Cupid (11 page)

Psyche saw that her sisters were not eating and wanted to know what was wrong. "If the food is not to your liking, please tell me, and I will have another meal prepared."

"Everything is fine," Thomasina said. She and Calla smiled tightly.

"You are so fortunate to have married a man of such wealth," Thomasina continued. "Poor Calla and I married nobility, but, alas, what good is a man who has a full title and an empty purse?"

"What does your husband do?" Calla wanted to know. "He must be a very important person to have a palace like this and riches unlike any we've ever seen. What did you say his name was?"

"I didn't say," Psyche answered, a little flustered.

"Where is he? We would love to meet him," Thomasina put in.

"He ... he ... yes, he went hunting. That's what he spends all his time doing. I seldom see him myself." She gave a smile. "Oh, dear. Look. It is growing dark. How fast the time went by. Come. Would you like to take some jewels with you?"

Thomasina and Calla started drooling at the mouth. Psyche got up from the table, and her sisters followed as she led them down the corridor into a room where the table was piled high with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and jewels no one had gotten around to giving names to. Thomasina and Calla filled their pockets, then stuffed their bras with so many jewels, they could hardly move.

Psyche hurried them out of the house, nervous that they might ask her more questions about her husband. When outside, Psyche called for West Wind, who was resting atop a tree.

"Take them back to where you found them, friend Wind."

As Favonius lifted Thomasina and Calla into the air, he thought they were heavier than when he had brought them. He understood as he listened to them talk.

"It's not fair!" Thomasina declared.

"You can say that again!" exclaimed Calla. "Invisible servants who wait on her hand and foot."

"Plates and goblets of gold! Room after room filled with jewels and fine garments."

"Why is she the one who always gets everything?"

"Father loved her more than he did us. And now, she has what must be the wealthiest man in the world for a husband."

"It's not right!"

"No, it isn't!"

Not only the jewels, but jealousy and malice, had made the two sisters so heavy that Favonius was tired and out of breath when he deposited them back on the mountaintop. Even though he was supposed to do whatever Cupid or Psyche wanted him to, he didn't know how many more trips he could make with those two. If they kept feeding each other's malice, they would end up as heavy as the mountain.

Thomasina and Calla were eager to get back to their parents' palace and look at the jewels they had acquired. However, if they returned with expressions of sated lust, everyone would be suspicious. So the two sisters tore each other's clothes and scratched their faces to make it appear that they were grieving for their "dead sister." They agreed not to tell their parents that Psyche was alive, for if they knew how well her marriage had turned out, they would love her even more.

When Thomasina and Calla reached the palace, they didn't have to say anything. Their disheveled appearance was enough to confirm the king's and queen's worst fears. Psyche was indeed dead! As their parents began weeping anew, the two sisters went up to their chambers and unburdened themselves of all the jewels they had taken, then hid them behind loose bricks in the fireplace. Then they began plotting: how could they kill Psyche and get her husband? Or at least his wealth.

Cupid was afraid. Psyche was naive and had seen nothing of the sisters' animosity toward her. He had to find a way to convince her not to listen to them, not even to see them. If he didn't, Psyche would unwittingly destroy their relationship, and he did not know what he would do without her.

That night, in the darkness of the bedchamber, he told her again, "My love, you are in great danger."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Thomasina and Calla want to destroy you."

"Me?" she laughed nervously. "They are my sisters. They would not do anything to hurt me."

"Please listen to me. They are going to try to persuade you to look at my face. You must not. Indeed, if they try to visit you again, please do not let them come here."

"That would hurt their feelings. Please don't ask that of me."

"Very well. But you must not answer any of their questions about me. Do you understand?"

"No. My sisters are as curious about you as I am. Why won't you tell me who you are? Why won't you let me see your face?"

"You do not need to see my face to love me."

"No, but I would love you even more if I could see your face."

"But what if you saw my face and loved me less?"

"That would not be possible."

"How can you be sure?"

Psyche realized that she couldn't. She would have liked to think that she would still love him, but she could not say with certainty that she would have, and that made her feel ashamed.

"One more thing I need to tell you before I go," Cupid said, interrupting her thoughts. "You are carrying my child."

"What?" she exclaimed in joy and disbelief. "How do you know? I don't feel anything."

"I know much. For now, all you need to know is this: if you are able to resist your sisters when they implore you to look at my face, our child will be born divine. But if you disobey me, our child will be mortal. Do you understand?"

"Yes. Yes, I do," she responded eagerly, but she answered too quickly and with exaggerated emotion. "I don't think
you trust me," she continued, tears in her voice. "When my sisters were here, did I betray you in any way?"

Reluctantly, Cupid admitted that she had not.

"You act as if I do not know how to take care of myself. I do. That is riot the problem. You, my love, do not understand how terribly lonely I get during the day. You do not know how slowly the day crawls past as I sit and wait for your return. When my sisters visit, it helps time go faster. The minutes when I will be with you again are not as far apart when my sisters come and distract me from thinking of you.

"I promise that if you let me see them again, I will never again be curious to see what you look like."

With great reluctance Cupid agreed, but as he flew away that night, it was with tears in his eyes. He knew. All was lost.

Sun had scarcely begun his journey when Thomasina suddenly awoke. She knew how to get rid of Psyche and take all the riches for herself and Calla.

She woke her sister and shared the plan with her. Calla was ecstatic. The two sisters embraced, then dressed hurriedly and were on their way to the mountain.

When they arrived, they called out Psyche's name. She heard, then sent Favonius to bring them. Carrying two
people of such evil was not to West Wind's liking, but he did so. When he set them down at the palace door, he hoped that when he took them back it would be the last time he had anything to do with them.

The two sisters rushed into the palace, shouting, "Psyche! Psyche! Are you all right? Sister! Where are you?"

When Psyche heard their voices, she came running. "Oh, sisters! I am so happy to see you!"

Thomasina was shrewd. She was content to spend the day chatting with Psyche about their childhoods and other inconsequential matters. If anyone had seen the sisters as they lay beside the pool and chatted after bathing, he would have thought no sisters had ever loved each other as much as these three.

Supper that evening was quite sumptuous, with course following course of melon balls, lobster tail, lamb in mustard sauce, perfumed rice, and wild peas in a lemon butter sauce. All of this was accompanied by the finest wines, and the meal was completed with fresh, ripe strawberries dipped in chocolate.

All three sisters looked like they were in a drunken stupor from the rich food, wine, and dessert. Thomasina and Calla had not, however, eaten as much as Psyche. They were as alert as deer ready to run at the snap of a twig. Thomasina and Calla exchanged looks: now was the time.

"Little sister," Thomasina began softly, "tell us again about your husband. I know you mentioned him last time, but I can't remember what you said."

Psyche was so groggy from all she had eaten and drunk that she could not remember what she had told them. "He's ... he's ... a, well, a merchant! He must travel a lot, of course, which is why he is not here to meet you."

Thomasina and Calla looked at each other again. Last time Psyche had said her husband was away hunting.

Calla reached over and took Psyche's hand, squeezing it softly. "Oh, poor Psyche!"

Psyche looked concerned. "Why do you pity me, Sister?"

"We know the truth, and we are disappointed that you would not confide in us, your sisters who love you so much."

"I-I-I have no secrets to hide," Psyche said, unconvincingly.

Now it was Thomasina's turn. "We are hurt that you mistrust us so."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"When we were here before, you told us your husband was away hunting. Now you tell us he is a merchant."

"He ... he is both," Psyche responded weakly, and then she started to cry. "Oh, dear sisters! Forgive me! I did not mean to lie to you. It is just that—" She stopped as she remembered what her husband had made her promise. But at that moment, he seemed so far away, she wondered if he were actually real.

"Go on," Calla said softly.

"I do not know what my husband does. And worst of all, I have never seen his face."

"How could that be?" they both asked.

"He comes at night, makes love to me in the dark, and leaves before the sun comes up."

Thomasina sighed deeply. "It is just as we feared."

"What did you fear?" Psyche asked eagerly.

"When father told us that the god Apollo said you were to be married to a monster, we asked Father to tell us more about this monster. He could not. He said he had been so devastated by what Apollo had told him, he had not wanted to know more. We upbraided him for not protecting you."

"Early this morning," Calla continued, "Thomasina and I went to Apollo's temple ourselves and asked him to describe this monster you married." She stopped.

"Please go on," Psyche pleaded.

The two sisters sighed dramatically.

"What Apollo told us was so awful I am reluctant to repeat it," Thomasina said. "After all, look at you. You live in the finest palace in all the world, with more wealth than you will ever know what to do with. You have invisible servants to carry out your every command. You eat the finest foods. Would that our husbands provided for us half as well. If our husbands did for us as yours does for you, we would not care what they looked like."

Psyche burst into tears. "Sister. Why do you torture me?
If you know something, it is cruel not to tell me. I have spent so much time trying to imagine what my husband looks like. Please. What did Apollo say to you?"

Thomasina looked at Calla. "Should we say what we learned?"

Calla hesitated. "I don't know. Our sister is delicate. I would not want to be responsible if we spoke and her heart was so startled by our news that it ceased beating."

"Stop it!" Psyche screamed, beyond herself with fear now. "Tell me this moment, or I shall call West Wind to remove you and keep you from coming here ever again."

"Very well," Thomasina said. "But we warned you." She paused, then went on. "Your husband comes to you in the guise of a man, but he is really an enormous snake with large jaws. He has a body that could wrap itself totally around you from head to foot. Worst of all, he has a bulging neck filled with poison."

"Oh no!" Psyche cried.

"I fear there is worse."

"What could be worse than what you have said already?"

"Only this. Your husband pampers you now. He will continue to do so as long as you do not bear him a child."

"Why? What will happen?"

"His favorite delicacy is a woman near the end of her pregnancy."

Psyche shrieked. "Oh no! No! No!"

"What's wrong?" Calla asked.

"He just told me that I-I am carrying his child."

"But how could he know?"

Psyche, weeping, shook her head. "I don't know. I don't know."

Thomasina couldn't believe what she was hearing. This was working out better than she could have dreamed.

Psyche, tears flowing down her face, hugged her sisters. "Thank you for telling me the truth, but now I am confused and frightened. Please tell me what to do."

Calla answered. "The moment Thomasina and I left Apollo's shrine, we began talking about that. We agreed that there is only one solution. Get the sharpest carving knife you have. Hide it in your bed. Tonight, after the monster makes love to you and falls asleep, light the lamp. Then take the knife and cut off his head. And do not be afraid. Thomasina and I will be close by, and when you have done the deed, we will hurry in and help you get away with all your treasures."

With tears still pouring down her face, Psyche nodded. "Thank you, Sisters! I do not know what I would have done without you."

Slowly, Psyche walked away.

When Thomasina and Calla heard Psyche close the door of her quarters, they gathered as much jewelry as they could from one of the rooms, then hurried out the front door of the palace.

Favonius saw Thomasina and Calla looking around as they hurried across the palace grounds. He picked them up, though they were even heavier than before.

"What do you think is going to happen when Psyche sees her husband?" Calla asked her sister.

"If I know our little sister, she will be so frightened, her husband will look like a monster even if he is not."

Calla laughed. "She probably won't even look at him. She'll try to stab him with her eyes closed."

They laughed.

"She doesn't have the nerve or the strength to kill anyone. If she tries, her husband, whoever he is, will awaken, see her with the knife in her hand, take it, and kill her."

"And then he will come looking for us to blame."

"Which is why we must not go back to our parents' palace. That is where Psyche's husband would look for us. Let us return to our husbands and offer to give them some of our jewels in exchange for divorces."