The Mosaic

Chapter 23

"That was-"

"Stupid, I know." She stared at her hands, folded neatly in her lap. The red bruise was glaring back at her accusingly. Then she sighed, "You don't need to lecture me. Women should behave, agree with their husbands, not mingle with politics -"

"Brave."

Laelia was sure she had heard a smile in Alessandro's voice. She must have imagined it. "What?" she grumbled. Was he going to mock her now? She couldn't always be responsible! Who would be? Who could be? Him, probably.

"I was going to say brave." For such a huge, intimidating man, Alessandro could speak surprisingly softly. "Not stupid."

Laelia looked up. He really was smiling. Just a tiny bit. With everyone else it would've counted as absolutely expressionless, but for him it was probably a huge improvement. "So you can smile!"

Alessandro raised a very dignified eyebrow. Laelia had to snort. Not so dignified. Her mother would have placed her cup down with a sharp 'clack' and lectured her. He didn't seem to mind.

"Anyways, when he said he wouldn't get you out I got angry. I mean, first he ignores me all of a sudden. We were the best of friends as kids, we'd do everything together and then three years ago he just ... stopped." Laelia wrung her hands. "He got busy with his work, he's important, you know ... but he always made sure to come over every evening, just to chat." She smiled at the memories, distant, as if viewing something through glass, the laughter dulled by the past. "And then one evening he didn't. Nor the one after that. Not for an entire week. Then he came and ... and he just talked to my father about something with business. Then he left. I sat in my room and waited, I had seen him arrive and I thought he'd apologize. He'd say he was busy. We'd talk like always. He'd tell me stories. He never came. I had sneaked out to look for him after he didn't appear for a while and heard him talking with father. So I ran back to my room, thinking he'd surely be there soon. I saw him leave five minutes after that."

"I'm sorry."

Laelia smiled sadly, shrugging her shoulders. "It's my fault for clinging to some stupid hope. He just lost interest." She saw Alessandro wanted to say something, fishing for the right words with a frown. He probably was weirded out by a strange girl pouring her heart out in front of him. "So I was angry, you know? He never told me why or ... anyways, he just kept being an ass! He could've gotten you out of there with a snap of his fingers! But he just kept on saying how he just couldn't do that, he was very sorry but no. I should leave. And that just ... was it. He just stood there, the entire time I had been there, next to his study table with his books and scrolls and important letters! So I punched him."

"Twice."

"Twice," Laelia nodded. "He didn't care at all. Not about me, not about innocent men being accused of treason, just about his stupid books and power. I thought maybe ..." she buried her head in her hands, "for old times sake, that he'd help me. Nothing." Her laugh sounded empty even to her. "Lorenzo must have heard, he came running. He had to pull me off. I don't think I would have stopped ..." She shifted, unbelieving, incredulous, almost scared. She had felt like she was burning, remembered wanting to scream and claw at him until he'd explain.

And no matter how hard she pressed her lips together and clenched her fists, her shoulders shivered, the hands in front of her face tensing. A sob tore itself from her lips.