The Tangled Tree

by S. K Munt

  ‘The Harem is a fortress,’ Elijah said quickly, shooting me another look that communicated that if Kohén hadn’t already forbidden me from leaving it, he’d be doing it himself. ‘But we cannot simply stroll downstairs with her on our arm. People will see her and wonder how she came to be-’

  ‘I’ll give you the chance to leave, hold her here, and then escort her to the harem door myself once you, Amelia-Rose and Shep are out of sight, Elijah,’ the duchess said quickly, and he gave her a sceptical look. ‘Not only will it give me the opportunity to make it clear that she will never allow herself to be coerced into this part of the castle again…’ she gave me a dirty look that let me know that I was in for it, ‘...but it will give the majority of those fleeing the rear lawn the chance to pass first, covering Kohén’s dastardly tracks.’ She motioned impatiently for Elijah and the others to leave, and although I saw Amelia-Rose swipe her mane of burgundy ringlets over her shoulder and sneer at me, she blessedly turned her back to me quickly after.

  ‘But it’s not proper-’

  ‘There is enough speculation running rife about Larkin’s hold over the Barachiel men right now as it is- do you think it better that she is seen leaving our chamber on your arm, darling... or a woman’s?’ Constance did not wait for him to answer that before she smacked her hands together. ‘Out, now! For the love of God, people are setting off explosives on our lawn, and you think we have another second to waste debating Larkin’s reputation? Go check on my sons- all THREE of them, please.’

  Elijah made a frustrated sound but began to leave, steering Shepherd Choir out with him and muttering apologies. ‘I don’t know what you must think of me and my family right now, Shep, but I assure you- the behaviour you’ve all witnessed this week is completely out of character for all of them…’

  ‘Not for her though, right?’ I heard Amelia-Rose sniff as her voice faded away. ‘You see, this is exactly why the Given caste offends me! I’ve heard that Larkin is intelligent and personable and charming from the men in your family, and yet every crisis you have seems to swirl out from her like the eye of a storm…’

  My face flushed hotly- so hotly it was like I’d fallen into a fire, and I moved to go after Amelia-Rose, wanting to point out that all I’d heard from the Barachiel men on the subject of her was a lot of teeth-grinding... but then Constance moved in front of me and slammed the door, barring my exit, and my blood turned to ice when I saw that her eyes had turned the same shade.

  ‘I have a million things I want to say to you, and a million questions that I want you to answer, Larkin, but before I start, let me preface it by making one thing crystal clear to you!’ And then she pulled back her hand and struck me so hard that I went reeling into the post at the end of the bed.

  11.

  I sobbed as the side of my head hit the bed post hard, not only because it hurt, but because it was Constance that had struck me. It seemed so cruel to me that she and I had evolved from being enemies to allies to actually affectionate with one another- only to end back up as enemies again... and it proved to be the straw that broke me. I sank to my knees, cupped the throbbing side of my head and wept silently, distraught to understand that lying to myself in order to make my existence here tolerable was only going to work if I stayed isolated. I could get myself drunk and even fool myself into believing that Kohén was enough for me now… but every time I looked into someone else’s eyes, like Constance’s or Elijah’s… I’d be reminded of all of the awful things I’d done, and how adding all of those awful deeds together made me an awful person.

  You were an idiot for trying to think otherwise! Perhaps Kohén and you can find redemption in one another’s arms for the pain you’ve caused each other, but that only makes what you’ve done to Kohl worse!

  Ahhh there was that pesky sub-conscious of mine again! Of course she’d choose now to resurface… to state the obvious only once it was too late to avoid a collision course with it!

  Don’t tell Constance a thing! Especially not about the murder! She’d never tell anybody about that, especially once she understands what happened and how it all came to pass… but once she knows, it will break her heart and she will not be able to look at either son without them instantly realising that she knows! And once that thread is pulled at, everything will unravel into a pile of blame, water and electricity!

  ‘I… I just don’t even know where to begin!’ the duchess exclaimed, and I could tell by the sound of her footfalls that she was pacing madly. ‘You tell me that you love Kohl and that you’ll do anything to escape here before Kohén locks you in, and then an escape is handed to you and what do you do? Lock yourself in! At first I feared that my son had taken you against your will, and I was trying to find out exactly what had happened from Kohl so I could get to the truth of the matter and maybe find some sort of loophole that I could sneak you out through… but to walk in on you in the middle of…’ her voice sputtered out again, but only momentarily. ‘Well what did happen? Was I right about you all along? Damn you if I was! I will encourage Elijah to whip you, and hard!’

  I looked up at her, just in time to see her swing on me, her pretty, pale blue nightgown swishing behind her. Her eyes were a matching shade of ice blue, and she was wringing her hands. ‘Well?’ she demanded. ‘I know you cannot speak, but from what I saw a few minutes ago while you were on top of my son, you have use of all of your body parts, so nod or shake your head, child! Did you deceive me? Did you fall in love with Kohén again? Or have you been in need of my help but simply powerless to ask for it?’

  I thought quickly about all three questions, and then shook my head- a no to all three. I wanted her help, yes- but she wasn’t in a position to help, only to agitate matters further.

  The duchess moaned in exasperation. ‘What? How is that even possible?

  I sniffled and wiped away my tears. ‘I cannot tell you how that is possible- only assure you that it is and beg you to leave it at that, for everyone’s sake!’

  Her eyes bugged further. ‘I thought you’d lost your voice! Have you been lying about that, or has he?’

  I shook my head again, taking her hand when she offered it and allowing her to help me off the ground- but turning my face away from her fingers when she winced and tried to touch the spot where she’d hit me, and where I’d hit the bed after. She retracted her fingers and stepped back, looking hurt, but I had a feeling that she was a lot more upset with herself in that moment than she was with me, so I combed my fluffy hair over my face and hugged myself.

  ‘My voice returned to me late yesterday afternoon, but I have kept that fact to myself, for not having to speak has been a godsend to me these past few days,’ I said softly, wincing a little when I reflected on what I’d just said. Losing my voice hadn’t been a gift from God, but a punishment from Satan, and if I didn’t mind my tongue, I’d end up on the receiving end of another! Bearing that in mind, I quickly crossed to Kohén’s desk and turned his small free-standing mirror over without first looking into it, knowing that so long as there was one in the room, Satan would be able to spy on me. ‘But please, don’t tell Kohén all right? If he believes that I was unable to converse with you, his paranoia regarding what I may have said to you after will be less, as both of our interrogations will be. In fact, you cannot confide to anyone that we have spoken, not Kohl, not Elijah and certainly NOT Karol, okay? All you will do is get me in even more trouble, and I need you to understand that I will never speak another word to you if I hear that you have quoted me to anyone!’

  The duchess paled and she grabbed my eyes, the anger within them slowly burning off and leaving fear behind. ‘Why?’ her voice broke. ‘What did Kohén do to you? What does he have over you? I know that he’s learned of Kohl’s affection for you… but has he learned of your intent to run away with Kohl too?’ her face crumpled. ‘Oh Larkin, did my sweet boy rape-’

  ‘Please, stop!’ I grabbed her arms back and shook her gently. ‘I cannot say anything about it, duchess- not a word! I know y
ou think you want the truth but trust me, you don’t, all right? All I can tell you is that Kohén, Kohl and I have made a plethora of mistakes that we are trying to keep between us, because if those mistakes ever become public knowledge they will not only ruin the three of us beyond repair, but your entire family and none of us want that- not even me.’

  ‘Ruin my entire family?’ The duchess looked stricken. ‘How? Tell me, so that I might do something to help!’

  ‘You can’t help!’ I repeated, growing frustrated. ‘I know you don’t want to believe that but it’s the truth! I am sorry that I have broken Kohl’s heart, but he is not the only one suffering that affliction right now, and a broken heart is going to be the least of everyone’s problems if you keep agitating matters!’

  ‘How am I agitating anything?’ Constance demanded. ‘I know nothing except for the fact that there is something to know!’

  ‘And that’s how we need it to stay, so you need to stop pushing your way into our confidences or trying to get to the bottom of things!’ I exclaimed, frustrated tears coming to my eyes. I’d wanted this opportunity to speak to Constance for days so that I could urge her to keep Kohl safe- but the only way to keep Kohl safe was to get him onto that boat with that Bible… and that wouldn’t happen if Kohl or I screwed Kohén over first, either by willingly confessing all of our secrets to Constance, or by allowing her to draw them from us because she’d most definitely take matters into her own hands and that would be cataclysmic for all of us, for she simply didn’t know how to control her temper, or know how to protect one twin without causing harm to the other. ‘Look, Kohl, Kohén and I are all currently tangled up in a complex web that we created with secret-keeping, lies and broken promises and it’s borderline unbearable... but because the three of us are all aware of the fact that we’re equally to blame for how bad things have gotten, we’ve all agreed to do what it takes to get ourselves out of the predicament we’re in, together. And the most important thing we need to do is keep all that has transpired between us between us, all right? So do not pester Kohl to spill his secrets, or look at Kohén like he is to blame for everything, or dig for information to sate your curiosity, because all you will do is cause the foundations of our tentative unity to crumble beneath us and incite chaos!’ I reached forward and grasped her hands. ‘Just be patient, and everything will work out okay for them, all right? Not brilliantly… but bearable.’

  ‘What about for you?’ the duchess demanded huskily, eyes glassing over. ‘How are you ever going to be okay, now that you’re stuck here?’

  I blew out a long, low breath. ‘I’ve made it three days without killing myself so far, haven’t I? I’m sure I’ll be fine. In fact, I think there’s a chapter in the guidelines somewhere about Companion PTSD and how to orgasm your way out of it...’ I joked, but my smile pulled in discomfort and her eyes overflowed. ‘Sorry, that was an impolite thing to say.’

  ‘Fuck politeness. Lark…’ she pushed my hair over my shoulders. ‘You’re not okay, are you? How can you ask me to stand by and watch you sink like this? There must be something I can do to help! Anything?’

  ‘There is.’ I gulped and grabbed her wrists again, pulling them down to squeeze her hands so she’d feel my desperation, even if she was too beside herself to hear it right now. ‘Firstly, you can encourage Karol to propose to Ora by exercising every ounce of influence that you have over him, all right? And it wouldn’t hurt for you to mention the fact that you saw Kohén and I acting passionately on his bed this morning either- because the more people that believe that I am here willingly, the better off we will all be. Secondly… you can convince Kohl to make his career a priority in the hopes that it might distract him from his broken heart and thirdly… you need to start treating Kohén better or in the very least- stop giving him the stink eye and assuming that this is all of his doing, because it is not! Your rage hurts him Constance and when he hurts, Kohl and I feel it!’

  Constance blinked rapidly. ‘I agree that the fact that people suspect- as I did- that you were seduced against your will is causing us a lot of trouble right now and it’s important to snuff out that fire if Kohén truly did not light it alone…and you are not the first person to point out that I am favouring Kohl over Kohén’s with no obvious grounds to justify doing so... and of course I will do whatever it takes to get Kohl’s mind off his broken heart right now…’ she squinted, ‘but what has pushing Karol into marrying Ora got to do with anything?’

  ‘More than you can imagine, and more than I am at liberty to explain,’ I said quickly, relieved that she’d more or less agreed to my terms. ‘The short answer is that it will help keep Kohén’s jealousy at bay, but the long answer is, like everything else, too volatile to expand upon now, all right? Just… just do whatever is in your power to keep him away from my wing of the castle, and you will help us more than I can express.’

  ‘But why?’ Constance demanded, and my short-lived relief began to dissipate. ‘Honestly Larkin, your answers invite more questions than they do provide answers! It’s frustrating!’

  I wrinkled my nose, thinking that I’d accused Satan of something similar the day before, and not enjoying the idea that she and I were alike- in any way. ‘I… I already told you, I can’t say anything else, all right?’ And then, I had a flash of inspiration, and clicked my fingers. ‘But I will, I promise. Do exactly as I’ve asked, and on Sunday, if Karol is engaged to Ora and Kohl sailing safely back to Pacifica- I will explain everything.’

  Constance narrowed her eyes sceptically. ‘Everything?’

  ‘The moment Kohén gives us the space to speak privately, I will divulge all,’ I said and I meant it. Kohén really would relax once Kohl was gone, and given the time and the right setting, I knew I’d be able to find a way to tell the duchess what had happened without that instigating more trouble. That time just wasn’t now- everyone was too edgy and paranoid, and her favouritism regarding Kohl was her Achilles and Kohén’s alike. ‘I swear it,’ I added quickly, crossing my heart, ‘but only if you swear not to do a single thing more to agitate the situation further before then, all right? Be a mother to them, Constance- all of them, equally and know that although I am a prisoner here, it is only because I chose to be, and so long as Kohén keeps his promise not to brand me, there will always be a chance that one day, I might walk free with enough gold to make my dreams come true…’ my voice caught because I knew that I was lying and that Kohén was never going to let me go, but so long as Constance saw hope in my eyes, she’d feel it in her soul, I knew it. What mother doesn’t want to believe the best in their children? ‘But only when I have earned it, and after I have made amends for the evil things that have been done in my shadow.’

  Constance hugged me hard. ‘You’re not evil, Larkin, you’re trapped by it!’

  ‘All the more reason to encourage Karol to marry Ora,’ I said softly, wiping at my tears as I pulled back. ‘She will put an end to this hateful system, I know it, and perhaps my release will follow her coronation.’

  ‘That is what I pray for, and between us… I believe that is exactly what is about to transpire.’ Constance pulled back and beamed at me through her tears. ‘Karol has been spending hours with her every day and ignoring every other-’ a scream sounded from somewhere that sounded further away than it was and Constance and I both looked at one another before she went flying towards the unlocked door, pushing it open and poking her head into the corridor.

  ‘Oh my goodness, the raid! I completely forgot about it all!’ Constance stepped out into the hallway. ‘Now I don’t know if we would be safer off staying here, or doing as Elijah instructed…’

  Constance did not know which option was safer, but I sure did and so I eased past her and out into the foyer. ‘I have to get back to that harem before everyone comes out of the ballroom, sees me and makes the scandal surrounding me worse!’ I whispered as I crept forward. I looked around for a weapon but saw only art and so I hurried faster, beckoning for Constance to follow me. �
��How many are there on the grounds?’

  ‘I have no idea,’ the duchess whispered, catching up with me just as I got out onto the landing. ‘Amelia-Rose and Shepherd Choir just pounded on our door seconds before I came to wake the boys and found you-’

  ‘Kissing,’ I whispered, ducking down so that I could sweep my gaze across what I could see of the hall beneath us, which wasn’t much. ‘That was all we were doing.’

  ‘And all I want to know about,’ Constance grumbled. ‘Anyway, they said that about four had been seen running across the grounds after having scaled the fence.’

  ‘How did they scale the fence?’ I squeaked.

  ‘They bombed the electric exterior fence, giving them the chance to put out the current and then practically smashed a section of it flat as they all scrambled over at once- and then they began to lift one another up over the solid brick part of Eden’s fence once they’d inundated the walkway between, getting at least four of them over.’ She sighed heavily. ‘And now that they’ve done that, I suppose it’s only a matter of time before they try it again. I wager that Elijah will have the exterior fence topped with razor wire now, and every section of Eden’s fence that has been left open to give the townspeople a view of our grounds bricked in by the end of the week!’

  ‘Four people doesn’t seem like many…’ I mused, thinking that I could probably take out that many. I’d bested six in a gauntlet of sorts on order to earn my PCE score… then again, that had been one at a time in controlled circumstances, not six on one in the midst of chaos.

  ‘Well they were screaming that they would sever the necks of every noble person or Nephilim that they met, so four people with the strength to get themselves over a ten foot fence with vertical bars and the gall to threaten decapitation seem like plenty to me. Can you imagine the damage done if even one succeeds? besides, who knows how many have made their way over behind them since Shep informed us of the initial breech?’