Page 33 of Besotted
I focused on the pages only to realize I was indeed holding the book the wrong way. I snapped it closed and tossed it next to me.
At the doorway where he was whittling, Chester’s lips cocked with the beginning of a grin.
Of course he was happy Rory and I were out of sorts. “You don’t need to stand guard any longer. I’ve obviously provoked her, and she’s not coming to visit me.”
“True enough.” With a cheerful salute, he left his post. A moment later, the door banged closed behind him, and the sound of whistling filled the air as he made his way across the yard toward the kilns.
Jorg watched out the window, following Chester’s trail. As soon as the burly guardian was out of sight, Jorg stalked to the doorway, poked his head out and spoke to Aunt Elspeth, then shut the door.
“I told her you needed privacy, for... you know...” He nodded at the chamber pot as he grabbed his stool and positioned it near the head of the bed. As he sat and leaned forward, his severe expression confirmed what I’d guessed. He had news, and it wasn’t good.
Ever since his return from Birchwood late last night, I’d sensed an undercurrent of tension in his demeanor. During the couple of instances when Chester had stepped away momentarily, Jorg had started to share something with me but had been interrupted by Aunt Elspeth and Idony, almost as if they were determined not to give us any time alone.
“I must speak with haste,” Jorg whispered. His features, which had begun to fill out again after eating Aunt Elspeth’s baked goods, were etched with urgency.
“What is it?” I pushed myself up, but the movement was too fast and jarred my wound.
“While in Birchwood, I learned both of your brothers are in Mercia.”
I shrugged, attempting to make myself comfortable. “’Tis of no consequence to me.”
“It is now.”
I halted my restless positioning, a shimmer of trepidation shooting through me. “I suppose you will tell me why whether I want to hear it or not.”
He nodded. “They have both married.”
“Married?”
“Aye, married.”
At one time I might have scoffed at my brothers for the news, but feeling as I did about Rory, my heart swelled with compassion for them. If they had experienced even half of the emotions I had, I understood well their motives for getting married. “Whom did they wed?”
Jorg shared all he’d learned, that Vilmar had led a slave revolt in Warwick’s mine pits, married one of the slaves, and was now on the run from Queen Margery. Mikkel had wed the rebellious Princess Pearl, Queen Margery’s oldest daughter, and was also on the run from the angry queen, having recently taken refuge in Inglewood Forest.
“You do know what this means, do you not?” Jorg asked as he finished relaying the news, glancing over his shoulder toward the door.
Unfortunately, yes. “It means they both will earn the disfavor of the king and the Lagting alike.”
“Exactly.”
Although the rules of the Testing didn’t explicitly prohibit marriage, everyone knew that once we completed the Testing and the Lagting decided upon Father’s successor, the arrangements for our brides would be finalized and we would soon be married. That meant we had no right to choose for ourselves or to wed without permission.
Why had my brothers defied tradition? Especially the two of them, who were so much more careful than I was about following the rules. I didn’t understand it. Almost didn’t believe it. Except the seriousness of Jorg’s expression told me ’twas true.
“They also both left behind their Testing,” Jorg whispered.
“They may yet return to their assignments.”
“With but a month to go? I don’t see how it’s possible.”
The rules of the Testing stated that if we left our location for any reason, we must go back and finish. Moreover, if we abandoned our duty entirely, we would forfeit any claim to the throne.
“Your brothers have eliminated themselves from the kingship. And now you must consider yourself the next king of Scania.”
“Me? The next king?” I almost laughed, but Jorg wasn’t smiling. This was no jest.
“You will be the only prince to complete the Testing and, in so doing, prove your worthiness to take the throne.”
