He sighed and moved some of my long hair back over one shoulder. I glanced nervously at his fingers next to my cheek.
"Eden, you grow more lovely by the day. The gods, in their infinite wisdom, have chosen an angel to lead us to the angels." He smiled and pulled his hand back and the breath I'd been holding came out in a sharp exhale. Hector didn't seem to notice.
He stood and walked the few steps to the fireplace and held his hands out to warm them, even though it was hardly chilly in his office. He straightened the fireplace tools, frowning down at them as if they displeased him. I remained quiet and simply watched him.
"I have to go away for a little while, my love." He turned to me fully. "Mother Miriam will be joining me on my quest this time. The gods have spoken and told me where I'm needed. I'll miss my little princess. But you'll be in good hands. Mother Hailey will be in charge of your care and will make sure you practice the piano and do your lessons as you should."
I nodded enthusiastically. I liked Mother Hailey much, much more than I liked sour Mother Miriam, and as it was now, I had very little interaction with Mother Hailey and her four boys. They lived in the opposite wing of the house with the other council members, and our paths didn't cross very often, except during meals.
When I realized I might look happy about Hector's impending trip, I lowered my head again and made sure my expression was properly depressed.
"How long will you be gone, Father?"
"I'm not sure just yet. The gods will tell me when my mission is complete." I nodded. Hector had been on several missions since I'd come to live with him. He usually brought someone new back with him, twice a council member, more often a family or person to live among the workers.
He looked perplexed for just a second, but then his expression cleared. "Our family is off balance. I sense it, and so I must ensure it's put back in harmony. I'll know the person, a council member I think." He stared off into space for a second and then seemed to suddenly snap out of it. His sentence continued as if he'd never paused at all. "And when I find them, just as I found you once upon a time, my princess—the girl to bring me peace and balance, to bring us all peace and balance—I'll bring them back here."
He paused again. "The whole world is off balance, Eden. Imbalance brings nothing but sin and greed . . . pain. I must protect Acadia from that."
I looked down at my feet, not really sure what he meant. "I'll miss you, of course, Father." And I thought I would, at least just a little. After all, he was the only father I had.
Hector was silent for a minute. Then he walked behind me and put both hands on my shoulders. He moved my hair off the back of my neck and I froze as I felt his warm breath on my skin right before his lips pressed against me. I shivered, forcing myself to stay still on the couch.
I felt Hector stand back up and he returned both hands to my shoulders. My heart thudded in my chest and everything within me urged me to flee. But I didn't.
"It won't be long now that we'll be married and I'll take you as my wife. And the foretelling will truly come to pass."
Dread raced through my veins. Suddenly, a year and a few weeks seemed so very near. The foretelling had said I would be his only wife and that couldn't be made so until I was of legal age. Eighteen loomed like a death sentence, literally and figuratively.
A flash of Calder's face raced through my mind and I wondered momentarily if I would have to watch him marry as well. Most likely. Despair made my chest ache. I'd have to bear that pain alone, as I did all my sadness.
"Yes, Father," I whispered.
**********
Hector and Mother Miriam left the following week, and so Mother Hailey and her four boys moved into our wing of the main lodge.
Mother Miriam had never been blessed with children, and so to now have the noise and laughter of kids around brought me happiness.
Mother Hailey had a kind, quiet demeanor and I loved simply being near her. Although I wasn't allowed to cook or clean like Hector's mistresses, Mother Hailey didn't seem to mind that I sat with her as she prepared meals and did laundry.
The first week they were there, I watched her play a game of jacks on the floor as her littlest boy laughed and chased after the small, rubber ball whenever it bounced away from someone.
Standing off to the side, watching them from behind a large column, I felt deep sadness and a memory I chose not to explore, skated around the edges of my mind.
Once, once I had been loved.
The tears began to fall and so I picked up my long skirt and walked quietly up the stairs to my room where I sat on my bed staring out my window at the city lights far, far beyond. I had come from lights just like those—another world entirely—a world almost as distant as the lights of the stars above.