She groaned. “I know. But perhaps I am not content to merely procreate. Maybe I want freedom to choose? Possibly see if I can marry for love one day in the distant future?”
He scoffed. “I am certain you do. And I wish to live alone and bed whomever I want when I take the fancy. However, that is not our lives. Those are not our options. We are not allowed options, Lady Elisandrine.”
“What happened to calling me Elise?”
He looked at her dejectedly. “What does it matter?”
His depressed air was contagious, and in a rare instant, she felt her fighting spirit flicker. “I suppose it matters very little.”
“Try not at all. Anyway, I came to bid you welcome to the castle and to inform you that we are scheduled for a winter wedding.”
He turned and walked out without a further glance in her direction.
Winter would take over Arclid in about three months. Elise had hoped for at least half a year before the ceremony, but now it seemed she would have only half of that. She knew little about the world outside of the circle of Nobles or what she would need to live there. She didn’t even know how to get herself out of this wedding, out of the Noble set, and out into the real world where she could build her own life.
There were so many questions and no answers. And time was running out.
The door slammed closed behind the prince, seeming to seal Elise in as indubitably as her fate had been sealed.
Chapter 2
The Farm, the Apothecary, and the Woman at the Window
Farmwork. Nessa Clay was sick to death of farmwork. Thank the gods this was her last season. She ran her hand over her neck, feeling a sheen of sweat and grime on it.
I’ll never understand why I can sweat like this when it’s this chilly outside.
She stretched. Every muscle in her body complained about overuse. Still, she knew this meant the sweetest sleep waited for her tonight. The deep, reviving sleep of those who had utterly exhausted themselves physically.
She was of two minds at how she felt about harvest season being over. Part of her was glad since her body could now rest and she could leave her parents’ farm to start her own life. The other part would miss the simple joys of working her body tired and the safety of the little farm and her kind parents. The safety of Ground Hollow, in short. The village might be dull, but it was sheltered and cosy. She would miss that nearly as much as she would her parents.
“Nessa, would you like some water?”
She turned and found her mother handing her a dented tin cup. She emptied it in two long gulps. It hurt her throat going down, too cold. Everything here was too much. Too much cold, too much heat, too much work, too much boredom, too much… of everything being the same day in and day out.
“Thank you.”
Her mother took the cup back. “It’s the least I can do. Thank you for staying another few seasons to help me and your father. Now that we know the sugar pumpkins are taking to the soil, we should be fine for the upcoming years.”
Nessa nodded. “I know. I didn’t mind. I’m sure I’ll have plenty of years on my own out there in the big world. It was nice to spend a handful more seasons helping out here at home and making sure the new crop took.”
“You’re so thoughtful, heartling. Most young men and women have started their lives by your age. I’m sure it was hard to see your friends start families or travel away from our little village.”
Nessa smiled as warmly as she could at Carryanne Clay’s worried eyes, which were framed by wrinkles as much created by the harsh winds on the fields as age. She surveyed her mother’s face and knew that she would look much the same as she got older. She had inherited her mother’s pale skin, grey eyes, high cheekbones, and almond-coloured hair. Other than having her father’s slightly upturned nose and wide smile, she would look like the woman in front of her one day. She found that she was happy about that.
She reached out to caress her mother’s cheek. “I’m twenty-five years old. Not an old crone. As I said, I have plenty of future ahead of me.”
“Yes, of course. Have you decided what you will do?” Carryanne asked in sensible, clipped tones.
“I plan to darken your door for a little longer. Maybe rest a little before I leave for Nightport.”
Her mother grimaced. “So, you are going to the big, bad city after all?”
Nessa pretended not to notice her mother’s disapproval. She walked into their house of wooden slats and mud-covered walls. Carryanne followed close behind.
It was warmer inside, but not by much. Nessa wasn’t going to miss the draughty houses of Ground Hollow.
“I think so, yes. I don’t remember all that much from our visits to Nightport when I was little, but I remember enough to know I want to see it again. Everything was so big and so different even back then. And now…”
She stopped, searching for words that explained the obvious, ones that wouldn’t be insulting to life in their small farming village. She knew her mother must have heard the news coming from Nightport and other cities in the last five years or so.
The world was changing rapidly, but it was only changing in the cities, leaving rural areas behind. The cities had factories, steam power, gas light, new worldviews. Ground Hollow, with its twelve farms and handful of houses, was the same as it had been the last one hundred years. Generation after generation farmed and shipped their goods out on the manmade canal that ran alongside the village. As far as Nessa knew, the only thing that had changed during the past century was that they had gotten a clock instead of a sundial for their church and an apothecary had opened.
“Today… everything happens in the cities, Mum. Nightport is always changing. Growing. The future is being created in the cities, and I want to see it. Our little village is nice, but nothing ever happens here. That is exactly as some people want it. But I… need change, I guess. Fresh views to clean the dust off my eyes.”
Carryanne rubbed her brow. “But Nightport has beggars, pleasure sellers, and thieves. Not to mention the gambling halls. Or the drink and strange mind-altering powders. Nothing there is safe.”
Nessa gave her mother a pointed look. “I’ve had a lifetime of safe. Don’t you think it’s time I saw more of the world? Grew? Got to know myself?”
Her mother sighed. “Fine. Just be careful. And make sure you find yourself a good occupation. I won’t have you be one of them there strays that blow into the city and then starve on the streets. If you can’t make ends meet, come back here and start over when we have fed you up again.”
Nessa barely managed to stop herself from rolling her eyes. Her father had said about the same thing this morning, even using the same expression of feeding her up again. Her parents really needed to divvy up who was going to say what after their whispered late-night chats about her future.
Nessa tried for a reassuring smile. “Of course.”
“Good. Stay and rest as long as you can. I would prefer if you weren’t travelling until the worst of winter has gone. Maybe until spring.”
Nessa hesitated. “Mother, I shouldn’t wait that long. It’s more than half a year until spring. And it’s not all that cold yet. I’ll rest a few days, but then I should leave before it does become cold. Besides, if I don’t go soon, I’ll probably lose my nerve and stay.”
Her mother looked like she was about to argue, but then the fighting spirit died away, leaving only sadness in her grey eyes.
“Fine, but don’t complain to me if there’s a cold snap and you freeze your toes off on the road to Nightport! You are fully grown and make your own mistakes. More water?”
“Yes, please.”
Nessa watched her mother go back out to the pump to refill the cup.
Melancholy hit her full force. She was sure that both her father and mother had hoped that she would say that she didn’t know what to do. That she would stay another year here at home to figure it out.
But they would have to watch her leave the nest soon. Arclid was a big conti
nent, and she had seen so little of it. She hadn’t seen the highlands or the midlands, and she hadn’t even explored much of the lowlands where their village and Nightport were located. Not to mention that she hadn’t crossed the vast seas to any of the other three even bigger continents. That had to be remedied. Even if the prospect scared her.
Just as soon as she had rested enough to stop her muscles from reminding her how bountiful their harvest had been this year. And packed. And made exact plans for where she was going and what she was going to live off.
And… plucked up the courage to actually go.
* * *
Nessa was now feeling much better despite her aching muscles. She had eaten a bowl of freshly picked winterberries, bathed, and put on clean clothes.
Now she was walking into the centre of the village to visit Layden, her best friend since they were schooled together as children. After apprenticing in Nightport, he had returned to Ground Hollow and settled down with his wife, Isobel. Together they had opened the village’s first apothecary.
She passed the Halstons, the family of three who lived three farms down from her parents. They smiled at her, and Roi Halston looked like he was about to engage her in conversation. Nessa felt her heart begin to pound and hurried her steps away while berating herself for her panic.
Keep moving. Get a grip, woman. You are too old to be this shy. You have known these people all your life.
But then, that was the problem, wasn’t it? They knew her and would pry. Ask questions and judge her actions, decisions, and even her appearance. Right? She didn’t turn around to see if the Halstons had found her rude. She was almost at the apothecary anyway.
She stopped outside it and looked up at the newly painted sign above Layden’s and Isobel’s shop. Pride swelled in her chest. Layden had a head for learning, a deep-rooted wish to help, and a work ethic that nearly rivalled the one she had been brought up to have. Sadly, they also shared the lack of drive and ambition. That was why it had taken marrying Isobel for the apothecary to open and be run successfully.
Nessa walked in and was greeted by the couple’s little daughter, Hanne, who came tottering over with her thumb in her mouth.
Crouching down to the girl’s height, Nessa smiled at her. At least children never made her feel shy.
“Hello, little honeycomb. Are you manning the shop today? Where are your parents?”
She knew that Hanne couldn’t speak properly yet but hoped the girl would point in the right direction. Or that her parents would overhear the questions. The latter happened, and Isobel came out from the adjacent room.
“Nessa? Good afternoon.”
Nessa smiled, even though she knew that the woman in front of her wouldn’t return it.
“Hello, Isobel. How are you?”
Isobel put a hand on Hanne’s shoulder. “I’m fine and so is my family. You?”
“Well enough. I’m glad that harvest is over. It was a big one this year, and it took its toll on all of us.”
Isobel gave a sharp nod. Everything about her was as distant and terse as always.
I’ve got to figure out why this woman doesn’t like me before I leave. Otherwise I’ll always wonder.
Layden came out to join them. If his wife had been cold at the sight of Nessa, he was all the warmer. He came over to hug his old friend as tightly as usual. Nessa’s mood heightened at his familiar smell of strange herbs and old books. His wire-rimmed spectacles were covered in a fine dusting of something white, and there was traces of the same substance on his clothes and hands. Against his dark brown skin, the little white bits of powder looked like stars in the night sky.
“Have you been mixing up powders or are you actually growing dusty with age?” Nessa teased.
“What?” He looked down at himself. “Oh, right. Yes, that’s a new powder I’m trying to perfect. If I get it right, it should cure stomach ailments.”
Hanne sneezed. Isobel looked at Nessa like it was her fault. “Yes. My husband is very busy and him bringing traces of dangerous powders out here isn’t good for Hanne.”
Layden held up a hand. “It’s all right, my cherished. I’ll take a walk with Nessa. The wind will blow this dust off me in no time and clear out my lungs. I shall be back soon.”
Isobel made a face as if she’d eaten month-old fish, but then gave another sharp nod. Layden gave her a kiss on the lips and Hanne a kiss on the head. Then he walked outside.
Nessa followed him after waving goodbye to Isobel and Hanne.
“Layden? Don’t you want a coat or a cloak? This autumn wind is cold, you know.”
“No, Miss Responsible. No need for that, it will only be a brief walk.”
She shrugged and put her hands in her pockets. “Suit yourself.”
They walked in companionable silence for a while. Soon the buildings of the village square were behind them and they were alone on the long path. The crunching of their feet on the gravel, the wind through the crops on the surrounding fields, and the birdsong from high up in the trees were the only sounds she could hear.
Three levels of sound. One sound below her, one at her height, and one above her. She had never thought about that before. She turned to Layden, wanting to mention it to him but wasn’t sure if he would think her strange. She looked back ahead of them. They should simply walk, enjoy the quiet break from work. Nessa led the way as she had through most of their friendship. She walked them towards the castle, passing more farms and fields where everything was quiet on the surface, while the hard work carried on somewhere out of sight. It always had and always would.
Nessa looked at her childhood friend. “So, little Hanne is growing like a barn-weed. She’ll outgrow both you and Isobel in no time.”
Layden beamed. “Yes, she’s growing strong and healthy. And she’s a happy, easy-going child who listens to her parents. Much as I was.”
“She seems to take after you quite a bit. Isobel is many things, but I wouldn’t say she’s easy-going.”
“Don’t be unkind, Nessa. Isobel is a lovely woman to most people. She just struggles with you,” he said, the last sentence nearly inaudible.
Nessa stopped abruptly. They had never broached this conversation, even though it had been hanging in the air between them. She hadn’t dared to complicate things. Now, however, they had stumbled into it, and Nessa would seize the opportunity. She carried on walking and said, “I know. I don’t know why, though. I supposed that it was because you and I were such close friends. Does she worry that I’ll try to steal her husband?”
Layden sniggered while adjusting his spectacles. “No, she knows you have no interest in me. In fact, that is the root of the issue: your lack of romantic interest.”
The castle appeared on their right side now. It was the only beautiful thing in Ground Hollow, unless you counted the fields and the trees. Nessa didn’t. She was bored stiff of them. The castle was different. She had never been inside it but often as a child tried to peer through the large cracks in the high stonewalls surrounding the castle.
Nessa focused on the imposing structure to keep herself from getting tongue-tied. Her nerves weren’t made for open and honest conversations. She had assumed Isobel was jealous of her friendship with her husband and left it at that. But if she was leaving soon, she should know why Isobel had spent the last four years being cold towards her.
“What does that mean?” Nessa asked with feigned nonchalance.
“It means that she is not worried about your interest in me, but in your disinterest in her.”
That took Nessa’s gaze away from the castle and back to Layden. “What?”
He sighed. “She feels slighted because she was madly in love with you when we were younger. But you always ignored her.”
Nessa scrutinised him, trying to tell if he was joking or being ridiculous. “Don’t be silly. People don’t fall in love with me. You know me, I’m an awkward workhorse without conversational skills. Half a nose-length from being ugly, as well.”
&n
bsp; Layden snorted as he adjusted his spectacles. “Nonsense. Besides, you always think no one could fall in love with you.”
“Because it’s true. Anyway, Isobel wasn’t even schooled with us. She lived in Little Hollow. She told me once.”
“Yes, but she often came on the canal boats to Ground Hollow with her mother to trade. Don’t you remember playing cradle ball in the square and often being interrupted by a ragged girl in a dirty dress? It wasn’t to see me that she would pester us. She was there for you. From the age of thirteen years, she was mad about you. She says that you were the most lovable person she had ever met. Kind, steadfast, and smart.”
Nessa chewed her lower lip, uncertainty making her bite a little too hard. Her memory could barely conjure up the image that he was painting. Had that girl truly been the pragmatic Little Hollow woman who swooped into Layden’s life four years ago and wed him?
Well, drag me behind a marrow-oxen. I never even guessed.
Still shaken and unsure of what to say at this revelation, Nessa gazed back to the castle for a safe place to look. That was when she spotted something in the top window of the south wing. The window opened, and a young woman leaned out. Nessa squinted to see clearer. The woman wore a pale lilac dress, and her hair was a cascade of black waves down over her shoulders.
“You there! Yes, you two. There’s no one else here, is there? Are you from Ground Hollow? I have some questions about the village,” the woman in the window shouted.
Nessa shut her mouth, which was hanging open.
Who in the name of the gods is this?
“Y-yes, we are. Ask away, milady,” she said in a nervous stutter.
“Not like this. I am not going to stand here and shout. Someone in the castle will hear if they have not already done so. We need another plan. Could you scale the wall and climb up to my window, do you think? I would come down to you, but I am not allowed to leave the castle.”
Making a Tinderbox (The Tinderbox Tales Book 1) Page 2