He lifted the gauze, which was edged with crystals, and planted a dry kiss in the centre of her forehead, whispering a few words as he sat back. A wisp of smoke reached towards his lips for a brief moment, then Cathy shuddered and felt like she expanded into her own body, as if she’d been dozing at the back of a room all morning.
“Take a few deep breaths,” he said. “It takes a moment to wake fully.”
She batted the veil up and away from her face, looking down at the white gown, taking it in properly for the first time. She could feel the crush on her chest of an impending panic attack, horrified that she’d been sleepwalking her way into the wedding day she desperately needed to avoid.
“You… you…” The terrible things she wanted to call her father were so plentiful she couldn’t settle on one. “Sly, evil…”
“Don’t say anything you may regret later, Catherine.”
“How could you do this? You drugged me!”
“Your mother and I decided it was the best course of action.”
“That doesn’t make it right! My God, I knew you were both cold… evil people but this! Drugging your own daughter so–”
“Be quiet!” The commanding boom he’d perfected in the army was still with him. “I want to have a conversation with you, not sit here and be insulted. I could have waited until we arrived at the Oak to fully revive you, but I felt it was important we speak whilst we can.”
“Am I supposed to be grateful?” She almost choked. Now she wasn’t shouting, she could feel the anger trying to escape in tears but she was determined not to dissolve, and certainly not in front of him. The first and last time she’d broken down in his study he’d beaten her until she’d passed out.
“You have a choice, Catherine. Have a civil conversation with me now, and learn something in the process, or continue to demonstrate all of the qualities that have precipitated our treatment of you. If you insist on being rude, disrespectful and rebellious, you will be treated as a spoilt, worthless child with no sense of duty or honour. Which will it be?”
Cathy permitted herself one moment of fantasy, in which she punched him squarely in the face and shouted all the things that burned in her chest, then forced herself to think strategically. He was right: she did have a choice, just not the one he offered. She could rant and vent all her fury, or she could start looking for a way out.
“That’s better,” he said, interpreting her silence as a victory. “Now, I’ve been giving this journey a great deal of thought over the past day or so. It’s the last time you’ll be in my care. After today, another man and another family will be responsible for your wellbeing.”
She sucked in a breath to cool the scream building in her throat. In less than thirty seconds he’d unknowingly summed up one of the roots of her rebellion: the idea that she was nothing but a delicate piece of property.
“As such,” her father continued, “I felt I should say a few things to you that I have neglected to over the years. I’m a man of few words, as you know.”
You prefer violence, she wanted to snap at him, but she kept that inside too.
“I confess I’ve struggled to comprehend your behaviour. It started early on, when you simply refused to delight in the things that all little girls like. You have a stubborn streak that is most unbecoming and, frankly, I had no idea it would result in the despicable way you ran away and hid from us for so long.”
“You made your disappointment perfectly clear to me when I was brought home.”
“I haven’t finished. And you’re doing it again. Just listen.” He paused, waiting to see if she’d acquiesce. She focused on expressing all her hatred in her silent glare. “You know I’ve been angry with you, on many occasions. I simply could not understand why you continuously rejected every effort we made to give you the very best life. Dresses, dolls, the best dancing and singing teachers, all manner of things your sister adored, you threw back at us and simply refused to even try.”
“That’s not true. I did try to do all those stupid things you wanted and I can’t! I’m just not made that way.”
“You can’t even speak in a civil manner.” He shook his head. “I’m constantly ashamed that I have