response. My instincts told me it was better not to ask.
“We’re a cheerful bunch this evening,” James announced suddenly, breaking the silence. “I haven’t seen so many dark faces since… hmm.” He rubbed his chin. “As a matter of fact I have never seen so many dark faces. We need to cheer up. Dorian! You first… did anything interesting happen for you today?”
Dorian grunted, “Williams fell on his ass during drill today. Clumsiest man I ever saw, he’ll kill himself before the enemy has a chance.” I had no idea who he was talking about, but it wasn’t very funny. Dorian had a talent for making the funniest of stories a bit dry and flat.
James gave a polite laugh, “How about you Marcus?” His son was his best hope. Marc had a way with stories.
“Actually yes! But I can’t tell you,” he announced sadly.
“Why not!?” James protested.
“It’s a matter of confidence, between man and goddess. I will say that some folks have issues with parts that you would never expect!” There was a twinkle in his eye as he spoke, leaving little doubt what parts he was referring to.
That got a better laugh from all of us, so James looked across to Penny. “How about you my dear? Did anything interesting happen to you today?”
Penelope looked like a deer caught in a trap. She gazed at him seriously for a moment before glancing at Marc and then back to me. Her mouth opened and she started to speak, but her lip was trembling. I could see her eyes watering before she said, “I’m sorry you’ll have excuse me.” Quickly she rose and walked quickly to the door leading to the stairs.
James seemed apologetic, “What was that? Was it something I said?”
Marc gave put an arm on his shoulder, “No father, it wasn’t you. She has a lot on her mind today.” He gave me a meaningful look.
“I’d better go check on her,” I announced and stood up to leave. Marc rose and caught up to me before I reached the door.
“I told her what she needed to hear,” he whispered in my ear.
“Really? Thank you! I… I don’t know what to say. It couldn’t have been easy for you.” I embraced him roughly. “Thank you. No matter what… you’ll always be my best friend.”
He shook his head at me and let me go. As I headed for the stairs I heard him say something else, but I couldn’t quite catch his words, he spoke too softly. I almost thought he said, “I only told her the truth,” but that wouldn’t have made sense.
I found Penny in our bedroom, curled into a tight knot and clutching one of the pillows. She had been crying into it. The sheets were a mess and half of them were on the floor. She made no move as I entered the room, though I knew she heard me come in.
“You talked to Marc didn’t you?” I asked as I sat beside her on the bed.
She didn’t respond, other than to shake her head in what I thought might be a yes. Her hair was a mess. It had been up in a tight bun, but now it was a tangled knot of hair. It looked as though she had tried to pull it loose and given up mid-way through.
“I was right wasn’t I?” I said quietly.
She clutched the pillow tighter for a moment, before responding, “Yes.” I stayed silent. I wasn’t sure what to do, so I held my tongue until she continued, “Are you happy now?” It was as much an accusation as a question.
“Actually yes,” I said quietly.
She turned her head to glare at me, “You bastard! This is what you wanted all along!”
“No,” I lied again, “but I’m happy that we’re going to have a child. I love you Penny, and I had always hoped we would have children someday.” Another lie, I had never given it a thought. My idea of happily ever after had never been more complicated than an extended erotic fantasy involving the woman I loved more dearly than my own life. Thinking of children now though, I could see the attraction. I believed she would be a wonderful mother, and the thought of becoming a father brought tears to my eyes. My own father would never see his grandchildren. For that matter I would never see them either, not that any would ever truly exist. I hoped that she would go on someday, to have children without me, but the thought gave me even more pain.
“They would have been beautiful,” she said in a sorrowful voice.
“One of them still will be,” I reminded her.
“No Mort, I can’t do this. It’s too much. I won’t leave you,” she replied.
“You don’t have to,” I told her, “just stay with me till the end. When the time is close… then we’ll do it. You can stay with me until it’s over.”
A small hope blossomed in her face, “Promise me. Promise you won’t force me to leave you.”
“I wouldn’t do that Penny. I already told you,” I answered.
“Promise me! Do that and I’ll agree to break the bond as soon as the time is near, but you have to promise,” she said desperately. It broke my heart to see her beg.
“Well of course I will Penny…” I started.
“No… Swear it! Right now. I don’t want any half-empty reassurances. Swear.” She gripped my shoulders fiercely.
“I swear it Penelope Cooper. I will not cast you aside, nor will I leave you alone, not until death takes the choice from me. I swear it on my love, and the life of our unborn child,” I stared deep into her eyes as I spoke and I meant every word, though I knew there was no child in her womb. I would not betray her trust any further.
She nodded sharply and kissed me, her lips lingering against my own. “Will you marry me Mordecai?”
That surprised me. “I already asked you to marry me,” I replied.
“No, I mean now. Right now. There won’t be any later, not for you. Marry me now, I don’t want to wait any longer,” she was emphatic.
Wait for what? I thought to myself. We hadn’t exactly been saving ourselves. In fact we’d been very enthusiastically not saving ourselves for several months now. Women are a mystery to me sometimes. I had learned enough to keep from saying something stupid however, “Alright, let’s do it.”
She bounced up from the bed with more energy than I had seen from her in months, outside of her training sessions with Cyhan and Dorian. She began tearing through the wardrobe, “This is terrible Mort!”
“What?” I was mystified.
She gave me a look filled with horror, “What am I going to wear?!”
I swear, as long as I live, however short that may be, I will never, ever, understand women.
Chapter 33
The ceremony was held the next evening, in the small unfinished chapel of Cameron Castle. There on the eve of our war with Gododdin, we gathered for one of humanity’s oldest rituals, an affirmation of life and joy. It was a moment of defiance in the face of certain sorrow.
Marc agreed to perform the ceremony, although I had certain misgivings about that. I kept my opinion to myself. Since he was otherwise occupied Dorian played the part of best man. That worked well for me anyway, I would have had trouble choosing between them.
There weren’t many guests. James was there, as well as my mother and Penny’s father. Cyhan also attended, along with Joe McDaniel and a small collection of Washbrook’s citizens. Honestly I was grateful for the small attendance. The wedding we had originally planned, almost a year ago, would have involved a huge guest list. Escaping the pomp and circumstance of such a large wedding was a small blessing in itself.
I waited at the altar while Patrick Cooper walked his daughter down the aisle. With a start I realized Lady Rose would be missing the performance. I was sure there would be hell to pay for that later.
The ceremony itself was a blur. I would later wonder what had happened, for the first part I could remember
