The Bride of the Immortal (43 page)

“Hm?” Even though Mairin sounded weak she still seemed to have plenty of energy to be upset.

“Repeat after me:
Gallia est omnia divisa in partes tres
.”

“
Gallia…omnia…partes tres
,” she mumbled.

“Good, good,” he encouraged her. “
… quarum unam incolunt Belgae…
”

Mairin obediently echoed his words and he continued the procedure until she finally seemed to have calmed down. The monotonous sound of the running water came to the fore as they were both silently recovering from their fight. Awkwardly Adrijan let go of her arm.

“Do you want to catch some fresh air?”

He waited for her agreement before opening the bathroom door to talk to Hilda. He was still keeping an eye on Mairin, ready to jump to her aid if need be.

“Could you please fetch a coat and some warm boots for Miss Muriel, Hilda? We’ll go for a walk.”

“But…”

“I won’t let anything happen to her,” he interrupted her.

“Uh, Father, I just wanted to know if you needed your coat as well,” Hilda meekly explained.

Adrijan cleared his throat, annoyed that he had leapt to the wrong conclusion.

“If you don’t mind, Hilda…”

The maid left and he stepped back into the bathroom. Unlike when he had acted subconsciously, he was no longer able to get close to Mairin or to find the right words to say. Silently he observed her image in the mirror, noticing her embarrassment and her weakened state. She had cleaned up as good as possible and seemed to have regained her calm but Adrijan was certain that she could feel his eyes resting on her, heavily like a balance weight and even though he wanted to look at her just a bit longer, he decided to lower his gaze.

Perhaps he shouldn’t have come.

Wrapped into her warm, white fake fur coat, with her head covered by a corresponding cap and her hands tucked into a muff she braved the cold. Leaving the walls of
Mondstein
castle had curiously improved her condition very quickly.

Adrijan was walking next to her, keeping his distance and hiding his bare hands in the pockets of his long black coat.

“Are you feeling better?”

Mairin lifted her chin so her words wouldn’t be muffled by the scarf. Her breath turned clearly visible in the biting cold.

“Mhm. I’m sorry for taking up your time.”

Adrijan didn’t reply. He was probably annoyed that he had to take care of her.

“Did anything happen during the dress viewing?” he asked bluntly.

Her stomach answered with a growl which she hoped he hadn’t been able to hear.

“No. I’ve even found a dress I like.”

“So there was nothing upsetting, nothing peculiar?”

“Well… there was gossip,” she admitted.

“What did they say?”

“I’d rather not repeat it.”

“You can tell me.”

Had he asked her if she wanted to go for a walk because he had wanted to question her without being disturbed?

“It made me think of the wedding.”

Adrijan remained firm.

“There’s something you’re not telling me.”

 “The… night,” she gave in.

“The wedding night?”

Did he have to put it into words?

“Mhm.”

Mairin halted. She was starting to feel sick again. Adrijan turned to her.

“Breathe steadily,” he reminded her. “Everything is going to be alright. He won’t force you into doing anything you don’t want.”

Mairin didn’t think ill of Vivian but he had made the rules after all. How was she to believe that he wouldn’t do anything of the kind, after demanding that she slept with him if she wanted to stay at
Mondstein
castle? Now that Adrijan had made clear that he wasn’t available to her not many options remained. If she decided to change her mind, she would have to go back to
Traumstadt
, to live in an artificial past she was no longer used to and her family was likely to lose the immortal’s support. Perhaps Renga would even have to give up the position as the headmistress of Sunflower Garden she was so fond of.

Yet Adrijan was right. She had made her choice to become the immortal’s wife. She hadn’t been forced into it.

Mairin sank to the ground, fighting against the knotty feeling in the pit of her stomach.

“I can see why you would be scared, but I believe that you’ve made the right choice. Vivian will surely make you happy.”

Happiness
. Mairin removed one hand from the muff and started to draw a random pattern into the snow. This wasn’t what she had wanted to hear. Couldn’t he try to persuade her to reconsider? Why did he have to sound like he didn’t care that she was going to marry his brother?

“Because he doesn’t,”
she replied to her own question.

Adrijan crouched down next to her and began to extend her drawings. It was this hand she wanted to touch, not Vivian’s. Mairin hid her cold fingers in the muff and clenched her fist where it couldn’t be seen.

“Mhm. He will make me happy.”

Mairin shivered.

“I feel much better now,” she lied and got up from the floor. “Let’s return to the castle so we can proceed with the dress fitting. I’m certain Hilda will be waiting for me.”

Adrijan nodded, smiling at her.

Why did he have to smile?

The dress fit her better than she had expected and she was neither wearing any makeup or accessories besides her mother’s necklace, nor was her hairstyle the way she had decided it to be for the wedding.

“It suits you well, Miss,” Hilda complimented her.

Patiently Mairin stood still in front of the mirror as the tailor slowly circled her, carefully and skilfully pinning one part of the dress after the other until a violent knocking at the door made them turn their heads.

“Would you go and see who it is, Hilda?” Mairin asked. Had Adrijan changed his mind and come to save her after all?

The maid obediently went to the other end of the bathroom to answer the door.

Engelin rushed through the gap, too quickly for the maid to catch her and halted in front of Mairin, curiously examining her with innocent eyes.

“It doesn’t even look that bad on you. I guess two ugly things make a less ugly whole.”

“Thank you,” Mairin replied nonchalantly.

“Should I… remove her, Miss?”

Mairin shook her head.

“Why have you come, Engelin?”

The pretty tomboy grabbed her hand and tried to drag her off the low pedestal she was standing on.

“I have to talk to you in private,” she announced still tearing at her arm.

Mairin gave in and allowed the child to take her away, hoping that Engelin would leave once she had told her what she had come for.

The girl had chosen the staircase to Mairin’s bedroom as the place where she wanted to reveal her private information and after pulling Mairin up with her, she sneakily went back to the last step and threw a glance around the corner to make certain that nobody had followed them. Satisfied she returned to her side.

“What is it, Engelin?”

“It’s about Vivian,” she said, glaring at her.

Vivian? Was this the right way for a child to address the immortal master of
Mondstein
castle?

“What abou-“

“Don’t marry him. In fact it would be best if you left him alone altogether.”

“Why should I listen to you?”

“You said you didn’t care for him,” Engelin reminded her.

“I said no such thing,” Mairin denied her accusation.

“But I want him, and you don’t.”

Mairin frowned. Was this the reason for Engelin’s hostility – the mere phantasies of a child?

“Don’t you think your Prince Charming is a little too old for you?”

“Isn’t he too old for both of us?” Engelin replied stubbornly.

Sadly the girl had a point.

“Then you’re too young for him,” Mairin corrected her statement.

Engelin pouted and folded her arms.

“He’ll remain the same but I’ll grow older. Just look at me, I’m a big girl already!”

Mairin rolled her eyes.

“You don’t know what you’re saying, Engelin.”

“But I do know-“

Mairin was getting tired of the girl’s nonsense.

“Come,” she said, grabbing one of her hands and leading her downstairs. “Does your mother even know you’re here?”

“Let go, silly cow!” Engelin snapped at her, resisting her grip.

“No, I won’t. I don’t have time for your wild ideas.”

Mairin continued to drag her forward.

“Alright,” Engelin gave in. “Stop, I’ll leave, I promise.”

Mairin sighed, letting go of her hand. The girl stood in front of her on the bathroom floor, gazing at her without saying a word. Engelin let her eyes wander down over her figure and then she suddenly jumped forward and kicked Mairin’s shin.

They had done their very best to cover the bruise with makeup but Mairin could feel the anger swell just by thinking of the little brat who had caused it. She welcomed the feeling, considering that it helped her to push away the nervousness and anxiety.

The days until the wedding had passed as quickly as it was usual for the waiting period before a dreaded event. Every single day had gone by within the blink of an eye, but the night had dragged on. She had wanted to fall asleep, knowing that she would need all the energy she could gather for her wedding day. Instead she had lain awake, conscious of her own heartbeat and with eyes that had refused to remain closed. In the end she hadn’t even been certain if she had slept at all. When the morning had come she had desperately wished to be able to make it last and realising that it wasn’t going to happen she had just gotten up to confront the day.

“It’s a very exceptional dress, Miss Muriel. I’m certain Master Adrijan will be surprised.” Alfred noted.

“Adrijan? Don’t you mean Vivian?” she asked confused.

“Certainly both of them will be surprised, Miss,” the butler replied.

They were already lined up in front of the door to the great hall. Engelin looked charming in her custom made dress, ready to lead the small procession. Behind the girl stood six maids in two groups of three, waiting like everyone else for the door to open. Hilda once again adjusted Mairin’s veil and returned to her place behind the bride, where she would follow Alfred and Mairin together with Corinne. Without jealousy she noticed that her personal maid looked as radiant as if it were her own wedding.

The knotty feeling in her stomach had returned and Mairin tried to put Adrijan’s advice to good use. There was no running away now.

While focusing on her breathing she nervously observed Änlin who tried to give Engelin some instructions. The girl protested and vigorously tossed a handful of white petals to the ground. Mairin hoped she was going to behave more civilised when she was walking down the aisle.

Involuntarily she smiled. Did it really matter if this farce was going well?

The doors were finally opened, commencing the ceremony, yet her mind was occupied by only one thought: Tonight Winther would have to sleep alone.