“I beg to differ, my darling one. You always rush ahead without a thought. You seem determined to shock us all with your behavior. It is time for you to learn that life is not the games of your childhood, and you must mature into a fine young lady ready for marriage and a family.”
“I will not marry this horrible count!”
She fluffed my sleeves and fastened upon me the most stern of glares. “Glynis, your father told me last night that Sir Stephen has only the highest praises for our host. It is only right and proper that we allow our dear host to show us all he can offer to you.”
“In other words, as long as he is rich and well-titled, he is a good husband.” I stomped my foot. “I will not marry that terrible man. He even haunted my dreams!”
My mother took hold of my arms, her fingers digging into my soft flesh. “You will act like a proper young lady when he is with you. I will have none of this behavior. He is a prince. A respected man, I am told, in this country.”
“But not in England? Is that not what you wanted? A husband with standing in society? So I would not be the outcast you were!”
I instantly regretted my words. I could tell they stung her. It had never been easy for her being a foreigner in British society. She was dark and exotic compared to the fine ladies of the aristocracy. Wild and foreign, many sniffed. I might as well have slapped her.
“I want the best for you. Is that so wrong?” Her voice trembled with a mixture of emotions. She drew away from me, her slim body tense. “You are my daughter. My blood! I want you to marry well and have children.”
“But what if I do not want that?” I could not help myself. I truly could not. I wanted her to understand that my needs where not what she thought them to be. I wanted to be free of the society she had tried so hard to be part of.
She threw up her hands. “I do not know what to do anymore, Glynis. I want you to be married, taken care of, and respected. But you have fought your father and me ever since we began our travels. This may be your last chance to find a proper husband. Last night I was overcome with the journey and the storm. I realize I must as least consider Prince Vlad and treat him with the respect he deserves.”
“Then you consider him, but I will not.” I stomped my foot for good measure, turning my back on her.
“Darling, does this castle seem so horrible to you in the light of day? Yes, there are areas in desperate need of repair, but what has been restored is quite pleasant. It will one day be a lovely home.”
“It’s horrible and I hate it!” I ran to the window and stared out at the broken battlements of the ancient castle. “Look at this place! It is horrible! How could you wish me to stay in such a place?”
My mother clasped her hands tightly. “Please, Glynis, you must be kind. You must be respectful and you must act as a lady. I insist on it. As your mother, I insist.”
I whirled about and said, desperately, “How can you wish this of me?”
“The Prince has already decided to live in England. You would be a princess should your father agree to a marriage contract.”
“That is little consolation when faced with the fact that I cannot marry who I wish! If I choose to marry!”
“What other life would you live? Do you wish to be an old woman with no children to comfort her at the end of her life?”
I was going to be rather rude and tell her I had no need for human spawn, but my eyes fell on her face and my words died. I could see fear mixed with some darker emotion in her eyes. She abruptly let go of my arm and turned away from me, fastening her eyes on the wondrous beauty of the landscape beyond my windows.
I tried to relax and force my anger from my face. I really did not like making my mother angry.
“Are you so desperate to have me married?”
My mother surprised me by throwing her hands over her face as she sobbed, “Yes!”
I instinctively reached out and laid my hands over hers. “Please do not cry!”
“What do you expect me to do? When all I desire is for you to have a good life and you fight me!”
I began to protest that I was not as difficult as she said when the door opened. My father entered the room and smiled grandly at us. Either he did not see the tears on my mother’s face or he deliberately ignored them. He, too, looked tired, but he smiled at me fondly.
Mother quickly wiped away her tears and greeted him with a loving smile.
“How lovely you both look this morning.” He ignored our flushed faces and kissed us both on the cheek. “Now, what were we speaking of?”
“Nothing at all,” my mother answered him.
Turning from him, I strode to the window across the ancient stone floor. I did not like this place, and I would not stay. In all honesty, if I had my way, I would never marry. Instead, I would be the mistress of someone exotic, like Lord Byron. I had met him once and he was quite charming. Of course, if my mother knew that I had chatted with him she would never allow me out of her sight again.
“Really? It did seem there was a discussion in progress,” my father said.
“It was most likely Glynis having a tantrum,” my sister said from the doorway.
“Ah, I see,” my father said, giving me a slight smile.
May stood pale and slight in the corridor. Her fair hair was piled on her head and she looked her usual delicate self. I had a mad moment where I actually considered pinching her to see if she was alive.
“Oh Glynis, I could not sleep a wink,” she said. “I kept hearing these strange whispers in my room.”
I have to admit by this point I was feeling quite contrary and disagreeable. I pretended to look worried.
“Really? It sounds as though you might be mad! The journey has driven you to insanity perhaps.”
May’s eyes widened. “Do you really think so?”
I giggled at her innocence, relented, and kissed her cheek. “Of course not! Don't be silly.”
My family found our way to the dining room, May and I following our father and mother like dutiful daughters. I have to admit I appeared quite pleasant, but I was already planning what to say to the Prince to shock him horribly so he would cast us out. In the dining room, several gypsy women were setting the table while the old woman named Ilona looked after them. She seemed to sense our presence and turned toward us with a toothy smile.“Ah, come in, come in!”
“How is Prince Vlad this morning?” My father gave me a warning glance and commenced into the dining room.
“He was called away quite early this morning on business. He assured me he would return tonight.” The old gypsy woman motioned to a chair. “Please sit down. Eat! He wishes for you to relax and enjoy his hospitality.”
“Damn,” I whispered under my breath and watched May’s eyes widen. I smiled at her slightly, then flopped onto a chair. I was not sure what I would have said to the Prince over breakfast, but I was quite sure I could have thought of something quite horrible.
Breakfast was extremely boring. Father was obviously disappointed that our host had departed for the day and he kept muttering this under his breath. Mother lectured me endlessly about proper etiquette and how to be a proper young lady. All the while, May sat picking at her breakfast, staring warily up at the paintings hanging on the walls. I sat primly in my chair and tried to look as bored as possible as my mother droned on and on.
As soon as we could, I escaped with May into the castle on an exploring expedition. May was surprised to be invited, and I felt badly for leaving her out of my recent adventures. I was used to her declining to rush off on some half-conceived notion of mine. I thought she looked particularly miserable this morning, so I asked her along. Surprisingly, she said yes.
With an admonition to be careful from our father ringing in our ears, we began to explore the decrepit, yet fascinating castle.
“Isn’t it terrible that we are doing this, Glynis? The Prince should be the one to show us his home,” May whispered as we peered down a long hallway.
Now that I was away from my mother, I was in better spirits. No more talk of marriage for a few hours and I might actually behave myself. Well, probably not, but it was refreshing to be away from the constant lectures.
“Oh, please! Come on, May! Have fun for once without worrying. Besides, if I am forced to marry the Prince, this is going to be my castle.” I made a face at the thought. “Isn’t that ghastly to think about?”
“Oh, Glynis!” May giggled. “You would not stay here. He said he wants to move to England. Perhaps he could have a grand estate there. And I could marry a nice gentlemen and live nearby.”
“I’d rather not.”
“But why not?”
“I do not want to marry him.” I pushed another door open and stared into a small sitting room.
“Well, he is rather foreign and exotic---“
“No, that is not it. I do not want to marry anyone.”
“Does this have to do with Lord Byron again? Because, if mother ever found out that you met him, she would have you locked away. She always says he is a devil.”
“Well,” I conceded, “he was a bit of that. But he told me the loveliest poem though. I wish I could remember it.”
“You do not want to be a wanton woman. You just want to be a man.”
“Well, I want to be a woman who lives her life as a man. With no constraints. Being able to do as I please. I do not understand why they can do as they wish and we cannot. Just because we have breasts...”
“And they have that--” May widened her eyes, leaning forward “-you know…they have…”
I screwed up my face in distaste, and we both burst into wild laughter.
Grabbing each other’s hands, we rushed deeper into the castle.
A bit later, May wandered ahead and came across a staircase descending down into the ground. Her face shadowed with fear.
“What is it?”
“It just looks so old, Glynis, so old.”
“Because it is!” I bounced down the steps quite fearlessly and peered around a heavy door into a long hall. “It is rather dusty down here. I do not think many people have been this way.”
May was obviously not ready to copy my daring. “Please, Glynis, please come up. I do not like the look of it.”
But I was quite curious and insisted, “Come on down, May. Please come down.”
My sister looked frightened. “If they have not restored that area of the castle, it could be quite dangerous, Glynis.”
“I shall hold your hand, May. Please come on. Let us have an adventure. There are no monsters or ghosts here. Just cobwebs and excitement.”
May frowned when I mentioned ghosts, but she took a deep breath and hurried down to me. Clasping my hand, she looked at me quite adoringly. I realized in that moment she would do anything I asked of her because she truly did love me despite how hurtful I could be at times. I impulsively kissed her cheek, and she bestowed a lovely smile on me.
“I promise, May, this is going to be fun.”
Torches threw light upon us, keeping us from being swallowed by shadows as May looked at me fearfully. This area of the castle was very dark, extremely dirty, and a cold draft flowed freely down the length of the corridor. May clutched my hand tightly as we gazed up at ornate statues of long lost warriors and saints.
“It is rather like a chapel. Or the entrance to one,” May decided.
“Are they not beautiful, May?” I declared.
“They frighten me,” May answered.
“Everything frightens you.”
We both stopped and gazed up at the statue of man who looked remarkably like the Prince. The expression on the roughly hewed statue was that of arrogance and cruelty.
For the first time since last night, I began to feel uneasy and a little frightened. Holding May’s hand tight, I began to walk down the dusty passageway toward enormous doors. I pressed them open and another staircase lay below us, leading deeper into this wing of the castle. Deep shadows covered the stairs, dark and menacing, as though a piece of the night was hiding from the sun.