From Across the Clouded Range by H. Nathan Wilcox Read Free Book Online Page A

joined much earlier?”
    “ They do,” Ipid confirmed.
“But Tethina has been promised to you since your birth. She has
been waiting for you, and I have decided that the wait should go no
longer.”
    “ Why . . . why didn’t you
ever tell me about this? You . . . you can’t do this. It doesn’t
make any sense. It . . . it isn’t fair.” Dasen felt his confusion
turn to anger. What was his father thinking, promising him to some
uneducated village girl, who had probably never even been to a
city? What was he supposed to do with such a creature? He barely managed in the
aristocratic circles he was forced to occupy. Being joined to some
bumpkin would make it impossible. He would be a laughing stock.
What’s more, Tethina would never be accepted. In the best case, she
would be an outcast. And that was if the Lily Harbishers of the
world didn’t hold a grudge. As it was, they would tear her apart
like a pack of wolves descending on a rabbit.
    “ I didn’t tell you because
you should have already known,” Ipid snapped. “My mind has never
wavered in this. Burke was like a brother to me. Your mother and
Marin were closer than any sisters. You and Tethina were the link
to bring us together. The Order has never made a clearer indication
of its purpose.”
    “ I can’t read your mind,”
Dasen fired back. He felt himself losing control of his
emotions.
    “ You don’t need to,” Ipid
growled. “I am your father, and this is well within my rights under
the interpretation of the Order here and in the Kingdoms.” Ipid gestured
to the man sitting behind him.
    The tall, dapper young man cleared his
throat and sat forward. “Your father is correct, Dasen,” he
assured. His voice was gentle as if trying to soothe Dasen away
from the pending confrontation. Dasen had no idea who he was. He
could only imagine that he must be an Order advisor, but he seemed
too young to be advising his father this closely. “Since the
Reinterpretation removed the choice of partners from the Church, it
is deemed that parents, in particular fathers, are best placed to
see the match that is most consistent with the Order. The recent
trend toward men and women finding their own partners is a social
rather than Order-based phenomenon, and even so, the matches must
be approved by the fathers.”
    “ I . . . I understand
that,” Dasen stammered. “I have read the full accounting of
responsibilities as established by the Reinterpretation, you need
not remind me. My dispute is not with my father’s right but rather
his choice.”
    “ What is wrong with
Tethina?” Ipid shouted. His face tightened in anger, flushing past
red almost to purple. He sat forward in his chair and extended his
finger to drive home the pending tirade. Then something seemed to
dawn on him. He relaxed, released a long breath, and lowered his
voice. “There’s someone else, isn’t there? I should have known that
something would eventually happen, especially with all the women
roaming around here looking for matches. And you the best available
catch. So who is it?”
    If anything, this new line left Dasen
even more rattled. “There isn’t . . . I mean . . . I don’t . .
.”
    “ It’s alright, Dasen. You
can tell me. Even if the relationship has gone too far to be
proper, it can be fixed. I expected more of you, but what’s done is
done. Just tell me who she is and what expectations she has, and
we’ll work out how to fix it.”
    “ There isn’t . . . I mean
you don’t have to . . .”
    “ I know you probably have
strong feeling for this girl, but it is the will of the Order that
you be joined to Tethina. I have never been so certain of anything
in my life. I deeply regret that you were ever separated, but that
was the Order’s will as well, and I could not prevent it. Now, you
have to give up this other infatuation so that the Order can be
fulfilled.”
    “ There is no one else,”
Dasen finally managed. “There are some girls who have expressed