Evermark Chapter 3

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 March 7, 1609
- Roselyn -

Except for the excited chatter of the two girls, the walk for Roselyn was a silent one. The girls seemed worlds away to her as she kept to her own thoughts and the turmoil within.  Nothing would ever be the same.  The safety and security of her life had been shattered. Feeling a new sense of numbness wash over her, she just had to make it to her parent’s home and beg for assistance.  It was all she had left.  

               They walked on.  Beautiful trees lined the dirt path, their leaves stretching out in a lacy canopy overhead, allowing bits of sunlight to shine down on their path.  Their beauty was lost on Roselyn this day.

               “Mama! I found a tiny green frog hopping on the rocks over there!  Can I catch it?? Can I?  Can I catch the froggy, Mama?” Emmy squealed.

               “Hmmm.”

               “Awe! He’s gone.  He’s too fast for me. Look! Look at the bluebird, Mama!”

               “Hmmm.”

               “Mama, can we chase each other along the path?” Belle asked.

               “Hmmm.”

               Roselyn could feel herself ignoring the girls out of sheer survival, but she seemed numb to do anything about it. She wanted to be there for her daughters who were at the moment completely unaware of the nightmare that was unfolding… but her current pain and shock was more than she could bear.  Her husband had betrayed her.  He had given his body to a younger, prettier woman.  Thoughts echoed once again through her mind. 

               “You’re ugly.  You’re flabby.  Just look at you.  You obviously repulse him or he wouldn’t have wandered.  He went in search of something greater… and he deserved it.”

               The tears came again.  She tried to suppress them, not wanting Belle or Emmy to see them lest they grow concerned.  Turning her face towards the bordering forest, she let the tears fall.

She hadn’t been good enough.  That was the bottom line. Her husband didn’t want her.  Looking down at her work-worn hands, she reached up to touch her tear-stained face.  She knew she wasn’t the prettiest woman in the village.  She had tried to compensate for it with loyalty and obedience, but it wasn’t enough.  Now she was on her own. 

“Abba, oh, Abba, why???”   There was no controlling the flood of tears now. 

               “Mama, what is it?  What’s wrong?”  Belle insisted.

               “Oh, sweetheart…  Don’t you worry about Mama right now.  Mama is all right.  I simply thought of something sad, is all.  Everything is fine.”

The girls continued the journey in silence.  Within the hour, they saw the tree-lined walkway leading to the entrance of Nana and Papa’s.  Both young girls took off at a sprint down the lane.  Roselyn was glad of the few minutes to collect her thoughts. The news she brought would be far from easy to share.

As soon as the sound of the running footsteps could be heard upon the gravel, a team of servants had come out to greet the visitors.  Roselyn smiled affectionately at them as the girls raced past and into the cottage.

“Nana!!! Papa!!” The girls called.

“Hello, my loves!!! Hello!!! Come on in!!! It’s so good to see you! To what do we have the pleasure of this fine visit?”

“Mama has some business or something that she needs to talk to you about,” came Belle’s honest reply.

Kathleen Laudvis looked up from her grandchildren to study the frail figure of her daughter shuffling up the path.  She looked haggard and worn.  Concern broke over Kathleen’s face. 

“Girls, go run and find Papa.  He’s in his tool shed working on a new project and I’m sure he’d love your help.”

“Papa! Papa!! We want to help!!” the girls called as they ran to find their grandfather.

“Roselyn! What’s wrong?? What is it, child??” Kathleen reached out to grab her daughter as she stumbled through the doorway.

Roselyn opened her mouth, but instead of the words she had rehearsed, sobs poured forth.  They shook her weak body and she trembled in her mother’s arms.

“Shhhh. Shhhhh…. There now,” came the comforting words of her mother as she stroked her daughter’s hair.  “It will all be all right.  Take a few deep breaths.  Shhh… Breathe in, breathe out.”

“No, mother, it won’t,” Roselyn managed to squeak out between sobs. “It will never be all right.”

“Tell me, child. What has happened?”

“Liam… Liam… he-he he’s been arrested.”

“WHAT?”

“He-he’s in the st-stocks, Mother. He-he… he may as well be dead.”

“What?? No… No… surely you are mistaken.”

“It is no mistake, mother.  I can assure you that it is no mistake,” Roselyn declared, regaining her composure.

“Oh sweetheart, you must tell me… what has happened?”

“The messenger of the guard with the Cirian soldiers came to my house last night to deliver a message. It was awful, Mother. He said that Liam had been arrested… for… for having a prohibited affair with the daughter of the chief guard!  He even went as far as to insinuate that I should have known as much or that I had some role to play in the whole matter… Oh, Mother… I can scarce believe it.  It’s over, Mother. It’s all over.  The girls, Mother… Oh, the girls…. what do I do??? They’ll no longer have a father… and I no longer have a husband. It’s all over.”

The tears overcame her and once again her body shook in the arms of her consoling mother. Both women silently clung to each other for a while trying to digest the horror of the news.  Before long, Kathleen pushed Roselyn gently away and held her at arms length.

“Come with me… We go to your father.  He’ll know what to do.”

 “I can’t, Mother.  I can’t tell him,” stammered Roselyn.

“Then I will,” said Kathleen resolutely.  “Here, come lie down.  You look exhausted.  I’m sure you haven’t slept a bit since last night.  Let me get you some tea and a blanket.  You need rest.”

Kathleen disappeared into the kitchen to fetch a cup of tea, some biscuits, and a warm blanket for her daughter.  She instructed her to lie down on the sofa bed while she spoke with Thomas Laudvis.

Thomas Laudvis was a brilliant man.  As mayor of the town of Avendale, he was known by all and respected by many. He would surely know how to handle this…  of that, Roselyn was certain.  What she feared, however, was how this unfortunate turn of events would reflect on her.  For as long as she could remember, she had craved her father’s approval.  She wanted him to be proud of her.  This development would surely make no father proud.

The tears welled up in her eyes once more.  Roselyn curled up on the straw bed.  Grabbing her knees to her chest, she prayed for sleep… and for the chance for it all to be gone when she awoke.