Page 22 of Beholden
“I do not think less of you,” I admitted softly. “If you must know, I admire you most exceptionally.”
“I admire you too, Gabriella. Very much.” I could sense he wanted to say more, but at a noisy yawn behind us, I spun to find Alice was awake, watching our interaction without a trace of sleepiness to her countenance.
Had she been alert the whole time and merely resting? Had she witnessed me practically throwing myself into Vilmar’s arms? If so, she would have seen I wasn’t pretending to like him, that my attraction was genuine. Surely she would scold me later for allowing anything to develop between us when such a relationship was futile.
“Come now.” I crossed to Alice. “We have been gone long enough and must return to work before our friends start to worry what has become of us.”
As I helped Alice up and led her forward, I could feel Vilmar’s gaze trailing me. I forced myself to keep going, unwilling to look back at him. I’d already so foolishly revealed just how smitten I was with him. What good could come of allowing more feelings to develop between us when in three weeks, I’d likely be dead?
Hours later, as we began the arduous trek out of the mine pits, Curly fell into step behind me.
“I want ye to marry Vilmar,” my friend whispered.
The words were so unexpected that I tripped and would have fallen except that Benedict held out a steadying hand.
“Marry?” I squeaked.
“Aye, marry.”
“Hush.” I glanced to the rear of the group, where Vilmar hiked with Ty. Hopefully, he was too far back to have heard Curly. Even so, the stone passageway was narrow, and every sound echoed.
“He be a good man and a good fit for ye.”
“I have no plans to wed.” I shifted my bucket from one arm to the other, the weight bending me over as it did everyone else.
“Ye must, so when he’s done serving his six months and his family releases him, he can be taking ye with him.”
“No one ever leaves the mine pits.”
“Ye will. With him.”
I climbed for several more paces, trying to process Curly’s words. Was he insinuating I use Vilmar to escape back to civilization? And was such a thing even possible? Would the overseers and guards allow me to go with him if we were husband and wife? They liked me well enough that they just might. And would they let Alice and Benedict accompany me?
The very idea that I might be able to save Alice and Benedict from this nightmare sparked hope inside me. I’d already asked Vilmar to help free my faithful servants once he was restored to his family. And though he told me he’d try, we both knew he had no guarantees. Would the chances be greater if I married him?
Though I didn’t know much about where he planned to live, I could beseech him to take us somewhere far away from Queen Margery and her cruelty and evil practices, someplace safe where she’d never find us.
But if I did so, I’d have to abandon my chance to put an end to the yearly sacrifice to the terrible beast. And I couldn’t do that, not when I could save countless young women in the years to come, and not when I had the chance of bringing slavery in the mine pits to an end. Without the maidens, no more jewels would grow, and the slaves wouldn’t be needed.
“I cannot,” I whispered to Curly.
“Ye can and ye will.” His voice turned hard, a tone I’d heard him take with others when he was determined to get his way. But he didn’t know my plans to bring an end to Warwick’s most dreaded custom.
“I shall not use him.”
“Ye’ll not be using when he cares about ye like he does.”
My thoughts returned to earlier when we’d been training and he’d held me as though he cherished me. The remembrance of his arms surrounding me warmed my insides, and I still felt the imprint of his lips against my head.
“And ye cannot deny ye care about him in return.”
Of course I couldn’t deny it, not after the past few weeks of keeping up our charade. Even without the pretense, I couldn’t deny I liked him. I hadn’t been lying when I admitted I admired him exceptionally. It was the truth. Even so, marriage wasn’t the answer.
“We cannot get married, Curly.”
“People get married all the time in Slave Town. In fact, I’m planning to ask Molly to marry me erelong”
For a short while, I distracted Curly with talk of his plans to propose to Molly. But my redheaded friend was persistent, and I wasn’t surprised when he brought it up again as we climbed up the hatch. “Ye don’t deserve to be here, Gabi. And if ye marry him, ye’ll be set free.”
