Chapter III

For a moment, Kenna had the feeling, as if the ground under her would move. She grabbed the edge of the table to steady herself. Why did she feel rattled by this news? Suddenly she felt queasy. No! she thought. That couldn't be. It was just a bad dream. But what had she expected? Three years have passed. She couldn't possibly think he would live like a saint, alone, without any connection to other women? There had been a reason why he had wanted the annulment of their marriage. Why was it such a shock after all? And why did it still hurt after all these years? She closed her eyes. It was easy to answer that question.

Because she never stopped loving him! All the years she had compared every man to Bash. And none had succeeded to conquer her heart. It would have been so easy to remarry and settle down somewhere, She had wanted a home and a father for Daniel. But she had not been able to constrain herself to love. She had decided to live alone. Because she hadn't loved the men who had courted her. She had only wanted one, who was bound to Mary now, her best friend and soulmate.

"Kenna, I am so sorry! I didn't mean to blurt it out like that." Mary took a step toward her, without touching her however. "I just thought that it is better you know about us, because it is possible that you two meet here."

Kenna nodded. "How long...?", she asked in a hoarse voice.

"A couple of months... maybe a year." Mary lowered her head guiltily. "I should have written it to you, but I didn't want to burden you. And you and Bash are divorced. I thought.. was hoping ...that you were over him." She looked up to Kenna. "I guess I was wrong."

"It's alright. No need to explain it." Kenna tried to compose herself. „Do you love him?", she asked with trembling voice.

"Don't do that!" Mary shook her head. "Maybe it's better we don't talk about it."

"Do you love him...truly?", Kenna repeated stubbornly.

Mary shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know." She furrowed her brow. „He was there for me, when Francis died", she said softly. "He had comforted me and had lifted my mood up again. I don't know what I would have done without him. And our relationship changed, got more serious." She looked over to Kenna. "But there is no point to talk about it. What's done is done. Your marriage was annulled. There is no bond between you and him anymore."

Tears, she had not even noticed, rolled down her cheeks and clouded her vision. This was the moment she had feared for so long. But there was no going back now.

„Daniel... ", Kenna stammered." He... he is..." She took a deep breath, before she could finish the sentence. "He's Bash's... son."

Mary gasped. "What are you talking about?" She looked at Kenna incredulously. "This is... impossible," she stuttered.

Kenna nodded sadly. "Yes, I thought that too. And then he came into the world, several weeks before the scheduled delivery date. And I saw my son the first time and simply knew. He looks just like Bash."

Mary stared at Kenna. "You have known all those years and never have written a word to me?", she asked bewildered.

"I didn't know that you and Bash were lovers."

"That's no excuse. He has suffered unspeakably about your fraud", Mary said quietly. "For a while he wasn't himself. But it was not only the loss of you that let him fall into despair. You remember Delphine?"

"Delphine?" echoed Kenna.

"You don't remember? She was a witch. And a crazy one too. She was only a short time at Court. But it was long enough for her." Mary rolled her eyes. „She put a binding spell on Bash and wanted to tie him to herself. She tried to control his mind. When we realized what had caused his strange behavior it was almost too late."

„She is dead?"

Mary nodded. „Yes, drowned. But it almost had cost Bash's life too.

Realization dawned on Kenna. "She knew it," she muttered lost in thought.

"Who knew what?"

"Delphine. She was the one who told Bash about the pregnancy." She tried to remember. "She touched my arm and saw it. She must have known that it was his child."

"Possibly." Mary shrugged. "What does that change now?"

„Nothing." Kenna looked up to Mary. „It's all in the past."

„But your are here now." Mary grabbed her arm. „This is your chance to make a fresh start. You can't change the past, but you can make decisions about your future. And the first thing to do is to tell Bash that your little boy is his son."

„No!" Kenna took a step back. „Never! I can't. And you won't tell him either!"

"Now that you are living on Court do you think you two won't meet eventually?" She shook her head. „That's inevitable."

"You're right." Kenna tugged at her dress. A nervous habit. "It was a mistake to come here. I'm leaving today and take Daniel with me." She turned around and wanted to leave, but Mary stepped in her way.

"Stay Kenna! I beg you! You can't run away from the truth. You've been waiting far too long to tell him. And he has a right to know."

Kenna looked at her friend frowning. "Why do you want me to stay? It would be easier for you and Bash if I just would leave. No obstacles, no obligations. He would never know that he has a son and both of you could live a happy life together."

Mary shook her head sadly. "It's not that easy. It's probably my destiny, that everything in my life must be repeated. Francis and now Bash..." She sighed quietly. "I have never regretted telling Francis about John. And this time I will tell Bash the truth too. If you won't do it, I will!"

Kenna could hear the determination in Mary's voice and she knew that she had lost the fight. She could feel her eyes filling with tears again. „You do it, I can't." She turned to go. „I'm going to my son now."

Mary nodded. "Yes, go. But... are you sure you won't tell Bash?"

Kenna felt an inner struggle. Maybe it was time to come to terms with the past finally. She nodded slightly. "He's going to hate me. But it won't matter, because I'm leaving the next day and both of you won't ever see me again."

"Kenna, please, don't say that! I don't want you..."

Mary was interrupted in midsentence when the door flew open and a young girl appeared on the threshold. Her blonde hair was ondone and she looked dishevelled.

"Bernadette?"

Mary looked over to Kenna. So, that was the nanny. But what she had to say, let Mary's and Kenna's hearts almost stopping.

"It's Daniel. ... He's gone!", the girl sobbed. "I was looking for him everywhere. But I couldn't find him." She almost broke down in front of her mistress. „I am afraid he got kidnapped!"