Chapter 15
Chapter Fifteen
JADEON
This was not what I had expected. A barrage of business meetings now almost sounded appealing. To think I had been in a hurry to get invited into the old man’s club. Now all I wanted was to avoid them.
I turned to the books once again. Only this time actually reading them, devouring the pages to unravel the confusion.
I was stunned at what I learned, my eyes opened to horrors that sounded more like the ravings of madmen.
It seemed that pagan rituals were rampant and were going on too close to home for comfort.
An uneasy feeling came with the realization that the rest of my life was to be dedicated to slaughtering the damned.
But there was no way out.
The fact that I could not tell Alex was unbearable.
We had always shared in everything and helped each other see through whatever concerns we had, problems that now seemed insignificant, petty preludes to this.
The drag in my stomach worsened with thoughts of Alex’s impending marriage. This pressing matter weighed heavily.
For a week, I had tried to discuss with Father the wisdom of such a match, and each day he bore me down with his terrible gaze and put me in my place.
To add insult to injury, Father had then given me the dubious honor of informing his youngest. Fearing such a conversation would place an irreversible rift with Alex I paced the corridors of St. Michael’s Mount looking for a solution.
Anxiously, I made my way to Alex’s room. Within the castle, final preparations for the grand ball were underway, and I dodged the servants who scurried around, getting things just right for when our home would be invaded by hundreds of guests. I was counting the hours until they would be gone.
On my arrival in Alex’s bedroom, the tailor fussed around Alex, engrossed in his work. Alex admired his reflection before the mirror. Arthur had been trying to arrange my brother’s fitting for days, though Alex’s sporadic appearances had proven challenging.
I had carefully rehearsed and re-rehearsed my speech. Father had told me all arrangements were set and all that was left was for the groom to be informed. This was unbearably cruel, but Father was determined.
Swallowing hard, hoping the lump in my throat would not give me away, I spoke. “Lady Emily Theron will be attending the ball tonight, Alex.”
“So?”
“It will be nice for you to see her again. It has been such a while since we saw her last.”
Alex glanced at me and smiled. “You’re kidding, right?”
I cringed.
“Jadeon, what’s on your mind? Birthdays are not all that bad.”
“This one is.”
“Is Father giving you a hard time?” he asked.
“Father has requested that you escort Lady Theron tonight.”
“But I’m hosting Lord Velde.”
“It would be wise if you humored Father,” I tried.
“You should escort her. She’s fond of you, I’m sure.”
“It is you she likes.”
“What makes you think that?”
“Inside knowledge.”
“I don’t do boring.”
I addressed the tailor and gesticulated toward the doorway. “Please,” I said.
The tailor quickly withdrew.
“He hasn’t finished,” Alex said.
“We need privacy. There is something I have to tell you,” I said, picking up objects within the room, looking at them nervously, and then placing them down again.
“What?” Alex said.
“Oh God, Alex, I am so sorry—”
“I’m sure it isn’t as bad as—”
“I need you to remain calm,” I said.
“My horse?”
“No.”
“What then? Tell me?”
“You are to marry Lady Theron.”
Alex laughed. “That would be absolutely—” He caught my expression in the mirror and spun round. “This is a joke?”
“I’m sorry.” I shook my head.
“You’re serious?”
“I am.”
“This is not a cruel prank?”
“Please, it’s for your own good. Father and I have decided—”
“Father and you? Since when has it been Father and you? I will not marry her. Call it off immediately. I do not even know her.”
“I cannot. It is done and set.”
“Excuse me?”
I had to be strong for us both, to behave in a manner that set an example of authority. As the eldest, it was my duty to shoulder this.
“Jadeon, say something.”
“Emily comes from a noble family.”
“That’s not what I meant. This doesn’t sound like you.” He wasn’t wrong.
“This is not about me, and it is not up for debate.”
“You know this is madness.”
“I should have chosen better words . . .”
“You marry her.”
“These things are not to be tampered with. In time, you will understand.”
“There is no understanding your betrayal,” he said.
“Please, Alex, I—”
He turned his back on me and faced the mirror. Even with his back turned away, his panic was palpable. I deserved it. Full of guilt, I headed out.
“Wait,” Alex called after me.
“Yes?”
“Perhaps if you reasoned with Father.”
“I don’t know if—” I read the desperation in his face. “I will do what I can.”
“Hey, isn’t it your initiation into the old boys’ club soon?”
“That’s already happened, I—”
“Again, I’m the last to hear,” Alex said. “You may have your secrets, but I too have mine.”
“And what is that supposed to mean?”
Alex faced the mirror again.
His silence forced my withdrawal.