Fuming with frustration at his missed opportunity to have such a ravishing beauty, Robert could see no way to send Mylan out of the room when he had refused to go. He needed the young man’s skill to make the wealth he had accumulated grow in value through clever trading, and he would not jeopardize what could be an extremely profitable arrangement over a woman, not even one as lovely as Celiese. He poured himself a full goblet of wine and tossed it down his throat without bothering to invite his guests to have any. Wiping his mouth on his sleeve, he enumerated his demands as he strode up and down in front of them.
“This province is mine to rule, as I see fit. I want no interference in the matter whatsoever. The peasants must not shirk the work of cultivating crops, for until sufficient Danes arrive to establish farms we are dependent upon their labor for our food.”
Making a valiant attempt to hold her temper, Celiese inquired softly, “What is to become of these hardworking peasants when their land has been given away to strangers?”
“I have no plan to put them to the sword!” Robert exploded angrily, then seeing her startled reaction he took a more moderate tone. “There is room here for us all to dwell in harmony, if you and others of your class make no effort to subvert my will.”
“The king has made you the duke, sir. My family was loyal to Charles, and I shall continue to be so as well.” Celiese hoped her answer would satisfy him although she had not replied directly to his angry demand. He was a tyrant of the worst sort, in her view, and she would never lift one finger to help him.
Mylan could barely suppress a smile. He knew Celiese to be a clever young woman with the most facile of minds when it came to getting her own way, and he could see she had confused Robert completely and prayed she would continue to do so.
“I have your word, then?” Robert demanded harshly.
“I beg you to ask King Charles himself if the d’Loganvilles have not always been loyal to the Crown,” Celiese responded demurely. “As for those residing upon my land,” she continued smoothly, “I know they will follow my example, but if I have no home I will be unable to provide any sort of influence upon anyone.”
Knowing her point was well taken, Robert stopped to regard her with a fixed stare. “The d’Loganville estate shall be yours then, for as long as I can depend upon you to serve me as faithfully as I know Michael will.”
“I have taken him again for my husband, is that not proof enough that my loyalty lies with the Danes?” Celiese smiled in the most charming fashion possible, dazzling the arrogant man completely with her radiant beauty.
“The matter is settled, then.” Stopping now to fill two more goblets with wine, the duke proposed a toast. “To our new home in France!”
“To France,” Celiese responded readily, but the intent of her toast was far different than his. Mylan raised his goblet without speaking, but his gaze was upon her, and she understood his unspoken salute clearly.
Escorting them into the main hall where the many others who resided in the sumptuous home had already begun to gather for the evening meal, Robert found himself in a surpr
isingly good mood, despite his failure to seduce Celiese as he had planned. Power was an intoxicating substance and he was again drunk with it, proud he had gotten his way with the willful young woman, since he could not hold the province without the support of the French residents, no matter how grudgingly they gave it.
Mylan drank nothing that night, and he was not surprised when Celiese did not either. They would not think clearly on empty stomachs though, so he insisted they dine with the others. That they had chosen to remarry sparked gentle teasing, but he responded in kind, and at their first opportunity he gave the excuse of wanting to enjoy their wedding night, and taking Celiese by the arm led her upstairs to their suite of rooms. His mind, however, was not upon romance.
“Gather your belongings quickly, and we will go. I want to reach the sea before dawn, for the promises you gave Robert were transparent ones, and I don’t want him to remember them in the morning and reconsider his decision to let us depart.”
Having no wish to remain even one moment longer under the despicable duke’s roof, Celiese took the garments she had brought with her from the wardrobe and folded them into a neat bundle without argument. That she had managed to fool the villain with such vague statements had surprised her too, but she had given Mylan her word she would try to please him and was grateful she had.
“Will he change his mind after he has given us his word?”
“Not if you behave as he believes you promised to do.” Wasting no more time, Mylan changed his clothes, and carried his own possessions as well as hers as they slipped out of the mansion and made their way down to the docks. He had come and gone so frequently in the last week that he was recognized and not challenged by the guards they met, but he had taken the precaution of wearing his sword at his side, just in case such an unlikely event occurred. When they were safely on board the Surf Falcon he gave the order to weigh anchor, and catching the evening breeze they followed the winding moonlit path of the river Seine all the way to the sea.
*
Too excited to rest, Celiese stood at the rail for the entire journey, waiting anxiously for a glimpse of the shore near her home. When she sighted the cliff she remembered, she begged Mylan to take her ashore, even though the dawn had not yet begun to lighten the eastern sky. Wanting to rest as much as he wanted to please her, Mylan readily agreed, taking the ship in close to the beach so they did not get thoroughly drenched making their way to the dry sand. Taking their blanket with him, he held her hand as they skirted the small village and made their way to the ruins of her once magnificent home.
Deliriously happy, Celiese skipped up the gentle hill. “Everything will be as it was before, Mylan; I know it will take time, but we can make it happen, I know we can!”
He did not waste his breath insisting she use his Christian name, but her childlike enthusiasm saddened him greatly. She seemed to see nothing in the shadows that surrounded them but the happiness of her past, and he had failed in his efforts to make her focus on a future she would want to share with him. What he needed and wanted mattered so little to her she could not even remember to use the name he had taken when he had accepted her God as his own.
He had done so much, and all willingly, not only in hopes he would be able to save her life but to win her respect and trust, as well. Yet as he watched the joy sparkle in her eyes he knew the walls of the half-destroyed mansion meant more to her than he ever would. “I would be content if instead of constantly swearing that you are my wife, you would be one!” he shouted suddenly, the sound of his deep voice echoing against the few stonewalls that remained standing.
Startled by his outburst, Celiese approached him warily. “What is wrong? I did as you asked; I did not anger that swine who dares to call himself a duke. He did not forbid me to rebuild my house, but said we may live here as the d’Loganvilles always have. Why are you so angry with me?”
“It was my first name I changed, Celiese, not my last, and this ruin is now the home of the Vandahls. You may lie to everyone around you, but you’re a fool to lie to yourself, and if I ever find you lying to me again I will finally give you the beating you have always deserved.”
Appalled by his threats, she responded wearily, “It always comes back to the day we met. You saw me for what I truly am for so few hours, and I’ve never had that same sweet, acceptance from you ever again. That was better than any paradise could ever be, but I had your love for so short a time I can scarcely remember its beauty now.”
“How can you speak to me of love when I have never had yours?” he responded bitterly. “You betrayed me on our wedding night, risked your life gladly to escape what you described as the agony of being my slave, accepted the hospitality of my family while you used my brother’s affection simply to gain passage to France, and then, when I brought you here to save you from certain death at the hands of the Torgvalds, you let your passion for revenge lead you to insult a man who could have ended both our lives with the snap of his fingers. You are the most selfish woman ever born, and you have not once stopped to think of me!”
Her senses reeling under his barrage of vicious insults, Celiese nevertheless sprang to her own defense. “Why is it you constantly twist each of my actions as though it were the worst possible choice? How can you believe I spend all my time seeking new ways to hurt you? You mean the world to me. I speak the truth with you, but you despise me all the same.”
Mylan took two steps away, then turned back to face her, “I will help you as best I can to rebuild your home, and I will work often enough for Robert to satisfy his requirements so that you may keep your land. But unless you give me your promise now that you will lead the most circumspect of lives so he will never have any cause to suspect you are working to undermine his authority, I have no intention of being your husband.”