His or her only response was to press his fluffy head to her chin. “Oh, so you want some attention?” she asked. She sighed as she slipped out of bed. “So do I, but I don’t think I’m going to get my wish.” She scratched his fluffy chin. “You on the other hand, are too cute to ignore.” She lifted the cat higher and looked between his legs. “Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean to invade your privacy. Just checking before I started thinking up names. You’re a boy, so that’s settled. Your gender, not your name.”
Shantra stepped into the shower and quickly washed up, keeping an eye on the little creature, afraid he might get hurt as he investigated his new surroundings.
After getting ready, she stared at herself in the mirror right along with… “Janus!” she exclaimed as she looked at the cream-colored tabby. “Yes! That’s the perfect name!” Janus was the Roman god for beginnings and transitions, a perfect start to her new life here.
Shantra thought she was brilliant, and cuddled the little guy closer, enjoying the way he purred and pressed himself closer. “You’re not very cat-like, are you?” she teased. “You’re supposed to be distant, and not want to be touched or held except on your terms.” The kitten reached out and tried to bat Shantra’s nose. “You’re cute,” she told the feline. “Let’s go explore our new home, shall we Janus?”
She stepped out of the double doors, blinking at the long hallway that she’d walked down…three days ago! She was actually shocked that she’d stayed in bed for three days. Everyone in the palace probably knew what they’d been doing that whole time.
She thought about it for a moment, then shook her head. There was nothing to do but plow through the day. So what if everyone knew that she’d stayed in bed with her new husband? Wasn’t that what newlyweds were supposed to do?
Of course, her marriage wasn’t exactly a love match.
Oh good grief, she was starving and didn’t want to think about her feelings towards her new husband. She wanted to explore and there was no way she was staying in their private apartment any longer. So she refused to dwell on what others might be thinking of her. Moving on down the hallway, she was determined to get out and start her new life, even if the idea made her stomach sick.
Her guards showed her to the main dining room and she stepped into the brightly lit room that opened onto yet another courtyard filled with flowers and shading trees. “Good morning,” she said to the two women who were already sitting at the table.
Both women looked up and… did one of them actually sneer at her?
“You must be the new lucky lady,” the older woman with streaked blond hair stood up. “I’m Linda, Laithir’s mother-in-law and this is Julia, his sister-in-law.” The two women stood at the table as if they were greeting a guest. Shantra felt like a guest as well, awkward and not sure what to do at the moment.
Shantra’s eyes blinked and she looked a little taken aback. “Mother-in-law?” she questioned, not sure about the connection between this woman and her husband. It was yet another point demonstrating how she didn’t know her husband well. “I thought Laithir was an only child.”
The woman laughed, a harsh sound that didn’t come across as very humorous at all, and waved her hand at Shantra. “Silly girl. I’m the mother to Laithir’s first wife. My daughter, Angela, was the love of his life, poor woman. She died a few years ago, you know,” she said, as she took Shantra’s hand and led her over to one of the chairs around the table. The woman acted as if she were the hostess of the palace instead of Shantra. And since Shantra had no idea what was going on, she didn’t want to rock the boat. She’d heard rumors of palace life in other countries, and knew that it could be a very political atmosphere with power-hungry relatives stabbing people in the back, both literally and figuratively, in order to gain power.
Shantra didn’t want to deal with pettiness like that, but nor was she naïve enough to believe that it didn’t exist. She knew that Laithir had loved his first wife very much, worshiped her and he probably had a special place in his heart for her relatives. Evidenced by the fact that they were still living with him years after his first wife’s death.
“I’ve seen pictures of Angela. She was truly a beautiful woman,” Shantra said politely as Linda poured coffee for Shantra into a delicate china cup.
Linda nodded, her eyes sad. “She was. You should have seen Laithir and my Angela together. They were so happy.” She shook her head as if it was too painful to think about. “Anyway, you’re here now. And you’ll bring Laithir’s spirits up again!” Linda patted Shantra’s hand. “I have faith that, between the three of us, we can bring happiness back into this old pile of stones.”