Chapter 10
When Mr. Todd was done explaining his plan, Mrs. Lovett was completely dumbfounded.
"Don't stare at me like that, woman," he scowled. "Do you think that I like this? I'm doing this for you, remember?"
"Yes," she managed to say. "But you are actually willing to do this? Isn't there some sort of secret reason that I should know of?"
Sweeney raised his arms in disbelief.
"I offer you a way out, and you react like this? A simple 'thank you' would suffice!"
He glared angrily at her, but Mrs. Lovett was not impressed.
"That's all very well, but only months ago you threatened to kill this child and now you say that you are willing to marry me in order to protect it? I'm very sorry Mr. Todd, but I find that hard to believe."
She stared back at him, unafraid of his intense gaze, two determined pairs of dark eyes locking until, unlike usual, Sweeney Todd looked away.
"I'm not doing this for you, but for myself," he said, shrugging. "If people think the child is illegitimate, they want nothing to have to do with you and your shop anymore. We both know very well what will happen when people don't eat the pies anymore; and they might stay away from my shop as well. And what will we do then? What if the Judge hears of it? He'll probably have dozens of illegitimate children himself, but he can get away with it while being the first to condemn you and me. Is pretending to be married to me really worse than risking to lose everything you have now, even your child and your freedom if you are send to Bedlam?"
Sweeney stared intently at the baker, but this time she didn't have the strength to meet his gaze.
Mr. Todd wondered why things never could be easy; why people just couldn't leave each other alone. First it was his Lucy, claimed by another man, while he was far away and couldn't help her, as he was banished on false charges. And now it was Mrs. Lovett, whose reputation would be ruined and even her freedom taken just because there couldn't be proved that the child she was going to have was actually her late husband's. The strange thing was, that even though he had been completely helpless all those years ago, he was capable of this woman. But what a pity it was that it was not his own wife that he could help, just that it was cruel that only Mrs. Lovett had been there when he had returned to London at last, and not his own, sweet wife. The wrong woman had been waiting for him, and it was the wrong woman he was having to help now.
"At least think about it," he said. "Do you think that I want this? No. But if we can save our reputations and my plans by pretending, then why not?"
His voice was unusually gentle when he said this, but she was somehow relieved when he stood up to leave her bedroom, leaving her alone with her thoughts and a small box that he had placed on the bed beside her earlier.
As he closed the door behind him, Mrs. Lovett carefully lay down on the bed, both her hands massaging her belly lightly while she closed her eyes. Of course, she had been absolutely thrilled when Sweeney Todd had asked her to marry him. Her dream had come true - until she understood his motives were, as always, driven by revenge and didn't have anything to do with her as a person – as a woman. If he hadn't been dependent on her, he never would have offered her his help in the first place, let alone in such a drastic way.
Their 'marriage' would be based on pretend and deceit, just like hers and Albert's had been. But in the marriage with her first husband had been honesty and companionship. She had not loved him as a husband but she had loved him as a friend, and that was something at least. She wasn't so naive to think that that those feelings would ever be there in a fake marriage to Sweeney Todd. She would have him, in spite of her distrust for him and the fear of the darkness inside of him, but he would never even see her as a friend, only as an unreliable woman who had forced him into a marriage.
"But really," she said softly to the child inside of her, "what is there to choose? I can't hide you much longer and I wouldn't be the first woman in my situation to end up in Bedlam. And here I am, thinking of love as a condition to marry Mr. Todd – as if I have a bloody other option."
She stared at the ceiling, wondering how what it would be like to be bounded to the man upstairs in a fake marriage, but she couldn't think of a happy scenario.
"I wish I could let you live in a different world," Nellie continued, realizing how useless the monologue was but deciding not to care. "But this is all I can offer you. But always remember, little one, you'll never be alone as long as I am alive."
In spite of herself, the baker reached for the little box that Mr. Todd had left on her bed and opened it carefully, not knowing if she should do so but doing it anyway.
Inside were two golden rings, simple but elegant, and beautifully crafted. Nellie was speechless for a few long moments and could do nothing but stare in awe at the weddings rings that he had bought already. Was he so convinced that she was going to accept his idea that he was sure that this huge investment was not in vain? Or did he hope that those rings would help to persuade her to agree with his plan?
Mrs. Lovett didn't know the answers to these questions, but at that moment, it didn't matter. Sweeney Todd had asked her to marry him and how could she ever say no, even if it weren't for the situation?