Chapter 5
Chapter Five
JADEON
Alex’s cheerful nature was often a pleasant contrast to mine. Everyone told us this. They loved how our differences balanced each other, how playfulness met purpose, but balance, as I learned, can be fragile.
At age twenty-three, Alex was a striking man.
He was popular with the local girls and I quietly envied his blond curls and blue eyes, which reflected his ebullience.
Although not quite as tall as me, his exquisitely chiseled features made the girls dizzy.
He seemed not to care. Although I’d ceased teasing him long ago about pirates, I replaced that joke by ribbing him about his many admirers.
Very often, I pushed him so far he ended up in a rage, which entertained me to no end.
But he would soon come around and see the humorous side.
This day, Alex had searched my usual haunts, eager to pry me off the castle grounds. He found me sitting at the water’s edge, engrossed in the pages of a well-worn novel. Alex hovered over me now, glancing occasionally at the sunset, attempting to assess my mood.
“Jadeon, change your mind. You haven’t been out for the longest time with me.”
“I’ll come with you another time. Next week, perhaps.” I stared at the horizon.
“You said that last time and the time before.”
Looking up at Alex, I envied his sense of freedom. Unable to shake the feeling that I should be somewhere else, I felt uneasy. “Take my horse and saddle if you like,” I said. “I couldn’t stand being around drunken men right now.”
“What if I just stay here until you change your mind?”
“Then you’ll be very bored.” I sighed to exaggerate my point.
“I’ll keep you company.”
Nearby, two squawking seagulls pecked at a half-eaten crab.
“Jadeon?”
“I just need some time. That’s all. Go and enjoy yourself.”
With a pat on my shoulder, Alex reluctantly left me and headed for the stables.
He was not the only one who tried and failed at getting me out.
My father had given me a horse, an expensive well-bred stallion, in an attempt to console and encourage me to be more social.
He had wasted his money. What I really craved was my father’s approval, but he was too overwhelmed with his own grief and preoccupied with his own affairs to really give us any thought.
Alex never seemed to mind, but I always felt whatever I did was never enough.
Father’s volatile character pushed me away.
At the time, I believed he had forgotten us.
However, it was not only the death of my mother that pained me, but the void I felt from the loss of Catherine’s company.
If it had been possible to avoid myself, I would have done so. After a while, even the servants would scurry away when they saw me coming, nervous of the broody lad who paced the castle walls with the weight of the world on his shoulders, but no real responsibility to show for it.
As usual, Alex left me sitting at the water’s edge, gazing out to sea, deep in thought.
He saddled my spirited black stallion. And as an experienced rider, Alex quickly mastered him.
He rode out over the gravel pathway toward the mainland town of Marazion, estimating his arrival at the warm tavern to be within the hour.
Alex had arranged to meet with his friends at the Master’s Arms, a popular watering hole located in the center of town, well known for its fine ale and guaranteed lively company.
As he rode up the hill passing the small cottages, he considered that on such a fine evening, and riding such a stately horse, he would even consider a visit to the neighboring town of Penzance.