Many thoughts raced through Hadassah's mind in the space of an hour, none of which held the keys to her escape from her impending marriage to Julius Talbot that morning. She fought the urge to cry as she watched the maid pull her hair into a fancy hairdo. She was tired and emotionally drained, her face was devoid of color, her eyes were red, her collar bone clung to her skin, and she couldn't help but think that a complete stranger stared back at her.
"There." The maid took a step back, a bright smile on her face as she examined the work she had done.
Sighing softly, she weighed the option of running away even if she knew it would be of no use, Lord Hadley would not let her out of his sight. He was determined to keep her under his control, determined enough to kill her unborn child.
Fighting the urge to cry, she sniffed and turned her attention to her hands. She had cried for over a month, had lost a baby and was now being forced into a marriage to her husband's brother...
Gasping, her eyes snapped up and for the first time that morning as she stared at her worn image, a smile settled on her face.
Turning to the maid, "You must leave now," She rose to her feet and pulled open the drawer. "You must deliver a letter..." She dug into the drawer as she spoke, desperate to find a sheet of paper and some ink.
"But,"
She shook her head, heart racing. "There is no ink. Bring me some, bring me some ink and a piece of paper, will you?" She turned back to the maid who seemed hesitant to obey. Forcing an encouraging smile to her lips, she touched the maid's shoulder. "What shall I call you?"
"Maria. Please my lady, I must finish helping you get ready for the wedding."
"I do not need your help, I can do it myself. This is important, Maria, I need to have a letter delivered and I need your help. You will help me, will you not?" Hadassah rose a brow, praying desperately that the maid would agree to her plea. She would send a letter to Daniel, informing him of the matter at hand. He would then travel to Sheffield to save her from his brother. Of course she would have to stall the wedding to Julius to give Daniel time to arrive.
It took a long while for the maid to nod to Hadassah's request and a longer period for her to arrive with the requested items. Quickly, Hadassah wrote two letters to Daniel, hands trembling in anticipation of his arrival. She would have one of delivered to Rye and another delivered to Birmingham. Wherever he was, he would receive the letter.
"I do not have money to pay for these but you are my maid, are you not?" The maid nodded nervously. "Then deliver these letters and as soon as I am married," She forced a smile to her lips. "I shall have my husband refund you."
Maria appeared ready to argue but quickly changed her mind and took the letters out of the room.
Heaving a long sigh, Hadassah collapsed onto the bed and closed her eyes. Her heart pounded in anticipation of seeing Daniel again and tears filled her eyes at the thought of being in his arms. But she didn't have the time to cry, she decided, slipping into the white dress Lord Hadley had sent up to her room that morning.
It was a simple design made with an expensive fabric. She guessed Julius had picked out the fabric but she could hardly care, she hated the dress, Julius and everything he stood for and he was very close to finding out just how much she hated him.
✴✴✴
Julius fully expected Hadassah to try to run off. He expected to be informed that she had put a knife to her wrist and tried to kill herself. He was fully certain if she showed up for the wedding, she would do so kicking and screaming.
How wrong he had been. A smile curved his lips as he watched her walk down the little church's aisle to him. She was breathtaking, he smiled, desire racing through his veins. She was as breathtaking as the night he had nearly taken her to his bed. He had always known she was destined to be his wife and while she had been defiled by his brother, he wouldn't let it bother him. She would have been useless to his blind brother anyway, Daniel would never be able to acknowledge her beauty. It didn't matter that she was thin and nearly even malnourished, she was perfect.
She pulled to a halt beside him and he took her hand, offering her a smile. When she smiled back, he felt his body respond to her. She was finally coming to terms with their marriage, perhaps realizing that her marriage to Daniel was nothing but a silly joke and she was better off with him.
When it was time to say their vows, Hadassah turned fully to him and to his surprise, spoke every one of those vows with a smile on her face.
"Should anyone here present know of any reason that this couple should not be joined in holy matrimony, speak now or forever hold your peace."
Julius' attention turned to the empty room, but for the presence of Lord Hadley who sat on one of the pews with an uninterested expression on his face. Satisfied that there was no one around to oppose their marriage, Julius turned back to smile at the Reverend.
"Do carry on, I'm sure..."
"I do have a reason."
Cursing under his breath, he clenched his fists and turned his attention to Hadassah. "Surely, you are being silly, aren't you love? " He gritted his teeth.
Stepping back, she turned to the Reverend. "I'm already married."
Julius sucked in a breath, all the while fighting the urge to break something. From the corners of his eyes, he saw Lord Hadley rising to his feet, yelling obscenities.
"I am, I'm married to Lord Daniel Talbot. "
"This isn't true, the girl is simply crazy. I didn't concede to any marriage!" Lord Hadley yelled, his hand flying in the air and making loud contact with Hadassah's face. A soft wince followed his actions, before she stepped back and the Reverend took her vacated spot, standing between them.
"Stop this immediately, Lord Hadley!" Julius turned his attention from the Hadassah long enough to look at the Reverend who seemed upset. "Is this true, does the girl speak the truth? " His voice was steady and firm.
Lord Hadley shook his head, "I am her legal guardian. I have given no consent..."
"Lies!" Hadassah's loud shrill bounced off the walls.
"You're the liar, you whore!"
"I speak the truth, Reverend, I am married and was found with child only two nights ago before Lord Hadley had it killed and now, he intends to have me wed to my husband's brother!"
Julius felt his feet take him forward until he was bumping into a solid barrier. He was thankful for the barrier for it kept him from harming his wife. And his wife she was! He would marry her, if it killed him, he would marry her.
"Do not listen to her, Reverend." Julius finally found his tongue. He needed to speak, to shut Hadassah up before she ruined their marriage completely.
"Then prove her claims to be a falsehood..."
"A marriage without my consent is not a marriage, Reverend, even you must know this."
"Then it happened, a marriage happened?"
"She ran off with a mad man!" Lord Hadley barked.
"You are saying that a marriage ceremony was conducted?" Julius knew as the Reverend asked the question, where the conversation was headed. Lord Hadley on the other hand, was foolish enough to fall into the trap.
"Perhaps, I do not know what silly ceremony took place."
"It was a wedding in Rye, Sussex."
The Reverend turned from Julius, a frown creasing his face as he turned around to face Hadassah. He watched her for a while, before turning back to Julius and Lord Hadley, his frown deepening.
"Did you get an annulment from the court?" The Reverend's eyes scanned Lord Hadley's face before turning to scan Julius'
Lord Hadley shook his head. "It was void from the beginning, I do not need the court's..."
"But I do." Hadassah sighed loudly as the Reverend spoke, relief flooding her features. "I need a proof of annulment before I can conduct a marriage. Until then, this wedding is canceled."
At his words, Hadassah crumbled to her knees and wept. As Julius watched her, he knew her tears had nothing to do with grief and everything to do with relief.
Copyright ©2018 Lily Orevba All rights reserved.
A/N
Writing when I'm extremely tired...