Chapter 1: The discussion
The story takes place in Vienna, Austria-Hungary, in 1855.
A girl named Lilianette had just turned seventeen. She was beautiful, with chestnut hair and brown eyes like autumn. Her father had to find a husband for her, but like her deceased mother she opposed the idea.
Her father remained emotionally distant, hating the thought that she might be Jonathan’s daughter. Though angry with his late wife, Ralph could not deny that he had loved her in his own way. While raising Lilianette he stayed loyal to her memory and never remarried.
Autumn had arrived, the trees ablaze with colour and their
leaves drifting softly to the ground.
They were sitting at the table eating when the subject of arranged marriage arose.
“I don’t want to marry a man I don’t know,” she said.
Her father sighed. “You know you have no choice. Your mother...” His voice trailed off with a hint of pain.
“I know... but I don’t want to end up like her.”
The answer upset him, reminding him painfully of Angeline.
“Your mother’s mistake was cheating on me, not marrying me,” he said firmly.
“She didn’t love you. She was forced. That’s different.”
He looked at her with a condescending expression. “But she loved you, it seems.”
She fell silent, thinking about how her mother had sacrificed her own life so that she might live. If only Angeline had known that her husband would care for the child she left behind.
Her father watched her expectantly.
“It’s enough that I have to work as a maid,” she finally sighed.
“That is precisely why you must marry,” he replied with a scoff.
Without another word she rose from the table and left.
