The Purlieu Experiment
Chapter 29
Copyright 2015 & 2021
Donte and Rianne had an Anialwch escort all the way to the border of Libertad – even across the beach territory of Lochfowk. Twice they had seen riders, but no one had approached them. Donte had a feeling it would have been different if it had only been Rianne and him. They would have been able to defend themselves, but they were glad they didn't have to use their weapons. In any case, it was nice to have the protection of an escort. Donte had no idea if the riders were friendly. Possibly they were only curious.
Donte stood beside Rianne as they watched the camelus plod back across the beach toward Anialwch. They would be far from Lochfowk before evening.
Donte turned to Rianne. "Let's get out of here. I have a feeling the riders might return."
They mounted and headed deeper into Libertad, still following the beach. A harsh scream above them brought Donte’s attention to the sky. A white avialae flew over him. For a moment he stared at it, wondering. But there were more of them – sea aves; nothing more.
They made camp that evening on a grassy hill with a view of the sea. A warm breeze pushed waves to a peak and they spilled over, creating a rhythmic sound as they hit the sandy beach and rolled back out to sea. Lunar light cast shadows on the white sand. It was as pleasant an evening as he had known for a long time. Below them, a past storm had carved a depression in the sand and sea water had collected there when the water was high.
"We should be there tomorrow night, don’t you think?" Rianne asked as they sat by the fire eating from tins.
Donte gazed into the night, "Possibly."
She stood and placed her empty tin beside the fire. "I think I'll go down and bathe in that pool."
"Wouldn’t it be better to do that in the daylight?"
She smiled. "Why; so you can see me better?"
Warmth flooded his face. "I was thinking about safety."
She gave him a coy smile as she started unbuttoning her tunic. "So was I."
He frowned. "Now Rianne…"
Rianne giggled. "Oh, don’t be so proper. Why do I get the feeling that you're more concerned about me taking advantage of you than I am of you taking advantage of me?"
He stared at his tin. "I wouldn’t know."
Maybe he was being too proper, but she didn't realize how quickly things could get out of control. She was flirting with him – teasing him. He couldn't say it was all that unpleasant, but it was disquieting.
He finished the food on his tin and looked up as Rianne carefully placed her tunic across the log where she had been sitting. She unbuttoned her blouse and laid it on top of the tunic. Sitting on the log, she removed her boots and stockings. She stood and unbuttoned her skirt, removing it and placing it on the log. For a moment she stood still, clad only in lacy undergarments. She had a beautiful figure and long shapely legs.
He swallowed hard. Placing his tin beside the fire, he stood. "Rianne…" he began in a scolding tone.
"Donte…" She mimicked. "You’re still looking."
A hot rush of blood ran up his neck as he turned his back on her. "If you start screaming down there, don't expect me to come running."
She laughed. "Oh. I think I can take care of myself."
Her voice faded as she walked away from the camp. He turned and began cleaning the camp in preparation for bed. In Bergen, having her travel with him sounded like a good idea. In fact, up to this point she had been an excellent companion. He had no idea why she was suddenly acting this way. She might consider him proper – even too proper – but even a Mascot had the weaknesses of any man. Maybe she didn't have the experience to know that.
He had the camp cleaned and the bedrolls ready and hadn't heard a sound from her for a while. He was getting concerned.
"Rianne?" he called.
"I’m dripping dry," she immediately responded.
After a while she approached the camp. "Coming in," she called.
He turned his back while she dressed.
"I'm decent," she finally said. "Now it's your turn."
He removed his jacket and climbed into his blanket; pulling it over his shoulders. "No thanks. I'd be tempted to run down to the sea and keep swimming."
She giggled as she climbed into her bedroll. "Oh Donte, you're so cute."
She was silent for a while. He was starting to drift off to sleep when she spoke again.
"When you kissed me, I thought you wanted to spend the night with me. You were so…aroused."
He was tempted to tell her to go to sleep, but she was obviously confused by his lack of response tonight. The fact that she couldn't see his response didn't mean there was none. Why did he keep getting into these situations with women?
"Well, I'm spending the night with you tonight." He finally said.
She sighed. "I guess so. I'm sorry for scaring you that way. Thank you for bringing me along."
"Go to sleep," he said.
Hopefully this would be the last time she acted that way. If it wasn't, it would be his last trip with her. It wasn't as though he didn't want her, but this wasn't the time or the place. He couldn't afford to be distracted that way. In any case, when he decided to enter a relationship, he wanted it to be permanent, not one night of pleasure on a beach with only the Luna looking down on them. All right, so maybe that would be delightful, but it was still only one night. He didn't ever want to see that look again – the one where she was through with him until it was time for the next baby.
The next morning, they ate their morning meal in silence and started out along the beach again. Donte had a feeling that something was wrong. It wasn't a feeling of man or beast following them, though. He couldn't say what it was. He simply felt an urgency about reaching the dock. He watched the sky for any sign of storm clouds, but it was a clear day.
"Are you angry with me?" Rianne asked.
He looked at her. "No."
"I didn’t mean to offend you last night."
"I wasn’t offended."
"Are you sorry you brought me along?"
He shook his head, looking around as another wave of anxiety rushed over him. "Something’s wrong, Rianne. Do you feel it?"
She stiffened, glancing around. "No. Do you mean like someone following us?"
"No. I've only felt this once before." He mopped his forehead. "It's hot."
"It’s a beautiful day." She watched him a moment. "You're starting to scare me. Are you coming down with something?"
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. It was over. It wasn't going to happen again. It was only anxiety because he was with Rianne instead of Liana.
"Donte, are you alright?"
He opened his eyes. She was watching him, her eyes wide and her face pale. He was frightening her. He had to get control. He was with Rianne. He could talk to her. Once they had been the best of friends, sharing their deepest thoughts. He took another deep breath and counted slowly to ten as he released it. The tension slowly left his body.
"I'm alright now."
"What happened? What's wrong with you?"
He looked at her. "Rianne…"
She waited and when he didn't continue, she prompted him again. "When did you feel this before, Donte?"
He looked out at the sea. He didn't want to see the disappointment in her eyes when he told her, but he wanted to tell her.
"When Liana needed me. I rode back to the cottage as fast as I could, but I was too late."
A soft hand touched his and a gentle voice consoled him. "You couldn't have done anything, Donte. It was too late when you felt her pain."
He jerked his head around and looked at her. "How did you know?"
"That you felt her pain?"
"Yes."
"I didn’t. I guessed. You know when something is following you. You know if it is man or beast. If you know something is wrong, it only follows that you would identify it by sensory." Her gaze scoured his face. "You say you are hot, but you aren't sweating. Does someone have a fever?"
He stared at her for a moment. She was actually making sense of his nonsensical reaction. "Surely I wouldn't feel a fever anytime someone had a fever."
"You felt Liana's pain."
He nodded. "So, what's the connection?"
She considered the question. "Someone you feel responsible for?"
He grimaced. "Unfortunately, that doesn’t narrow the field down much."
She smiled. "No, I suppose not."
"I feel an urgency," he said as another wave of anxiety struck him. "I need to get to the dock."
"You’re holding your breath, Donte. Take a deep breath. Try to relax and feel this thing through. I'm here. I won't leave you."
He gripped the hand she offered and took a deep breath. Once more he counted as he released the breath, and once more the anxiety abated. The breeze felt cool on his hot face. He released her hand. "I've got it now. Thank you."
If they stopped every time he had a spell, it would delay their arrival at the dock, and for some reason that troubled him. "Let’s go." He kicked Schilderen into a lope and Rianne followed. After a while she rode up beside him.
"We’d better let the equines rest."
She was right, of course. They stopped and dismounted, walking their equines for a while.
"I'm sorry about last night," she said again. "I shouldn’t have invited myself on this trip."
He looked at her. "It wasn't you, Rianne."
"It was me," she said. "I should have known better."
She was touching the edges of a conversation he wasn't sure he was ready to enter. He wanted her – last night and now. It wasn't about being alone with a beautiful woman, or the fact that he had not actually made love to a woman in the last six years. It was about a permanent relationship and a family. What he wanted from Rianne; she probably wasn't willing to give – not on such short notice. She remembered him as he used to be and he wasn't the same man now. She hadn't known him long enough since he returned to feel about him the way he still felt about her. She was reacting to his pheromones. Even as he thought about it, he knew that wasn't the case. He had always been attracted to her. If he hadn't met Liana, he probably would have asked Rianne to exchange vows with him. But he had met Liana, and he loved her more than anyone. He thought he would never feel this way again – especially not so soon. He hadn't realized it until King Neirin had been so attentive to her. How could he think he was the only one who was interested in her? What if someone else claimed her before he told her how he felt? Kenyon's words came to mind; "so little time." But that wasn't all. She had obviously enjoyed the attention of another man – while he was present.
"It was me. I was feeling rejected.…" His resolve faltered as her skeptical gaze turned to him.
"You, Donte? About what? Everyone has practically kissed your feet this entire trip."
He stared at her. "They see me as a solution for some reason. I’m not the solution. They are."
She frowned. "So how does that make you feel rejected?"
He grimaced. "It doesn't. That’s my point. How all those people feel about me has nothing to do with it."
He stared at his feet as he walked. He had opened the subject, but now he was ready to close it. He didn't understand either compulsion. Instinct told him it must be addressed, but he wasn't sure how to approach it.
Rianne leaned forward and looked up into his face. "If it wasn't them, then it must be me."
He shook his head. "It’s me."
She stared at him. "You feel rejected by yourself?"
Actually, that pretty much summed up the situation. If Rianne had accepted Neirin's attention, it was only because no one else was filling that need. Rianne hadn't rejected him. How could she when he had never offered?
Rianne started to smile and caught herself. She looked him in the eye. "I believe you're jealous."
He did smile. "I'm afraid you're right."
She finally stopped fighting the smile. "You have no reason to feel threatened by King Neirin on my account. I wanted to come with you. I'm here now."
He nodded. "I know." He hesitated. The door was wide open. He drew a deep breath, refusing to look at her as he spoke. If she didn't feel the same way about him, it would be in her voice. He didn't want to see it in her eyes."
"I love you, Rianne."
She was silent a moment. When she spoke, her voice was soft. "What about Celyn?"
He jerked his head up and looked at her face. "What about her?"
"It’s there, Donte. You can't deny it. The two of you connect. Even her father sees it."
Donte frowned. "She's a child."
Rianne nodded. "Yes, she is…right now. In nine years…."
Of all the reactions, that was one he didn’t expect – especially from Rianne. If she wasn't interested, why couldn't she simply say she didn't feel the same way about him? He strode forward, leaving her behind. "I’m so tired of hearing that. She's a child. Yes, there is a special connection and I don't know why. I only know it has nothing to do with the kind of love I feel for you. I feel comfortable with her…like Chiku."
She ran a few steps and caught up with him. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply that your feelings for her were in any way dishonorable or inappropriate."
He looked at her. "Then what?"
She shook her head. "I don’t know. She thinks you will exchange vows when she is nineteen. You told me that."
"I don’t want to exchange vows with her, Rianne. I want to exchange vows with you."
Rianne caught her breath and stared at him. It wasn't rejection he saw in her eyes. It was shock. And why not? He practically spit the words at her.
He shook his head. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to come out that way."
She finally found her voice. "Are you sure? Or is it just because…I mean, I know you want a baby…a family.…"
"Rianne," he interrupted her. "I don’t want a baby or a family so badly that I would exchange vows with someone I don't love."
She watched him. Probably contemplating that idea. "But you don't love me the way you did Liana."
He stopped and turned to her. "That’s right Rianne. I still love Liana. I'm sure I always will. The innocence of first love can never be replaced. I know that now. I think I can finally put all that behind me. Can you?"
Her smile came slowly. "You were my first love, Donte. My only love."
"Rianne…" he said, reaching for her. She came into his arms and he held her close. "Let's exchange our vows tonight." He whispered against her hair.
"Yes." She said with a sigh. She pulled back. "We'd better get moving."
He winked at her as they mounted. "You're a delightful distraction, Rianne. Has anyone ever told you that?"
She gave him a coy smile. "My lips are sealed."
He laughed as he nudged Schilderen into a trot. He felt better. The fever was gone.
When they approached the dock that evening, they were surprised to see a Nyumbani ship moored alongside it. The feeling hit him suddenly and with a vengeance.
"Chiku!" he gasped.
Rianne looked at him. "Someone you feel responsible for."
"I need to go to her."
"But you were exiled."
"She needs me."
"Donte!" Rianne said in a sharp voice. "Think about it. You no longer feel hot. Her fever is gone."
He looked at her. It was true, but the ship at the dock; the feeling of urgency to get to the dock. What did it all mean?
"Send your father or your grandfather a message. If they say go, then I'll go with you, but don't rush into this."
She was right, of course. What had gotten into him? Together, they went to the message center and he composed a message to Pieter. He told him there was a Nyumbani ship at the dock and he wanted to take it back to Nyumbani to check on his daughter. He added one last line:
"Rianne and I are exchanging vows tonight."
Rianne looked up at him with a shy smile. She hugged his arm. "Let’s go get something to eat. I'm starving."
By the time they got back from the eatery, there was a message from Pieter:
"Donte, do not…I repeat… do N-O-T go to Nyumbani without armed guards. You were not invited. Return to Bergen as soon as possible for negotiations."
At the bottom was an added word. "Congratulations"
Rianne looked up at Donte and gave him a wry smile. "I don’t know why Pieter has to be so timid. Why doesn't he simply tell you what's on his mind?"
Donte laughed. "Let’s find out when the next tram is available."
As it turned out, the next tram would arrive early the next morning. They made arrangements to have their equines stabled and loaded on the morning tram and then went to the beach to compose their vows. Standing on the beach, holding hands in the light of the Luna, they exchanged their vows.
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