The Slave Bride Ch. 04

Everyone in this story is 18 years old or older. Please enjoy!

*****

After a while, Benjamin could tell that his wife was getting sleepy. She had a long day, and was no doubt very tired and emotionally drained. She'd begun to doze once or twice that evening. The way she couldn't keep her eyes open as she reclined in her chair told him that she'd had enough.

"Are you tired Giselle?"

Her head snapped up as she blinked, "Yes, Sir," she said after a moment.

"You don't have to call me that anymore."

Giselle gave him a curious look.

"That title is earned. Or at the very least, it's used by someone who knows its meaning. At any rate, I certainly have not earned it with you. You can call me Benjamin for now."

Giselle said nothing. But, when Benjamin told her to get into bed, she did just that. Crawling on to the large oak frame, she nestled herself in the covers. Benjamin shut the glass door as he came back from the balcony.

"I'll let you get settled as I read." He said taking a seat in the large velvet armchair. The fire crackled behind him as he thumbed through the pages to find his place. He'd chosen the book strategically. He knew well that it mirrored some of the events that had taken place in his home. He thought she would identify with the characters and would take some comfort in that. He thought perhaps she would ask him to read it to her. At the very least, he'd thought it a good conversation starter.

Benjamin tried to appear pleasant as his wife drifted to sleep. He'd wanted to talk more with her, but he could see her straining to stay awake. Finally, he could see her expression change to a more relaxed look. Her mouth parting just slightly as she drifted to sleep. He let her rest there, undisturbed for another moment. Her beauty was striking. He'd never laid eyes on a more beautiful creature. Her slender wrists and dainty hands folded underneath her rosy cheeks. She had a beautiful complexion. A lovely sight she was.

More than that, she seemed to always surprise him. Her reactions were hard to predict. He never knew just what she was going to say or do, and it was an exciting challenge to Benjamin. Part of him wished to not tame her spirit at all. Yet, more than anything he wanted someone to serve him, and he wanted to serve her in return. He wanted to provide her with everything she needed and give her life structure and meaning. Before he could know how to help her, he needed to get to know her. He needed to know more about her past; he needed to know how it influenced who she'd become and what she wanted most in the world.

When she awoke the next morning, Benjamin was in the bed beside her. He was sleeping peacefully. Giselle scooted away, careful not to disturb him. She rolled over so that her back was facing him. After a moment, she sighed and got up. She tended to the fireplace and then sat in the chair, curling her feet up in order to avoid touching the cold floor. Her eyes peered at the flickering flames that danced in the fireplace. She thought back to the night before and felt the burn mark still on her wrist. Why she had been compelled to do it, she could not say. Something just came over her, an overwhelming fear, or perhaps it was the gnawing feeling of helplessness.

That was one thing about living here. She was never cold. The blazing fire in every bedroom kept her warm and cozy. It was so unlike her father's home, drafty and wet from the snow that melted and dripped through the windows and ceiling. There she'd slept in the small full-sized bed. She'd shared it with her father after her mother had been taken from them.

She shook her head at the thought. Turning to see the man in the bed. It was not so different, she supposed. Something inside her felt guilty at her thought. Benjamin had been kind to her. Still, it wouldn't be long until he was taking advantage of her again. She thought about leaving to get breakfast, but she wasn't sure if he wanted her to leave the room. She thought about taking a bath but didn't want him to come in on her. Unsure of what to do, she waited for him to wake up.

It was hours later when he finally stirred in the bed. Groggily, he sat up and looked at her. As his eyes caught a glimpse of her, she saw him smirk. Giselle was setting down his book, laying it on the couch beside her.

"What did you think?" he started.

"I'm sorry?"

"About the book? What do you think?"

Giselle paused unsure, "I enjoyed the characters and the plot was intriguing. I just didn't really like the ending," she said gambling on the truth.

"Why not?"

"At the start, the man has a specific goal in mind, and by the end he's completely changed course and isn't even pursuing it anymore. What was the point?"

"Don't you feel he learned his lesson and changed?"

"I think his decisions were strangely out-of-character and that the change didn't seem authentic or earned."

Benjamin nodded, still taken back by her observations, "I can see why you'd say that. I have some other books if you'd like to take a look at them. They're somewhat similar stories but you might prefer them."

"Why don't we go make some breakfast and we can bring it in there to eat while we find something for you to read?"

Giselle was confused. He was being strangely kind her her, she was wondering when it would stop, "Yes, I would like that," she paused, "Thank you."

Once they were in the kitchen, Benjamin helped Giselle to find everything they needed. He pulled out a large tray and two tea cups with saucers. The sweet scent filled the air as Gisselle sliced oranges on the cutting board Benjamin had given to her. She placed them into a bowl with grapes and strawberries.

"Do you know how to make eggs?" Benjamin asked as he buttered the toast in his hand. His voice was soft and seemed to have lost his commanding tone. The question seemed a bit awkward to her, if anything.

"Yes," she replied not really looking up from her work as she made coffee for the both of them. "I'm not too good with poached eggs, though. Why?"

"I thought we could make some; if you'd like." he said, "How do you prefer yours to be done?"

"Boiled." she said, "please."

There was a moment of silence between them. Giselle was unsure of how to feel and there was a strange tension in the room. She wanted to turn to look at the man. Even so, she was afraid of doing something to offend him or to give him reason to treat her differently. She could feel her fingers tremble.

"How do you take your coffee?"

Benjamin replied, "Black is fine, no sugar."

After another moment of silence, he spoke. "Giselle, please look at me,"

She did.

"I'd like to make you feel comfortable here. Maybe you could tell me about yourself?"

"There's not much to say really."

"I'm sure that's not-"

"You know, I don't understand why you're trying to appear nice when you just want to keep me trapped here." The thoughts flew out of her mouth. She'd hardly processed what she done until after all the words had been spoken. Her eyes were wide. She hoped that it would not make him angry enough to punish her and break his promises.

He said nothing, surprised and impressed by the acuteness of her comment. Even so, he was hurt that she found him to be disingenuous. He walked out of the room, leaving his tray behind. Giselle listened as the footsteps faded. Relief washed over her only to be pushed out by the doubts that creeped back into her mind. Perhaps, he'd only left to get something with which to punish her. She fidgeted. Standing there in the kitchen, she waited silently for him to come back.

Minutes passed and she began to wonder if he would come back. Certainly, she should not have chased after him. And why would she? She was right after all. He had no right to keep her here. If she wanted to brave the world outside, then why would he not let her?

Benjamin walked as calmly as he could to his brother's room. Knocking on the door, he waited for a moment before entering.

"We need to talk."

"What's the matter?" his brother asked, looking up from his work.

"We need to tell Giselle." Benjamin said, "About the book."

"That is out of the question."

"Why?"

"You know exactly why."

Benjamin rolled his eyes. "She deserves to know that she has a choice in this. If you don't tell her, she's going to run away again and then we'll have ourselves an even bigger mess."

"She won't run. You made sure of that."

Benjamin felt sick at the recollection. He couldn't see anything but her sad crumpled body leaning against the wall. He wanted to kick himself for it.

Cadence continued, "If you tell her she has a choice, do you really think that she'll chose to stay?"

"If we tell her what we're protecting her from, yes. She doesn't know anything about how it works. I don't know how her father managed to keep her in the dark as much as he did."

"No. Benjamin. We already talked through everything."

"That was before we knew she was completely untrained. There needs to be new rules. Cadence, she has no idea what'll happen if she leaves." The concern in his voice was palpable. Cadence knew his brother cared deeply for their slave, but his mind was made up. They would keep the book, and all it entailed, a secret from Giselle. She would stay, and she would know no other choice.

Benjamin was filled with dread. He knew how badly his wife wanted to leave. He also knew that once she left, she could be claimed by any other man. There were men who crawled the streets, looking for someone young and beautiful like her. It would be no time at all before someone would snatch her up and force her to belong to them.

Benjamin knew that they would treat her as a disposable object, never knowing that she held inside her the perfect combination of sweetness and fire that could light up an entire room. Her beauty and kindness would be wasted upon them. Benjamin wondered if it wasn't a waste on his brother as well.

Once she belonged to another man, neither Benjamin nor Cadence would be able to take her back home. Giselle would be the property of whatever man found her first. If someone did take Giselle, Benjamin and Cadence would be in violation of their promise to protect her and would receive their own punishments. If they sent Giselle home, it would dishonor her father and it would only make her unattractive in the eyes of good owners.

He closed the door to his brother's room. The door clicked shut. Benjamin's footsteps paced the floor. He was torn between his conscience and his agreement to make decisions about Giselle with his brother. He could feel his heart beating faster at the thought of dishonoring his agreement with his brother. Yet, he felt sick when he thought of keeping this secret from his wife. She was so curious and intelligent, surely she would find out he was hiding this from her. Finally, he decided that if his goal was to get Giselle to trust him, he needed to prove himself trustworthy.

***

After breakfast, Benjamin had taken Giselle to the den to be alone. He opened the book, flipping through the pages. There, written on the paper were the names of many men and women. Each list followed a similar pattern. The man's name was followed by the woman's name. Each woman had signed to indicate that they would "belong to" the man. Some men's names were followed by a long list of women, other's had only one or two. At the very end of the list, both brothers had signed; yet Giselle's signature was nowhere to be found.

"What is this?"

"It's a tradition. Wealthy men will often keep a book like this to pass down through the generations." Benjamin explained.

"Why is it a secret?"

"Your father sold you to us." Benjamin began, "So my brother and I have written our names here in the book to show that are intentions are to protect and honor and keep you. You on the other hand, have not signed to say that you belong to us. It's a decision that you must make of your own free will. We'd expected to have a wife who knew what it meant to be a slave and we had planned to have you sign the book as soon as possible. As it stands, you are not legally bound by anything to stay here. But, I urge you Giselle. Please, stay."

"So, you're telling me I have a choice now?"

"Yes, but there are consequences either way, and I'm afraid they aren't very fair to you."

As Benjamin explained the consequences of leaving he could see a range of emotions in his wife's eyes. She had displayed an excitement that she failed to suppress after learning that she might obtain freedom. He hated to see how with every new bit of information she grew less and less enthralled with the idea of leaving. It was as if she were a bird in a cage, and he had only now put the lock on the door. Before she had not even known that there was a door. Yet, now, it somehow seemed as if he were being even more cruel to her, telling her she had freedom and yet could not choose it.

She sat quietly. The den was cold and she wrapped the blanket around her slumped shoulders. Without knowing what else to do, Giselle began to cry. She felt helpless and small. Her fate was at the mercy of those she'd been sold to, and she had no idea what sort of men they were. Benjamin shifted closer to her on the couch.

"I'm very sorry that I had to tell you this. I wish there was a way for you to be happy here. Contrary to what you may think, I don't enjoy seeing you sad like this Giselle." He paused, "Perhaps you would like your own room? I couldn't control where you sleep on the nights you are with my brother; but if you'd like, I can arrange for you to have your own room on the other nights."

"You would do that?" Giselle said wiping a tear from her cheek and looking up at him.

"Yes." He smiled, "I could even make it look a bit like yours from home if that would comfort you."

"No," Giselle said quickly, "I just have never had my own room."

Benjamin thought this comment strange, but he didn't think it polite to pry, especially when she was already upset.

"Alright," He said gently rubbing her back, "What sort of a room would you like? Something elegant? Or maybe something modern?"

"I'm not sure," The attention and kindness he gave her was overwhelming.

"Well," Benjamin paused, "What sort of things do you like?"

Giselle pondered the question. There had never been much freetime in her day. She did value the time she had alone. In her father's house, she had always longed for a nice clean bathroom. She had hoped for curtains and doors that locked, but she didn't want to mention any of that now. She held her hands in her lap, thinking.

"I would like it to feel less grand, if at all possible." she said, "and it would be nice to have my own bathroom."

Benjamin smiled, his wife was so pleasant and humble. Of course she would not ask for much. Then again perhaps she was afraid to ask him for much of anything. He shook the thought from his head.

"Maybe you could make a list of some items you'd like, furniture, bedding, flowers, that sort of thing. I can arrange to get them for you and have the room ready as soon as possible."

Giselle nodded, "Thank you Benjamin."