The Second Life of Magnolia Mae

by Angela Schroeder

  “Do you really believe she will stop simply because you marry me?”

  “She left Jaceson alone after Father threatened her. If she stepped out of line again…” His voice trailed off.

  It had to be hard to think about it. Magnolia refused to look at him though. It was easier to look into the blackness.

  “…if she tries anything once we are wed, then it can be considered an act of treason. Already she is out of favor with my father.”

  Keeping her face turned, she heard him pacing back and forth across the floor.

  “Since I’m her only child, she’s afraid that something will happen to me. Afraid, I think, more for her than for me. Not long ago she hired a man to tell my father that Jaceson planned to take the throne. She nearly had him convinced that his own son was a traitor. We found proof that it was all her doing, to secure the crown for me. Upon showing the proof to my father, he grew enraged. His own wife, his queen, had betrayed him. He informed her then that if she ever pulled something like that again, he would have her tried for treason.”

  Magnolia finally glanced over in his direction. Jaceson was sitting on the settee with his feet extended toward the fire, crossed at the ankles, eating a pastry as if the conversation was boring him. The thought was slightly amusing. Alistair paced back and forth in the middle of the room. Brows furrowed together the corners of his mouth turned down to a frown.

  “You have no control over her actions.” Her voice was low and soft.

  He stopped pacing to bring his eyes to meet with hers.

  “Do you think you could have stopped her if you had known?”

  “What then…”

  “We think — I think — there is something in all of this, something somewhere that is just waiting to be discovered that will help to ensure that she will never attempt such a thing again.” She had to find the Queen of Marcello’s weakness quickly. “There’s nothing else that can be done at this moment.”

  His gaze dropped, breaking their eye contact.

  A chill went through her, causing her to finally remove herself from the window. Crossing the room to the settee, she walked into warmth that radiated out from the fire. As she sat down, she took up a pastry and bit into it. Junk food had always been her go-to comfort; she needed the tense mood in the room to ease. “This is really delicious, you should try one.”

  Jaceson stifled a laugh as Magnolia waved her pastry in the direction of Alistair. It certainly did lighten the mood, for he stopped pacing to take a seat next to them and enjoy the tea and pastries.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  THE DOORS TO THE library were thrown open not long after the three of them had finally relaxed. In the doorway was a tall figure covered with cloaks. His face had a few days’ growth of beard on it, making him appear even more menacing. His dark hair hung down, shielding his eyes. “I came as fast as I could.” The deep voice echoed through the room. “They are coming.” The man swayed on unsteady feet.

  Jaceson and Alistair rushed to his side and led him to the fire.

  “Duncan, who is coming?” Alistair asked.

  “Get warm, man, then talk to us.” Jaceson spoke at the same time as his brother.

  Alistair nodded when he heard his brother speak, the sort of thing that Daciana would expect of him in the future. He went to the chest that he had filled with blankets and shawls as part of his gift and pulled out a heavy quilt. Magnolia removed his wet cloak then moved swiftly to pour him some tea.

  “I’ll be back with some hot cider and food for you. Just sit there, and don’t let them make you talk until you are warm and fed.” She smiled kindly at him then hurried out of the room.

  “I had to get here before they arrived to tell you.” Duncan spoke through now chattering teeth.

  “Warm up first, man, or Daciana will blame me for you biting the tip of your tongue off while trying to talk.” Alistair looked over at Jaceson with a worried look. He was sure they both knew that Duncan would not have barged in like he had unless the news that he’d brought was important.

  By the time food and drink arrived, Duncan had some natural color back to his cheeks. In silence, they allowed him to fill his belly with nourishment.

  Duncan set the plate aside then looked at all of them, his eyes going to each one before settling on Alistair. “I took your letter to the king as you had asked. A storm hit shortly after I arrived, so I had to stay a bit. By the time I was ready to travel again, the queen had decided that if her only son was to marry, then she would be here for that marriage. King Pelonis was going to send his blessing and a priest with me to perform the ceremony, but once Queen Kamille made up her mind to come, Pelonis would not tell her no. They wanted me to stay and travel back with them. I got away as soon as I could. They will be here in two days’ time if the weather holds.”

  Worry etched Alistair’s brow as he looked toward the mountains. Knowing that his mother was making her way through them now made him sick. There was no telling what she would do once she was here. “Is that all?”

  “No. One more thing. The man — Gordon — never recovered from the festering wounds. You have no witness to testify that it was Queen Kamille.”

  Listening to the men debate about the best way to handle the situation made her head ache. There was nothing that they were saying that could possibly be useful. They had good intentions and merely wanted to keep her safe. But they kept coming back to the same thing: they had no witness.

  A soft smile spread across her face. “We don’t need a witness.” Her voice was so low that they almost missed her words. She turned away from the fire to see the baffled looks on their faces.

  “How can we prove it without a witness?”

  “Do you really believe that someone would testify against their queen?” Her left eyebrow arched up. “No, the only reason Pelonis discovered her treachery before is because the news of it came from the two of you, with evidence in your hands.”

  “Yes, but we do not have evidence to back this up.” Jaceson spoke from the settee.

  “We don’t, but she does.” Magnolia walked slowly toward the window, looking out to the mountains. “She is the only witness we need.”

  “There is no way that she will ever let it slip out,” Alistair exclaimed. “She cares too much for her power.”

  “Perhaps she does.” Magnolia thought for a minute before facing them again. “There is one thing that she cares about more. We can use that to get her to admit what she’s done.”

  “How?”

  “What?”

  “It is late. Duncan needs a bath and some rest. Then we need to make sure that things here will be to the standards that your father is expecting.” She left the three men in the library, Dragoste at her side. Her hand reached down to stroke his soft black fur. “We will figure this out, won’t we, love?”

  Once inside her own room, she stoked the fire. After changing into a nightgown, she was finally able to sit down and process everything that she’d learned. Queen Kamille was on her way. Not only was she about to invade her home, but she’d killed her once before. There was no doubt in Magnolia’s mind that she would attempt to do so again. But with her coming here, the queen would not be on her own home field. Magnolia had the advantage. History books had taught her that Queen Kamille had forced this place to be forgotten because she did not care to be near the sea in such a desolate place. Magnolia had come to know the area that Kamille despised; she would not give up her newfound home. She would survive this time.

  On top of all that, Magnolia had been doing as she’d been instructed. What everyone and everything around her had been whispering at her since before her eighteenth birthday. Remember. With the memories and information coming to her, now that she had been tearing down the walls, she would be able to put up a fight.

  The next day the castle was bustling with activity. Magnolia found a large spare bedroom that she thought would be suitable for the king and queen. The day was spent boiling water to scrub the floor, w
alls, and windows. She took the furniture from the room to beat it free of dust. Clean linens and blankets were placed on the large bed. Firewood had been brought up and stacked neatly out of the way. Dried lavender was put into a large basin with some boiling water. Soon the room was shining and had the enticing scent of lavender.

  She emerged from the room with dust and sweat streaked across her face. Dragoste had escaped the madness of cleaning by going outside to run free in the snow. It seemed that Jaceson and Alistair had had that same idea. They’d left early that morning to go on a hunt. If all turned out well, they would have wild boar for a feast when Pelonis and Kamille arrived.

  Walking through the castle, she saw many women cleaning the halls and scrubbing at windows until they sparkled. They were not going to allow the King and Queen of Marcello to look down their noses at them. This place had become their home, a home that they were proud of. Magnolia found herself in the great hall on her hands and knees, scrubbing the floor with several other women. They would move on to the dining room after they were done in here.

  The two-day warning wasn’t much, but it would be enough. The castle was kept in good order on a daily basis. Magnolia liked to keep it clean. It felt more like home that way. All this extra cleaning would surely impress a woman, who would certainly attempt to kill her, and the man who would welcome her as a daughter so he could call her people his own. It certainly didn’t seem like the right thing to do, but she’d decided the night before that she would welcome them with open arms, appearing to be naively innocent of their intentions.

  She didn’t blame Pelonis for his reasoning. After all, she’d gone to him to find a home for Avengar. By doing that, she’d found Alistair. Some might say that she only wanted to marry him so that her people would be even more secure in this place, but the truth was she loved him. It was not something that she admitted often, but she felt it deep in her heart. The more time she spent with him the more she saw his resemblance to the Bash she’d left behind in the future. Certainly, that was what she was supposed to see when she’d been ill and had been told that they had not left her. They were here with her. It had all started making sense after that last dream.

  Now she had to make sure that she didn’t allow Kamille to take away her happiness once again. While scrubbing the floors, she was soon lost in her own world. The day passed by much more quickly while she thought back on her happy childhood.

  “Daciana?” Nonna’s voice broke through the memories. “Dear one, I believe that the floors cannot get any cleaner, though you can. Get to your chambers, and I will have a bath brought up for you.”

  She put the rag into the basin of now cool water then stood and stretched out her stiff limbs. “Have the men returned?”

  “Not yet. They’ll arrive soon. I am sure of it.” She felt a sense of dread for the days that lay ahead.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  THE HOT WATER FELT amazing against her sore muscles. Soaking in the tub, she decided it was the best feeling in the world, at least at this moment. Finally, she forced herself to pick up the soap to wash her hair and body. Sliding down into the water, she rinsed out her hair then got out of the tub. Quickly, she dried off and pulled on a dress. While brushing her hair, her door flung open, and a ghost-white Railynn stood there.

  “Come.”

  The look on her friend’s face told her that whatever it was that had sent her crashing through that door was something urgent. Nothing was said as they ran through the corridors. Railynn led her down the stairs to the entrance. She saw the hunting party coming through the doors carrying someone.

  “What happened?” Magnolia pushed her way toward them, forcing herself to walk closer. Blood was covering the men who had Jaceson in their grasps.

  “Jaceson, m’lady. He is still alive for now.”

  “Get him to his bed. Railynn, have someone bring up boiling water and some ale. If you see Nonna, send her. I will go to her room to see if she’s there getting ready.”

  Railynn did not move. The girl stared at Jaceson.

  “Now.” Her voice was low but forceful enough to send the girl running to do what she had asked. Magnolia ran ahead of the men. She tossed open the doors to Nonna’s rooms but did not see her. Once in Jaceson’s room, she stoked the fire then pulled the blankets from the bed. She tossed them onto a chair. Rushing back out of the room, she went to get fresh linens, knowing that she would need some. When she returned to the room, they were laying Jaceson on the bed. When she reached his side, she could see that he had a large wound in his thigh.

  “The boar impaled him,” one of the men said. “What can we do?”

  “See what is taking Railynn so long. I need Nonna’s supplies and that water and ale now. We do not have time to waste.” Carefully she cut the material of his pants with the dagger she had on her. Peeling back the filthy blood soaked rags that had been shoved into the wound to try to staunch the bleeding, she wanted to gag as blood poured forth, too freely for stitches “Get a large metal tong. It may need to be cauterized.” Dirt was mingled in with the blood. She picked up a clean rag then applied pressure to the wound.

  Nonna and Railynn rushed into the room. Magnolia took the ale from Railynn and poured some on the wound. Dirt and blood flowed away from it. One more time, and she was satisfied that there was no more dirt in there.

  “There is too much blood, dear one. I cannot do anything for him.”

  “No, I will not lose him. Hold this there.”

  Nonna placed her hand over the blood-soaked rag.

  Magnolia crossed the room, took the metal tongs into her hand, poured some ale over it, and then instructed that it be kept in the flames until she asked for it. “When I say, you will hand it over as quickly as possible. It cannot be allowed to cool.”

  Looking at the other men who had not left the room yet, she saw that they doubted that their friend could make it through the procedure. Honestly, she was not sure that he would either.

  “I need him to be held down firmly. He cannot be allowed to move. Is this understood?”

  They all nodded and took places around the bed. She said a silent prayer then asked for the tongs. They were in her hand within seconds. Carefully she lowered them to his thigh. The skin sizzled, and his body lurched up. She pulled the tongs back and gazed down at his thigh. The wound was closed up.

  Jaceson had stopped moving, and Railynn let out a loud wail. One of the men carried her from the room. Magnolia handed the tongs back to the man who had given them to her. She picked up a clean rag and soaked it in the basin of fresh water. Cleaning the dirt and blood off of him gave her something to do. This was not a helpless moment, and she would not allow it to become one.

  As the men started to leave the room, she finally realized that Alistair was not there. “Where is Alistair? Was he hurt?” She could not believe that he would not be here by choice.

  “No, m’lady. He and a few others went after the boar.”

  Anger filled her, burning her when their words sunk in. He had abandoned his brother in his time of need.

  “Thank you for bringing him here as quickly as you did and for your assistance. Dinner should be ready. Go and eat.” Magnolia pulled a chair close to the bed. After she cleaned him as best as she could, she had one of the men place a pair of clean trousers over one leg. She had cut off the other in order to keep an eye on the wound. The filthy shirt was pulled off and a blanket placed over his body. Nonna had left so quietly that Magnolia had not even noticed she was gone until she returned with some food, drink, and broth.

  “You need to eat, dear one.” Nonna’s kind eyes looked into hers.

  “I can’t lose him, Nonna. Not again.” A sadness filled her.

  Nonna’s wrinkled hand reached out and touched her cheek.

  “You did far more for him than I would have been able to do. You didn’t give up.”

  “I can’t. I won’t lose him.” Her lips pursed together and her brows were drawn down with determination. “I have
already lost so much. Losing him would be more than I could bear.”

  “I understand.” Nonna’s voice was filled with love, and Magnolia knew that the old woman understood. “You need to eat to keep up your strength.” Nonna left her alone in the room.

  She nibbled at some food while watching Jaceson. He was so pale and still. Would he make it? He had to — he simply had to pull through this. The chair was getting more and more comfortable as the room darkened, enticing her to sleep. Magnolia reached her hand over to Jaceson’s forehead to check to see if he felt feverish, but he was simply cold. After tossing another log on the fire and placing another blanket across him, she settled into the chair. Dragoste had found his way into the room and curled up at her feet. She allowed sleep to claim her.

  Magnolia opened her eyes to darkness. After lighting a candle, she went over to the fire to toss another log on. Dragoste lifted his big head and watched as she moved about the room.

  At his bedside she reached her hand out to touch Jaceson’s forehead. It was warmer than it had been before, causing her to worry since the room was cold. She pulled the blankets back to look down at his cauterized thigh. It was a nasty, swollen, red color. She covered him again and sat gently on the edge of the bed.

  “I cannot lose you the way I lost Mama and Daddy. I thought that you had left me, but you were here all along. Jace, please don’t leave me now. I need you.” Large tears clouded her vision then spilled over, trailing down her cheeks. “If you leave now, who will be there for me on the day that I marry? Who will give me advice? Who will remind me of who I am? There is so much left for you to do here.”

  Time dragged on slowly through the night. The silence was filled with her talking. When she ran out of things to say, she sang song after song. She needed for him to know that he was not here alone, that she would stay with him just as he had stayed with her.