“They want what’s best for themselves.” He kissed me quickly. “You get dressed. I’ll meet you in the bedroom.”
Chapter 31
I did as Calish had asked me to, but I will admit I took a lengthy amount of time doing it. Once dressed, I took my towel and cleared the steam off the mirror in the hope my reflection would tell me something useful. A frightened girl in a pink shirt and dripping wet hair stared back at me. The tips of my hair rested on the blouse, leaving darkened evidence of my identity. No matter what I tried, or how many towels I used, my hair would be the damning evidence proving I was the woman in the bath.
Calish knocked on the washroom door as he opened it. “Are you ready?”
“No.” I rubbed my hair vigorously with a new towel.
He took it from me and tossed it in the corner. He ran his fingers through my tousled waves. “There, you’re perfect.”
“Why can’t I stay up here?”
“If I had a choice, you would. But now they know you are here, and that scenario will never be. Now, we need to go downstairs and take care of business.”
“What business?”
“Merci’s Reception.”
What!
“There are people here mourning your woman’s death?”
“Well, actually, it’s a Reception for everyone in the neighborhood who lost someone in the tragedy. The food you saw is for them, not me.”
A melody rose from the first floor. It wasn’t a sad tune but a semi-upbeat harmony. “Music?”
“It’s a celebration of their memories,” Calish explained.
“The way these people died was horrible. Whoever thought of throwing a party to celebrate it is a fool.” I shook my head.
“I’ll remember that next time I plan an event like this.” He sighed. “I invited them here. I told Reinick and Noran it would be nice to extend some goodwill toward the senior officers who serve the Authority. They all know it wasn’t Reinick’s idea. I have to earn their support for the future, Una.”
“It sounds like this political stuff comes easy to you. I bet your grandfather is proud.”
“It’s not like that. Trust me.” He stared me in the eyes until I nodded. “We need to get you ready.” He rummaged around the washroom, pulling open drawers and closing them, apparently not finding what he wanted. He darted out into the bedroom, brought back an ornate wooden box, and set it on the counter.
“What’s that?”
“A jewelry box. It belongs to the previous resident.” He opened it.
“You mean the rightful owner of the house.”
He shot me a disapproving look and continued to dig around in it. “Here.” He pulled out a strand of sparkling jewels and fastened them around my neck. “Now, I need you to stop being afraid. Those people down there are Scabs, just like us. Everyone is now; they just don’t know it yet. They’re going to form an opinion of you, of us; they’re going to judge us. Don’t let it matter to you.” Seeing my anxiety grow, Calish tried to calm me. “They cannot hurt you, Una. Not in my house. Come, it’s time.” He took my hand and led me out of the washroom, through the bedroom, and into the hallway.
We intercepted a servant bringing my bags up the stairs. “Lord Bartold.” He bowed.
“Put them in the master suite,” Calish instructed as we passed.
I turned to see the man glance back at me before entering Calish’s room.
Remembering my instructions, I stood straight and confident even though inside I wanted to run and hide under the bed. The closer we were to the other end of the hall, the louder the music and the chatter became. As we got to the stairs, he interlaced his fingers between mine and squeezed my hand. The lower floor was crowded with guests. Calish raised his hand to command their attention. The people below granted his silent request and began tapping their wineglasses with their fingernails. Someone made the music stop as others came to see him on the balcony. He turned to the side table and picked up a glass of wine waiting specifically for him. I faked a continued confidence as a few pointed to me and whispered something in the ears of the people standing next to them.
“Ladies and gentlemen of the Authority,” he addressed them, “I am honored to have you in my home. I invite you to celebrate those we have loved and those we have lost. Tonight we remember the ones who gave their lives to give us a new future. Without their sacrifice, tomorrow would be a day like any other, but because of them, the days ahead will take on a new meaning with new purpose. Our brothers, sisters, husbands, wives, and children, their legacy has become ours. We are different, and we are forever changed. I promise you, I will not let their lives be lost in vain. So I raise a toast,” he lifted his glass high in the air, and the people did the same, “to the end of the end and to the start of new beginnings.”
“To new beginnings!” the people cheered and drank.
Calish drank half his glass and set it back down in the place it came from.
“Great job,” he whispered in my ear, resting his hand on the small of my back.
Smiling and not moving my teeth, I said, “Next time warn me that you’re making a speech.”
He laughed and took my hand in front of everyone. The music started up again as we made our way down the stairs.
I can do this; this isn’t so bad, I’ll just hold on to Calish’s hand, and everything will be fine.
I felt eyes on me with every step we took toward the lower floor, but locking eyes with Noran and Reinick at the bottom made me freeze. Calish took another step down, but I did not. Enough people watched me that they noticed my sudden change in stature. Instead of carrying on with their celebration, I felt their attention narrowed on us.
Calish squeezed my hand, but his encouragement did not outweigh the glares of Reinick and the High Priest burrowing into our existence. Calish pulled at me gently, but I would not follow him. I grabbed the stair railing, refusing to go any further. I cowered from Reinick, only to see all the guests who became instantly aware of our silent conflict. Those who were less observant were quickly clued in by the people next to them. Suddenly, everyone watched, waiting for the curious situation to unfold. The music trailed off once again, filling the crowded rooms with tension-filled silence. One guest cleared his throat; other than that, I heard nothing other than my own heartbeat.
“Una,” Calish whispered and pulled at my hand.
“She’s no whore, is she?” Noran asked with no attempt to be discreet.
Calish stepped back up to my stair and put his arm around me. “No, she is not.”
“Who is she then?”
Reinick, with a flair for the dramatic, answered, “It’s his sister, Una.”
The guests gasped and whispered to one another. I turned to run back up the stairs, only Calish wouldn’t allow it. He stepped up ahead of me and held my eyes with his. “Trust me,” he said, taking my hand. My body trembled as he walked calmly down to the step below me, his eyes never leaving mine. The room once again fell silent as everyone waited to see what would happen next.
Calish took a strand of my hair, curling it around his finger and putting it behind my ear, exposing the side of my face to his audience. He slid his hand behind my head, and he brought me close until our lips met. I did my best not to cry.
What is he doing?
A combination of shock and repulsion rose from the crowd. When he pulled away, he kissed me again, quickly, then whispered in my ear, “I love you.”
I’m going to pass out.
“This is unholy!” Noran shouted. “Control your grandchildren!” He shoved Reinick up the staircase.
He tripped, catching himself by the handrail. “My grandson is a little confused right now,” he apologized, straightening his shirt. “It’s been a rough few days, as it has for all of us.”
“I’m not confused, Grandfather.”
“Of course you are,” he warned.
“No, you are,” Calish challenged. “This woman is not my sister.”
Reinick’s fac
e lost its expression.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I apologize for bringing you into my family’s affairs. Will you indulge me for a moment?”
The guests agreed, interested to hear more about Lord Calish’s suspected incestuous relationship.
Calish took both of my hands, and as if we were the only two people in the room, he smiled. “I found her. I spent the day at the river with my family, and there she was, wrapped up tightly in a basket with a note addressed to me.”
Digging my fingers into his arm, I begged, “Please, don’t do this.”
“I knew from the moment I saw her she was a gift sent to me. My parents took her in, fed her, clothed her, gave her every opportunity they could, and my love for her grew with each passing day. But our fate took different paths when I learned she accepted the medallion of a young man in the village.”
No. No, don’t say any more!
“Heartbroken, I hid my feelings for her deep within me. With no regard to myself, I joined the Authority, as my esteemed grandfather and uncle had before me, and eventually found favor with a wonderful woman named Merci.” He closed his eyes and slowly shook his head. “But she knew my love for her could never be what she deserved.”
He turned to the guests, captivated by his tale. “The day of the landslide, Una came to visit me in the village to tell me her engagement had ended. I happened to be comforting her when Merci walked in unexpectedly. Seeing my medallion around Merci’s neck, Una knew the gods had spoken and our love for each other would never be. You can imagine the pain it caused us both. Out of respect for our arrangement, she left. In doing so, she forgot her cloak. I gave it to Graken, my most trusted man, to return to her. I stayed, prepared to fulfill my commitment.”
Graken saluted Calish from below.
“But Merci, after seeing us together, knew my heart would never be fully hers.” He reached down into his pocket. “She took the medallion from around her neck and told me to go find the one this truly belonged to.” He held the coin high enough for everyone to see. He took my hand, turning my palm up, and slowly lowered the necklace into it. “Una, she sent me after you, that day. She saved my life for love. For your love.” He brushed the tears from my terrified face. “I will not deny her dying wish.” Calish got down on one knee, and the crowd gasped. “Una Bartold, will you do me the honor of being my wife?”
The guests quietly affirmed their support, while Reinick rolled his eyes and Noran’s mouth hung agape.
My heart thundered in my ears, and my lungs refused to take in air. The meddlesome curl in the center of Calish’s forehead loosened and fell as it often did, and I brushed it away.
“Answer him, Una!” someone called from the first floor.
I swallowed and nodded, once, twice, three times until I nodded so fast I thought I’d fall over. “Yes!” I barely got the word out when Calish sprang up and took me into his arms.
“She said yes!” he yelled, and the guests cheered for us as he kissed me.
“Do it now!” someone cried.
“Yes, do it now!”
Chanting ensued. “Wedding! Wedding! Wedding!” They got louder, clapping their hands to the beat of their demand.
Calish pulled back, startled by their suggestion. “Now?”
The rhythm shook the crystals hanging from the decorative lanterns and created ripples in the wineglass Calish had yet to finish. None of it came close to the intensity of my own pulse.
The crowd, not getting the immediate answer they expected, hushed.
“All the right people are in attendance,” Graken offered.
“Well? What do you think?” Calish tried to hide his victory grin and failed.
I don’t want to wait, either.
“Wedding! Wedding!”
He did it. In front of all these people, he did it.
He took my hand and led me to the bottom of the stairs before the High Priest.
“We don’t have a wedding band.” Noran shrugged.
A voice rose from the crowd. “What about Qarla? She has one.”
The mob pushed a woman forward in servant’s clothing. Her chin trembled as she twisted a tarnished band off her finger.
Noran put his hand on her shoulder. “I guess you don’t need it anymore, do you?” He plucked it from her fingertips, her eyes never leaving the ring she had no choice but to offer. “Thank you, the gods are pleased with your offering.”
She quickly disappeared into the crowd of guests, no doubt finding a private place to hide.
“Do we have a cloak?” the Priest asked.
“There’s no need for that,” Calish said sternly.
“Of course there is. You must approve of her physically prior to the vows.”
“I bathed her myself earlier, as you may remember. I am quite pleased. Continue.”
I was suddenly thankful for Calish’s quick thinking and political influence.
“Very well. Is there anyone here who would object to these two being united as husband and wife?” Noran looked to Reinick, who was struggling to keep quiet. “Then, Calish, do you accept before the gods and the people you’ve chosen as witnesses to be married to Una? To protect her and provide for her, to teach her to be a proper wife, one that would please the gods of our lands?”
“I promise to love you with my whole heart, to fight for your best interests, and to be a husband who earns your affection, dedication, and respect,” Calish said.
I heard some women sigh at his words.
“I’ll take that as a yes.” He turned his attention to me. “Do you, Una, accept before the gods and the people your betrothed has chosen to witness this marriage, to be attentive, supportive, and submissive to his leadership in your household in a way that would please the gods of our lands?”
Ignoring the words he spoke, I made my own commitment, just as Calish had made to me. “I promise to never doubt you, to follow you wherever you should lead, and to prove each and every day that the risks you took to love me were worth every effort you put forth. I promise to never love another the way I love you, not for the rest of your life, but for the rest of mine.”
The guests clapped their approval as Calish kissed me.
“Whatever,” Noran mumbled, barely audible, even to me.
I’m married to Calish.
The only thing missing that would make the moment more perfect was having our family here to witness it. I’m sure they’d understand, even be overjoyed that we’d found a way to be together without Petitions, Auctions, or Arrangements. After all we’d been through, didn’t we deserve a happy ending?
Is this a vision or a dream?
Please don’t wake up.
I stood with the man I love, and we were fully accepted. For the first time ever, our love didn’t suffer risk. My status as an orphan or Scavenger was no longer an issue.
Calish found a way to set me free.
He kissed me again and again. He obviously enjoyed the freedom of our affection as much as I did. The musicians started up as if they were cautious about beginning again. We’d already stopped them twice.
“Hey! We’re not done! What about the consummation?” Reinick asked loudly enough for most of the guests to hear.
“No problem.” Calish swept me off my feet and began to go back upstairs.
“No, no, no,” he protested. “You’ve got to do this the proper way, my boy. Otherwise, it’s not official.”
My fingers clutched Calish’s arm, horrified by the suggestion. While I’d only seen one wedding, I remembered what I saw and heard coming from that little room.
“We don’t have a consummation chamber, so we can use the study,” Noran said. “Let’s get this over with.”
Chapter 32
Walking between the guests in the downstairs hallway made me feel closed in and trapped. The men congratulated and encouraged Calish by slapping him on the back or ruffling his hair. My comradery came from the women smiling at me as we passed. Their expressions weren’t filled with glee or e
xcitement. Their eyes quickly averted when strangers whisked me from my husband’s arm to the room at the end of the hall.
I remembered talking to my mother about her wedding day at the Chapel. She said she did it willingly simply because of the level of importance it held to my father’s family. She wanted to keep the peace and be a submissive wife. I didn’t feel that way. I mean, I wanted to be good to Calish, but we’d already consummated our marriage, albeit in advance. Somehow I knew that even if everyone in the room knew I carried Calish’s child, they’d force us to proceed simply for the sake of tradition.
The study was filled with people awaiting our arrival. As soon as my escorts stepped through the door, two women separated me further from Calish’s view. They sat me on the couch next to the window, giving their unsolicited advice of what to do, what to expect, or the like. I wasn’t really listening to them. My attention was fixed on the men making the final preparations for the consummation. They cleared the desk of the office essentials it had on its top and moved it to the center of the room. One man carried a coiled rope above his head through the crowd and handed it to the guests-now-handymen setting up the room for our joining. They cut a measurable amount and tied an end around each of the desk’s four legs. A young man with disheveled hair hopped up on the desk and held his legs out to make sure the ropes would be long enough to tie. While he lay on his back, the others measured the final piece to fit around his chest.
They thought it funny, the way his friends held him down in jest. His face turned red as another, possibly his brother, maybe a neighbor, lay over his open thighs and slapped his face. He pulled his wrists free, or the others let go, and he caught his friend around the neck. The two men laughed, egged on by the others of their team.
“This is why he’s not married!” they joked.
“He couldn’t even get it in!”
The women next to me prattled on, never noticing the uncomfortable glances thrown by men on my eyes, my chest, my middle. I pressed my knees together, wishing I could hide every part of me.
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