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Chapter 34
So many people. That thought kept reverberating in Cal’s head. She wanted to slam a door shut, but there wasn’t any door to slam. Only the flaps of the tent’s entrance that she poked her head from were available. She felt naked, exposed with only that flimsy covering. She wanted stone walls between her and the crowd.
The king was holding the ceremony on the same grounds where the celebration had occurred—the same celebration she and Maggie crashed by their arrival. Cal cringed and hoped for better luck this time.
Bowers of flowers, silk, and tulle were scattered about the clearing. Lamps hung from branches, whose leaves were only starting to turn color. Overall, it was a beautiful effect. Too bad she couldn’t enjoy it fully. She gripped the flaps between white fingers. She couldn’t go out there. She just couldn’t.
Maggie, Arrein, Vana, and the assorted handmaidens picked to serve for this occasion had long stopped attempting to comfort her. Ever blunt, her dear friend had told her nothing would end her jitters except finalizing the bond through ceremony and consummation. Maggie grinned wickedly while saying this last part and caused all the attendants to giggle. Cal had wanted to curl up in her elaborate gown but couldn’t. She dared not do anything to wrinkle the dress or destroy her appearance.
She looked her best and knew it. Arrein had artfully arranged her hair, and the simplistic yet elegant style suited her. The gown flattered her figure, the flowing fabric hugging her curves in strategic places. She shuddered at the amount of work that had gone into her ensemble. Tiny seed-like crystals, held in place with gold thread that gave off a soft metallic sheen, ran their way across the ivory jacquard-silk overdress. The matching underdress was plain except for the glint of light that played off the material.
A voice sounded behind her. She flinched, not thinking to hear a male in the tent.
“My dear, we aren’t going to attack. Don’t look so petrified. There is naught to worry about.” Talion came over to her and took her hands between his. They were warm and reassuring.
“Believe it or not, you hold my son’s heart in your hands. That is a very rare and precious thing.” He looked down at her hands, spreading them beneath his. “These hands, though small, were strong enough to accomplish something no other female has been able to do. Relian is strong in body and spirit, and his match could be nothing less, Daughter. I hope you will honor me by addressing me as Father.”
Cal’s gaze flew in Maggie’s direction. Her friend watched with shock-glazed eyes. Her mouth hung open, and Cal was sure hers was, too. Talion...his words. They were so sweet, so overwhelming. She’d never expected to have a father-in-law who looked barely years older than his son and who dressed in robes literally fit for a king. Even his small circlet-type crown emphasized who and what he was.
“I would be honored, Sire.” Cal corrected herself, “I mean, Father.”
He released her hands then clapped his together. “Good. All will be ready in a few minutes.”
She nodded, though alarm rose in her chest again.
Talion chuckled and shot Maggie a smirk, addressing her. “It seems your observation is correct, my lady.” Maggie’s cheeks stained with crimson, and her eyes spit sparks at him as he continued. “I don’t think her anxiety will be overcome until the ceremony is over, and they’ve retired for the night.”
All the women—elf and human—froze at his words. He walked out of the tent, still chuckling.
***
Cal’s gaze met her immortal future across the clearing. Gray and green were held steady by each other. His eyes, so intense, glowed against the backdrop of the tent he’d just vacated. That image made the gathered crowd recede for a blessed moment. Only he existed.
Her sight remained fixed on his, her peripheral vision belatedly taking in the magnificence of his appearance. The elegant lines of his gold circlet, similar to the one she wore, highlighted his features. Dressed in a calf-length, split ivory tunic belted over loose trousers, he wore an open robe of royal blue over the duo. How appropriate. The color suited him. The absurd thought kept floating through her mind. Then reality intruded. Suddenly, he seemed so far away.
All eyes were upon them. The stares seeped into her awareness, causing her pulse to beat at a wild tempo that barely allowed for breath. This was it. If she completed the ceremony, there’d be no walking away, not that she really could, anyway.
Needing something on which to focus, she repeatedly whispered to herself the vows Henril taught her. The distance between her and Relian appeared insurmountable. Apprehension flared, and she froze. It felt as if she waded through sand, through air, that suffocated her.
She looked toward him. Then somehow he stood before her, standing so close, his breath upon her face. His hands were warm upon hers, comforting and grounding her.
He led her toward the main bower in the clearing. They stopped before the cleric who would help officiate the ceremony. Relian took both her hands in his and turned her to face him. She was now uncomfortably aware their profiles faced most of the audience.
She glanced past Relian’s shoulder, and a familiar face met her gaze. As the father of the groom and as the king, Talion had his role to play. He gave her a reassuring smile. She also knew somewhere behind her, Maggie waited. Since Cal’s family wasn't there, her friend would stand in as a relative.
Talion stepped forward. His voice resonated through the clearing. “Beloved guests, we are here for a joyous occasion. Complete bondings are rare, and we have not been blessed with one for over a century.”
A century? Cal received a jolt at that snippet but forced herself to listen.
“Any bonding is a cause for celebration, but the one of our prince and his bondmate, Lady Calantha, is doubly so.”
At the signal of the cleric, Talion and Maggie both came before them, a length of ribbon in their respective hands. First went Talion’s ribbon around Relian’s left wrist and Cal’s right one. Maggie then performed the same act but instead reversed the whole procedure—starting with Cal’s left wrist and ending with Relian’s right. Once they were finished, the cleric spoke. “Before us is the symbolic uniting of two lives, two souls still uniquely individual but inexorably linked. Let none seek to tear it asunder.”
Relian spoke his vows next, the same ones Cal would repeat to him. His face remained grave, but was that a hint of a smile lurking in his eyes? His voice came strong and clear, warming away the cold that’d taken hold of her body. “No one can tear our bond asunder except through death. Even then, in the afterlife, it will exist, waiting for you to fulfill it. It cannot be torn for long, for what is eternity in the afterlife but a splash in the ocean? This I pledge to you.”
He squeezed her hands. The encouragement helped but not enough to completely settle her nerves.
Cal swallowed. Her turn now. Relian had sounded wonderful while reciting the vows, but she’d probably be a stuttering nutcase. She prayed to get through this quickly and without too much embarrassment.
