oh, it wasn’t his fault, of course, but he believes that it was a direct result of his actions. But I shall let him tell you about that when he’s ready. He doesn’t like to talk about it with anyone.”

  “Gosh, that’s horrible,” she murmured.

  “As I told you a few days ago, he is an extremely complicated man. He’s already had more than his fair share of heartbreak.”

  “Sometimes I wonder if my life will ever become less complicated,” she said wistfully.

  “Marisa, you must believe that if Darian could do anything about the situation, he would.”

  “Would he? Somehow I’m not so sure.”

  “Darian is an exceptionally tough nut to crack, but you might just be the young woman who could tempt him into choosing his heart over his head. But it would take a lot to get him that far. His devotion to duty runs deeply in his veins.”

  “I’d like to think that I’m worth giving up the throne for, and yet, at the same time, I don’t think I could ever let him to do that for one reason.”

  “And just what is that?”

  Marisa stepped over to the window and stared out at the majestic mountains in the distance. Her heart sank as she thought about how exciting her life might be if she could spend it with Darian.

  “Someday he might actually come to regret his decision. He might say to himself, ‘I gave up my entire kingdom for this woman, and it wasn’t even worth it.’ I just couldn’t live with myself knowing that I had forced the man I love to make a decision that he would later regret.”

  “Ah, so now you do admit that you love Darian?” He teased.

  “Naw, I don’t think it’s really love if you know it’s not gonna happen.”

  “Love is love no matter what—even if you try to bind it, chain it, or hold it back. There is no choice in the matter. It is either there or it isn’t. It’s just so unfortunate you’re not a Fiore princess.”

  “Helinda told me that Darian is going to marry Lady Matilda. Is that true?”

  He shrugged. “Perhaps. Like most rumors flying around, usually there’s some small seed of truth in there somewhere. Darian has had several opportunities in the past to pop the question to Matilda, but he’s never done it yet. I don’t know why things should be different now.”

  “Maybe he has no other choice now because the throne is at stake. I’ve seen how he pays special attention to Matilda during the meals, the hunting party, and the hike to the waterfall. You’ve got to admit Arrie, any guy would be crazy not to go for her. She’d make the perfect princess.”

  “Perfect maybe, but she’s not you,” Arrie said, smiling and poking her gently.

  “Is your backhanded compliment supposed to make me feel better?” she asked, laughing.

  “You are so fun to tease,” he said playfully. “It’s nice to see you laughing again.”

  “Well, all I know is that once we get back to this Crocetta, you’re going to help me set up my new life. I’m starting to think that you might actually be stuck with me after all. And vice versa,” she added.

  “There’s nobody I’d rather be stuck with more,” Arrie said softly. “Now come—go wash your face off and I’ll escort you to breakfast before Savino’s household staff starts some wild rumor that I’ve run away with my cousin!”

  She smiled at him. “I wish you really were my cousin.”

  “Yes, dearest, that’s what they all say.”

  As Marisa and Arrie entered the dining room, everyone was already seated at the table, but Darian’s seat was empty. Arrie pushed in her chair for her as Savino eyed her suspiciously.

  “Well, Lady Marisa! I’m so glad to see you are up and about this morning. You ran off so quickly last night that I didn’t even get the chance to bid you goodnight. Are you feeling all right?”

  “Lady Marisa is not fully recovered from the tedious journey and her harrowing ordeal the other day,” Arrie interjected. “Given the fact that she has not yet developed a stomach for alcohol, I’m afraid the champagne made her quite sick last night.”

  She put her hand on her stomach and pantomimed a sick face.

  Arrie noticed the empty chair. “Where is Prince Darian this morning?”

  “Hah! I can better ask you that very same question,” Savino spewed, peeling an egg over his plate. “Apparently nobody has seen him since last night. Halfway through the ball he just ran off, leaving my poor sister alone without as much as a word.” He took a sip of tea from a dainty porcelain teacup.

  “Don’t you think it’s strange that Darian would leave a ball where he is the guest of honor? Very, very strange indeed.”

  “Perhaps he wasn’t feeling well, either,” Arrie offered. Lady Matilda said nothing but just stared at them coolly.

  Marisa couldn’t down her breakfast fast enough. As soon as she was finished, she jumped up and hurried away from the table. Arrie followed close behind and guided her over to a secluded corner of the courtyard.

  “I’m afraid that things aren’t goi
ng according to plan,” Arrie said. “Darian must be terribly upset by all of this. Obviously, it’s the reason why he didn’t come down to breakfast this morning.”

  “Actually, I think I’m the reason he didn’t come to breakfast this morning. He tried to pour his heart out to me last night, but I wouldn’t let him,” she said sadly.

  Marisa spotted Darian standing above them on the opposite side of the rampart and their eyes locked. As he descended the steps and approached them, her heartbeat quickened.

  “Good morning,” Darian said without emotion.

  “Morning, Your Highness.”

  “Good morning, friend,” Arrie said. “We missed you at breakfast this morning.”

  “Yes, well, I seem to have lost my appetite.”

  There was a moment of awkward silence.

  Arrie nodded. “Right, I’m off to change my clothes for whatever exciting activities Savino has planned for us today.”

  Darian stopped him. “No. Go pack your things. We’re leaving here at once.” Arrie nodded and hurried off to the castle. “Will you please walk with me?” he asked her softly.

  Marisa nodded anxiously and followed him over to the northern castle wall. She watched him lean against the wall and stare out at the spectacular view of the waterfall. He seemed worried about something.

  “So what happens now?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean as far as your peace treaty is concerned.”

  He shrugged. “It never had much of a chance anyway. Savino isn’t interested in securing peace. His only goal is to capture the throne.”

  “So why doesn’t he just step in and take it?”

  “Because he can’t!” Darian snapped.

  Startled, she took a step backward. He shook his head and then lowered his voice.

  “Like me, he must marry a Fiore princess to ascend the throne, which is why I thought that if I offered him my sister, he might reconsider.”

  “And now he wants to marry me instead? But how does he expect to ascend the throne if he doesn’t marry a Fiore princess?”

  “Don’t you understand? Savino will seize the throne any way can. I thought that by offering him the legitimate option of marrying my sister, he would accept my terms of peace.”

  “But wouldn’t that defeat the entire purpose? I thought you didn’t want him on the throne at all.”

  He shook his head. “As the possessor of the Fiore surname, Adalina would become queen and the Sovereign Ruler. Savino would become a token king and would have no real power.”

  “Oh.”

  “My cousin would rather wage war and sacrifice thousands of innocent lives to obtain absolute power than ascend the throne in a partnership through peaceful means.”

  “Does Adalina know she’s been offered to Savino?”

  Darian’s eyes were distant. “We all must make certain sacrifices in our lives to preserve the peace. Some of us more than others.”

  She shook her head. “None of this makes much sense to me.”

  “Marisa, I’m truly sorry. Please forgive me.”

  “Sorry! What are you sorry about? This is all my fault. I was the one who insisted on coming along when you wanted to leave me back in Andresis.”

  “You are mistaken. This whole predicament is my fault.”

  “Whatever.” She didn’t feel like having an argument with him, so she quickly changed the subject. “How did the line of succession get so far off course anyway? Why are you not on the throne if you are a Fiore and he is not?”

  “When Queen Elyse perished in the shipwreck, her sister Sophie was crowned immediately. Unfortunately, she didn’t rule for very long because she developed a serious illness and died just seven years after ascending the throne.

  “I was next in line to the throne, but because I hadn’t yet reached the minimum ruling age of eighteen, Queen Sophie’s widower husband Gregario assumed the throne as dowager king temporarily. Gregario is, of course, Savino’s father.”

  Marisa shivered and pulled her cloak tight around her. She was trying to concentrate on his story but kept getting distracted by his seductive, strong accent.

  “Unfortunately, Gregario has not ruled our country well because it has essentially been in a state of anarchy ever since his reign began. Ever since his health deteriorated a few years ago, Savino has been salivating at the opportunity to step in and take over the throne.”

  “But how can Savino take the throne if you are next in line?”

  “He claims that because his mother was queen and his father also served as king, now the order of succession has shifted from the Fiore line to the da Roca line. As the firstborn da Roca, he thinks he should inherit the throne.”

  “But aren’t he and Matilda twins?”

  “They are, but technically, he’s the eldest by only a few minutes. And although I am the only remaining Fiore prince, according to Carnelian Law, I must marry a Fiore princess in order to ascend the throne.”

  “I know this is probably a stupid question, but why did someone ever write a silly law like that in the first place? It doesn’t give the heir to the throne a whole lot of options.”

  He smiled sadly at her. “To someone outside of the royal family, it is a valid question. But to those of us within the Fiore bloodline, we know that the law exists to protect the integrity of the family.

  “You see, although I might not like the limited options the law allows for me, I can still understand and respect it.

  “But why?” she asked.

  “Without the law in place, it would be extremely easy for an outsider to steal the crown. Being royal is not something that can be counterfeited. You must be born with it.”

  “Hmm, that sounds a bit snobby to me. On Earth, all of that is changing now. Members of royal families are allowed to marry commoners, and most of them don’t even marry other royals,” she said.

  He nodded. “It may change here as well, but it will take some time. Erasing an ancient law is not an easy task in Carnelia. It was written a long time ago when there was an abundance of Fiore princes and princesses.”

  “So what happened to them all?”

  “Most have been killed, executed, or just died off over the years. No one could have known that the Fiore line would have withered so far down to what it is now. Savino will exploit this fact to his full advantage.”

  “Oh.”

  “As a matter of fact, the only person I can legally marry and ascend the throne now is his sister, Lady Matilda.”

  Her heart pounded wildly. Here it comes.

  “Savino knows as well as I that if I were to marry his sister, I would be declared the rightful heir once and for all after Gregario passes. Nothing would stand in the way. That is precisely why he will not give his patriarchal consent for her to marry.”

  “So that’s your only option? To marry Lady Matilda?”

  “It appears to be the only option at this point.” He shifted uncomfortably.

  “But if Gregario is still alive, can’t he give you his patriarchal consent for her to marry you?”

  “That question is still being considered. It is a viable option.”

  So Darian would marry Matilda after all and Marisa would get on with her life. She was really starting to wish she had never come to this place at all and even regretted ever having met any of these people.

  “Marisa, look at me.”

  Reluctantly, she raised her eyes.

  “For some reason, our paths have crossed. Although you and I have both arrived at this same place at the same time, we both have different paths to follow. You must discover your own.”

  “But what if I have no idea where I’m going?” she asked softly.

  “Savino has asked you to marry him, and he shall be expecting a reply very soon. Remember that whatever choice you make, it must be yours and yours alone. It must be a decision that you can live with for the rest of your life.”

  He made sure that they could not be seen from the castle windo
ws as he drew her close in a warm embrace.

  “I wish things could be different for us, Marisa. You and I both have difficult decisions to make in the coming weeks. Let us pray we make the right ones.” He stroked her long, chestnut hair and then kissed her softly.

  As their lips parted, his eyes searched hers. “Tell me, who do you resemble more, your father or your mother?”

  “My uncle says I have the same color of hair as my father and the rest is the spitting image of my mother.”

  “Your mother must have been very beautiful.”

  “That’s what my father always said.” She clung to him in silence and listened to the waterfall crashing somewhere in the distance. It was almost as if they were the only two on the planet.

  He took her hand. “A beautiful ring for a beautiful woman.” As he softly caressed her cheek, a chill ran down her spine. They lingered for a moment before he finally broke the spell.

  “Come, we must leave this place soon.”

  He escorted her back up to her room, and then left her alone to prepare for the journey home. “I’ll meet you down in the courtyard in ten minutes,” he said.

  Marisa nodded to him and slowly gathered her things together. She packed an extra set of clothes in a cloth sack and ten minutes later, she was gazing around the beautiful chamber once last time. She spotted the olive dress hanging on the wall and was reminded of Darian’s kiss at the ball. It was a memory she would treasure always, but one that was not bound to be repeated. She sighed in exasperation as she realized that the situation was totally hopeless.

  After checking to make sure everything was in her satchel, she took one last look out the window. She saw Savino, Darian, and Arrie waiting with a group of men down in the courtyard. She closed the door of her chambers and descended the stone steps to meet the two young men waiting to return home.

  Darian grabbed the reins and turned to his cousin. “Savino, we are not finished yet,” he said in an icy tone. “I shall do everything in my power to stop you from hurting her. She doesn’t know what you truly are.”

  “And just what is that, Darian?” Savino asked, challenging him with his eyes. “You are in no position to make any demands of me, my dear cousin. No one shall prevent me from getting what I want. Not even you.” The haughty look on Savino’s face transformed instantly to a pleasant demeanor as Marisa emerged from the heavy wooden door.