The Amulet: Chapter Seven.

CHAPTER SEVEN:

Yawning, Alize awoke. Looking at the foot of her bed she noticed a pile of things Felicity must have laid out for her. Swinging out of bed with a renewed vigor, she stood carefully and excitedly noticed that she wasn’t dizzy. She still felt a little weak but at least she’d be able to make it through the day. Striding to the end of her bed she gingerly picked up the dress lain there. It had been specially made for her by Felicity and was positively beautiful. She stroked her finger along the blue silk and smiled. Also on the bed was her white corset and blue hair ribbons.

There was a quiet knock at the door and it opened slightly. Felicity poked her head through and grinned. “Would you like me to help you with that?”

Alize laughed, “Yes, please.” The woman scurried over to the bed and picked up the corset. At the same moment Alize removed her nightgown and pulled on her underskirt. “Who is
awake?”

“The misses and master are up. As is young Iram,” Alize held her arms in the air and let her place the corset around her body. There were small tugs as Felicity tied the strings together. “Upright Ma’am,” Felicity said and immediately Alize took a deep breath and sucked in her stomach. Felicity pulled the strings as tight as she could and when Alize let out the breath she had to take a couple small painful breaths to get used to the constraint. It had been a while since she’d worn her corset. She turned to face the woman who was studying her carefully. Once satisfied Alize put her hands once more over her head and Felicity slipped on to her. After she had secured the ties in the back Alize went to the mirror to pose for herself. She felt wonderful.

The blue of the dress matched and brought out the color of her eyes and it looked positively amazing on her. The neckline came down just enough to show the lining of her bosom and her necklace hung in the center perfectly. The dress was tight around the middle but at the bottom flared and hung straight to her feet. The sleeves and bottom were hemmed with white lace and the sleeves were three quarters length.

“It’s lovely Felicity, thank you.”

The old woman grinned sheepishly, “No need to thank me madam, was the mistresses orders, I just do what she says.”

“Still, I love it.” Alize said smiling. She knew the woman would never accept her compliments but that she liked them all the same.

“I must go check on the young master now, when you are finished your mother waits for you downstairs.” Felicity bowed and hastily left the room, shutting the door with a click behind her.

After studying herself in the mirror for a while, Alize removed the braid from her hair and let the curls they had created overnight flow around her shoulders. She brushed her hair gently then tied it back with a ribbon. No, it didn’t look right. She took it down again and left it that way. Taking a deep breath she strode across the room and tossed open the curtains. The room was flooded with light from the rising sun. Servants and children up for the day ran about their normal business in the yard below her. After opening the window, Alize let the wind play with her hair and she inhaled the fresh air, clearing her head.

Her fingers played with the windowsill nervously. She wasn’t sure how the day would turn out. She hadn’t seen Iram since they’d met in the kitchen and despite continuous interrogations Felicity would not tell her anymore about the rumors everyone had conjured about her. If her family and the others truly believed she was seeing someone else, well, she wasn’t sure what would happen. On the other hand, at least Cade was gone for a while. She hoped. With her fast recovery and a clear head she could now handle the Iram problem head on. In three days he would propose to her as planned, at least if she had anything to say about it. After taking one last deep breath she turned and left, leaving the curtains fluttering open in the wind.

The entrance hall was full of people. Family, friends, servants and children were everywhere. Alize located her mother and joined the group. Her mother was adorned in a dress identical to her own, only green. Her hair was up in a beautiful bun that shook every time she nodded. As Alize approached she smiled broadly, her face looked more relieved than happy.

“Alize darling, I’m so glad you’re well enough to join us,” her mother exclaimed, grabbing her hand and patting it lightly.

“Yes, you look quite well, how are you feeling?” A low voice inquired. Alize turned and faced Iram’s father and smiled warmly.

“Thank you sir, I feel quite well,” She curtsied slightly then spotted Iram, standing slightly away from the rest. Alize nodded to him and after a second he nodded back. His look was questioning and wary, she felt her stomach knot up. Then she resorted to studying her gloves until her father exclaimed that the carriages were ready. Her mother and father linked arms, as did Iram’s parents, and the two couples started outside. Iram approached her and offered his arm silently. She took it, as was custom, and he led her out. But his arm was stiff, and he was standing straighter than normal. Alize didn’t dare look at him as they approached the coach, but she knew he wasn’t looking at her either.

The carriages carried the group into town, and Alize spent the time looking out the window, all too aware of Iram and her father stealing glances at her. As they talked over different political matters Alize watched the towns children racing the carriages and different towns people going about their daily work before they would join everyone in the city for festival activities.

The city was only a few miles from their estate. As they approached the massive golden gates Alize felt the annual excitement flood through her. The festival was her favorite time of year. It marked another year’s pass and was full of fun and happiness and a freedom she didn’t receive during the rest of the year. The coach bounced along the cobblestone and familiar sights met her eyes. The peasant’s crude activities were played in one half of the city square while the upperclass activities were performed on the other. The dance floor separated them, accessible by both classes.

As they rode into the square the carriage came to a stop and her father got out first, offering her his hand. Alize stepped down, her silk dress winding around her in the wind. Iram stepped down and glanced at her. He stopped for a second and looked as though he was about to say something but instead turned and walked away, and she watched him go, frustrated. Why couldn’t he talk to her about it? And she couldn’t believe that he would think something like that possible of her. She clenched and unclenched her hands, determined to have things semi normal by the end of the day.

“Come Alize, your father must meet Sir Lafond for a short while, then we will all go to the theatre,” Her mother spoke offhandedly, her mind other places, and Alize followed her swiftly through the crowd to a nearby staircase. They climbed the stone steps and emerged on a platform overlooking the square. Her father was already seated here with a sinister and powerful looking, but extremely vain, man. This was nothing new, the Festival always began with her father meeting some powerful figure, sometimes more than one. Until he was finished no other festivities could be enjoyed. When she was younger Alize would bounce up and down and play with her dolls in a chair by her mother during this time. Now, however, she stood and watched the crowds from far above.

Afterwards they all proceeded to the nearby theater where a comedy was being performed by the middle class city residents. This year it was a comedy, and Alize watched half heartedly, her mind on Iram next to her. Finally, about halfway through, she couldn’t stand it any longer and turned to face him, intent on starting conversation.

“Any news on the pirate incident at Vonesa?” She asked clearly, then turned to face the stage again. There had been a pirate raid in a northern city that her father had been asked to take charge of. Alize had no doubt that was what his meeting with Sir Lafond had been about.

“They’ve discovered the name of the pirate in charge, but Lafond doesn’t have any information on location yet.” Iram said, not moving his gaze from the stage.

“They don’t have him yet? Not Lafond?” Alize said with fake surprise in her voice. She glanced at her mother to make sure she hadn’t heard the disrespect in her voice. Sir Lafond was great at what he did, but he gloated on it too much, even her father had said so once or twice. She smiled jokingly back at Iram and felt a wave of relief pass over her as he finally looked at her and returned a small smile. For some reason he looked sad but Alize ignored it, and as the crowd clapped after another funny moment she joined them, this time with more vigor.

But as she looked back at the stage something caught her eye and she jumped. On the balcony below her, designated to the middle class, stood Cade. But instead of watching the show he was leaning backwards against the railing and staring straight up at her, expressionless. Alize felt her eye widen and she inhaled sharply. While continuing to clap she glared at him and felt immediate hatred. He had no reason to be following her.