Blood drains away from the surface of his skin as it turns a pale green color.
“What’s going on here?” Mirabelle asks again.
And again, Abbott doesn’t respond.
“This isn’t…appropriate,” she adds.
That’s one word for it, I say to myself.
A more accurate description would be it’s wrong, illegal, criminal.
“Everly and I were just having a bit of fun,” Abbott finally says.
I’m about to say something in response, but Mirabelle focuses her eyes on mine and gives me a slight shake of the head. She’s telling me to keep my mouth shut.
“As I’m sure you know, your date is being televised. All the other contestants, as well as the judges, and your Father are watching,” Mirabelle says without acknowledging Abbott’s previous statement.
“No, I didn’t know,” Abbott whispers under his breath.
“What was that?” Mirabelle asks.
“Does this look like the face of someone who knows?” he asks, raising his voice.
Back in my room, I sit in the recliner by the bed and wrap my arms around my knees. None of what he did there happened to me, but somehow it was worse.
Abbott is angry with me and he took it out on a total innocent.
My body starts to shake as the events of the evening come back to me in flashes.
I feel dirty just thinking about it.
I run to the bathroom and brush my teeth. Then I brush them again.
I swish a cap of mouthwash around my mouth until my tongue feels like it’s on fire, but I can still taste and smell his scent on me. That disgusting mixture of liquor, mixed with cigarette smoke, mixed with hatred and anger.
Climbing under the covers, I begin to cry.
Easton, where are you?
Come to me.
I need you.
I send him mental messages hoping that somehow they can reach him.
I’m not sure how much time passes while I lay in bed. Catalina, Olivia, Teal and Savannah come into my room to comfort me, but nothing they say makes me feel any better. As we sit and talk about nothing at all, there’s an ocean growing among us of all the things that are not being said.
The other dates with Abbott have been cancelled, but we don’t talk about that.
I get the feeling that every one of them has a story of how they got here, and it is very similar to mine.
But none of us says a word about it.
This moment has the capacity to offer some hope. So, why dwell in the darkness?
Another round of elimination is coming up.
Soon.
Mirabelle comes by and tells us.
What’s going to happen there?
What more is in store for me?
And for the others?
I don’t know.
But I don’t have the energy to think about it anymore.
“Let’s go for a swim,” I suggest.
The girls look at me with surprise.
“C’mon, we have some time before we have to be there. It will be fun. We don’t have enough fun.”
The pool is calm and bright blue. It’s calling my name.
I’m the first one out there and I dip my toe into the water out of habit. I was never the girl to just jump right in.
If the water is cold, I have to ready myself for it first. But this water is warm and comforting, the perfect temperature. I slide right into it.
When I come back up for air, the others are crowding around the edge.
The air is thick with humidity. Somewhere in the distance, a chorus of frogs is singing their hearts out. Teal and Savannah are smiling.
I dive under again and watch as my hair swirls around my head.
Despite everything that has happened, this is okay. No, more than okay.
Suddenly, for a brief moment, the reality of this place disappears.
Swimming around the pool, talking about nothing at all and laughing, we are transformed into just a group of friends.
Fun.
Careless.
Free.
“It’s time,” Mirabelle says, walking up to us.
Just like that, it all vanishes.
Chapter 37 - Easton
When there’s another elimination…
I couldn’t find her. I searched for her everywhere and then Mirabelle told me that she was on a date with Abbott.
This wasn’t part of the plan, but few things around here follow the plan.
Everyone was watching, but I couldn’t.
He wasn’t there to watch my dates, so I couldn’t watch his. But York is the last place in the world to care about fairness.
I pace just outside the theater room, trying to figure out what to do.
The first date went fine. Cordial.
Nothing out of the ordinary.
But he wasn’t on a date with Everly.
There’s something about Everly that makes his whole body spit bile.
He has this anger and hatred for her that I’ve never seen before. Is it because I care about her?
I think about that for a moment. Perhaps.
What if all of these feelings that he has pointed at Everly are really directed at me?
Then suddenly, something goes wrong.
Mirabelle tells me to stay put, but takes a few guards into the dining room with her.
I try to follow them, but two large burly men physically stop me, blocking my entrance. I can’t get through.
Time moves like molasses until Mirabelle emerges.
Two guards follow close behind, with Abbott in the middle.
His head is hanging low.
Somewhere in the distance, a girl about Everly’s age is crying, sitting on the floor.
Everly is staring into space as if she’s in a trance. Emotionless. Traumatized.
“What happened?” I roar and run to Abbott. “What did you do?”
They pull me away from him and out into the hallway.
Two men hold me back, but not before I land two punches.
One on his face and one in his stomach.
He reaches for me, but other guards grab his arms just before we collide.
Oh how I wish no one else was here.
I need to finish this once and for all.
It’s time for an elimination again.
I sit in a small room with guards on the outside.
I have to cool off, they say.
I can’t just attack Abbott like that, they say.
But what I’m really doing here is waiting for my father to make a decision as to what’s going to happen next.
I attacked Abbott, but this act shouldn’t be judged too harshly by my father, not in comparison to what Abbott did. Of course, our father is hardly predictable.
Through the grapevine, I hear bits and pieces of what happened on Everly’s date.
He didn’t touch her, but he made her watch. I guess it was some sort of promise of what’s to come.
I go over my options.
The window is open and it’s looking over the roof.
I could use it to climb down.
And then what?
Go where exactly? And what about Everly?
I have to wait and see.
It’s time.
I walk out into the foyer following Mirabelle.
Abbott comes in after me.
The contestants are already standing in line, next to J. The panel of judges is on the other side.
What is their job exactly? I wonder. To observe and record and make recommendations to my father, ones he rarely listens to.
Abbott takes his position next to me. As he glares at me, his nostrils actually flare open with each breath.
I’m not fazed.
There was a time, a long time ago, when I was afraid of him.
But not anymore.
Now, I know his secret.
He does these things to others he perceives are weaker than him for only one reason.
; He is a coward.
A narcissistic asshole without an empathetic feeling in his body.
“The King will be here shortly,” J, the host, says.
No one responds.
I look over at Everly.
Her eyes meet mine, pleading for something.
She needs my help.
I give her a reassuring nod.
It’s all going to be okay, I mouth slightly.
She nods back without much conviction.
“Okay then, I’ve heard that things aren’t exactly going as planned,” Father says as soon as he walks through the doorway.
No one responds.
“I thought that my sons would be able to show you girls a good time. But I guess not,” he adds with a laugh.
Abbott looks down at the floor.
I doubt that he’s sorry for what he did, but I have no doubt about the fact that he’s sorry everyone found out about it.
“Anyway, I think this competition has dragged on far enough. It’s supposed to be fun for all. And I can tell that it hasn’t been that for a bit. So, why don’t we all just end it right here and now?”
My father poses the question as if anyone here is in a position to disagree with him.
Again, no one says anything.
Father is milking the moment.
He lives for the time when everyone is hanging on what he’s about to say next.
“As you may or may not know, my sons will be choosing their wives, first,” Father says turning to the contestants. “J will explain it further.”
“Yes, of course,” J says, scrambling a little for the right words. “As I’m sure I’ve mentioned before, the Princes of York will be proposing first.”
It is clear from the women’s faces that none of this was mentioned before.
“And if you want to decline, you are, of course, welcome to,” J adds. “Right, Your Majesty?”
“Yes, of course," Father says tossing his hands in the air to drive the point home. “What kind of place do you think we’re running here?”
“Easton, let’s start with you,” he says turning to face me.
I look at him, raising my eyebrows.
I’m not entirely sure what he wants me to say.
“Is there someone here that you would like to propose to?” he asks, handing me a velvet box.
“Yes, of course,” I say, taking the box. “I’ve enjoyed spending time with all of you, but there’s only one with whom I really made a connection.”
I look at her and smile. “Everly, will you please come up here?”
Chapter 38 - Easton
When it’s his turn…
She walks up slowly, as if she isn’t sure that this is really happening. When she’s close enough, I get down on my knee.
“Will you marry me?” I ask.
Tears run down her face. Her whole body trembles and she whispers, “yes."
I open the box and place the large diamond ring on her finger.
It’s bigger than the one I gave her before. I want to give her something more personal later, a ring that I pick out. But this will work for now.
Everly stares at the ring and wraps her arms around me. My father starts to clap and everyone follows along.
I have never asked anyone to marry me before.
I’ve never even been close.
Things are different with Everly. As a result of being here, as a result of our fleeting time together, our relationship has been sped up.
Accelerated.
The closeness that I feel toward her, it’s like I’m…home.
Would I ask her to marry me if we had met under different circumstances?
Out there in the real world? Yes.
One-hundred times yes.
The proposal is required and yet it’s real.
I have to pick someone. Yes, that part is true.
But I would’ve picked her anyway.
A small tear runs down her face.
I wipe it off. Another one follows quickly behind.
Out here, in front of everyone, it’s hard to tell what is real and what is not.
She is afraid of my father, and Abbott, and she is relieved that I’m the one asking to marry her.
But does she really want to marry me?
Or is this an act on her part?
Does she think it’s an act on mine?
“I love you, Everly,” I whisper. “I always have. I always will.”
She nods and says that she loves me, too.
I hear her words.
I want to believe her, but it’s hard to know what’s true and what’s not.
“Why does Easton get to go first?” Abbott asks.
Everly reaches out for my hand and squeezes it tightly.
“What if I want her too?”
“You can’t have her,” Father says.
There’s a finality in his voice. It gives me peace. “You should count yourself lucky that I’m letting you propose at all given what just happened.”
Abbott shrugs and waves his hand as if he were untouchable. “Maybe I don’t want a wife at all.”
“That’s not up to you.”
“Why not?”
Father scowls at him. He does not like us talking back to him, let alone in front of company.
“But it’s not fair,” he wines. “I didn’t even get to go on a date with all of them.”
“That’s because you misbehaved on your second one,” Father snaps.
Abbott tenses his body and looks from one contestant to another.
Everly squeezes my hand in anticipation.
They all look forlorn and disappointed. After what happened, I’m not sure any of them are hoping for a proposal from him. But what’s the alternative?
“Fine,” Father says interrupting the tense silence. “You will not get the privilege of their company. The proposal is off.”
Everly looks up at me.
I am as much in the dark as she is.
Teal’s eyes grow big with fear. I know what she’s thinking; if none of them are chosen then they are all eliminated.
“What do you mean?” Abbott asks.
“The competition is over,” Father says.
J and Mirabelle have the same perplexed expression on their faces as I probably do.
“This whole thing has been off since the beginning. Nothing feels right. If you don’t want to ask any of these beautiful young ladies to marry you, that’s your problem.”
Father turns around to leave.
“So, what’s going to happen?” Abbott asks.
“We’re going to have a wedding for your brother and we are all going to be very happy for them.”
I feel Everly let out a big sigh of relief. She lets go of my hand for a moment, but then clamps back on.
“Okay, ladies, you heard His Majesty. Your time with us is over,” J announces. Teal and Olivia gasp in fear. “I’m sorry, but you have been eliminated.”
Quiet sobs and the flow of tears echo around the hall.
“Did I say that, you moron?” Father roars at J.
Savannah and Olivia look up at him, wiping their eyes with the back of their hands.
“I’m…sorry…I…just…assumed,” J stumbles over his words.
“Didn’t your mother teach you why you should never assume?”
J shakes his head.
“When you assume you make an ass out of you and me,” Father says. “Get it?”
This is one of his favorite lessons. I’ve heard it at least a dozen times growing up.
“Why shouldn’t you assume anything, J?” Father asks, to drive the point home.
J repeats the lesson and Father gives him a knowing smile.
“Ladies, you are not eliminated,” he finally says. “Everly will need help in implementing her duties as the Princess of York. Since you all get along so well, I thought it would be nice if you stuck around and joined the court as her ladies in waiting.”
They let out a communal sigh of
relief.
More tears follow, but these are ones of joy.
Everly squeezes my hand again and flashes me a big smile. Then she runs over to Teal and the others and wraps her arms around them.
Chapter 39 - Everly
When we are alone…
I sit in Easton’s living room and wait as he makes me dinner. He is just making us an omelet, but I know that it will be the best tasting omelets I’ve ever had.
I am to be his wife.
He proposed to me.
Me.
I glance up at him and wonder what I ever did to get this lucky.
We are alone now.
There are no cameras.
No one is watching.
“Can I ask you something?” I ask, trying to buy myself more time.
He nods, giving me a small smile out of the corner of his lips.
“Did you mean that?”
He looks up at me from the stove.
“Mean what?”
“The proposal?”
“Every word of it,” he says.
I nod, still not completely sure if I believe him.
“It’s just that I wasn’t sure,” I say. “I mean, I know you were glad this competition wasn’t about your father anymore and you didn’t want anything bad to happen to me. I totally understand why you did it. But we don’t have to be married, if you don’t want to.”
My mind is running a mile a minute and I keep stumbling over my words. I don’t know if it’s all coming out right.
“What I mean is that I really appreciate you proposing to me. It was a noble thing to do. I know you did it to help me. But if you don’t really want to be married, I totally understand. We don’t have to be,” I add. I’m not sure if this makes anything any clearer.
Easton moves the skillet off the burner and walks over to me. Sitting down in front of me, he takes my hand in his.
He stares at me for a long time before saying a word. Then he takes a deep breath.
“I’ve given that a lot of thought, Everly. I mean, yes, I want to help you. Of course. And yes, in similar circumstances, I would probably propose to any of the girls here if that’s what it took to save their life.”
I nod. That’s what I thought, of course.
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