26
Delilah observed the Prince’s solemn profile as they walked down the busy corridor while he kept his gaze attached to her arm in his. So absorbed they were in each other’s company they did not even notice people moving out of their way for them. Oddly enough neither had said a word to gain each other’s attention. The silence was comfortable enough for both of them.
“I hope our experiment continues with your satisfaction,” Delilah spoke when they reached the end of the corridor. The view from the balcony was hidden in a blanket of clouds. They would waft in and out of the circular balcony leaving behind dampness on the carved marble.
“It is proceeding quite slowly but only because I am forcing my men to be meticulous. I cannot risk anything.”
“I understand,” Delilah nodded, “Your father is very dear to you.”
“My parents are my life,” The man uttered gazing into the nothingness of the clouds.
“All will be well. I also apologize for my grumpiness that night. I think I forgot your state of mind.”
“Only you would apologize for someone else’s faults,” The corner of the Prince’s eyes wrinkled with amusement, “I should be the one apologizing. While there no satisfactory excuse I could offer I have to say I grow weary of this confinement. Fronton has always been my haven from city manners and nosy nobles. Now I am to be further bound like a gutted deer.”
“I am sure marriage isn’t so detestable a state as you describe and you are hardly culled meat,” Delilah shook her head at the melodrama.
“Ah, wear my shoes for a day or two and you shall know what it is to feel like meat hung on hooks with crows taking generous bites.”
“What a problem to have,” The Lady sighed, “You have autonomy most young women will never taste. Freedom to travel, explore, be your own person.”
“So is that your wish? You to be free and fly away from this odious monotony,” The Prince asked curiously.
“Maybe, yes, but I cannot abandon my responsibilities.”
“Neither can I,” The man agreed dourly, “So much to do today. Not only do I have a meeting with my father’s advisors but I also have so many papers to read and sign. On top of that I have to sit for a portrait this afternoon. My mother could not resist the artistic charms of the oil painting master. Are you also keen on getting your likeness recorded like all the women I know?”
“Oh dear me, why would I want to look at my own face? I am no Royal with subjects who wish to gaze at my countenance,” Delilah snorted at the idea.
“Why ever not? I am sure there is someone out there who wishes to keep your image with them,” The Prince probed with more curiosity than he liked.
“My father has vowed and wedded my likeness so my family needs no reminder. I doubt I even compare to the beauty of my mother.” The clouds caressed her face as she trailed off. He struggled for words to break the self loathing atmosphere. She seemed to be jesting but that hint of bitterness was palpable.
The stillness instead was broken by her cousin who was not being accompanied by any of their friends. Her face looked upset enough to cause alarm to the sole occupants of the balcony.
“I feel foul for interrupting this conversation but will you two loathe me for ending our trip so soon. I am not entirely comfortable with the attention being paid to me,” Cecilia pleaded urgently.
“Someone dares to discomfit my esteemed guest,” The Prince joked but felt concern for his friend’s charge, “I thought your nerves were made of sturdy marble.”
“I can brush off unwanted attention by my suitors but this unsavory lord just keeps staring. He has made no attempt to be introduced and I wonder what he means by acting in such an uncouth manner,” Cecilia explained how even her friends could not make her feel safe.
“Your cousin leads me on our way but I insist I lead you. I doubt they would wish to tangle with my personal guests.” He offered her his arm which promptly took. The man could feel the young girl’s arm trembling.
“Personal guest,” Cecilia repeated with a glint in her eye clearing searching for an amusing distraction.
“Cecilia,” Delilah cautioned.
“Ignore your cousin. I might even count you among my friends although she is adamant she is not and might persuade you to say the same.”
“She is rather picky in choosing her company. You have a fight in your hands, Prince” Cecilia smirked, “I personally think you are too ancient for us to be friends.”
“Oh, dear, oh, dear, I fear this is my last Ball because you’ve already shoved me on the shelf. Not the finest diamond of the water this season am I,” Damian faked a sniffle.
“You two go too far and I must use my chaperon privileges to end this conversation. It is unseemly to converse with our elders with such frankness,” Delilah interrupted with a straight face though her eyes glimmered with amusement.
“How young are you?” The Prince demanded, “Elder, indeed!”
“She is but two and twe-” Cecilia was not allowed to finish her sentence
“A Lady never reveals her true age,” The older Lady smiled with mock daintiness.
“Even you are a fledging in comparison. I need my cane and I need it now. I feel a twinge in my back and a gout attack,” The Prince uttered theatrically.
“What a shame. I was hoping I could persuade you to walk with us to the end of the corridor.”
Damian wondered if Delilah knew she never needed to persuade him for anything. All she needed was to order and he would follow.
_______________________________________
Cecilia placed the last flower on top of her cousin's dark hair and nodded in satisfaction.
"I look like an idiot, admit it," Delilah would not look at herself in the mirror.
"Stop acting like a baby not out of its nappies," Cecilia growled before patting her shorter cousin on her hair and walking them out of the room.
The familiar doorman greeted the Lady’s more warmly than he usually did. The man led them to their destination and continued to beam until he opened the door and ushered the girls into the music room.
"Bit of an odd fellow," Cecilia observed before walking into the song recital with Delilah in tow. Seats were set in a semicircular fashion and they faced in the direction of the orchestra which was playing a solemn tune. Their friends greeted them in excitement and Delilah found herself not paying attention.
"The musical event will be starting soon. I want to see what pieces are being played," Delilah told her friends and cousin before making her way to the table full of musical references and pamphlets for the audience's convenience. While she had very little musical knowledge it was dim-witted to continue with her ignorance when she had such resources at her disposal.
"Oh, look how handsome he is!" A girl standing next to her screeched.
"It's like he's carved out of the sun," Another girl sighed and Delilah didn't have to guess who they were whispering about. Delilah watched the Prince and a small group of his friends walk into the area as if they owned it; which the Prince legitimately did.
His hair was in a wayward casual tousle and his clothes were fitted and complimented his fair colouring and blue eyes perfectly. Delilah suddenly blushed as a vision of that night danced in front of her. She had seen more of the man then either of the two young girls in front of her could imagine. Delilah had her eyes closed for most of the time he had tried to flaunt himself in front of her but it was not easy to escape his good looks. Delilah pushed herself back into sorting through the music paper and the introductory pamphlets.
"Good evening ladies," The man currently swirling in her thoughts announced charmingly and Delilah resisted the urge to hit her head repeatedly against the wall. The two girls standing near her sounded very high pitched and she just had to turn around to see his reaction. He was now surrounded by the two girls and more of their friends who were talking so fast he could barely get a word in.
"Good evening, your Highness," Delilah sympathized with his predicament and voiced her greeting loudly so she could be heard over the annoying sounds. Damian whose eyes had already been fixed on her struggled from the growing crowd around him and caught Delilah's arm and shepherded her away in a hurry, leaving broken hearts in his wake. He moved his companion closer to where his own friends stood.
All his friends greeted her politely but Delilah could sense their scheming minds conjuring up more gossip. Fortunately the focus on her dissipated as soon as another couple walked into the room.
"I assume that is Lady Beatrix's better half," Prudence's sister giggled at the sight of Lady Bea and her husband.
"He doesn't even have the gall to be taller than her. They are almost the same height. And he's wearing glasses. Who wears glasses," A dandy complained with a nasal tone that grated on Delilah's nerves.
"Look at her and look at him, they are hardly compatible," Damian also pointed out sourly.
"Physically they may not match but you do not know what happens in a person's heart," Delilah interjected at the behalf of Lady Beatrix's husband. The man was almost the same height as his wife and looked the studious type instead of the warrior Lady Bea seemed to be suited to. The man looked nervous and he stumbled which made the Prince's companions laugh uproariously.
"Only an ugly person could have made up a comment like that," An unknown female jeered, "Attractive people know better."
"True," Damian gave a bitter smile which made Delilah loathe him. She looked towards her right and observed the Prince and the companion's reflections in one of the many mirrors and then her own. They were all tall, striking, fashionable people whereas she looked like a pauper compared to them.
"We've already had this conversation at her wedding, Damian. You would have as well if you hadn't run off like a jealous maiden. You didn't even bother to attend it," Adriano Rossi commented with disdain.
"She was making a mistake and I could not have watched her do this to herself," Damian uttered almost to himself.
"It is only his looks," Agapito Rossi interrupted, giving Delilah's troubled face a long look.
"No taste, no class, no inclination for gaming or dances. Nobody even knew him in our social circles before he married her. And even after he is always preoccupied with his clerical job," The Prince answered.
"I-I must leave. My cousin will be waiting," Delilah found the moment to excuse herself. It was painful to watch a simple young man be tarnished behind his back. It was unthinking and cruel. She hurried back before anyone (at least the Prince, or Agapito) could protest. Her friends were standing near a fireplace on the right of the room.
"We were leaving for our seats," Cecilia announced with a pregnant pause, "But before you go Mary has some good news she wants to share with you."
Prudence ribbed Mary on the side good naturedly while Isabella giggled uncontrollably. Delilah was prepared for the best case scenario but she decided she wanted to hear Mary confirm the news.
"Now, tell me what is it?" Delilah urged when the rest of them left to save some seats. The two women left behind strolled back slowly.
Mary eyes could barely contain the liveliness they held, "My brother came back just in time to give his approval to my engagement with Lord Richmond," She exhaled in one go.
"I am so glad for you, Mary," Delilah hugged her friend and spun her around, "Your mother must be excited."
"She is delirious with joy," Mary whispered shyly, not looking up, "And she thanks you as well for your guidance. If I hadn't taken your advice on engaging a conversation on my own initiative instead of his he would have never noticed me with all the women fluttering around him."
"I assure you I did nothing. It was you and your personality that attracted your fiancé to you."
"My mother also plans to give you a serious dressing down today because she feels as if you're letting all chances of similar happiness slip from your hands deliberately. She doesn't understand why you don't even try to attach yourself to any of the gentleman in the castle."
"Me? I couldn't attract someone to me to save my own life. Not that I want to."
"But, but, you are so pretty and lovely to look at. Why would you have any difficulty is beyond me. I am sure many men think of you as enchanting."
"I was once called 'ugly, plain and incredibly dim'. While I don't rate myself quite that low I know his opinion was a popular one," Delilah replied thoughtfully, "Why should it have changed now."
Mary gasped and covered her mouth with her gloved hand, "That's that's-"
"It is just another person's opinion and I respect that," Delilah answered with a slowly widening, bitter smile.
"But what kind of unfeeling, cruel person would call anyone- oh, excuse me," Mary bumped into a familiar cloaked man. Blue eyes pierced Delilah's grey ones. The Lady knew he had heard everything. His eyes were shimmering with anger and sorrow. She didn't know what to say but she refused to be made to feel like a fool again. She instead decided against saying anything at all.
She knew she was on the brink of something familiar and dangerous. During the last ball she had slowly and steadily fallen for the Prince even without his presence and now with his face before her, her heart was once again unsettled but now she had the maturity and sense of mind to know what she felt was just girlish fantasy. He probably found her just as ugly and slow as he had before.
"Our apologies, Your Highness, we were in a haste to get to our place," Delilah said in even measured tones leaving no emotion that could be interpreted in any way negative or positive.
"My apologies as well, I was preoccupied by my thoughts," Damian replied, the sentence an obvious understatement. After hearing the words he had just heard who could possibly not be distracted. One piece of the puzzle called Lady Delilah had neatly fitted itself into place right in front of his eyes. Her aversion to men was now revealed as result of a past rejection. The words of rejection had been cruel and disturbing that he couldn't fault her for her disdain. Damian cursed the kind of man who would shamefully insult a lady right at her face.
The lady in question settled down with her friends in a seat on the left of his and resumed her normal posture and smile but Damian could not get her past out of his mind. In his turmoil and anger he even forgot to glare at Bea and her insipid husband.
_________________________________________
After the evening's performance was over the people continued to mingle and eat the dishes laid out on the tables. Damian was in a mood to leave and spend the rest of the night stewing in his room when an urgent message from his right hand man, Jerald brought him out from his haze.
"Lady Delilah, wait," Damian called out making her pause in the mid step.
"I think I would like the comfort of my bed a little earlier today," She answered immediately, before he could say anything else.
"I am afraid I must delay you since the herbs have been mixed and the medicine is ready to be tested."
"It is? Then you must see to it that your father takes it immediately,"
"I would you like to check it once," Damian asked. The please did not need to be added. Delilah nodded and he took hold of her arm so he could accompany her outside.
"Your Highness, Prince Damian, please wait," A man called out from a distance and Damian wanted to brush whoever it was aside but he stopped only because the man was Beatrix's husband. The dark haired, bespeckled man came to a stand still in front of them, harried and out of breath and Damian was disgusted by his insignificance.
"I have an important missive for you, your Highness," The man stuttered and Delilah was instantly reminded of Mary.
"How important?" Damian asked petulantly. The other man gave Delilah a quick look.
"What ever it is it can be repeated in front of Lady Delilah."
"It is the contingents in the North East that are worrying the social analysts, Your Highness," The man finally spoke up. The threesome walked out of the room.
"But I have already countered the situation. I sent in my esteemed cousin to look at the problem."
"Y-your Highness, forgive my bluntness but the problems have started after you deployed your cousin. There have been rumours-"
"Enough about rumours. Do you have anything concrete?"
"The townsfolk of Wetenshire have been complaining about military presence where in fact there should be no military in the area," The dark hair man stumbled over his words.
"Wetenshire is a peaceful place and away from the border. There is never any military positioned there," Delilah paused and then added, "I saw the town on my way to this Ball."
"The Lady is correct. The whole thing is quite suspicious."
Damian nodded indicating he accepted the information, "I will look into it. Thank you." He looked into the man's eyes for the first time. The man nodded and walked back to the party where his wife and sister were still in attendance.
