Testament (5 page)

Micah groaned. “Oh, yes, we should. It’s long overdue because I was too big of a jackass to tell you how I felt.”

I couldn’t help wondering how long Micah had liked me as more than a friend. It was hard to believe how my feelings for him could be turned on in just an instant, but perhaps they had been lingering below the surface for a long time. Part of me wanted to keep going—to continue experiencing the sensations of his mouth and hands on my body, but I jerked him away. Staring into his eyes hooded with desire, I shook my head. “No, we’ve got to stop and think, Micah. Have you forgotten that I’m leaving for the palace in twenty-four hours?”

My words had the same effect of dousing him with a bucket of cold water. “Oh yeah, that’s right. Damn, I have the worst timing.” He raked a hand through his dark hair before rubbing his face.

I ducked down and started reburying the rosary. As I patted the earth back into place, Micah dropped beside me. He took my hand in his and stared into my eyes. “Don’t go to the pageant, Cadence.”

“But there’s a decree from the palace. I have to.”

Micah shook his head. “Run-away with me, instead.”

My eyes widened. “You can’t be serious.”

“I am. I know what Griff is asking of you.”

“You do?”

He nodded. “I’ve joined the Abir as well.”

I groaned and covered my eyes with my dirt encrusted hands. “Is every guy I know on some hero quest/death wish or something?”

“It doesn’t matter if I’m with them or not. You’re more important to me than they are right now. I can’t bear the thoughts of you not being safe.”

I took my hands away to stare at him. A small part of me was tempted by his offer. I didn’t know where we would run to, but I wouldn’t have to worry about helping Griff and the Abir or participating in the pageant. But then, I thought of my parents and what they went through for their beliefs—the very beliefs they had instilled in me. I had to try to help the Abir for them, so their deaths had not been in vain. And I had to do it for Griff, so that he could have a future.

“I’m sorry, Micah, but I can’t. I do care for you, but I have to try and help the Abir and Griff. I want a better world to live in. If I have children someday, especially a daughter, I want more for them.”

A defeated sigh escaped from Micah’s lips, but he nodded. “And if you don’t win the pageant or when Richard and his administration are defeated, can we…pick up where we left off?”

I couldn’t help but smile at his determination. “Like pick up right here at this very moment when you laid one on me under the apple tree?”

He shook his head. “With that mouth of yours, we have nothing to worry about. You’ll be sent home in the first round.”

Warm rays of morning sunlight streamed in through the windows, urging me out of the warm cocoon of blankets. But the moment I opened my eyes, the reality of my new situation crashed down on me. I moaned and jerked the covers over my head. How can one day alter your life so much? Deep down, I knew it was a stupid question, considering how many twenty-four hour periods had irrevocably changed my life in the past.

Griff rapped at the door. “Yeah?” came my muffled response.

I heard the knob turn, and then his footsteps creaking along the worn floorboards toward my bed. “What are you doing?”

“Hiding out.”

He pulled the covers off my head. “You just received your summons.”

I shot up in bed and snatched the envelope from his hand. I tore into it so fast I barely managed not to tear the letter.
“Dear Ms. Cadence O’Bryant. You are to report to the palace at noon to be interviewed by our supreme Emperor in regards to the procurement of a bride for his son. Do not bring anything with you—clothes and toiletries will be provided for you. Failure to report will result in facing a tribunal.”

The letter fluttered from my hands onto the old patchwork quilt. “I guess this means it’s really real.”

“So it would seem.”

We sat in silence for a few moments. I was sure both of our minds were whirling with what the next few days could bring. Finally, Griff cleared his throat. “Are you scared?”

“No,” I answered quickly. He cocked his head and gave me a knowing look. “Okay, fine, a little.”

“That’s to be expected.”

“Were you scared when you joined the Abir?”

“Of course.” Before I could protest, he smiled. “But not scared enough not to join or to quit.”

I rolled my eyes. “I figured as much.”

Griff leaned closer to me on the bed. “Stop worrying so much. There’s a great possibility that nothing will be asked of you. Kellan most likely will pick another girl, and then you will come home to your old life.”

“But you will still be a member of the Abir and could be taken away from me at any moment.” Tears welled in my eyes. “I don’t want to imagine a world without you in it, Griff.”

He pulled me onto his lap and wrapped his arms tight around me. “Have faith, Cady. Things will work out,” he murmured.

“I wish I could believe that,” I replied.

“If I could stay with you through the whole pageant thing, I would. I know you don’t like the idea of being by yourself.”

I wiped the tears off my cheek with the frayed corners of the quilt. “At least I know Micah will be with me and his mom.”

Trouble clouded Griff’s face. “Cadence…you probably shouldn’t show Micah any favoritism while you’re at the palace.”

“But why?”

“Because you don’t want anything to hurt your chances with Kellan.” He drew in a deep breath. “Men’s egos get bruised very easily. You don’t want a guy like Kellan feeling slighted by someone of Micah’s station.”

I groaned. “Griff, please.”

“I’m just trying to tell you the way it is. It’s not like you have a lot of experience with guys.”

“Yeah, well, what do you actually know about women? You never go out on dates.”

Griff ducked his head. “That doesn’t mean I don’t care for someone.”

My eyes widened. “Griffin O’Bryant, are you telling me there’s someone you’re interested in?”

“Maybe.”

I threw the covers off the bed. It sent my summons falling to the floor. “Who is she?”

His face flushed. “I-I, it’s, I—”

I stifled a laugh. “She must be someone special if she renders you this speechless.”

Griff turned away from me. “Can we talk about something else?” Pain replaced the embarrassment in his voice. I couldn’t help wondering if there was some obstacle with this girl. Maybe she was one of the upper-class—an advisor’s daughter, who would be shunned for dating someone like Griff. My heart ached for him.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

He bobbed his head in acknowledgement. “You better start getting ready. It’ll be time to leave in just a little while.” Then, he closed the door behind him.

I sighed. As I gazed around the shabby bedroom, my stomach twisted in knots. I couldn’t bear the thoughts of leaving. Deep down, I hoped it was only for a few days, but anxiety still reverberated through me like ripples on a pond. The dream reader within me deciphered it meant something looming on the horizon. I shuddered and chose to ignore it.

***

After I had showered and groomed to the best of my ability with the substandard plumbing we possessed, I dressed and came out for a late breakfast. Griff had taken pity on me and cooked breakfast. Of course, he didn’t burn any of it because he could put my abilities to shame with everything he did.

I slid into the rickety chair across from him. Neither one of us spoke as he started spooning up oatmeal. “Don’t,” I murmured.

“What?”

“I don’t think I can eat anything.”

He shook his head. “You need to eat something. I imagine it’s going to be a long day before dinner.”

I grudgingly spooned in a few bites of oatmeal. It felt like sawdust going down my throat. After I took a swig of orange juice, I got up and took my plate to the sink. When I turned around, Griff was waiting on me. I fell into his arms and started sobbing again.

“You’re going to mess up your face,” he murmured into my hair.

As I sniffed back my sobs, I said, “Maybe Kellan will think I’m just another emotionally weak female and like me more?”

His chest heaved in a sigh. “Fine, I won’t fight you anymore. Just cry if you want to.”

I hiccupped. “Thanks, Griff.”

He patted my head just like our father used to do. “Lean on them, Cadence. They’re with us, you know?”

Deep down, I did know. I could feel them from time to time, especially in dark times. It was like they gave me strength to go on. “I will,” I whispered.

I don’t know how long I stayed wrapped in Griff’s arms. His embrace was familiar and comforting—all the things I would miss in the next few days. He used the same soap and aftershave that our father had used, so it was even more bittersweet.

He pulled away and cupped my chin. “No matter what happens, you’re going to be all right. You’re too full of strength--or maybe, it’s piss and vinegar--to let anything bad happen.”

I couldn’t help but grin. “Yeah, yeah, we’ll see.”

“So, just go and knock em’ dead, all right?”

“Okay, let’s go.”

Griff could’ve let me make the bus ride to the palace on my own, but of course, he didn’t. We squeezed into a seat together, and he held my hand the entire ride. Gazing around the bus, I could tell several other girls from the slums were also on their way to the palace.

When it screeched to a halt outside the gate, I turned to look at him. He smiled and squeezed my hand. “I’ll be in the audience tomorrow night. So, if you get nervous, just try to find me.”

“That is if I make it through the preliminary interviews,” I countered.

“You will.”

I rolled my eyes at his confidence. “All right, I’ll see you then.” I kissed his cheek and then made the lone walk up the aisle and hopped off the bus. I walked empty handed into the palace, just as I had been told. Of course, this time I entered through the revolving doors of the front entrance, rather than the service entrance in the back.

As soon as I stepped into the lobby, a snooty looking official with a clipboard came up to me. “Name please?”

“Cadence O’Bryant.”

She checked my name off with a flick of her pencil. “You need to get into that line over there.”

I nodded and headed over to a somewhat clump of a line just outside the double doors of the banquet hall. The lobby rotunda echoed with voices. I guess a lot of the girls knew each other since they were chatting each other up. Maybe it was nervousness. I craned my head, surveying the different girls in different types of dress from the very wealthy to the somewhat poor like me.

I jumped at the sound of a voice behind me. “You’d think there’d be more, huh?”

I turned around to see a pretty, dark-haired, dark-eyed girl. “Yeah, that’s just what I was thinking,” I replied.

She bobbed her head. “The truth is there were probably over a hundred summoned. But a great many were weeded out before they even got through the palace doors.”

“Really? Why?”

 “Let’s just say they were the “toos”. You know, too ugly, too skinny, too fat, too ethnic. Basically, anything that would be perceived as too tragic for Kellan to be seen with.”

I giggled. “Yes, that would be a tragedy, wouldn’t it?”

“Of course.” She extended her hand. “I’m Maggie McNeil by the way.”

“And I’m—”

“I know who you are.”

My eyebrows shot up in surprise. “You do?”

“You’re Griff’s sister.”

“Yeah, but don’t hold it against me,” I quipped.

Her face remained serious. “Why would I do that?”

“Oh, you know, because he can be a real pain sometimes.” When she didn’t respond, I asked, “How do you know him?”

“He’s a—”

“Cadence O’Bryant.” a short advisor bellowed my name.

It was time to face the music, so to speak. But, I couldn’t move. The bottom of my worn-out shoes appeared glued to the floor. Inwardly, my mind screamed at my feet to move. Finally, I lurched forward and through the main doors of the ballroom. A long table was in the middle of the room. Richard, his social secretary, and a couple of advisors sat at the table.

“Cadence O’Bryant.” Richard eyed me over the top of his glasses. “You work here at the palace as the main floor dining hostess?”

“Yes, sir.”

He bobbed his head. “From what I see, you do a great job at that. Mrs. Sullivan highly recommends you.”

I fought back a laugh. The only reason Mrs. Sullivan recommended me was because I kept her rolling in extra money from my dream interpretations. “I’m glad to hear that, sir.”

“Turn around.”

“Excuse me, sir?”

“Turn around. We want to see what you have to offer.”

Blood pounded in my ears at his request. Venessa’s last words to him about not being a sexual object echoed in my mind. I bit down on my lip to keep from repeating them.

Richard noticed my hesitation and raised his eyebrows. “Is there a problem, Miss O’Bryant?”

I’d bitten down hard enough that the metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. “No, sir, I’m just nervous, that’s all,” I lied.

It took everything I had to force myself forward. I turned around and paused, giving the dirty pervert enough time to rate my backside from one to ten. Then, I whirled back around and smiled sweetly at the table.