Authors: L. M. Roth
Marcus puzzled
over the abrupt departure of his wife and son. It was not like his wife to dash
off and not leave a message for him. Even if Tullia expected to return later
than usual from visiting friends she always left a message for him. And to
depart for anywhere in such a hurry was unlike her at all.
He was
startled by a voice that trumpeted through the atrium, and was greeted by his
mother-in-law Drusilla, who hailed him and rushed to embrace him.
“Marcus! How
wonderful to have you home again! Felicia and I have been very lonely with the
rest of the family away and no visitors with the lady of the house gone.”
Marcus
returned the embrace and agreed that the villa must have seemed empty indeed.
The three of them decided to take a turn in the garden where the roses would be
at their peak and a cool breeze would refresh them. As they strolled amiably
through the bricked walks and paused to smell the roses and carnations Marcus
felt himself unwind and relax.
He was sure
that Tullia and Lucius were alright, wherever they were. After all, they had
one another for protection and company. But what emergency sent them fleeing so
abruptly? And why had they not left a message for him, informing him of their
mission and whereabouts?
After the
evening meal Otho announced a visitor. To the surprise of Marcus, Antonius
entered the family sitting room. He was genuinely glad to see the young man of
whom he had grown so fond, but his last news of Decimus was that he was bound
for Valerium and he expected that his wife and son would have traveled with
him.
He rose from
his seat and greeted Antonius fondly. Antonius appeared delighted to see him,
but Marcus noticed the young man’s eyes dart immediately from him to Felicia
and light up. His daughter smiled and blushed, and dropped her glance.
What is this,
he wondered. Have they met already while I was away? Is there some attraction
brewing that I should be aware of?
He realized
suddenly that he would not be pleased with such a circumstance. The last thing
in the world he would desire would be to see his daughter involved with the son
of his old enemy.
He kept his
disquiet to himself, but took the first opportunity to satisfy his curiosity.
“Antonius,” he
began, “this is my daughter, Felicia. She has been away in Solone and has only
lately returned.”
Antonius grinned
so broadly that it was a wonder his face did not split in half. He suddenly
caught his breath and released it in what seemed to Marcus a sigh of rapture.
And he did not like the dreamy gaze that he bestowed on Felicia either…
“Yes, I know,”
Antonius stammered. “I mean, that is to say, we have met.”
“Yes, Father,
we have met,” Felicia stated as she returned Antonius’ smile and gaze, both of
which were too bright for her father’s comfort.
“Oh?” Marcus
questioned. “When was that?”
“Oh, I really
couldn’t say,” Felicia blurted. “Perhaps a month or so ago, would you say,
Antonius?”
“Yes, I would
say about that,” the young man agreed, nodding his head for emphasis.
Marcus decided
he did not like the manner in which they looked at each other. Something was happening
here that disturbed him, and he had a growing sense that they were keeping
something back from him.
“Well,” he
remarked with a casual air. “How did you meet?”
Felicia
exchanged a glance with Antonius that appeared furtive to her father’s anxious
eyes. Was she silently warning him about something? And yet he had never told
his daughter the history he had with Hadrianus, so why would she hide anything
from him?
“I happened to
call one day to see Lucius and met Felicia instead,” Antonius explained, his
eyes never leaving Felicia’s.
“Is that so?”
Marcus questioned, struggling to keep his voice calm. “Felicia said Lucius had
already left before she returned home from Solone.”
‘Yes, yes,
that is so,” Antonius stammered as his face reddened. “I was unaware that
Lucius was not here, but I met Felicia.”
“Yes, Father,
that is so,” Felicia agreed hastily.
“Indeed?”
Marcus asked, his voice sounding strained and unnatural to his own ears as an
unreasonable fear suddenly took hold of him. “But your grandmother said there
have been no visitors since Tullia left. Are you telling me that she knew
nothing of this visit?”
He heard a
swift intake of breath erupt from Drusilla.
“Why, I did
not know of this visit! Had I known, I
assure
you I would have asked
Antonius to join us for the evening meal. Felicia, you have been remiss in your
manners! A lady
always
invites a friend of the family to dine with
them!”
Felicia rolled
her eyes but visibly restrained herself, Marcus noted. She chose to ignore her
grandmother’s outburst and address her father instead.
“Well, no, I
suppose she did not know,” Felicia replied, with an effort to keep her own
voice steady. “I was in the garden and Antonius came out there looking for
Lucius. Grandmother was upstairs resting.”
She turned to
Drusilla with an air of conciliation.
“I suppose I
just did not mention it to you, Grandmother.”
“Well,
I see you have returned from your school just in time,” Drusilla tut tutted.
“It is evident that you certainly did not learn any manners there!”
“I see,”
Marcus commented as his eyes riveted on his daughter’s blushing face.
She is hiding
something from me, I am
certain
of it! he thought. He decided he would
wait until Antonius left, and then question her until he was satisfied she told
the truth.
Antonius spent
an hour with them and Marcus admitted that he did genuinely enjoy the young
man’s company and conversation. He was thoroughly committed to Alexandros and
the cause of the Kingdom. If only he had been sired by a different father!
This
meditation led him to another train of thought.
“Antonius,” he
said, “I am surprised that you are at home. Did not your parents leave for Valerium?
I would have expected that you traveled with them?”
Antonius
wrinkled his brow in obvious surprise.
“Why, no sir,”
he answered. “My mother is at home with me. And I do not know why you suppose
my father is in Valerium. He went to visit a sick uncle in Lucerna.”
“Lucerna!”
Drusilla shrieked. “Who lives in Lucerna? Why, I have known your family for
years, Antonius: I am unaware of any uncle in Lucerna.”
Antonius now
appeared truly mystified. He glanced in bewilderment from Drusilla to Marcus
and back again.
“But, but,
that is what he told my mother,” he said in a strained voice. “I see no reason
why he should tell us that if it were not so.”
Marcus found
himself pained by the questions in the young man’s eyes as he turned his gaze
upon him. Clearly there was some mystery here that Antonius was unaware of, and
Paulina as well. He had been informed by an eyewitness that Decimus was on a
ship headed for Valerium, and Drusilla stated that Decimus did not have an
uncle in Lucerna.
And in view of
his mother-in-law’s extensive knowledge of every family of prominence in
Lycenium, he would stake his life that she knew the facts better than Antonius
did in regards to his father’s family.
But why would
Decimus lie to his own wife and son in regards to his destination? What evil
was he up to?
“Alright
Felicia: what is it you are not telling me?” Marcus demanded.
Antonius had
taken his leave and Drusilla had retired to bed. Felicia was about to follow
suit when Marcus grabbed her arm to retain her. She cast an anxious glance up
at him, but smiled at her grandmother and wished her good night.
Now they were
alone and she sensed a storm was coming.
“Why, what do
you mean, Father?” she hedged, as she stalled for time to think.
“You know full
well what I mean! Why did you not tell your grandmother that you met Antonius?
And why did you not invite him to dine, as you know your mother would have done
had she been here?”
“Well, I am
not my mother,” Felicia said with a shrug of her shoulders. “And I do not think
it such a horrible breach of manners to not invite him; after all, I am not the
lady of the house. And I simply forgot to mention his visit to Grandmother.”
She attempted
to look her father calmly in the eyes, but she reddened and her eyes fell
before his boring stare.
She has never
been able to lie, Marcus thought. Lucius can lie through his teeth and convince
anyone he is telling the truth, but my daughter is too honest to succeed in
lying.
“You are
lying!” he erupted. “And I demand that you tell me why. It is clear to me from
watching you two that you and Antonius know each other a little better than
having one casual encounter. How well do you know him?”
Felicia’s face
was now so red that her lips appeared pale in comparison. Her eyes filled with
tears, and she began hiccupping with the effort to suppress them. Marcus knew
now that she was lying for certain.
“Have out with
it, young lady! I insist you tell me at once. And you will not leave this room
until I am satisfied you are telling me the truth, even if you keep me here all
night and all day tomorrow and you faint from hunger and lack of sleep.”
Felicia now
burst into a storm of weeping and turned from Marcus. She sat down abruptly in
a chair and held her sleeve to her face, crying into it and wiping her nose.
“Oh, Father, I
am so sorry!” she managed to say through her tears. “I did not mean to make you
angry; indeed, I thought you would be delighted as Antonius is already a friend
of the family.”
Marcus felt
his heart begin to beat with a steady pounding, and his breath came in slow,
hard gasps.
“What are you
saying,” he said with the emphasis on every word he spoke.
Felicia wiped
her eyes and after taking a deep breath, rose to her feet with a dignity that
Marcus had never seen in her before. She turned to face him with eyes that did
not waver or blink, her shoulders held back and her chin held high. She looked
every inch a lady, and even in such a moment he thought how pleased Tullia
would be could she see her daughter.
“I mean,” came
the incredible words from his daughter’s lips, “that Antonius and I are
married.”
Marcus felt
the room swirl around him as his heart suddenly stopped its pounding and jerked
in his chest.
“We were
married the day before yesterday.”
Marcus did not
dare touch his daughter, so great was the wrath that filled him. And how nearly
he could have prevented the marriage; it had taken place but two days ago! How
his delay in Erinia and the land journey in Valerium had cost him time!
Felicia knew
by his expression that she was in serious trouble. She hastened to make amends
with her father, confident that he would understand in a way that her mother
never would.
“Father,” she
said as the words spilled out of her, “Antonius and I love each other. Oh, so
much
!
And I was afraid that Mother already had another young man in mind for me, and
I could not bear to be parted from Antonius. I could not!”
Calm down,
Marcus advised himself. Remember that she knows nothing of this man’s father
and what he did to her mother…
“Felicia,” he
began.
His voice
broke and he took a moment to fill his lungs with air before beginning again.
“Darling,” he
began again.
And then he
looked at his daughter, her eyes begging for his blessing, and tears filled his
eyes and spilled down his face. How often he had thanked Dominio for this
child, and now he was going to have to hurt her…
“Felicia, I do
not know of any such plans on your mother’s part. She only wishes you to have
the opportunities that every young lady of your station has, to meet eligible
young men and make an appropriate choice.
“But,” his
voice grew suddenly stern, “you dishonored her and me again! by marrying this
young man in secret without our consent or blessing. And I am not happy with
Antonius at the moment either, for talking you into a secret marriage. When
your mother returns we shall confront his parents together. Until then I forbid
you to see Antonius at all.”
“But we are
married, Father,” she defied him. “You can not forbid us to meet; we are man
and wife.”
She jerked out
her lower lip in the gesture Tullia hated and at the moment Marcus found
himself agreeing with his wife. The girl needed a good beating for all of the
trouble she had brought on them in the last few months!
“You are only
seventeen and living under my roof, and if I forbid you to do something, you
shall not do it!”
“You can not
stop me,” Felicia said, indignation pouring out of her, “I shall go to Antonius
and we shall go somewhere together.”
“That you
certainly shall not!” her father erupted. “I can still prevent that from
happening!”
“How?” Felicia
asked, crossing her arms over her chest defiantly.
For Marcus the
gesture was the last straw.
“Like this!”
He took her by
the arm and forcibly dragged her out of the family room. She dug in her heels
to resist but he yanked her after him and led her to the small room off of the
atrium where Tullia brought in fresh flowers from the garden. It was tiny and
used only for that purpose. It lacked windows, so there was no possibility of
escape from it.
Marcus tossed
his daughter into it and closed it. He called for Otho over the sound of his
daughter’s shrieks. Otho appeared quickly and pretended not to hear the wailing
of the daughter of the house. He produced the key to the little room from the
ring that he always carried attached to his belt. Marcus grabbed it and locked
the door.
Felicia could
be heard beating on the door from the other side. Marcus enlisted Otho to help
him pull a heavy wooden chest of drawers that stood in the atrium which they
placed in front of the door. It was wider than the door to the room and was so
tall that it came to Marcus’ chin.
Should Felicia
somehow manage to unlock the door, he reasoned, she would not be able to open
it, nor climb over the chest which was as tall as she was.
He thanked Otho
for his service and went to his own room, oblivious to Felicia’s screams of
fury.
Sleep eluded
him, as one scene from the past after another chased through his mind. Of all
the young men that his daughter could have chosen, why did it have to be the son
of his enemy? Were it not for that fact he would have gladly welcomed Antonius,
loving his gentleness and devotion to Dominio.
But now he
would be tied to Decimus Hadrianus in kinship for the rest of his life…
When morning
came he rose at his usual time and descended the stairs to the little room
where he had locked in his daughter the night before. It was silent within: he
knocked on the door.
“Yes, Father,”
came a voice considerably chastened.
Perhaps the
night in the improvised prison had done Felicia some good, he thought.
“Did you sleep
well?” he inquired in a courteous tone.
“No, for I had
troubling dreams,” she answered quietly. “May I tell them to you?”
Marcus debated
whether to enter the room or have her relate the dreams through the door. Was
it possible that this was a ruse to escape? If so, she would not get far.
He decided to
take the risk.
“I am coming
in,” he announced.
He called for
Otho and together they removed the chest of drawers. Marcus unlocked the door,
but kept the key. When he had entered the room, he locked the door again and
put the key in the pocket of his robe.
Felicia stood
before him pale, with deep circles under her eyes. She held out a limp hand and
he took it, kissing it quickly before releasing it. She came closer and placed
a hand on his cheek in mute apology. He found himself relenting and put his arm
around her.
For a moment
she nestled against him, and then drew back abruptly.
“My dream was
very disturbing,” she said, pacing the room and clasping her hands before her.
“Tell me,” he
soothed.
She turned a
look of fear upon him that erased all remaining anger from his heart. It was
clear that she did indeed have a dream that upset her.
“It was of
Mother,” she said simply, and shrugged her shoulders.
Felicia now
had her father’s full attention.
“Yes,” he
pleaded. “What of her?”
“There was a
strange land, and in it I saw people who were so beautiful and happy. Then I
had a vision of a peculiar looking fruit; pale pink with a satiny texture. I
have never seen anything like it. It seemed to grow in the strange land. And
then I saw my mother: she was sleeping and could not be aroused.”
Felicia turned
a troubled gaze upon her father, and Marcus had a feeling of alarm rise up
within him. He patted her shoulder absently as his thoughts raced through his
mind.
Where was
Tullia? And what fate had befallen her?
Otho knocked
at the door of the little room. Marcus hastened to unlock the door and open it
to admit him.
“Sir,” he
said, “you have a visitor who wishes to speak to you.”
Marcus glanced
back at Felicia questioningly. She appeared subdued; could he trust her enough
to let her out?
He thought
not.
He left the
room and locked her back in it, not taking the time, however, to place the
chest of drawers in front of it.
He followed
Otho to the atrium, where Paulina Hadrianus stood waiting for him. Inwardly he
groaned; he simply did not feel equipped to face another member of the
Hadrianus family at the moment.
Paulina,
however, could not be put off.
“Good morning,
Marcus,” she said. “I heard from Antonius that you returned, and I thought
perhaps Tullia came back with you. I wished to see her, as it has been quite
some time and I wished to consult her on some decorating matters. She has such
a gift for it and I want her advice on how to change my sitting room.”
“She is not
here,” he said. “I have been wondering myself where she and Lucius are. I have
been informed that they left in a great hurry one day and did not even leave a
message for me.”
“Why, how odd!
It is true that she
did
leave in a great hurry. She and Lucius came to
call on me one morning and they left that same day. Or so I am told.”
Marcus pricked
up his ears as a sense of urgency came over him.
“Why did they
call?” he demanded. “Was it an ordinary visit? Or was there some matter she
wished to discuss with you?”
Paulina paused
to cast her mind back as Marcus waited impatiently for her to speak.
“Nooo, it was
an ordinary visit,” she murmured with a pucker furrowing her brow, “but she did
something that later struck me as rather peculiar.”
“What was
that?”
“She inquired
after Antonius, who had been rather ill, and I told her that he had been able
to leave his room and that he broke his fast with me. Tullia asked if his
father was at home, as I did not mention him, and I explained that he left the
day before to visit a sick uncle in Lucerna. She did not stay long after that,
and I heard the next day that she and Lucius had left quite suddenly.”
Marcus stared
at her with unseeing eyes. Why did Tullia wish to know if Decimus was at home?
Was it possible that she and Lucius had followed Decimus to Lucerna? Why would
she follow a man she hated and feared?
And was this
the reason she had not left Marcus a note, knowing how he felt about his old
enemy?