by Everly James
Luca dabbed at his mouth with a napkin. “So. Marriage. I think we should do it.”
Melody choked on her last piece of cake and had to pour herself water. When she finally came to, eyes glistening with tears, she spoke. “Excuse me?”
Luca folded his napkin neatly and placed it on the table. “You should know that I am also bisexual. My mother is eager to see me married to a woman. I think we could make a good team, Melody.”
“I barely know you.”
“Your mother is dying. Did the press get it wrong or is her dying wish to see you married or not?”
Melody gaped at him. “It is.”
“Then let’s do this. We’ll go on a few more dates with the press just far enough away to not hear our conversations but close enough to get snapshots of us laughing it up together. The people of this country will eat it up. Then, on the fourth date, under the watch of the pine trees in the forest next to your castle, I will propose to you with my grandmother’s ring. You’ll say yes, because it’s a five-carat peridot surrounded by glittering diamonds and one of your favorite colors is lime green. We’ll get married at the little church in the middle of town, with a parade afterwards. Your mother will be in attendance, ensconced in the front row surrounded by your father and two discreet nurses. It will be the wedding of the century. We’ll kiss in front of people we hate, and we’ll say I do. Then, we’ll go on an Italian honeymoon for the ages, staying at Lake Como for a couple of weeks. We’ll return to Madrana and you’ll get started ruling this country with me by your side, always supporting but never interfering.”
Luca finished this pronouncement by tipping back more wine.
“You’re serious?”
“I’m always serious. Except for when I’m not. But you already know the difference and we’ve known each other all of three hours. So, what do you say, Princess Melody? Shall we do this thing together?”
CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX
“It’s a royal wedding here in Madrana as Princess Melody plans to marry Luca Ricci, heir to a shipping fortune. Can our resident wild girl finally settle down and find true happiness? Find out tomorrow as we bring you all of the wedding coverage—”
“Why in the hell are you watching this?” Eric walked into Ellie’s bedroom and snapped her laptop shut. All the blinds were closed and there was a stack of books littering the floor along with microwave ramen Styrofoam containers and pizza boxes. There was a lingering air of despair that was so thick it was tangible.
Eric drew open the curtains, pulled up the blinds, and opened the window all the way. Icy cold air rushed into the space.
“Eric? Are you insane? It’s twenty degrees outside!” Ellie said, throwing her arm over her eyes to shield from the sudden influx of bright light. She pulled her thick, heated blanket over the top half of her body.
Eric yanked it off her. “Get up.”
Ellie shrieked from the cold. “I’m sick.”
“No, you’re not,” Eric said, pulling a trash bag out of thin air and beginning to collect all the items strewn across the floor. He made quick work of cleaning the tiny space. When he was done, he drew the trash bag shut and tied the top tightly. “You need to start job hunting. But first, you need to take a shower. You smell.” Eric pulled her out of bed, holding his nose with one hand. “Terrible. You smell absolutely terrible. You’re showering, then you’re getting dressed—” he reached into her miniscule closet and pulled down a thick sweater and a pair of jeans, “—and then you’re going on a walk with me. Yes, in the snow. Now go.”
Eric shoved Ellie into the one bathroom in the house. She shut the door and looked at herself in the mirror. Her red hair was oily and bunched up close to her scalp. She really did look and smell terrible. She ran the hot water and washed her hair three times, exfoliating every inch of her body. She emerged reborn.
Eric had left her warm outfit on the bed. The room was filled with an icy chill from the still-open window. But she couldn’t deny it; opening the window gave the room a much-revitalized feeling. She got dressed and went out into the living room, grabbing her coat along the way.
“She lives,” Blanche said from her spot next to the fire. She was knitting. “I haven’t seen you in at least a week. I thought the smell coming from your room might have been your corpse.”
“Where are Mom and Dad?”
“With a financial advisor in New York,” Blanche said. “Talking about their next steps with the business.”
Ellie felt guilty. She had been so caught up in her own sorrow that she hadn’t even stopped to consider what her parents might be going through with the shop.
“Let’s go,” Eric said, shoving her snow boots at her. He was carrying a small duffel bag with unknown contents.
Ellie tripped her way into the boots and they were out the door. It was a brilliantly sunny day, and Ellie wished she’d brought her sunglasses. The glare off the snow was unbelievably bright.
“You need the vitamin D to get into your system,” Eric said as if he could read her mind. They were twins, after all, and sometimes she thought he very well might be able to. “No sunglasses. So. What are your plans?”
Ellie shrugged. “I have none.”
“You’ve just been stalking obscure European celebrity blogs, then? Not even looking for a job?”
“I was thinking I might stay here. Maybe get a job at the bookstore.”
Eric laughed darkly. “Have you been possessed by some otherworldly demon? You want to stay here in Grand River?”
They reached a small pond that was frozen over completely. They used to ice skate on it when they were little.
“It’s not so bad here. Besides, I don’t think I could handle New York City after everything I’ve been through.”
Eric rolled his eyes and brushed snow off a decrepit wooden bench, sitting down and opening the duffel bag. He pulled out two pairs of ice skates. He handed one to Ellie. “You act like you went off to war and saw heavy battle. Give me a break, Ellie. The love of your life is getting married to some hot Italian dude. There are worse things in the world.”
“Like what?”
“Like having to take a job at a lumber operation because your family is nearly falling into bankruptcy.”
Ellie heard the words and they shattered inside of her head. “I’m so sorry, Eric. I’ve been so selfish.”
“Don’t worry about it.” He shrugged. “Put your skates on. You’ll feel better.”
Ellie took off her boots and slipped her wool sock-covered feet into her ice skates. They fit like an absolute dream. She trudged through the snow and set her first foot onto the ice. It was like being home again. She glided around to get her feet under her, then she started going faster and faster, the wind whipping her hair back. She nearly lost her hat from the speed.
“You wanna race?” Eric asked as he stepped onto the ice.
“Depends. Do you enjoy getting your ass thoroughly kicked?”
Eric laughed. “Loser has to talk about their feelings.”
“Deal.”
They started at the far end of the pond and went on Eric’s word.
Ellie sped as fast as she could, but she was no match for Eric. She collapsed on the ice a good ten seconds after Eric had crossed the finish line. “You cheated.”
“By being better than you? Yeah, I did cheat, then.”
Ellie laughed. “You know what I mean. You’ve been practicing.”
Eric gave her a devilish grin. “So what if I have?” He reached over to a pile of snow and balled up some of it, tossing it at Ellie’s midsection. “Your turn to talk.”
Ellie lay on her back looking up at the blue sky. It was easier to talk this way, by not looking at him. It was almost like writing into a diary. “I miss Melody.”
“I know,” Eric said. “I kind of miss her too. Obviously. I mean, not the way you do. I don’t miss her boobs or anything.”
“Eric!” Ellie exclaimed. But she laughed. “I just…I want to go to her. Tell her how I rea
lly feel. See if there is some way we can make all of this better.”
“You want her to choose you over running an entire country?” Eric asked. “Isn’t that a little selfish?”
“Look who’s playing the devil’s advocate today,” Ellie responded bitterly. “You asked me to talk about my feelings and here you are judging me for doing just that.”
“I’m just trying to present another side of things,” Eric said. “Sorry.”
“It’s fine,” Ellie sighed.
“So, what would you do if you could do anything?” Eric asked.
“I would fly back to Madrana and see her again. I know if I just saw her and she saw me, everything would change. We could find a way to make it work. We could be together.”
Eric smiled. “Then what in the hell is stopping you?”
CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN
Melody stood in her nicest outfit, her braids up in a neat twist on top of her head, and make up covering her face. She knocked on the heavy double doors in front of her and took a deep breath.
“Come in,” said a shaky voice that she barely recognized as belonging to her own mother.
She stepped inside the bedroom. The blinds were closed, and both fireplaces were lit. Herschel was stoking the logs in one of them. He didn’t turn around to greet Melody. She knew what that meant. He had to be here in case her mother needed something, but he didn’t want to encroach on their privacy. The air had a medicinal smell to it, like bleach and antiseptic.
On the bed lay her mother, skin and bones compared to just a month before. Tubes were coming out of her along with wires attached to a machine. She had an IV drip that Melody knew was sending her much-needed morphine. Her normally glowing, pale skin was grey in pallor, and her heavy diamond solitaire engagement ring had spun around on her hand so the diamond was no longer visible on her skeletal fingers.
“Melody. My love,” her mother whispered in a creaking voice.
She looked to Melody as if she was made of tissue paper. Melody wondered if the air from opening the door would blow her away.
“Come sit next to me,” Regina whispered, pointing to the armchair that was pulled up right next to the bed. Melody knew without asking that her father had been sitting there for the last few weeks. She had barely seen him. “How is my girl?”
There was a tenderness in her voice that Melody had never heard in the three decades she had been her daughter. “I’m fine, Mother. I’m getting married.” There was a frog in her throat as she said the words. Luca had painted a portrait of a wedding that included her mother. But this was the first time she was seeing her mother in weeks and weeks, and she knew in that moment that there was absolutely no way on earth her mother would make it to her wedding, even if it had been held that day.
The moment for her to be a part of the ceremony had passed.
“See my ring?” Melody asked, holding up her left hand and showing her the massive peridot nestled amongst dozens of diamonds.
“It’s stunning,” Regina said. The effort of lifting her head to see was too much for her. She sunk back into her feather pillow. She shut her eyes.
“Mother, if you want me to leave—”
Regina gave an almost imperceptible shake of her head to say that no, she wanted Melody to stay. “Just sit with me awhile. Okay?”
“Of course,” Melody said, placing her hand over one of her mother’s. Her skin was ice cold despite the room being incredibly warm. Melody started humming and singing a lullaby that her nanny had always sung to her as a child.
Regina gave a small smile, so Melody continued.
Soon, Regina was asleep, but Melody didn’t move. She didn’t let go of her hand. She didn’t check her phone. She didn’t ask Herschel to bring her a book to read. She just sat and waited for her mother to wake up.
Two hours passed before Regina fluttered open her eyes.
“My love, Melody,” she said with a small smile. Her lips were dry.
“Do you want water?”
“Ma’am,” Herschel said, speaking for the first time. “There is a small sponge you dip in water and wipe her lips to give her fluids.”
“Thank you,” Melody said, her voice cracking from the emotional pain of the moment. She dipped the sponge into the water and swiped it over her mother’s mouth. Regina smiled with pleasure.
“Thank you, my dear.” She turned her blue eyes to Melody. “My love. I want you to be happy.” The effort of that small sentence seemed to be too much for her. She didn’t speak for several minutes. “My dearest. My daughter. I love you. But I’ve done something. Sent something. Something I regret. Be happy…be…my love…”
One of the monitors started beeping.
Herschel rushed over and two nurses materialized out of seemingly nowhere to rush to her side.
“Mother. Mother!” Melody cried out.
Herschel had to pull her away, screaming.
CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT
Ellie woke up to the sound of an envelope being pushed under her door along with six quick raps. Eric had been waking her up early each day so she could feed the chickens and the goats. She was grateful for his support of her more than she could say. Their conversation had set in motion a plan in Ellie’s mind, but her brain was screaming for self-preservation.
She fluctuated from one moment to the next: fly to Madrana or don’t fly to Madrana.
Especially since tomorrow was the day she had been dreading. Tomorrow was Melody’s wedding to the gorgeous Luca Ricci. Eric had promised to take her to the movies. They were running a Star Wars marathon from seven in the morning until around midnight. It would keep her brain and body occupied instead of sitting all day refreshing celebrity news blogs.
She got up and got dressed before walking over to the door. On the floor was a thin, large envelope with calligraphic writing on the front. It had several stamps on it and black skid marks; it was rumpled and looked as if it had gotten lost in the mail. She checked the date and saw it had been sent almost two weeks prior. Her eyes still bleary from sleep, she carried it out into the hallway and into the kitchen, sitting down at the breakfast table.
Blanche was frying bacon. “Morning,” she said while steadying herself on her walker. “I’ve got cinnamon rolls coming out of the oven.”
“Thanks, Grandma,” Ellie said. “Where’s Eric?”
“Finishing up shoveling the driveway,” she said. “Your mom and dad are sleeping in today.”
Ellie finally got a good look at the envelope. There was no return address, and the postmark was blurred at the bottom. The date, of course, was still legible. She had already seen that. She squinted and held it up to the light.
Madrana. It said Madrana.
Her stomach sank while her heart jumped into her throat. She turned over the envelope and carefully slid her finger under the sticky flap. She pulled out a thick sheet of textured paper. There was shaky, spidery handwriting on it. Ellie could tell whoever had written it used to have wonderful handwriting. But it had deteriorated into something barely legible.
She read over the note quickly, but couldn’t understand it.
“Grandma, can you read this?” she asked.
“Are you so depressed you lost your ability to read?” Blanche asked from the kitchen.
“Ha ha,” Ellie said drily. “It’s a letter from someone who might be really old? I know you used to translate great-Grandma’s letters for me. I’m hoping you can read this one.”
Blanche turned over the final pieces of bacon, turned the heat down on the stove, and used her walker to get to the kitchen dining nook. “Let me see.” She grabbed her reading glasses from their resting place of being tucked into her shirt and began to read. “Miss Mayhew, I must make this short for I am quite unwell. I am writing to you to make you an offer. I will be gone soon. Very soon.” Blanche squinted. “Enclosed is a check for you. I want you to promise to never see Melody again. She is happy with her Luca and you must leave it at that. I know you might want to see her agai
n, even as friends. This is a mistake. I know your family is in a difficult financial position. Choose wisely. Regards, R.”
Blanche looked at Ellie. “Who the hell is ‘R’?”
With shaking hands, Ellie opened the envelope all the way. There was, indeed, a check enclosed.
“Holy shit,” Ellie muttered.
“Don’t fucking curse in front of your grandmother, dear,” Blanche said sarcastically, leaning over her shoulder. “Wait one fucking minute!” she exclaimed, reading the check. “Is that real?”
The front door opened and closed and Eric walked into the kitchen. He was red-faced and sweating despite the cold outside. He had clearly over-exerted himself shoveling the snow. “What are we looking at?”
Ellie turned around. “A check for five million dollars.”
Eric laughed. “Good one.”
“She’s serious,” Blanche said. “Oh crap! The rest of the bacon!” She walked as fast as her walker would allow to the kitchen as the smell of burning pork fat filled the kitchen.
“What the hell is this?” Eric asked, snatching the check away from her.
“It’s money to make certain I never speak to Melody again.”
Eric gaped at her. “But you already called it off. You’re not even friends anymore.”
“I think Regina wanted to make sure that I didn’t change my mind. It’s hush money, literally.”
Eric sat down at the table with the check still in his shaking hands. “This money would save us.”
“I know.”
“Mom and Dad wouldn’t have to shut down the store and declare bankruptcy.”
“I know.”
“I…I could go do what I wanted to do and not worry about the family.”
“I know.”
“I could±”
“You could leave Grand River. For good.”
Eric blinked and suddenly held the check like it was made of pure gold. He handed it back to Ellie with a reverential air.
“So what are you gonna do?”
“I don’t know.”
CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE
