"MELANCHOLY DREAMS" by Sarah Ryniker

STORY LAST UPDATED ON 01/03/2003

Melancholy Dreams Prologue Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Epilogue

CHAPTER SIX: AN INTRODUCTION

I didn't know what to think later on. All that kept running through my mind was the fact that I'd just said yes to a proposal from a man that I didn't even know. I was to be married to a man I didn't know. What had possessed me to do something so spontaneous and stupid?
    But then again, I consoled myself, many women before me had been married to men they didn't know. They had all made it out alive. And who was to say that I wouldn't be happy? Tomas Lavigne could very well make me very happy. If he ever got over my mother enough to love me the way he loved her. I could fall in love with him, couldn't I?
    I lay in the giant bed that had been given to me. Tomas told me that the room, which was right next to the master suite, would sometimes be used for the master's mistress. Seeing that the wives of his ancestors all slept in a different bedroom suite down at the other end of the hall, it would be simple to keep a mistress in such a large house without any of them knowing it. I couldn't help wondering if I would stay in the wife's suite. And if I did, would Tomas take on a mistress? What made my mother leave him, anyway?
    That was a question that nagged me on and on. Mother hadn't been that bad, really. So why would she ever leave a man that loved her as much as the earth loved the sun's early morning kisses? She had been his world. He actually had a room for her, a sort of creepy shrine. He had shown it to me not long after we'd left the main parlour.
    He led me into the room that was simply down the hall from the main parlour. It was a circular room, with the cream-coloured walls sectioned off like long rectangles. Just like in movies that I'd seen, a giant picture of Mother was hanging over the six-foot high fireplace. The room was huge in itself, and I suddenly realised that we were in one of the towers of the house. There was even a stairwell that, like every other stairwell in the house, circled up into the other rooms in the large tower.
    "When was that picture of her taken?" I asked, looking up at the large picture of Mother. She wore a light blue summer dress, yet it was raining around her. She had no shoes on and was holding tightly to an umbrella and looking up at the darkened sky serenely.
    "That was taken before we were married. I don't know who took it, but I found it not long after she left. It was the most beautiful picture I'd ever seen taken of her." He was breathless as he said it and I looked over to see him staring at it as if he'd never seen anything more beautiful.
    "It is very beautiful. She actually appears to be happy. I don't think I ever saw her looking happy." It made me sad to think that, once upon a time, Mother had been a happy young woman with not a care in the world.
    He sighed. "She was happy while we were still friends. You see, we were also stepbrother and stepsister," he revealed.
    My eyes widened and my mouth made an "o" shape in disbelief. A stepbrother and stepsister getting married? I'd never heard of anything like it. But Tomas went into explanation the moment he saw the look on my face. "My mother married her father when we were fifteen years old. Our families lived only down the street from one another our whole lives, and her father and my father had planned our marriage long before her parents even divorced. Against her will, the marriage happened, in spite of the fact that we were then related by marriage."
    It wasn't really incest. And their marriage had been planned ahead of time. Yet it made me feel sick. I could understand why she'd been so against it. At least I thought I understood, but I guess I never truly knew why she didn't want to be married to Tomas. Only she knew, and a few other people, I would someday learn. Right now, Mother was more of a mystery to me than she had ever been.
    The rest of the room was set up with candles and incense everywhere. Everything was burning, and it never stopped. A servant was always tending to the candles and incense to keep it burning. Like his love, he told me. I hadn't asked, but he had felt the need to explain.
    His obsession with my mother made me nervous. It made me second-guess my coming to Carmel. What if he only saw me as Mother? What if that was his intentions for me? I feared that he would try to turn me into her. Yet for some reason, I didn't flee. I stayed there, just to see what would happen next.
    I found out that the twins, Edward and Felicity, still lived in the house. Felicity went to a nearby college and Edward, who was extremely intelligent, had already gone to college for five years, starting at the tender age of twelve. Kassandra had already married and moved away, so I would meet her later.
    I didn't meet my siblings the first day that I was there. Tomas had insisted that I stay in my new bedroom, resting, the first day. So I agreed, deciding that some rest wouldn't hurt me, and followed him to my room.
    It was a large suite with tall, red painted walls. There was gold lining the room in crown moulding. All of the furniture was gold, including the giant four-poster bed. There was a mirror, unashamedly, hanging above the bed. I'd heard stories about people putting giant mirrors above their beds for more enjoyment during sex, but I'd never actually seen it. And now I had. It was large and gold and hanging directly above the bed. It would take some getting used to, I decided. I would now be staring at myself lying in bed, rather than the ceiling, as I was often wont to do.
    The bathroom was large and luxurious, just as the rest of the bedroom. It was made to match the bedroom, only with black and gold. The scent of peaches filled the air. The bubble bath, body wash, soap and lotion were all peach-scented. It was rather pleasing and relaxing. I also noticed that there was even a small glass bookshelf with three shelves full of romance novels next to the bathtub. I smiled to myself. I could definitely get used to this.
    I heard a knock and turned to see an older woman standing in the doorway. She wore a pink dress with the sleeves rolled up. Her socks were pulled up a little too far, and she wore spotless white tennis shoes. Her curly grey hair was cut just above her ears and her black eyes waited expectantly.
    "Can I help you?" I asked when she didn't speak.
    "Hello, miss. I'm Amanda, and I'll be your maid from now on." She smiled charmingly, almost like a child.
    I liked her immediately and smiled back. "Hello, Amanda. I'm Cry; so don't call me miss. My name is Cry. Use my name." I didn't want her to think that she had to be formal with me. I didn't like the formalities.
    She nodded. "May I draw you a bath?" She had seen my obvious interest in the large, luxurious black bathtub.
    "Well, seeing that you get paid to do so, I don't see why not." I smiled and started past her.
    "Great! You'll find a nice silk robe here in the cabinet here off to the left when you walk in, along with towels and washcloths." I nodded and finished leaving the room.
    I felt like a princess. I was being treated like royalty, and I was getting comfortable in it already. Being treated this way was making me glad that I had said yes to Tomas Lavigne's proposal.
    I sat down at the vanity table and began to brush out my hair. As I did, I smiled at my reflection in the mirror. Then I began to giggle. This was like some fairytale little girls made up when they were young and naïve. This was something that I would have made up when I was still sixteen, seventeen and even eighteen years old. A handsome prince - in this case king, even - saving the pathetic girl with no real family to speak of. I would be Mrs Cry Lavigne. I actually liked the sound of it.
    After Amanda was finished, I dismissed with her with a smile. She offered to bring dinner up to me in about an hour and I agreed. I then stripped off my clothes and entered the giant bathtub. I leaned over after a few minutes of soaking and pulled a book from the shelf. I hadn't read a romance novel in ages and this one seemed to be a rather nice read already.
    Everything around me seemed to disappear as I soaked in the bath. I heard Amanda bring my food in. She knocked on the bathroom door, announced that she'd dropped it off then hurriedly left, as if she knew that she was disturbing my peaceful soak. I sighed and read a little more before rising from the water.
    I dried myself off with a towel and then wrapped myself up in the beautiful black silk robe with gold lining. It was more than I'd expected, being here. I supposed I hadn't ever thought about how rich my family was. Why would my mother ever leave this? It was so luxurious, such comfort. I didn't know how naïve and stupid I was being then and there.
    It wasn't long after I finished my rather delicious meal that Tomas knocked on the door. I was still in the robe when I answered it. He smiled brightly when he saw me. I expected him to attack me and have me right there, halfway in the hall and halfway in the bedroom. Yet disappointingly, he didn't even look past my face. "I see that you're getting comfortable," he said, smiling.
    "Yes, Tomas. This is all so very nice!" I exclaimed with enthusiasm.
    "I'm glad you're enjoying it." He sighed and looked over his shoulder. "Anyway, the reason you're here is to meet your sisters and brother. Well, Felicity and Eddie are here. Why don't you come on downstairs with me? We can announce the big news to them."
    I nodded. "Just let me get dressed real quickly." He nodded and told me that they would be in the second parlour. I would have to guess my way back there, although I had already been shown where it was.
    I shut the door and went to the large closet. I was hoping that something that I could wear would be in there, but all I found was a closet full of sexy lingerie. Disappointed, I threw on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. I had hoped to impress them in higher-class clothes. But instead I was wearing something bought from a second-class department store.
    I made my way down the stairs. I was nervous. If either of them had ever seen Mother, which I was sure they would have by now in their lives, they would most certainly see her in me. I was an almost identical replica of our mother, except for the fact that I had a darker complexion.
    I made a few wrong turns and ran into the butler. It occurred to me that I'd yet to learn his name. I decided to ask him as he showed me the way to the second parlour. The room had a name, but I'd forgotten it, and it was usually just called the second parlour.
    "What is your name?" I asked as he led me to the room.
    "My name is Kingsman Riley." I thought that Kingsman was a rather odd name, and told him so. He just laughed. "Yes, it is different now, isn't it? But you're one to speak of strange names, my dear."
    I blushed. He was incredibly right. I didn't get a chance to say anything, though, because we came upon the room and I was announced. Felicity was the first to look up from the conversation. And from her blue eyes, identical to my very own, I could tell that she already knew. Her light brown hair was pulled back from her face in a very classy sweep. Her features were that of any classical beauty, and she herself carried her look well. Her nose was straight and somewhat pointed just like Tomas's. Yet her lips were shaped just like my mothers, full and sensual. And they were held tightly together in a frown of annoyance and disgust.
    To add to her disgust, her father, my future husband, rose from his position on the chair directly across from the door, and came over to me. He placed one arm around my shoulder while his other hand reached over and took my hand. I saw her eyes fire into full force, and I could tell that her tongue was ready for lashing.
    "Felicity, Eddie, we have something important to tell you." He was smiling so broadly it was almost as if we'd been dating for years. Before either could ask, say or do anything, he made his announcement. "Cry Fawrling and I are to be married."
    "How old is she, Father?" Felicity snapped. "She can't be much older, if older at all, than Eddie and myself."
    I turned red. "I'll be twenty in August," I said in a small voice, feeling like a foolish child. How could I have expected my sister to accept me, especially not knowing who I really was to her?
    Her eyes widened and turned to Tomas. "How could you? That's disgusting. You're old enough to be her father as well." She stood up and threw her arms up in the air in frustration.
    "Calm down, Felicity," I heard a soft voice say, and watched Eddie rise from his spot on the loveseat across from his sister. As if he could see, he made his way over to her and touched her shoulder. She seemed to calm instantly, looking at him with an irritated expression. But the expression wasn't for him, and whether he could sense it or not, he knew it wasn't for him.
    "How can I, Eddie, when our father is making a mistake by marrying some foolish little girl who wants only his money? He's only marrying her because she looks like Mother." I had been waiting for that from her. I had expected it. I expected it from our other sister, as well.
    "I don't want just your father's money," I said in quiet defence of myself.
    Her eyes shot my way, and if looks could kill I would have been six feet under and moulding. "I don't want to hear you speak. I don't want to have anything to do with you. And I plan on doing everything I can to prevent this wedding."
    "Well, I say it's Father's decision. Let him do as he wishes," Eddie said. Felicity then shot him a mean look and he grimaced as if he could see it. I learned that Eddie's senses were very sensitive, especially towards his twin.
    "Fine then. Let it be that way. But I keep my promises. I will do everything in my power to prevent it." With that, she stormed out of the room.
    We all stood there in silence. I knew that Felicity would stay true to her word. Even if I did have a nice conversation with my brother, she would never forgive me or see me as anything but evil. I suppose I shouldn't have expected any less. But maybe, just maybe, I could make her at least accept me in some strange way. I was just scared about one thing. What would my oldest sister have to say about me?

Melancholy Dreams Prologue Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Epilogue

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