Cedany's Voice

Father's Word Is Law

The Strongstone family celebrated for thirty-seven nights, each night representing a year of the mother's life. Each night was filled with neighbors and family, eating, dancing, singing and praying that Jacquelyn had made it to paradise. On the last night old man Thatcher and his wife came down to the shop to tell Cedany's father that they were terribly sorry for the loss of Jacquelyn.

Later on that evening Mr. Thatcher and Matilia, his wife, pulled Cedany to the side and handed her a box from Penny. Penny was Mr. and Mrs. Thatcher's deceased daughter, Penny had died when she was thirteen years old. She was also Cedany's only other friend besides her Mother. Penny and Cedany both believed that women should have equal rights to men and be able to work. Penny had pushed Cedany to be the way she was. When Penny died of Yellow Fever, something inside of Cedany snapped because the Government wouldn't pay for Penny to get better like they did when her youngest brother, Cristofur, had gotten deathly ill. Mr. and Mrs. Thatcher decided it would be best if Cedany opened the little gift alone and before they had walked away from her, Matilia smiled a brilliant smile that made Cedany want to cry. It always astonished her how much Matilia and Penny had looked alike. Even though she loved her family and everyone at the feast, she needed to be alone and the only place available was the shop, and that was already her sanctuary. She entered the shop and wandered towards the back corner where there were crumpled sheets and she sat down in them, not caring if her clean skirt got dirty. She looked down at the beautiful carved maple box, when she removed the lid she nearly begun to bawl her eyes out, as she looked at the gift that she was given.

In the box, on a fine cotton cloth, was a silver chain link bracelet that was hand crafted by Penny herself. Penny had died three years earlier and Cedany, when Penny was sad, used to make her little trinkets of scrap metal that had been lying around the shop. The Thatchers had said that Penny was saving the bracelet as a wedding gift for the future but Matilia felt that now was the best time to give the gift because Cee needed a friend and Penny had promised to always be there. As Cedany stared teary eyed at the bracelet, Bryce stood in the doorway of the shop.

He had seen Cedany disappear and it bothered him that he could not keep his eyes on her. He knew that she had to be in the shop, there was nowhere else, she would be besides Penny's grave but she would not have left. He hated himself for what had happened yesterday and he hated not talking to his sister but he was only trying to protect her. The one thing that Cedany hadn't realized yet was that the world didn't care if she lived or died but Carac, Merek, Terryn, Gavin, Hadrian, Father and he, Bryce Strongstone, did care. If she left now, it would have broken Father's already shattered heart. And he would miss her and worry like a little old woman. He knew that he was overprotective of his little sister but Cedany wasn't like any girl in the country. She had rebellious and had a fiery personality and was hard to bring down and never took no as an answer. Other girls, like the ones he was meeting were shy, bland, and normal compared to his sister and he was afraid that someone would harm her because she knew how to do work besides being pregnant and a homemaker.

It always had amused Bryce trying to picture Cedany pregnant and sitting around doing nothing but he always ended up at the thought that Cedany would live forever and never have kids and that she would change the world because of her ways. It made him smile at the thought of a different world, one where he could, openly, find someone to love. Someone like his sister to love. But then his smile soon faded because he realized she wasn't speaking to him. She hadn't spoken to him in a month or anyone in a month. She remained shut up in her room at night, the door always locked, in the day she always spent it doing chores to get away from the shop and just plain avoided everyone.

Since Bryce knew his sister well enough, he would have to speak first then he would get her to come around. So he stood there with rubbing his hands on his pants, his eyes searching the shop for her. "Cedany, I know you're in here please..." His voice trailed off as he heard running feet. He was taken by surprise as Cedany launched herself into his arms and gripped him tightly.