The Ghost Bride Read online

  "Hello," I said, going towards the empty chair. Captain Kaffale took it out, helping me sit. Which was unnecessary, but, considering the atmosphere at the table, totally appropriate. I stared at my plate. There were five forks and four spoons on the right side of the plate. I'd never eaten with so many forks. Why do you need more than one?

  "Miss Laurendeau," Captain Kaffale said. "Allow me to introduce you my parents, Moira and Meldrick Kaffale, my brother Edric, and his wife Arlene. You know my sister-in-law Emere. Mother, father, this is Miss Amy Laurendeau, she's helping Emere and Ion with their baby."

  "Good evening, Miss Laurendeau," the old woman, Moira, said. "I hope you're having a pleasant time in our house."

  "Good evening, Mrs. Kaffale," I replied. "I am. Your house is most lovely."

  "I'm glad," she said. "Well, now that everybody's at the table, shall we start?" she waved her hand, and trays of food appeared at the table. "Aegisthus, dear, will you carve the lamb?" she said, while everybody started serving themselves out of the salad bowl.

  I kind of expected there would be servants in the house, considering the formal atmosphere and the number of forks, but I guess rich people are weird and like having many forks. How would I figure what was for what? Usually, that can be deduced by the order in which food is served (I once worked at a fancy wedding reception). But, with this mix of formality and informality, I would have to figure out things by observing.

  Frankly, I'd have preferred if I got dinner separately. But that wouldn't be too polite.

  * * *

  In the end, I only used one fork, and nobody seemed to notice.

  The conversation centered on political events, gossip, and the discussion of a theater play. I didn't understand any of it, so I tuned out completely, focusing on the food. They mostly allowed me to keep to myself, although they asked me a couple of polite questions about the Academy. I answered, but, after no follow-up questions, returned to chewing the food.

  The greasy lamb, the potato mash, and the thick gravy I generously poured over it filled my belly, making me sleepy. I hope I don't get asleep tonight. I needed a distraction more than ever. If Erynn would spend the night sleeping, how was I going to stay awake?

  After Moira waved the hand, and the food disappeared, only for desert to appear, I understood that I needed coffee. And something to do. If I ate cake, too, I would fall asleep immediately.

  "Can I have some coffee, please?" I asked.

  They looked at me strangely; this was the first time I said something on my own. Moira nodded, answering me.

  "Of course. We usually don't have coffee after dinner, since it impedes our sleep, but considering you have the night shift… Arlene, dear, could you make our guest some coffee?"

  "I can make it myself," I quickly said. "If you show me where the kitchen is."

  "I'll show you," Arlene said, standing up. I followed her, feeling more uncomfortable than ever.

  Why were they so nice to me? What was wrong here?

  The kitchen was right next to the dining room. I looked around. The plates with the leftovers Moira sent back were on the table, waiting to be cleaned. But nobody seemed to be around.

  "Where is everybody?" I asked. "Who cooks the food?"

  "This is a magical house," Arlene said. "While we do have servants, they can't stay here for long. They cook in a separate building, bring the food, and take the trays to clean up."

  "And why do you have the kitchen, then?" I asked. It was a fully functional kitchen. It had everything the kitchen in the safe house I'd been staying at, and more.

  "In case any of us wants to cook," Arlene shrugged. "Or make coffee or tea. We can't be calling the servants all the time. It's too inconvenient. And they don't work at night."

  "Who cleans the house, then? And does the garden?" I asked.

  I haven't seen that many rich people, but even the rich in Springfield, where I came from, didn't do their cleaning. And this family was, as far as I understand, much richer than anybody I've ever met. This house was a palace of luxury I'd never seen. And the salary they paid me as a nanny…

  "The house is cleaned by artifacts," Arlene said. "And the gardeners come during the day to do the work. The magic in the gardens is much weaker, anyway."

  "So only members of the family live here?" I asked.

  "Only members of the family," Arlene said, "and you."

  "And me," I echoed.

  "You said you know how to make coffee," Arlene said. "Can you manage on your own?"

  "If you can show me where the coffee pot and the coffee grounds are," I replied.

  She showed me and leaned on the counter while I made myself a cup.

  "Who are you?" she asked.

  "I'm Amy," I replied. "Amy Laurendeau."

  "I've never heard of the Laurendeau family," Arlene said, tilting her head.

  "That's because I'm not from a rich or famous family," I replied.

  "And yet," Arlene said. "You're living in this house."

  "I'm working here," I said. "As a nanny."

  "Right," Arlene said. "As a nanny."

  I'm not sure what she was trying to say, but the coffee was ready, and I poured myself a cup.

  "Shall we go back?" I suggested.

  "Sure," Arlene smiled.

  They were waiting for us. Nobody had eaten dessert without me.

  "We'll make sure we have coffee for dinner tomorrow," Moira said. "So you can take care of dear Erynn well."

  "She's a lovely girl," I replied. "So quiet. She sleeps so well, I'm afraid I may get asleep with her."

  "Does she?" Moira asked, raising her eyebrow.

  "She slept a lot today," Emere said.

  As I thought, they'd been observing me. Well, at least they care about their baby, as weird as they are.

  Emere accompanied me to the library, where she helped me select a few fiction novels. I wanted to get familiar with everything about Marn, including its fiction. Besides, watching a baby sleep is only fun for the first five minutes.

  "I rarely get to read when I'm with Erynn," she said. "But she seems to calm down around you."

  "I hope you don't mind," I said.

  "Oh, no, absolutely. She's a baby. She needs her sleep. Now, I'll go feed her, come in half an hour."

  * * *

  I changed my clothes, putting on the most comfortable dress I had. When I came into the nursery, with a pile of books and my notebook, Emere was sitting in the armchair, the baby on her chest, leaning on a pillow.

  "She's eaten," she whispered, while I gently took Erynn, rocking the baby in my arms.

  "I'll leave you then," she said. "Call me if there's anything. My bedroom is right in front of the nursery. Come there when she needs feeding."

  I nodded, holding Erynn as she burped. It's good that I covered my shoulder with a towel.

  I hope they have washing artifacts. Or somebody who does the laundry.

  * * *

  At some point in the night, I started feeling guilty about the amount of money I was getting. Erynn got asleep soon after I played a bit with her, and she only woke up once during the entire night. Noticing she was hungry, I stepped into Emere's bedroom, and gently shook her.

  "What is it?" she said, still half asleep.

  "Erynn needs to eat," I said.

  She switched on the bedside lamp and started feeding her daughter. I turned around, giving her privacy. When she was done, I took Erynn from her hands and went back to the nursery.

  I so don't want to be a mother now, but being a night working nanny is not too hard. After the feeding, Erynn stayed awake for a little, as I sang her a few nursery songs, blew raspberries on her belly and helped her shake the rattle (which she immediately tried to hit me with). She released another bubble through her mouth, smiling, and I ate it again. Nobody told me what I was supposed to do with them, and that seemed to be the best solution. Erynn then frowned, and I took her to the bathroom where I changed the stinky nappy into a fresh one, keeping her dry wit
h lots of baby powder.

  After moving more in her cot, she fell asleep, while I sat next to her, reading my notes while directing the lamps' light away from Erynn.

  It was a very peaceful night. If every night will be like this, it makes me wonder why they're paying me this much.

  In the morning, when it was almost the time for me to go to the Academy (the healer had finally allowed me to use magic, so this would be my first magical practice class it more than a week; I hope I hadn't lost too much practice), Ion came into the nursery.

  "There you are," I said, standing up. "Can I leave you with Erynn? I need to go to the Academy soon."

  "Sure," Ion said. "I'll stay with her until Emere wakes up. She was sleeping so sweetly, I couldn't bear to wake her up. Thanks to you, she's had the best sleep in months."

  "I woke her up once for a feed," I pointed out.

  "That's still way less waking up than she usually needs to," Ion said.

  I was going out the door, but then I heard him call me.

  "Go downstairs for breakfast," he said, "before you go to the Academy. You still have forty minutes, right?"

  I only saw Captain Kaffale, his parents, and his brother Edric at breakfast. They were all eating, their breakfasts in various states of finishing.

  "Good morning," I said, sitting down, as I did yesterday, next to Captain Kaffale.

  "Good morning, Miss Laurendeau," Moira, as the clan mother, seemed to take the lead in the conversation. "How was your first night with Erynn?"

  "Quiet," I said. "She slept through the entire night, only waking up for a feeding. She's with her father now. Emere is still asleep."

  "This is probably her first night of full sleep in weeks," Moira said. "I'm so grateful to have you here, Miss Laurendeau. I can't help caring for my granddaughter as I'd like to, so it's good to know my son and Emere don't have to deal with this alone."

  "I'm glad to be here, Mrs. Kaffale," I replied. "Since I'm new in Marn, and I have nowhere else to go."

  "But you're attending the Magical Academy, right?" she asked. "In this distance department thing."

  "Yes," I nodded. "But I don't have a dorm or another place to stay. Working for your family is a great option for me while I study."

  "I'm not convinced distance learning is possible with magic," Moira said. "But it's probably OK for first years. For the second year, though…"

  "Oh, I won't be attending the second year," I said, buttering up a piece of toast, and topping that with a generous layer of jam.

  Everybody at the table stared at me.

  "Why not?" asked Captain Kaffale.

  "I don't think I'll be able to get the scholarship," I replied. "Or even pass the classes, frankly. I'll be lucky if I don't get kicked out."

  "And which are the subjects you struggle so much with?" Moira asked.

  "Practical magic and Magical Energy," I replied.

  There was a brief silence in the room, during which everybody stared at Captain Kaffale for some reason.

  "That is fairly common," Moira said, "in people like us. Which is why we tend to study at home first. But I'm sure you'll figure it out. My son," she said, pointing at Captain Kaffale, "also struggled, and now he's quite a decent magician."

  "Did he?" I asked. This was quite an interesting conversation, and it seemed like there were many things to explore, but, after checking the vizor, I saw there was no time. There were only fifteen minutes left until my class started. I swallowed the toast, following it with a glass of milk, and stood up. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to the Academy."

  6

  Even though I was running late, Martinus was waiting for me in the Main Hall, his arms crossed.

  "Good morning, Martinus," I said, smiling, trying to go around him towards the classroom.

  But he caught me by the sleeve and pulled me toward him.

  "What was yesterday's spectacle?" he said. "Why did you tell my mother you wanted a big engagement party?"

  With everything about my first workday at work, I'd almost forgotten about the prank I played on him.

  "A big, expensive engagement party," I noted, "for which your family would have to pay, since I have nothing."

  "I see," Martinus said, giving me an amused look. "You were hoping Mother would want to cancel the engagement, weren't you? In that case, you shouldn't have told her about the compatibility."

  "It can't get much worse than this, can it?" I asked, pointing at his arms, holding me. "It was worth a try."

  "Oh, it can. It will be much worse… for you," Martinus said. "You think she didn't get what you were trying to do? She wouldn't even mind a real gold-digger, she's so desperate for grandchildren. So now, we're getting a huge engagement party… With magical fireworks and illusionists and all our classmates invited."

  "She didn't seem too happy with me yesterday," I said, starting to doubt myself.

  "Mother is never happy," Martinus said. "But, when she left, she was already discussing centerpieces and appetizers and musical quartets. She's been dreaming about my engagement party since she couldn't get a daughter. She's quite taken with you, you know."

  "And are you OK with it?" I asked.

  Despite him announcing our engagement to everybody, I was still suspicious. Was it real? Or was it all some kind of elaborate prank? Sure, we were magically compatible. But I was still a poor orphan with a lot of problems.

  "Well, I wasn't intending to do this so early," Martinus shrugged. "I was going to wait for you to agree before I told my parents. But, since you forced my hand, I'm going along with it. I can't deny my fiancée the engagement party she wants."

  "Somebody tried to hurt me," I said. "And you got harmed helping me. Are you sure you want to be immersed into my problems?"

  "I was already neck-deep into your problems," Martinus said. "At least I get something out of it now."

  "But you don't even like me!" I said. "Doesn't it bother you?"

  "Who said I didn't like you?" Martinus said. "You're cute. I thought so from the beginning."

  "Of course, that's why you called me a beggar and a mongrel," I said, sarcastically. "Because you thought I was cute."

  "I'm sorry for that," Martinus said, hugging me closer. "I was like a schoolboy, pulling a little girl's hair. It's not like I could do anything else before. But now," his mouth was close to mine, close enough that if I turned for a bit, we'd be kissing each other. "I get to try a lot more interesting courtship strategies."

  I leaned back.

  "Get your hands off me!" I said.

  He did, with a mischievous smile on his face.

  "OK, dear," he purred.

  I took a few steps back.

  "This is not over," I said. "If you're going to go around saying we're engaged, I'll make sure you pay for that," I said.

  "I'll watch," he said.

  I had to run to class after the conversation with Martinus as I was running late. I came into the class right on time, and only noticed the dress I'd been wearing this morning when I sat down on the floor. It was a lot harder to sit with a large, bulky dress, than wearing jeans.

  "Good morning, Amy," Yllana said, noticing my clothing. "You look different."

  "I approve," said Martinus, who also sat nearby. "As much as I enjoy seeing you in those trousers, I prefer my fiancée to wear more decent clothes."

  "Really?" I asked, my head full of thoughts on how I could use that against him.

  "And before you try to come up with some silly idea," Martinus said, "consider that I can cover you with an illusion if you try to dress something too provocative."

  "Wow, Martinus," Zethe said. "I didn't expect you to be such a jealous fiancée. Can't I have some fun, too?"

  "Not ogling my fiancée, you can't," Martinus cut him, firmly.

  That's when Professor Maler noticed us, coming towards us.

  "I see, Miss Laurendeau, that you're back," he said, "after your unfortunate magical accident. Do you feel ready to do the exercises?"

/>   "I do, Professor Maler," I replied, firmly.

  "Well then. Try to do the usual. Everybody else, try to do the exercise with two lamps," he said, and everybody went towards the box at the entrance.

  "Don't get too upset, pumpkin," Martinus whispered into my ear while everybody stood in the queue. "While I find your desire to study admirable, my woman will never need to work a day in her life if she doesn't want to. And if you want to study, we can hire all the best tutors for you."

  "Gee, thanks for the generous offer," I said, "but I think I'll pass."

  "Your loss," Martinus shrugged and caught the lamp Zethe threw at him.

  * * *

  If I hoped things would get better after my father 'finished me', breaking into the Academy and casting a spell on me that ended up prostrating me in bed for an entire week, that hope was soon dampened.

  It was going as bad as usual. In fact, today I struggled even to switch the lamp on. Somehow, the way it worked before wasn't working anymore. I spent most of the three hours desperately trying to get any amount of light, and only got it on at the end, by the time my classmates managed two simultaneously.

  * * *

  The Magical Energy class didn't go that much better, as it also seemed that I lost even the small gains I made.

  So, no surprise, I didn't feel like staying at the Academy after class.

  "I'm going back," I told Yllana, as we were heading out of the class.

  "How did things go today?" Yllana asked, eyeing Martinus, who wasn't hiding that he was listening to us.

  "Not bad," I said. "I'll go have a walk today. I need some fresh air."

  "Call me from home," Yllana said, as we headed towards the Main Hall. "We should be able to talk in private."

  "I will," I promised.

  * * *

  I woke up feeling rested and full of energy, despite only sleeping for six hours. I still had a lot to study and prepare for, but today I wanted to explore. I showered and changed from my pajamas to a dress for daily wear and some sturdy, leather boots I bought with my advance.