Page 52 of A Maid's Fateful Courtship
“I do!” a voice called out, but Ethan was so lost in his misery that he did not hear the voice. Nor did he notice the entire room of people turn around to follow the sound of the voice.
It was only when a haunting silence lingered in the room that Ethan was brought to his senses. As his wits returned, he wondered why the priest was delaying his lengthy performance.Why has he stopped?
A faint buzzing hit his ears and Ethan realised it was the people in the room whispering. He should have been paying more attention to the ceremony; had he hesitated to give an expected reply to the priest?
Looking up from his habitual gaze at the floor, he noticed that everyone was glancing Cedric’s way. With no idea what had come about, his eyes meandered over the guests. When he stopped to look at Thomas, he could see the man had a look of fury on his face. Lord Thomas was muttering something under his breath, but that only served to confuse Ethan even further.
This caused him to glance over at Lady Matilda.Why is everyone whispering?At once he realised that she too wore a look of shock, similar to everyone else's in the room.
“Have I missed something?” Ethan asked into the silence, puzzled at the turn of events whilst he had been daydreaming the ceremony away.
Chapter 41
Cedric moved to the front of the room to stand get closer to Ethan and explain the reasoning behind his interruption.
“I must reveal a deceit that has been used to orchestrate this ridiculous marriage,” Cedric told Ethan. Ethan was unsure what was happening and was oblivious to the stares from everyone else in the room.
“What can you mean, Cedric?” Ethan asked as Cedric took hold of each of his arms and forced Ethan to look directly at him.
“I have interrupted this wedding for a valid reason, brother," Cedric emphasised as he stared into Ethan’s shocked eyes. "Please, allow me to explain it all to you. Will you listen to what I have to say?”
Ethan glanced around the room as he began to notice the silence. It soon became clear to him, that everyone was staring intently at them. Cedric had a tone of urgency in his voice so whatever had happened must be serious.
It was clear to Ethan that his brother wanted to express something important to him otherwise he would not have stopped the ceremony. Ethan nodded his head, waiting for Cedric’s explanation.
“The event in the library with Lady Matilda, it was contrived by her brother to happen that way,” Cedric revealed. “Thomas has long wanted the joining of our families. He wanted it so badly that he arranged for his sister to be seen in a compromising situation, I am certain of it.”
Ethan looked over at Lord Thomas, who was glaring at Cedric with malice in his grey eyes. It took a moment for Ethan to discern what his brother had accused him of. But as he came to realise the importance of his accusation, it all started to make more sense to him.
He had wondered why Lady Matilda had lingered so close to him that day in the library. She had been sent by her brother to make it look as if he had taken advantage of her.
Everyone was standing in silence as Cedric spoke. They all awaited any further revelations. In the end, it was Lord Anthony who broke the silence as he turned to his friend in disbelief, “Is this true, Thomas?” he asked.
“Stop!” Lady Matilda called out and all attention turned to her. She was wavering in her stance, as if she may fall to the floor at any moment. Tears seeped from her eyes and her voice quivered as she spoke, “My… my family… you must understand, we are on the verge of bankruptcy—”
“No, Matilda, quiet your loose tongue!” Lord Thomas called over in the hope of stopping her from saying any more. “My sister is wounded by your words, sir!" He moved through the family members so he could stand in front of Lord Cedric, in a threatening posture. “How dare you smear my family name?”
“I tell the truth of how it is,” Lady Matilda called out again, for she was not to be quelled by her brother anymore.
“I am in love with another, and not with Lord Ethan. My love for a merchant was not good enough for my brother, and he refused our request for marriage. He made it quite clear to me that my family could not afford for me to marry someone of such low status.
Tell them, brother, how you forced me to make sure that I found myself alone with Lord Ethan. I did not wish to do that to you, my lord, believe me, please,” she pleaded.
“I cannot understand any of this?” Lord Anthony said, moving to stand at the front of the room. “Why, Thomas, would you do such a thing to your sister? And to my family? I thought that you and I were friends?”
“He is not your friend, Lord Anthony,” Matilda continued to expose her brother’s wrongdoings. “It was all a ploy to marry me off to someone of wealth. That, Lord Anthony, is all my brother cares about. And you were not good enough because he wanted me to marry the rightful heir to the estate.”
“Do not listen to her. My sister knows nothing of business affairs,” Lord Thomas attempted to defend himself.
“She is simply aggrieved that I would not allow her to marry a merchant. That part of her story is true. And now she fabricates her own account of events to cover her disgraceful behaviour. How could I have forced the two of them to lay upon the floor of the library, I was not even there?”
“That was truly an accident,” Lady Matilda snivelled.
“My brother demanded that I make sure I was found alone with Lord Ethan, by the Marquess himself. He knew of the arranged meeting between them and called upon me to stage act the whole affair. He wanted to use that meeting so that he could force Lord Ethan's hand.”
“You lie, and now you make up stories to cover your own impurity, sister!” Lord Thomas called out as he made actions to move closer to her. It was Ethan who stepped in his way and blocked him from moving toward her.
“Carry on, Lady Matilda,” Lord Anthony encouraged her. "I... we would like to hear everything you have to say."
