Chapter 10:
"How could you do this to me, Michel?"
Vaughn simply stared at his mother in shock and confusion that she would react the way she'd been for the last ten minutes since he'd approached her with his need for her consent. "'Do this' to you? I am simply asking for your approval of marriage."
"To a woman you hardly know," she added somewhat touchily.
"I am more acquainted with her than you are aware." He was glad she didn't know just how much. "The truth is, I met Sydney on a Sunday and by Wednesday I knew I would never love another as much as she."
"You…committed adultery?" she asked with a sideways glare.
"No, Maman," he shook his head, partly lying. He'd had plenty of lustful thoughts during that week spent with Sydney to warrant adultery committed against his fiancée at the time, although he'd never admit it except to his priest in the privacy of a confessional—something he knew he should probably do soon. But, currently, he had more important matters to work out. "I've told you… My relationship with Elizabeth has been long over. Breaking off our engagement was merely a formality."
"Then why did you not say anything to anyone before this week? And why must your relationship with Sydney be widely known in the form of such a hasty wedding? People will talk," she said the word disgustedly.
"People always talk, Maman. Nothing we do can change that. But I want to marry Sydney while her parents can be here to witness it. She wishes for them to be present and to me I have the most important reason to agree to the timing: to please my love."
Amélie considered it for a moment before slightly shaking her head. "No. No, I cannot agree. It is too soon."
"You would not support our marriage?"
She shook her head again. "I cannot."
Vaughn sighed and looked to the floor as his fists clinched at his sides. "Then I suppose we will have no choice but to elope and live elsewhere until you would approve."
Amélie gasped, "You would not leave me!"
"Yes, Maman, I would," he answered evenly. "If that is what it will take to marry the woman I love."
She turned and paced the floor around the sofa, silently shaking her head and wringing her hands together. "I do not like this…what she has done to you."
Vaughn took an irritated step forward and demanded, "What do you mean?"
"She has changed you, Michel. You would not have left me before meeting her."
"I would not have left before because I had no reason to, Maman. I have never known how powerful love could be until I met her. You must remember what that was like. You loved my father—"
"My marriage with your father was arranged, just as yours was with Elizabeth," she divulged and Vaughn took a step back in surprise.
"What? I thought…the two of you were in love when you married."
"We were," she nodded. "But that was beyond our control. The first moment we laid eyes on each other, we knew it was meant to be."
Her words encouraged him to take a couple of steps closer and implore, "That is how I feel about Sydney…"
"I still cannot accept her as family," she continued to shake her head. "We need more time to become better acquainted; if not for your sake, then for mine."
Looking to the floor again with a slight shake of his head, Vaughn's next words were soft. "As much as it pains me to say it, Maman, if you cannot accept her now…you never will." Seeing that she was without an argument, he turned on his heel and left the room, heading for the front door. And he didn't see Sydney on the stairs with tears in her eyes and holding her breath to keep silent.
She hadn't intended on listening in, but after ten minutes had passed, Sydney simply wondered how Vaughn's conversation with his mother was going. She'd snuck down the stairs to listen in for just a moment, but found herself rooted to the spot, unable to walk away when she heard the heated argument. And the more she heard, the more she realized that Amélie might not ever accept her as a daughter-in-law. It made her wonder how her reaction fit into the scheme of her life with Vaughn—only she, Vaughn, and their son were in the painting that had proved to her that she would be Vaughn's wife…perhaps Amélie had passed on by then and was out of their lives?
Sydney considered the possibilities as she meandered through the gardens, enjoying the silence in order to try and sort things out in her mind. Her parents had gone for a horseride in the countryside, and she'd not seen Vaughn since he'd set off out of the front door. She'd checked everywhere for him at first, to see if they could talk and try to work out another possible solution, but when she reached the stables, she found that his horse was gone as well.
Bending over to smell her favorite rose bush, Sydney was surprised when she heard light footsteps approaching. Assuming it was Vaughn, she turned around with a smile, "I was wondering where you'd gone…" Her voice and her smile faded when she saw that it was Amélie and not her son.
Amélie stopped several feet away and clasped her hands in front of her. "I thought I might find you here."
Sydney was a little shocked. "Were you…looking for me?"
Nodding slightly as she took another couple of steps closer toward one of the few benches around the pond, Amélie confessed, "I thought we should talk."
Swallowing nervously as Amélie sat down and patted the seat beside her, Sydney made her way over and obediently sat down, waiting to hear what she had to say.
Amélie began very slowly. "I know you love my son."
She paused, waiting for a reply, so Sydney nodded, "Yes, I do. Very much."
"And he loves you too just as greatly."
Sydney just nodded again.
Amélie took a deep breath, "And I am sure you overheard that I disapprove of the idea of the two of you marrying so soon." When Sydney looked away, unwilling to admit that she had heard much of the conversation, Amélie divulged, "I merely saw you on the stairs as I was leaving. And that is all right—it was your future as well that he was discussing with me."
She went on, "There is a good reason why I could not consent to your wedding…one that Michel doesn't even realize." She had Sydney's full attention. "It is embarrassing, but…the fact of the matter is that we are running out of money. My husband, although full of love for me and our son, was not very adept at handling our finances, and when he passed, he left an enormous amount of debt. Michel's marriage to Elizabeth was designed to solve the problem of our waning wealth. They were to inherit her sizeable dowry with their union, and it would have been enough to sustain our livelihood for many years to come. Now…" she shook her head resolutely, "we will be reduced to destitution within five years."
"And because I am not wealthy and bring nothing to the marriage, you cannot approve," Sydney clarified.
Amélie nodded. "You see—it is nothing personal. It is merely business."
Sydney turned to look at a lily pad floating on top of the water. "How can that be? Michel and I are…" she stopped herself before saying the word "destined" and reworded what she meant. "I can't live without him," she spoke suddenly in English, but Amélie shook her head, not understanding her. Sydney turned back to her and pretended to translate what she'd said into French while blinking back tears, "What can we do?"
Amélie sighed as if she was getting to the most difficult part of the conversation. "I believe he needs more time. He needs to understand our situation completely, so that the two of us can find a solution before he drastically changes his life with a marriage to a woman with no dowry."
"The two of you," Sydney repeated dumbly, ignoring Amélie's slightly derogatory comment attached to that revelation. "And me…?" Without waiting for a verbal answer, Sydney was beginning to understand just what Amélie was requesting. "You want me to leave."
"Just for a time so that Michel's full attention can be on our situation and not on pleasing his newlywed wife," she persuaded.
Standing up to walk the short distance to the edge of the pond, Sydney didn't know how to answer, considering she didn't have anywhere to go if she did decide that Amélie was right. She didn't think it was a possible solution, especially considering Vaughn wouldn't rest until he found her. Turning around when a thought struck her, she asked curiously, "You're not suggesting all of this only because of what the people here would think if Michel married a woman who was not Elizabeth so soon after their engagement, are you?"
"I will confess that is part of my reason, but even if I approved, it would not change the status of our finances." While Sydney was letting that absorb and trying desperately to think of another solution, Amélie stood up and addressed her one final time. "I believe this is the best course of action, Miss Bristow. And the sooner you leave us, the sooner Michel will be able to bring you back." She turned toward the house, adding, "I'll have Jean-Philippe bring the coach to the front of the house to take you wherever you need to go. I suggest you take advantage of Michel's absence to be swift with gathering your belongings. You will be greatly missed, Miss Bristow, and I only hope that the problems will be resolved soon so that you can return."
Sydney watched Amélie walk away in amazement to find a woman so devoted to her son that she would sacrifice his happiness as long as she believed it was for his own good. She wondered if that's what motherhood consisted of—always watching your child's back, making sure that he didn't make some tragic mistake in life that he'd regret. Thinking about their future, she speculated that considering how much she loved Michael, she knew she'd love their mutual son just as much as Amélie loved hers, and she'd probably be just as protective. Finally seeing Amélie's reasons, and realizing that they held a lot of merit, Sydney resolutely made her way to her room to pack her bags.
Vaughn's horse skidded to a stop at his command in the barn and he quickly dismounted, giving the reins to his stable hand and heading outside and toward the house. He noticed his future in-laws coming toward him on horseback and stopped when Jack said hello. "Where've you been?" Irina added.
"I was just…getting a few things in order," he answered vaguely, with a wide smile on his face. "I apologize for being so rude, but if you'll excuse me, I must speak with Sydney." They nodded in understanding as he rushed toward the house and entered through the front door.
Sydney was putting the last of her dresses in her bag when she heard the house clock chime four times. So when she heard a knock at the door, she knew it was her mother, who said that they would be back at four. "Come in, Mom," she called out lightly in English, snapping her bag shut as she ran through her planned speech in her head like she'd done over and over again in the hours she'd been packing. She knew her parents would have a problem with her leaving, but she knew she could convince them that it was the only way, and that it wouldn't change future events because she would still someday marry Vaughn.
She had her back to the door so she was surprised when she felt arms wrap around her waist and Vaughn pleasurably kissing her neck. "Hello, my love—" he started, but immediately noticing the bag on her bed, he pulled away slightly. "What are you doing?"
Sydney bit her lip and kept her back to him as she let out a nervous breath. Her stomach was queasy as she announced, "I'm leaving."
"What?" he demanded to know as he spun her around to face him. Her eyes immediately filled with tears but she still tried to avoid his gaze. "Have I made you unhappy?" he implored, holding her arms to look into her eyes.
"No," she said quickly, and then shook her head as she looked down to the floor. "No, you've been wonderful. But…we need some more time before we get married."
"My mother spoke to you, didn't she?" he knew immediately and the knowledge made him clench his jaw angrily. "If she told you that I didn't really love you, you know that's a lie—"
"That's not what it is," Sydney verbally stopped him and he dropped his hands from her arms. "There are other reasons that you just don't know yet. But you will as soon as I'm gone." She picked up her bag and attempted to walk around him to leave when he grabbed her arm. She stopped and looked at his hand on her and lifted her tearful eyes to his. "Vaughn…this is for the best. Let me go…please."
Vaughn remembered hearing those same last words from her lips twice in the short time they'd known each other, and each time, he'd obliged her request. But not this time, when their mutual happiness was at stake. "No," he said defiantly. "Not until I know what she said to you."
"Ask her—"
"I'm asking you." He waited as she realized that he wasn't going to back down. "Tell me."
His hand loosened its grip and slid down her arm to hold hers, and Sydney squeezed her eyes shut and sighed and then made her way to the bed to sit down on the edge beside him. She began to tell him all that Amélie had relayed to her earlier in the day, trying to recall every detail to keep from leaving anything out, and when she was through, she felt only a little ridiculous that she'd agreed that leaving him would be the best solution.
Vaughn remained silent through her whole explanation and asked if she'd told him everything. Sydney nodded and then he asked, "And you were going to leave so that my mother and I could work out our finances?" She nodded again and he furrowed his eyebrows. "Where would you have gone? How would you have supported yourself?"
She shrugged, "I don't know. I hadn't planned that far ahead yet."
"Sydney," he mildly chided, intertwining his fingers with hers to squeeze her hand, "a woman today must still rely on her family for financial support or otherwise she would have to resort to being a lowly seamstress or a maid or a prostitute in order to survive. We do not have independent women here like you did in your time. Leaving here would've been suicide." He lifted her hand and kissed the back of it, smiling slightly in relief. "I am so glad I caught you before you made that mistake."
He stood up then and pulled her to her feet, heading toward the door. "Where are we going?"
"We…" he answered dramatically, keeping the smile on his face and her hand in his, "are going to straighten this out with my mother once and for all."
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