-12-
Two PM of the following morning found Annis, Nimueh, Merlin, Gwen, and Arthur in the office of Emrys Law. Merlin was behind a battered but still impressive desk and the rest of the room's occupants were seated in two groups: Arthur, by himself, in one, Gwen, Annis, and Nimueh in another. The two younger lawyers were shooting each other death glares, Arthur tried to catch his ex-wife's eye, and Gwen wishing very much that was anywhere but in the room.
"Now," Merlin began, clearing his throat to get everyone's attention. "The conditions of this clause are very simple so, once again, I will read it verbatim and we can all discuss how to best go about fulfilling the requirements."
He waited to see if there would be any protests or questions, but sensing nothing but anticipation, he began to read.
"'I, Uther Pendragon, of being sound mind and body, decree that the conditions stated within my last will and testament be followed faithfully, with no deviation from the matters stated within.'"
By the end of it, Merlin had to marvel at his former employer's thoroughness. Uther had covered all his bases, not leaving either Arthur or Gwen any say in the matter of his will's execution. Tintagel belonged to Arthur the moment he was born; as it had been for countless generations, the manor is handed down to every first-born Clarent.
"In the instance where the marriage is dissolved before an heir is born," Uther's will stated, "unless the union is formally declared null and void, the couple will be required to live together in the estate until an heir is produced or one or both individuals remarry. In that instance, the Clarent heir will be required to ensure the continuation of the lineage.'
"This is ridiculous!" Annis raged. "'Until an heir is produced'? Surely, this cannot be legal!"
She turned on Arthur.
"Your father has done some pretty twisted things while he was living, Arthur, but this...this is perverse!"
"I agree," Arthur's mouth was set in a grim line. "Merlin, figure this out."
Merlin cleared his throat and read once again the final clause of the will.
"Should one or either of the concerned parties disregard any portion of this testament, Tintagel will immediately be passed on to the next direct living heir," Merlin said and set the sheaf of papers on his desk. "That means Tintagel will go to..."
"Aggravaine," Arthur nearly spat out the name. "I would rather die."
"I would rather he died," Merlin mumbled to himself.
"I may hate you, Pendragon," Nimueh said, her distate evident in every word. "But even I don't loathe you enough to want Tintagel to pass into the hands of your uncle."
An uneasy agreement settled among the people present.
"Those are the only choices I have?" Guinevere's soft voice broke through the tension in the room. "Live with Arthur until I can produce an heir, remarry, or get an annulment?"
She looked at Merlin and her face showed a woman that was so broken that a lump of pain formed in Merlin's throat. Guinevere had done nothing to deserve this kind of cruelty.
"I'm afraid so," he answered, looking deep into his friend's eyes and wishing, once again, that he could turn back time to spare her any more hurt.
She turned to Annis, desperation clear in every line of her body.
"Is this legal?" Her voice and posture held the quality of someone who was trapped.
Annis quickly scanned her copy of the will, anger radiating from her posture.
"It is," she said grimly. "I'm sorry Guinevere, but for now there is only one loophole I can see."
"What is it?"
'Yes,' Arthur thought. 'What is it?'
"You will need to live with Arthur in Tintagel," Annis said quickly, moving her hand to cover the younger woman who was visibly shaken by the news. "But that doesn't mean you have to do anything else you don't want to do."
She looked at Nimueh—whose expression was grim and had her eyes trained on Arthur—and then at Merlin. A silent understanding passed between both lawyers and Merlin gave a slight nod, as if knowing what Annis was about to say next.
"You will need to live in Tintagel to honor the first part of the will," her grip on Guinevere's hand tightened. "But I will do everything in my power to make sure your marriage is annuled in the shortest possible amount of time."
"We were married in a Catholic ceremony," Arthur spoke softly, not wanting to do any more damage than was already inflicted. "Petitioning the Church may take a long time..."
Nimueh's eyes narrowed and she spoke to Arthur.
"You can always get married, Pendragon," she bit out. "That way you get your heir, your estate, and permanently stay out of Ms. Leodegrance's life."
Blue eyes met grey and the anger between lawyer and tycoon was electric. Merlin cleared his throat to dispel the tension, sure that if fisticuffs were next to happen, gender be damned.
"Annis is right," Merlin said in a strong voice. "There is nothing we can do about the fact that you do have to reside in Tintagel, but, I do not condone you and Arthur...," he gestured vaguely in the air, indicating the embarrassing clause of the will.
"But, Guinevere, please understand that we do not want Tintagel to pass into the hands of Aggravaine as well. The conditions of this will have to remain a secret, limited only to the people inside this room. I cannot petition the court to strike out any of these conditions because that would make the will open to public scrutiny. Doing that exposes its contents to people who will want to use it to their advantage."
He looked at Guinevere then at Arthur, then he shifted his gaze to both lawyers who were still bristling with rage at how Uther's will took their friend and client as if she was a brood mare.
"I am begging you, Guinevere, please, live with Arthur in Tintagel and Annis, Nimueh, and I will do everything we can to expedite the annulment."
Merlin's desperate plea was left hanging in the air.
Guinevere looked at Annis. She saw the quiet plea in the older woman's face. Annis had become more than her lawyer, she had become her friend, the one she turned to when she had no one else to confide in. She looked at Nimueh, the young lawyer had become her sister in the years they had known each other. As much as she distrusted Arthur and Merlin, she believed that the two women would move heaven and earth to make sure that she was safe.
She took a deep breath and breached the subject no one seemed to want to address.
"What about Mithian?" She looked straight at Arthur as she spoke.
It was that moment where Arthur's heart broke. He thought he had no more pain to spare when it came to his ex-wife, but as she asked that question, everything that had happened in the past three years came flooding back. How he tried to find her when she seemed to have disappeared from the face of the earth, how he had spent nearly a year half-drunk with trying to forget her, how he had clung to Mithian because she was as close to Guinevere as any woman he knew. How he was being cruel to her because she knew his reasons for staying and how she had never complained. And now, Guinevere—with Uther still trying to strike her down even in his death—was still thinking about other people. Arthur felt about two inches tall.
"Let me worry about Mithian," Arthur said with finality. He would explain to her somehow, make sure she would understand without going into detail. He would tell her that it was one of the many sick games his father concocted to control him and the people around him even as he lay rotting in the ground. He would explain to Mithian and then have her go on some extended vacation where she would not be able to witness this—his latest undoing.
Guinevere was, and always will be, his undoing. With all the pain they dealt each other, Arthur knew that he would be unable to love anyone but her.
Guinevere dropped her gaze and nodded, her eyes trained on the floor. She looked so broken, not like the feisty, fiery woman who had captured his heart.
'What has the world done to you, Love?' Arthur wanted to ask. 'Please let me in again and I will slay your demons.'
Annis and Merlin's tones broke him from his reverie.
"Arthur? Do you agree?" Merlin asked, impatience coloring his voice.
He turned to look at his lawyer and raised an eyebrow.
"To which part?" Arthur asked, hoping that he had phrased the question well enough that it would mask his distraction.
"We need you and Guinevere to agree that this has to happen at the soonest possible time," Merlin said, the bite in his tone impossible to ignore. "We need both of you to move into Tintagel within the next couple of days. It would shield both of you from public scrutiny—Tintagel's security would keep out prying eyes. It would also allow us to work on the annulment without the distraction of having both of you around."
Arthur nodded and looked to Guinevere. Her eyes were wide and her breaths were shallow—she was close to panicking and Arthur did what came naturally to him. He stood from his chair and closed the distance between him and his ex-wife. He stood behind her chair and put both hands on her shoulders. That she didn't flinch under his touch proved just how shaken she was; instead, one of her small hands touched his, her fingers seeking his out. It was something she did when she was frightened, Arthur remembered how his touch had been her buffer when things got too much for her to handle.
Unknown to her, the warmth of her hand comforted Arthur as well. She soothed him like no else was able to.
Their visible relaxation was not lost on the three lawyers. It should have warmed their hearts had they not known how much hurt Arthur could inflict upon Guinevere once again. But they took advantage of the present calmness that settled upon both to explain the plan of action. Guinevere and Arthur would quietly move into Tintagel, the press would be informed that both Mr. Pendragon and Ms. Leodegrance are still divorced although trying to work together amiably to accommodate the conditions of Uther Pendragon's will, and that, no, this does not mean they are reconciling.
When all was said and done, Arthur and Guinevere seemed to break out of the spell that their touch wove around each other. Guinevere turned and her eyes flew to Arthur's, his hands dropped from her shoulders and he backed away, mumbling an apology as he did.
Guinevere's head swam with what just happened. She and Arthur were going to be living under the same roof again in the guise of fulfilling the conditions of Uther Pendragon's will—one of which was to bear a child. Her hands reflexively dropped to her stomach.
'No,' she thought. 'Arthur must never know. He will never know of the child that fate took away from me.'
