Ever After (32 page)

“I can't think of any other use for him,” she said.

“Look! It's Graydon,” Cory yelled, pointing.

On the screen was a photo of two extraordinarily good-looking people. Graydon was tall and dark, while his bride, Toby, was tall and blonde.

“They're beautiful,” Hallie said.

“He's a Montgomery,” Ian said with pride.

He got popcorn thrown at him.

They spent nearly an hour watching guests arrive at the huge Lanconian cathedral where the wedding was being held. The announcer told the names of diplomats and ambassadors as they arrived. When there were personal guests, everyone made comments and explanations.

“That's Dr. Huntley!” Hallie said, then her eyes widened. “Who is the woman with him?!”

“That's his wife, Victoria,” Adam said in a low voice, and the room suddenly went silent.

Victoria Huntley was a striking woman. She had on a green suit that hugged the fabulous curves of her body. A perfect little hat perched on top of her magnificent red hair.

“She's a knockout,” Hallie said. When no one commented, she looked around her. Every male in the room—including Max—was staring at the woman in wide-eyed, open-mouthed appreciation.

Hallie and Cory exchanged a look of disgust. Cory picked up the remote and turned off the TV. “Oops.”

When the men started yelling and racing to get the TV back on, Hallie and Cory high-fived each other.

Beside them, Raine and Adam were silently laughing.

Hallie saw Todd enter through the kitchen. He nodded at her, but he said nothing as he went to the back of the room and sat down on the old desk chair.

When Hallie saw Jared and his wife on TV, she was shocked. Alix was pretty, but she also looked smart. Not what Hallie had thought a famous architect would have for a wife. When Alix turned sideways, Hallie saw that she was pregnant.

“Another one,” Hallie said, mostly to herself.

But Raine heard her and for a moment he looked at her as though trying to figure out what she meant. He looked back at the TV and just before he put a piece of popcorn in his mouth, he said, “Is Aunt Jilly feeling better?”

“Yes, she is,” Hallie said.

Raine didn't look back at her, but from the way he smiled, she had an idea that he'd guessed about his aunt. She and Raine now shared a secret.

When the guests were at last seated, the groom and his brother arrived. They were both wearing dark blue uniforms, resplendent with gold buttons and braid on their shoulders.

“Men in uniform,” Hallie said with a sigh.

“Jamie has a uniform,” Max said.

“I guess he does,” Hallie answered, smiling at the image.

Graydon and his brother, Rory, were joined by another man who was very tall, with skin the color of honey and thick black hair. He had a way of walking that was truly majestic.

“That's Daire,” Raine said. “He's Lanconian.”

“Beautiful country,” Hallie said in admiration.

The three men walked down the long aisle to the front of the magnificent cathedral. The flowers were so abundant, Hallie
could almost smell them. Next came the two bridesmaids, one a tall woman with long black hair, the other shorter and very pretty.

“Lorcan and Lexie,” Adam said. “Lexie and Toby were roommates in the house at the end of the lane.”

The camera panned to a tall, dark-haired man in the audience. He was so good-looking that Hallie drew in her breath. “Who is
he
?”

For a moment, no one answered. “Lexie's husband,” Adam said. “Roger Plymouth.”

Hallie nudged Cory. “What do you think of him?”

Cory shrugged. “Nicholas is better.”

Hallie looked at Adam in question.

“He's a Montgomery cousin, Aunt Dougless's son. He's not here.”

“Too bad,” Hallie said with an exaggerated sigh. She glanced about the room at the men surrounding her. “I guess I'll have to make do with you trolls.”

There were groans of pain, as though she'd wounded them, and Hallie laughed. It was nice, she thought, to
belong
. Even if it was temporary, it was wonderful to be part of a real live
family
.

They showed the bride arriving in a carriage with big glass windows, adorned with thousands of little blue flowers. It was so pretty that everyone in the room was silent.

The carriage stopped before the cathedral doors and Toby stepped out.

She had on a simple dress of white satin covered with delicate lace. The TV announcer said it had been handmade by members of the Ulten tribe of Lanconia. The dress had long sleeves and a high neck. It would have been chaste if it hadn't fit Toby's excellent figure so perfectly. Diamonds glittered on her head, her face covered by her veil. Her train was so long that it took her two bridesmaids minutes to pull it out of the carriage.

A handsome older man stepped out of the shadows and offered his arm to her.

“Is that her father?” Hallie asked.

“Yes,” Raine said.

Adam leaned across Cory. “Toby's mother was so shocked when she was told of her daughter's royal engagement that they had to call an ambulance to revive her.”

“I think Toby looks like a princess,” Cory said.

“Me too,” Hallie answered.

Everyone was quiet as the two bridesmaids, then Toby walked down the aisle. When the bride reached the groom, even through her veil, her smile of love could be seen.

Hallie sighed. “She certainly does
like
him and I think he might start crying.”

“Montgomerys don't cry!” Tynan said.

Raine leaned over to Hallie and said softly, “Taggerts do.”

“Raine, you're…” Hallie couldn't think what to say but just smiled at him. Only when the ceremony began, did she turn away.

Some of what the gorgeously clad officiant said was in Lanconian, but not understanding the words didn't take anything away from the beautiful ceremony. Hallie put her arm around Cory and the two of them sighed as they watched. As for the men, they were silent. It seemed to be a universal protocol that a royal couple wouldn't be filmed kissing, but as soon as they were declared man and wife, everyone in Hallie's living room started cheering.

Adam picked up Cory and danced around with her, while Raine put Max on his shoulders.

“I am now a princess,” Cory yelled.

“And I'm a knight,” Max shouted.

“Really,” Roan said, “
do
we get titles?”

Hallie didn't know if he was joking or not, but it felt good to
be part of the celebration. The TV was turned to blaring so the sound of the church bells in Lanconia was nearly deafening.

Ian took Hallie's hands and began doing a sort of polka around the room with her. Between him and how hard she was laughing, she was dizzy. As he swirled her past the doorway, Hallie saw two beautiful young lady ghosts standing there and watching them—and they didn't look happy. It was just a flash, but Hallie thought it was almost as though they were warning her of something.

Ian went around full circle, and when she came back to them, the doorway was empty. Surely, she must have imagined seeing them.

“The reception is next,” Adam shouted as he took her from Ian. “Private camera. Just for us. Want to see the cake? It's ten feet tall.”

“I would love to!” Hallie yelled back. She didn't know what speakers had been installed, but they were so loud she felt like she was in the midst of the cheering crowd in Lanconia. “Are there any black sheep in your family? Or are all of you perfect?”

“Ian!” Adam shouted. “Hallie wants to know if we have any misfit family members.”

“Ranleigh,” Ian said as he whirled away.

Adam nodded. “Definitely Ranleigh.”

“When can I meet him?” Hallie said, laughing.

Adam started to reply, but suddenly, everything went silent. The TV was still on, but the sound had been muted. Everyone stopped dancing, laughing, talking.

“Is this for Dr. Huntley's wife again?” Hallie asked as she looked up at Adam. “I think I'll tell her husband on the lot of you. He will…”

She trailed off because everyone was looking past her toward the front door—where just moments before she thought she'd
seen the Tea Ladies. Hallie dropped Adam's hands and slowly turned toward the doorway, fully expecting to see two semitransparent ghosts standing there.

Instead, she saw Jamie. He was leaning on his crutches and when his eyes met hers, he smiled.

Hallie didn't understand what was going on. Everyone was still frozen in place, still staring at Jamie.

She left Adam and went to Jamie. “You're just in time to see the wedding reception.” She nodded for him to follow her, but he didn't move.

Roan finally broke the silence. “Jamie,” he said so very nicely, “can I get you a chair?”

“Take my seat,” Ian said.

“What do you need?” Raine asked.

Their voices were subdued and slower than they usually spoke—and she couldn't figure out why. Todd was still in the back, near Jamie's old desk, and his eyes seemed to be a combination of concern and helplessness.

When she looked back at Jamie, she at last understood. In their daily activities, they were normal around Jamie. But now the chaos made them concerned about how he'd react. They had shut down all laughter because of what he'd been through.

While their love and care for him were evident, it still made her stomach heave to see them isolate him as they were doing.

“I think I should leave,” Jamie said and he turned toward the door.

Hallie didn't know what she could do to stop this, but she damn well
had
to do something! She put her lips by Jamie's ear. “You turn tail and run away and I will never give you another massage.”

When he looked back at her he had a bit of a smile. “Can't risk that, now can I?”

“No, you can't.” She was looking at him hard, using all she
had inside her to will him to stay. It hurt to see him ostracized like this!

Adam stepped back so Jamie could get to the couch. Hallie watched them, so caring, so concerned, so gentle and nice—and she was so angry she wanted to shoot them. Not even Shelly with all her deep selfishness had
ever
made Hallie this angry.

She couldn't sit down. Instead, she went to the kitchen. She needed to get away from them.

She stopped at the old countertop, her hands braced against it, and stared out the window. She was shaking all over as anger ran through her. How could they
do
that to him? Jamie had made jokes about his family treating him like glass, but it hadn't really sunk in. She'd laughed at the images he'd brought to mind. But what she'd just seen wasn't funny.

Behind her, she heard the TV come back on, but the sound was turned way, way down. Old people's homes
down
. Don't wake your dad
down
. Don't send Jamie into a panic attack
down
.

“They want more potato chips,” she heard from behind her and knew it was Cory's voice.

Hallie had to take a few deep breaths before she could turn around to look at the child. She was standing there holding a big empty bowl and looking up at Hallie with almost fear in her eyes.

“Are you mad at Jamie?” Cory's lower lip trembled.

Hallie took the bowl from her and set it on the table. “No. Not at all. But I'm
very
angry at everyone else in that room.”

Cory blinked at that, then smiled. “That's okay. I get mad at them all the time. But if you yell at Jamie he might get sick again.”

“Does everyone always get quiet when Jamie comes in?”

“Yes,” Cory said, then lowered her voice to a whisper. “Sometimes Jamie can't remember where he is.”

“I know,” Hallie said, “but I think he's better now.” She stood up straight. From what she'd heard, Jamie had been back from the war for a long time and he had improved a great deal. But they were still treating him as though he'd come home from the hospital yesterday. If only she could
show
them that he no longer needed what they were doing for him—at least not to the extent of silence.

When an idea came to her, she tried to stamp it down. What she was thinking of doing could backfire, and if it failed, it could make Jamie's life worse. It might reinforce the awful—but caring—way his family treated him.

On the other hand, she thought, maybe it could help. She looked down at Cory. “Are you any good at making noise?”

“My dad says I'm the best there is,” she said.

Hallie nodded. “I want you to get Max in here. I have a job for you two.”

Cory didn't hesitate as she ran to get her brother.

By the time they'd returned, Hallie had pulled three big metal pans and spoons out of the cabinets. She handed one of each to the children and kept one for herself.

“I'm going to stand in the doorway and when I hit the pan with the metal spoon, I want you two to do the same thing. I want you to yell and scream and bang and pound and make as much noise as you possibly can. Do you think you can do that?”

Max's eyes were wide. “But Jamie will get scared.”

Hallie went to her knees in front of him. “Remember you told me your mom said that I had made Jamie better?”

“Yes.”

“Then I need you to trust me on this. Will you do that?”

Max hesitated, but he nodded yes.

As she went to the doorway, Hallie's heart was pounding in her throat, but the scene in the living room made her more sure of what she was about to do.

The happy atmosphere in the room was gone. The TV was
on but turned so low that it could barely be heard. Everyone was sitting stiffly in his seat and staring at the screen. No one was laughing and any comments were made in the quietest tones possible.

Worse was that Jamie had left the couch and was near the front door. Todd was behind him. He was leaving so the others could enjoy themselves. He was putting others before himself.