THE GOLDEN ROSE

Chapter 19 - The Man In The Mirror

Madrid, Spain – 1771

Sebastaio stared at Clara in amazement.

"You're with child?"

"I am fairly sure that I am," Clara said, as he picked her up and carried her back to the bed. She was as white as a sheet and looked exhausted. She didn't struggle, so he knew things were dire. He lay her down and covered her with the blankets, then used the wash cloth on her forehead once again. "Of course, I've never been pregnant before, so I'm not entirely certain, but yes, I think so."

The timing was not the greatest after what he had just learned, but he could not but help feeling emotional – excited, proud and joyful – at her news. They were to be parents and he would watch her swell with their child. Soon there would be another member of their family and he could not wait. He had sent another messenger, this time to his mother's vacation home in Faro. He wished he had known this news, it may have sweetened things somewhat. He wondered if she was aware he was responsible for her losing their home. If not, he would have to tell her. He did not look forward to it.

"We were having today as a rest day, to look around, but I think now you should just rest. We have to move on tomorrow, and now we are going south, it will take us a while longer, but I know you will find it beautiful. The Algarve was once a delightful place but it is still rebuilding after the 1755 Earthquake destroyed most of the homes and buildings. Faro, however, was untouched, luckily for my mother."

"We are going south? I don't understand. Why are we not going to Lisbon?" she asked weakly.

"I just received word that my mother was forced from her home and another family have taken it over. This was facilitated by the Frenchman."

She tried to sit up but fell back against the pillows. "He is here, it was him?"

"It WAS him, but my man says he has returned to France. I do not trust that weasel however, he could have realised we would send someone after him after seeing him that night in Barcelona, and doubled back. I will be keeping a close eye."

"I am scared, Sebastaio, he hates me and he has an obsessive lust for you. I feel he will do whatever necessary to get what he wants."

"The man is twisted and evil, he pursues his selfish desires at the expense of anyone in his way and now we have learned he is not beyond devising schemes to hurt us to get his point across."

"I'm so sorry, mi amor." She placed her hand on his arm and squeezed to show her sympathy for him losing his family home. He had not given himself time to mourn the loss and now it choked him. His childhood, his pride for his ancestors, were all wrapped up in the place. He knew every nook and cranny of the old villa, every tree and hedge in the grounds. He wondered about the servants who had worked there. Did they remain, or were they replaced? Some of them had been there for generations, some of them were his childhood friends, or those who had looked after him growing up. He hoped they went with his mother, but it was a lot to ask of those who did not live-in to uproot themselves and move so far from home. He hoped she managed to pack up their belongings, including his own. It was a strange feeling to think he would never step inside his bedchamber again, never look out the window at the stables where their horses were kept. He hoped she kept at least some of them. The house in Faro only had stables for a few horses, not the dozens in Lisbon. Their breeding program was now obviously gone. Their orchards, the vineyard too. The wines that had been laid down by his father and his father before him. Anger began to form.

"No, we are going to Lisbon. I'll let Ricardo know. I am going to sort out this problem once and for all."

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