“An annulment.” Laura’s voice was high as the idea coursed through her. “Convince the man to get an annulment. Be a nuisance to him, so he sends ye back. Annoy him. Be foolish. Be daft. Get an annulment.”
Emilie looked at Laura. She had no clue if she had it within her to do as her friend was instructing. But she nodded anyway.
She stood, holding her arms out to Laura with a grim look upon her face. The pair shared an embrace, and Emilie could only pray that Laura could not feel the shaking of her shoulders.
“Be safe,” Laura whispered in Emilie’s ear, giving her a final tight squeeze. “And go with God’s grace. We will pray for ye every day.”
A fresh set of tears burned Emilie’s throat as she let go of her friend, but she refused to let them fall. She would not give her parents the satisfaction.
She hardened her heart, turning away from Laura and walking out of the dormitory. She walked away from the dormitory, toward her parents. And all the while, one word was playing in her mind. One word that had ignited a tiny spark of hope that, try as she might, Emilie could not put out.
One word, that, while the carriage began to roll down the gravel drive, taking her away from the only true home and family she had ever known, started to spiral into a plan.
Annulment.
The spire of the church looked like it might pierce the sky as Emilie stared at it, gripping the skirts of her gown in her fist as she clambered out of her carriage.
“Would ye get a move on?” her father grunted from behind her, breathing heavily as he jostled about, trying to get his large form out of the cramped cabin of the carriage.
“Me apologies,” Emilie mumbled, averting her gaze to the ground as she stepped out of the way.
It had been like that for the entirety of the two days since Emilie had left the abbey. Her parents were constantly barking at her, giving her one order or another, and Emilie had to apologize and obey.
Her vows, even though she had not officially taken them, had been the only thing she had to focus on in order to find solace. And focus on them, she did.
“Lord, give me strength,” Emilie whispered to herself as she walked toward the church.
Two other carriages waited in front of the cathedral. Emilie assumed one of them must belong to her soon-to-be husband.
Archer Lynch, Laird of Clan McGregor.
His name rang through her mind. She had only finally learned it earlier that day, having heard the maids at her parents’ home whispering about it.
Apparently, he had a reputation for being a bit of a brute. A fact that had made Emilie want to vomit.
That same urge was welling inside her now as she walked through the doors of the church and into the stone halls. The soaring buttresses danced above her, stained glass windows casting merry colors on the floor as the sun shone through them.
All of it was at odds with the raging turmoil that was bubbling inside of her.
“Lord,” Emilie continued, hoping that now she was within a house of God, her prayers might reach him faster. “Grant me strength, grant me the ability to go with grace. Grant me the courage to do what I need to do to annul this marriage, and return to me life of servitude to ye.”
Bells chimed overhead, almost deafening as they echoed through the vast chambers. They startled Emilie from her prayers, grabbing her attention.
The bells were the only thing she had heard since her arrival. Which was odd, was it not?
By now, Emilie would have expected to hear a dull thrum of people talking. As a matter of fact, hadn’t there only been two carriages in front of the church? Shouldn’t there be more?
Have we arrived too early?
Emilie counted the number of bells chiming above. Twelve in total.
Noon.
Precisely the time the wedding was supposed to begin.
We arenae early, then.
The sound of a bagpipe filled the air, causing her hands to sweat. Her father came to stand by her side, mumbling something under his breath. Emilie did not care to try to understand him; she was too busy trying to calm her rapidly beating heart.