Chapter 111
Just because it was his second wedding did not mean it was any less awkward or that he had grown used to it. Just as he had at the first wedding, Isaac stood there blankly, his face haggard with fatigue and tension after a sleepless night. Sasha, of course, was different.
At the wedding in the county, she had looked as practiced as someone who had done this many times before, and at this second wedding in the capital, she seemed not merely natural, but almost as though she were enjoying herself.
The weather was fine.
St. Andrew’s Chapel in Clumber, where they were holding the wedding, was a Gothic stone building that seemed to carry the weight of hundreds of years intact. It was a building whose solemn majesty made it feel as if time had stopped, and the climbing roses covering its outer walls added an elegant charm.
It was not especially splendid, but it had a weight all its own. Above all, it was perfectly suited as the wedding venue for a distinguished noble family that placed formality and tradition first.
The tower clock struck ten, the sound cutting through the air and ringing out. Shafts of light descending from the ceiling passed through the old stained glass, painting colorful patterns on the floor. Before long, the sound of the organ began to fill the chapel.
Receiving everyone’s gaze, Isaac slowly walked toward the altar. His mouth was drying up, and sweat kept seeping into his palms. Though he had already done this once before, he was as nervous as if it were his first time. It was understandable, since there were more than sixty pairs of eyes watching him.
Sasha had said she had narrowed down the guest list as best she could. She had invited mainly the particularly close acquaintances and relatives on her grandmother’s side, the few acquaintances of her own, and only a handful of people from Isaac’s unit whose names he had provided. Even so, compared to the wedding held in the county, the number of guests alone had tripled.
“He looks rather presentable.”
Someone offered that blunt impression to the person beside them as Isaac took his place before the altar. Miss Carroll did not even turn that way as she said, “Indeed.”
“More than presentable. He is quite handsome.”
The woman spoke blatantly once more. Miss Carroll still did not cast a glance in that direction, but she nodded to show that she agreed.
The man in uniform was quite neat. He was large enough that there was nothing shabby about him, and the face revealed beneath his neatly swept-back black hair was rather fine.
After that brief assessment, Miss Carroll looked toward the guest seats at the front. The bride’s family was seated there. The Duchess of Grayson and the young duke, Jeffrey Grayson, were sitting on that side. Without realizing it, Miss Carroll cast an unfriendly sidelong glance at Jeffrey’s profile.
Caroline sat on the opposite side, symmetrical to the seats occupied by the duchess and Jeffrey. Attending her grandson’s wedding as the eldest member of the family in the count’s stead, she looked at her grandson standing before the altar in his uniform with a strange expression.
Just then, the sound of the organ changed, and the bride walked out. Everyone’s gaze turned back toward the entrance.
The bride was wearing a gown of fine silk and lace. With each step she took, the long train swept gracefully over the chapel floor, and her green eyes showed faintly beyond the veil. Whenever she walked, the tiny crystal beads attached to the gown brushed against one another, producing a faint sound.
“Today, we gather before God and these witnesses to bless this sacred union.”
The priest standing before the dais opened his mouth.
The wedding proceeded smoothly. Jeffrey sat in his seat, watching the ceremony unfold with an expressionless face that betrayed nothing. After a speech so dull it made one drowsy just to listen, came the vows, and then the exchange of rings.
A hopelessly stale ceremony he had seen dozens of times before. The fact that it was that impostor’s wedding did not make it much different.
With his legs crossed, Jeffrey watched Sasha smile shyly at her partner.
Jeffrey truly hated it when that woman smiled like that. No matter what he said, she would merely smile in a somewhat resigned way, as though indulging the tantrum of an immature child, and he found it ridiculous. Yes. At first, it had been spite. Jeffrey had disliked the sight of that impostor pretending to be mature, and he had wanted to see her scream and cry.
What he had received in return, however, had been an unexpected slap.
“Jeffrey.”
The duchess’s cool voice flew in from his left.
“Sit properly.”
Jeffrey pretended not to hear her and did not move an inch.
After the exchange of rings ended and the time naturally came for the couple to exchange a kiss before the guests, Jeffrey not only failed to sit up, but leaned his upper body forward outright and propped his chin in his hand as he watched them.
A man as large as a bear, almost foolishly so, cupped the cheek of the woman who would become his wife. Watching him bend his upper body and tilt his head, trying somehow to kiss her despite his great height, Jeffrey sneered inwardly.
Did that man know the true identity of the woman he was about to marry?
If he did not, it was truly pitiful.
If he did, then that was what made it all the more offensive. Both of them were offensive.
Under the eyes of every guest, Isaac tilted his head the rest of the way to pretend to kiss her, just as he had before. Now that they had already shared a real kiss, there was no reason for him to fumble the way he had then. Before their noses could awkwardly bump together, he turned his head slightly and stopped just before their lips touched.
This was only a performance. Even setting aside the ambiguity of his relationship with her, he did not want to fake a kiss with her as though acting in a play like this.
“……They make a well-matched pair.”
The duchess seated beside Jeffrey spoke.
Jeffrey did not even pretend to listen to her and stared intently at the two as they kissed.
Why are they only pretending?
The corner of Jeffrey’s mouth twisted upward.
“Jeffrey.”
The duchess’s voice turned toward him once again.
“Keep in mind what I told you.”
The mouth of Jeffrey, who had been smiling with a face that looked sinister no matter who saw it, clamped shut into a stiff line.
“……I know.”
＊＊＊
For the reception, the hall and gardens of Dilton Manor were opened in their entirety. The guests seemed to breathe easier simply by leaving Clumber’s narrow chapel. The various decorations and appetizing food that the servants of Dilton Manor had prepared for this day were more than enough to satisfy them.
Because of the distance, quite a few people left midway without attending the reception. The duchess was one of them. With a gentle smile on her benevolent-looking face, she offered Sasha her congratulations on the marriage. At least that greeting must have been sincere. Until then, Sasha felt no sense of discord.
“Fincher, the day has come when I attend your wedding.”
After his first dance with Sasha, Isaac was conversing with the major, standing at some distance from the people who had been waiting to spin about and dance. Yet he could hardly focus on his conversation with the major and kept glancing toward Sasha, who stood over there.
She was smiling and conversing with elderly ladies who looked advanced in years. Among them was his grandmother, Caroline.
“How long has it been since you and Miss Grayson first met? In any case, I thought it would take at least another year. I even made a wager with Tilda.”
“……Oh, dear.”
Matilda lightly pinched her husband’s arm, as if telling him not to be embarrassing. Isaac, however, seemed to lack the presence of mind to respond properly to the major’s teasing, his eyes fixed only on Sasha. The major let out a hearty laugh, as though even that pleased him.
“We have kept you too long. Go on to Miss Grayson—no, Mrs. Fincher. ……Now, Tilda. I believe our turn to dance has come.”
“……Major, a moment.”
It was just as the major, with Matilda on his arm, was about to head toward the hall. As though coming to his senses belatedly, Isaac called him to a stop.
Matilda, who had already leaned halfway forward, stopped as well. She looked between the two men for a moment as if puzzled, but when her eyes met Isaac’s, she released her husband’s arm as though she understood.
“Very well. Then I will be over there drinking champagne.”
Matilda kissed the major lightly on the cheek and walked away. Only then did the major turn toward Isaac. Isaac stepped out into the garden with him. He could see a few people who had tired of the ball early occupying the benches placed here and there throughout the garden.
Isaac stopped at a suitable distance from them. It was far enough that their conversation would not be heard.
“How has Sergeant York been doing these days?”
At Isaac’s question, the major, who had been leisurely drinking the champagne in his hand, made a dubious face.
“Who? York?”
“Yes.”
“……If it is Sergeant York, would you not know better than I? You two…….”
Were once truly close, were you not? The major stopped himself before saying so.
Like the other officers, the major did not know how Isaac and York had fallen out. He had merely guessed that after the Selwood operation, when Isaac was rather unfairly demoted, the two had naturally grown distant.
It was a delicate topic. The major naturally looked around, checking, as Isaac had done earlier, to see if there was anyone nearby who might hear their conversation.
“Why do you ask? Did something happen, Captain?”
“Letters keep coming from the sergeant. He had sent one or two from time to time before, but now several have arrived in succession. I asked because I wondered whether there had perhaps been some change in his circumstances.”
“What about the contents of the letters? If you read them, you would know.”
“……I did not read them. I thought they would be the same obvious apologies as before.”
At Isaac’s words, the major clicked his tongue with a somewhat strange expression.
With that fragmentary exchange alone, the major felt he had roughly come to understand how Isaac and Sergeant York had drifted apart.
“……Well. If he had received a special promotion like you, or been demoted, I would have already known. He is likely still serving as the general’s adjutant.”
“I see.”
“If you wish, I can look into it separately. Whether he has become estranged from the general, or…….”
“No. That is all right.”
Isaac cut him off at once.
“I do not wish for it to go that far. No, I would prefer that you not.”
A strange silence flowed between the two for a moment. The major stared intently at Isaac with an expressionless face, saying nothing.
He held back the question he wanted to ask: “Are the rumors true?”
“Is it true that you are, in fact, being threatened by the general?”
That was what he wanted to ask.
“……Very well.”
The major silently nodded.
“When do you plan to retire? You must not keep your wife waiting too long.”
The major changed the subject with a question that was half in jest. However, the words also implied that Isaac should get out of this field quickly. Isaac, too, must have understood what he meant.
Isaac was about to answer the major when he raised his head as if noticing something. A familiar figure was visible. Isaac could now pick Sasha out at once even when she was buried among people. At some point, it had simply become that way.
Sasha was conversing with a certain man. He had never properly seen the man’s face before, but for some reason, Isaac felt he knew who he was.
“Your wife’s cousin, I see.”
The major supplied the answer in his stead.
“I should go.”
“Indeed.”