Free Lilah by Gemma Liviero Page B

no longer about me. There were Emil and Evie to consider. I would not
abandon them.
    He dismissed me then and barked orders at the
stable boy for not having his horse ready. I hastened to the kitchen relieved
to be free of his gaze.
    Emil visited me that night and once in his arms
again I felt comforted. He told me that he had sent a letter to his relatives
in Eszter. We had only an hour together before Danika had finished her evening
shift and we talked about the future, how Evie would come with us. I listened
to his chest and the sickness within. There was no way he would make the
journey without being cured first. It would mean revealing my secret and I
hoped not the risk of losing his love. I made a decision to tell him the
following night.
    The next morning, the sky was overcast and dead
leaves from the oak trees were being carried far from where they fell. The cold
was upon us, and the sudden increase in wind sent a chill through my bones as I
tended the laundry in the drafty washing rooms.
    Evening could not come quick enough; I was
looking forward to seeing Emil. I decided to pay another visit to Evie who had
not been to her music room since her father’s return.
    As I stepped carefully down the hall I smelt
the earthy smell of men and heard voices in hushed tones. I could not hear any
thoughts this time. Not always did I receive the gift of hearing. This seemed
to come at its own will – such a skill seemed to
choose me randomly. Evie’s door was partly ajar and I peered inside.
    Istavan sat next to his daughter on the bed.
Evie was lying down and at first I thought how gentle his tone was with his
daughter. Then I noticed that his hand – which had been resting on her
stomach – moved slowing to her thighs, and her look was not one of
calmness but of utter despair. Istavan’s thoughts jumped at me unawares: images
too debauched for me to have any real description of such.
    I breathed in suddenly with a gasp causing both
heads to turn my way. I stepped quickly outside.
    ‘Come here!’ Istavan demanded.
    Back inside her room I avoided making eye
contact with Evie in case he saw the pity in my expression.
    ‘What did you see when you looked in here
girl?’ he asked, narrowing his eyes. His voice had a raw and brittle edge.
    ‘Nothing,’ I said too quickly.
     ‘You failed to knock before you entered,
interrupting a precious moment between a father and his daughter,’ he said.
‘You must be punished for that. I will deduct a denar from your pay.’
    ‘Yes sir,’ I muttered, all the while keen to
find Emil to tell him to go straight to Evie’s room. But I never got my chance.
    Andrew stood behind me blocking my exit from
the room.
    ‘Is there something I can do, Father?’ he asked
dutifully.
    ‘Welcome back, Andrew. I trust your business
went well?’
    ‘Yes, fFather.’
    ‘Well then, you can show this servant girl to
her room and perhaps persuade her in the ways of propriety.’
    The look between the men lingered longer than
is usual and I did not need the gift of grasping words from their thoughts to
understand that at some point there would be more consequences than a deduction
in my pay.
    ‘Back to your room now,’ Andrew instructed. I
did as I was told, my body trembling, hoping that Danika would be in our room,
but also knowing that this was unlikely. The evenings were her busiest hours. I
prayed to God that anyone, Lady Köszegi, or Emil would see us and escort me
instead. Another servant passed us with her head lowered, careful not to make
eye contact with Andrew. I also prayed for Evie for the look in her face had
made me feel ill.
    As we returned to my room I understood the fear
that Arianne must have felt living here.
    Andrew shut the door behind us and pushed me
roughly on the bed.
    ‘Now I must obey my father,’ he said, his eyes
never leaving mine and his face leering as he unlaced the
front of his trousers . He pushed himself on top of me tearing at my
undergarments. I tried to