Banshee Song
Book Two

Chapter Thirty

"Lady Cassidy, Mr. Brady. We need to talk."

Rhianna stood, puzzled. What did the priest need to talk with them about, and why did she suddenly feel a sense of dread? "Aye, Father. Please come in." She led them into a small drawing room. Father Thomas chose a simple chair opposite Rhianna and Sheamus.

He wore a grave expression and many silent seconds passed while he put his thoughts in order. He leaned forward and stared at the two young people with hard, serious eyes. Finally, when Rhianna didn't think she could take the silence any longer, he cleared his throat and began.

"I have just received some very disturbing news. I don't know how to begin so I will just say it. Where were the two of ye last night?"

The question caught them by surprise and Rhianna and Sheamus floundered for an answer. "Um, well, me? Um, I was…" they stammered.

Father Thomas gazed upon the flustered pair and his sharp eyes took in Rhianna's blushing cheeks. "It is as I thought then." He sighed. "This morning, the two of ye were seen by one of my parishioners leaving a small cabin in the Braddock woods across the river – having apparently spent the night." He finished slowly, putting emphasis on each word. Spent. The. Night. He paused for a moment and the air was heavy with those three ominous words.

His dark brown eyes bore into the two before him. "Ye don't deny this?"

Rhianna sighed. "Aye, Father, it is as ye said. Sheamus and I were out yesterday meeting with prospective clients when we got lost and missed the last ferry back. We found the cabin and decided to stay the night."

The priest closed his eyes and shook his head. He seemed very sad then and Rhianna thought he looked a bit paler, as if the blood had drained from his face.

His eyes opened and stared at the innocent girl. "Rhianna, do ye realize the seriousness of the situation you're in? Ye spent the night, alone, with a young man. Do ye understand what this means?"

Rhianna paled and a thick lump formed in her throat. "But Father, nothing happened. It was perfectly innocent," she exclaimed, her large green eyes pleading for his understanding.

Father Thomas softened then and laid his hand on her knee. "I believe ye, Child. And if I were the only one who knew of this unfortunate incident, then I would be willing to simply let it go. Unfortunately, that is not the case."

He smiled wryly and shook his head. "Mrs. Clayton is a good woman, make no mistake, but she is what the good book calls a 'gossipmonger.' I'm afraid that many people had heard the news by the time it reached my ears. These other people won't be as understanding as I am; they're going to believe the worst."

Rhianna stood to her feet and covered her face with her hands. "Oh no," she moaned. "I can't believe this! What must everyone be saying?" Her cheeks blazed; she had never felt so mortified.

Sheamus turned to the priest. He was still trying to make sense of what he had been saying. "So what's the problem?"

"The problem is that Rhianna spent the night with a man that she isn't married to. It doesn't matter what did or didn't happen. Just the appearance of impropriety is enough to ruin her good name."

"What can I do, Father?" Rhianna asked.

"There's only one thing ye can do, if ye want to remain in the church. Ye must marry Mr. Brady."

Sean rubbed his still stinging cheek as he walked through the hall. The sting was due to a slap courtesy of one Miss Miriam Lockeheart. {She took that better than I thought she would,} Sean thought. He had just broken the courtship with Miriam, telling her that he had realized that he couldn't marry her; he was in love with another. She had been calm at first, understanding. But it all melted away and a second later she was attacking him with a fury to rival the Furies. Finally though, she calmed and declared with a haughty toss of her hair,

"Your loss," and went to her room to pack her things. She and her handmaiden were already away in a carriage by the time Sean was walking the halls.

" 'Tis a relief to have that over with," he declared as an invisible boulder fell off his shoulders. He straightened up with the sudden heady realization that he was free – free of Miriam and her mindless chatter, free of having to play the besotted suitor, free to love the girl he loved.

He stopped. Elizabeth. She was still lying in his bed, still suffering from severe injuries. He closed his eyes as another wave of guilt slammed into him. Anger and sadness and pain and remorse battled within him and he shook from the violence of his emotions.

"Sheamus is right," he uttered, his voice cracking with pain. "It's all my fault. I should have fixed that floor ages ago. I should have found ye sooner, I should have carried ye back instead of making ye walk. I should have…I should have told ye I loved ye when I had the chance." His heart froze as a new thought struck him. What if he never got the chance? What if Elizabeth never woke up?

"Don't think like that," he told himself firmly. "She's going to be fine. You're going to tell her ye love her and ye will be together."

He inhaled deeply, willing his chaotic thoughts and emotions to stop. He closed his eyes and uttered a silent prayer, begging for Elizabeth to be okay.

He lifted his head suddenly. He thought he heard something down the hall, like raised voices. It sounded like Rhianna, and she seemed upset. He focused on her and as their special "twinsense" kicked in, he knew she was upset. He decided he might as well find out what was wrong and headed in her direction.

Sheamus tried to keep the pleasure he felt from his face. Father Thomas's words echoed in his head and he smiled internally. The plan had still worked, due to a simple stroke of luck. They would have to marry after all, and Rhianna would be free from Dimera's clutches.

"What?" Rhianna breathed incredulously. "Marry Sheamus? But we didn't do anything!"

"I know that, my child. But everyone else doesn't. Look Rhianna, ye are very much loved by the town. If ye do the right thing and marry Sheamus, then the matter will surely be forgotten. They will simply smile and say, 'Ah, young love.'"

"But what about my betrothal?"

"It will be broken."

Rhianna struggled to comprehend the sudden turn of events. Her deepest wish had been fulfilled. She had been set free from her engagement to Dimera. But it had come with a catch. She turned to Sheamus, her eyes studying him to see what he made of it. But his eyes were on Father Thomas.

"Marriage? This is certainly sudden. But I guess we have to do what's right, don't we?" Sheamus asked, unable to mask the eagerness in his voice. Rhianna narrowed her eyes as she watched the two men. They both seemed a little too happy and there seemed to be this strange…conspiratorial vibe emanating from them.

"That's right," the priest replied, with a slight wink that did not go unnoticed by Rhianna.

"There's one thing that puzzles me though," Rhianna spoke up. "What was Widow Clayton doing on that side of the river, in those woods, at that time of the morning? She lives miles away from where she saw us."

Father Thomas paused. "Oh, I uh, asked her to check on a sick parishioner for me."

"Mmmhmm." Her tone implied that she wasn't buying his answer. "And this 'parishioner' wouldn't happen to live in a cabin, would he? Perhaps the same cabin we stayed in?"

"Wh-what? What are ye talking about?"

Rhianna turned to Sheamus. "Ye knew where we were going all along. 'Took a wrong turn' my foot! Ye set this up! Both of ye!"

Sheamus was about to protest his innocence when Father Thomas held up his hand. "No, she deserves to know the truth. Aye, Rhianna, we did set this up. We only thought to save ye from marrying Mr. Dimera, and this was the only way."

"Great. Ye saved me from marrying a man I don't love, by making me marry a man I can't stand! Father Thomas, I can't believe ye were involved in this…seduction!"

"What's going on in here?" Sean spoke up as he entered the room. Rhianna was too angry to speak, so Father Thomas filled him in. Sean turned to his sister.

"So let me get this straight. Ye don't have to marry Dimera? And this is a bad thing? Rhianna, it's the answer we've been looking for."

Rhianna softened as her anger gave way to hurt betrayal. All others in the room were forgotten as she set her eyes on Sheamus. "I don't know why I'm surprised that once again you've played games with me. You're always planning, always plotting, always manipulating me to get what ye want. And ye want what you've always wanted: the factory.

"So last night when ye fixed me dinner, when ye sang to me, when ye kissed me – was that all just part of your plan? Was I to fall madly in love with ye and we would then…" she broke off, unable to complete her thought.

"It wasn't like that," Sheamus protested earnestly. "All those things, the singing, the kiss, they were real and I promise ye, Rhianna, I've never felt anything like what I felt last night. It was real." His blue eyes pleaded for her to understand.

She stared at him sadly. "Ye know how important trust is to me. After everything you've done, how can I trust anything ye say or do? How do I know that everything that comes out of your mouth isn't a lie? I'm tired of playing the fool."

She sighed and calmed, all emotion leaving her spirit. "Well, I guess I don't have a choice, do I? Don't worry, Father. I'll marry Sheamus at the appointed time." Her eyes grew to a bitter cold and she stared at Sheamus. "But know this, it will be a marriage in name only, for I will never love ye."

She turned to leave the room and then stopped and spun back around. "Congratulations, Mr. Brady. Ye finally got what ye wanted." She walked out of the room.

{Not everything,} Sheamus thought sadly.