Dark One Rising. Leandra Martin

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ I have something to say to you, and it’s something you’re not going to want to hear, but nevertheless, you must.”

      He led her over to the bench on the far side of the room, and she sat down beside him, still looking into his eyes. She placed her hands neatly in her lap, her legs crossed daintily at the ankles. The many layered skirts of her dress billowed out on the bench, her bosom peeking out from under her corset. There was pain there she could see, and she was extremely worried about him. She had no idea that the pain in his eyes was for her.

      “Melenthia, you are my beloved daughter, and you know that I love you more than life itself. I have always been supportive of your needs and wants, but it has come to a point in my life where I need to put the needs of the kingdom and my estates first. Your brother will inherit this realm, and I need to make sure that he gets a strong and secure kingdom to pass along to his next in line. I have been patient with you, but I can no longer wait for you to decide on a husband. I have come to the decision that I need to make the choice for you.”

      Her eyes got wider. “No, father, you can’t.”

      “You have given me no choice, Melenthia. I feel you are deliberately avoiding the decision, even though plenty of young men have come forward and offered their hand over the years. You have turned down all of the men who have shown at least some interest in you. You have given me no choice. You will marry. And since you have not made the decision for yourself out of love, I will make it for you out of duty. You are a princess whether you like it or not, and that means you have certain responsibilities. I have an offer for you, and I have accepted it.”

      Her eyes narrowed and she crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. She was no longer worried about her impression on him. She no longer wanted to be charming and cooperative. Her rebellious nature was coming out.

      “Who have you chosen, father?”

      He paused for longer than she could stand. His silence stung so much it hardly mattered that he did not touch her. A slap across the face would have stung less.

      “You will marry Fallon Tab Rommel, Duke of Xenos.”

      She gasped, and her hand flew to her mouth. The horror of her encounter with him at her party rushed back to her memory. She felt as though she’d swoon, but forced herself to stand. He stood up as well.

      “Father, how could you possibly be angry enough at me to stick me with a sentence that cruel? He is an ogre, father, mean and vindictive. I couldn’t possibly marry him.”

      “The choice is no longer yours.” His voice seemed to crack a bit from pain at having to put this burden on her, but he had to stay strong. He cleared his throat again. “I have no choice now. I have already given your hand to him. He and I have already come to an arrangement.”

      She recalled what he said about being less painful if she went willingly. She realized that his come-on to her at the party was a warning. She suspected now that he was only there to secure a deal with her father. The party had been a lie. He had already promised her hand, and Fallon was just trying to secure what was already, unbeknownst to her, his property. She shuddered, but then yelled.

      “My party. You and Fallon had already made the deal that night, didn’t you?”

      “We made the final preparations, yes. He had already asked for your hand before that.”

      She really seethed now. “Have the deal revoked!”

      “I cannot. What’s done is done.”

      “Father, I refuse to subject myself to that kind of torture. I thought you loved me enough to not do something so cruel. I will not do it!” She stamped her foot now.

      He was saddened at his daughter’s pain, but he had to stand his ground this time. If he did not get through this by putting his foot down he would end up giving in to her, just as he’s done for years. He had already promised her hand, and although he would have rather her chosen someone else, anyone else, her lack of cooperation brought him to this. He had a kingdom to think about, and he needed the army that Fallon possessed. Fallon was becoming more and more powerful, and he could not risk a war with him. Going to war was not something his kingdom could survive. With Fallon and Melenthia married, there was no way Fallon could ever enlist war with him. They would be family.

      “I have tried for years to keep you in mind, to keep your want for love in mind, but you have over and over again failed to find that person you want. I’m beginning to think you have done it on purpose just to cause me grief. You have always been a willful child without a mother, and I understand that you were brought up by men, but enough is enough. You’re getting old. You’re already older than all the girls in the court who have been married for some time and already have children. I will not embarrass this house with an old maid for a daughter. I don’t understand why you are so obstinate.”

      “I have not met one man who wants me for me. They want me to be someone I’m not. I’m not a giddy little girl who dotes on her man because he’s powerful and rich. I won’t be dutiful because I’m supposed to be while he brings multiple mistresses to his bed. If someone is going to marry me, they’ll get the whole package, the real me, not what they want me to be. I won’t be taken against my will!”

      “If you would stop acting like a ruffian and start acting more like the princess you are, maybe you would find the right man for you. A man doesn’t want a woman who does things like a man. He wants a feminine woman, a woman who can charm his friends and raise his children. He doesn’t want a woman who can protect herself; he wants to be her protector. I told Kevaan it was a bad idea to teach you such things, but, like you, he doesn’t listen.”

      “I don’t like who I am when I’m at court, trying to impress men who only want one thing from a woman. I want love, like you and mother had, not just a bed companion.”

      “Your mother and I loved each other dearly, yes, but she was a proper woman of the court. She had her little quirks that I found amusing, but she did not flaunt them around for everyone to see.”

      Tears started to well up, but she fought them back. “Please, don’t do this, father.”

      “There is nothing I can do now, Melenthia. I have given my word, and my word is stone. It’s over, Melenthia. You will marry Fallon at the end of the month. He will be back here in three days to propose to you.”

      She knew that he would never wait until marriage to take her. If he was coming here, she was in danger of being violated right under her father’s nose. She started to cry, knowing there was nothing else she could say to convince him, but she held it back. Crying would certainly not convince him, but maybe a threat would.

      “I will be gone before that. I won’t be a slave in his house, a plaything he can discard for another when he tires of abusing me. I won’t be subjected to a life of misery and physical pain so that you’re not embarrassed, so that Kevaan can inherit a kingdom that is untarnished. I will leave before that happens.”

      She thought it would work, but it did not.

      “If you choose to do so then you will be banished from this house forever. You will never again be my daughter. You will be stripped of everything that is supposed to come to you after my death. You’ll be an outcast. I don’t think you want that.”

      “You would do that to me to save your precious reputation?”

      He paused for a moment, knowing his answer would break her heart, and his. “Yes.”

СКАЧАТЬ