And fight he would.
Ana returned home at sunset to find a very happy Scarlet whistling in the garden. “Mama!” Scarlet ran to her as she entered the yard. “Wow.” Scarlet paused, looking Ana over. “You look…beautiful.”
Ana could feel the effects of the water still streaming through her, making her healthy and strong. And bringing her closer to death.
Ana waved a hand. “Hush, now.”
Scarlet eyed her mother for another moment before returning to her cheery mood. “Guess what?” Scarlet looked like a little girl with a treat when she leaned in to Ana and said, “Tristan and I are to be married.” Her smile was radiant and her cheeks flushed with love and hope.
Ana was confused. “When did this happen?”
“Today!” Scarlet squealed. “He has gone home to tell his father.”
Ana thought for a moment, perplexed by the irony of the situation. The earl had agreed to Ana’s marriage proposal just hours ago and Tristan had proposed to Scarlet at that same time?
Interesting.
Either way, Scarlet would be well cared-for.
Ana smiled. “I am so happy for you dear.” She wrapped Scarlet into her arms and shuffled her inside the hut. “We will have to dress you well for tomorrow.”
“What is tomorrow?” Scarlet asked.
“Tomorrow, we will go to the earl’s castle for the marriage announcement.” Ana smiled again, feeling a pit in her stomach beginning to form.
Why did she not feel settled?
Probably because the fountain water was already affecting her mind.
“It is tradition,” Ana lied. “That the bride be presented the day after an engagement to a lord.”
Scarlet’s smile faltered briefly, but she seemed to accept Ana’s words. “Very well. What shall I wear?”
Ana looked out the door of the hut, hoping the feeling of dread in her stomach was just dark magic at work and not the beginning of something gone awry.
She smiled at her daughter. “Something beautiful.”
Later that night, Gabriel was fuming. “Absolutely not!”
His father had called him into the dining hall to tell him of the marriage arrangement he’d agreed to without Gabriel’s consent. “I refuse to marry a girl I’ve never met simply because it suits you.”
“You cannot refuse.” Cornelius shook his head. “Your bride will be Scarlet Jacobs. I’ve made a deal with her mother and since you are my only eligible heir, I have the right to choose your bride.”
“Have you forgotten Tristan? You have twoheirs!” Gabriel was livid.
“Tristan is no longer eligible now that he is in the king’s service.”
Gabriel’s mouth fell open. “Tristan is going to arms for the king?”
“He is. Tomorrow morning, in fact.”
“No.” Gabriel shook his head. “I do not believe it.”
Tristan hated the king. He would never do such a thing.
“It doesn’t matter what you believe,” Cornelius said. “What matters is that you start acting appropriately. Your bride will be here tomorrow at noon and you will accept her.”
I will not.
Gabriel’s heart was racing. He started stomping around, angry at his father’s audacity, but also fearful that he might be trapped. If Tristan was leaving, then his father did have the right to choose Gabriel’s bride.
But what would happen to Raven?
No. Gabriel huffed out a disgruntled breath.
He and Raven would be together. He’d run away with her if necessary.
No one was going to marry him off to a stranger.
“I will not do it.” Gabriel stated. “You can tell the Jacobs family to find a different groom.”
“You will do it.” Cornelius stood and walked up to Gabriel looking him in the eye. “Or you will receive no inheritance at all.”
Ha! Like Gabriel cared about wealth. “I do not want your money. I want freedom.”
Cornelius placed a hand on Gabriel’s shoulder with a heavy sigh. “Freedom is expensive, my son.”
Gabriel jutted his chin and left the room.
He had to find Tristan.
Tristan had tried to fight off the guards in the stable, but he had been severely outnumbered and eventually overpowered. Defeated, he had been dragged to his father’s hall and restrained by two guards as his father looked upon him.
“You see, this is why I cannot allow you to reign over the estate.” Cornelius held a goblet in his hand. “You make impulsive decisions—like running away—that are bad for your future and bad for the kingdom. I was right in my choice to make Gabriel earl.”
Tristan exhaled angrily. “You cannot keep me here, trapped in your walls.” Even as he said it, Tristan felt the tug of the large men at his sides.
Cornelius sighed. “I can, and I will, if that is what it takes.”
“You are vile.”
“Why? Because I am offering you a high position in the king’s army? Because I am mapping out your future so you will be successful?” Cornelius squinted. “Or because I will not let you run off to say goodbye to your peasant girl?”
“Because you are choosing six parcels of land over me,” Tristan snapped.
Cornelius took a sip of his drink and waved at the guards to take Tristan away. “You will thank me someday, my boy.”
“No!” Tristan struggled against the men at his arms, but more came from the hall and he was helpless to free himself.
He was trapped and Scarlet knew nothing.
33
The morning after her awkward kiss with Gabriel, Scarlet finished her breakfast and started gathering her things for school. She’d been up since the break of day, unable to sleep well the night before.
Her drive home with Gabriel had been tense. They’d barely made eye contact when he’d dropped her off and Scarlet didn’t know how to fix things between them. She needed a handbook for curse-bound love triangles. Stat.
Laura padded down the stairs. “Have you seen my shoes?”
“Which ones?” Scarlet poured herself a cup of coffee.
“The red heels.”
Scarlet rolled her eyes. “Which ones?”
Laura had dozens of shoes and at least four pairs of red high-heels.