The Rose of Anthacena

Chapter 10

 "Master, is something wrong?" Will asked, clearly worried. Tasmarin looked up.

"Hmm?" he said absentmindedly. Will sighed.

"I asked if something was wrong, master," he repeated himself. Tasmarin shook his head.

"No, Will," he replied. "No, nothing's wrong. Quite the contrary, actually."

"Master, what do you mean by that?" Will asked, intrigued by his master's words. Tasmarin turned from his servant.

"Well, you see, Will, he said, taking a deep breath, "I finally believe you. About there still being hope."

"You do, eh?" Will asked. At Tasmarin's nod of affirmation, he added dryly, "It's about time." Tasmarin laughed.

"Yes, quite," he agreed. After a short silence, he said, "Will--you know that man who came yesterday?? WIll nodded, then remembered his master couldn't see him.

"Yes, master, I do," he replied, curious as to where Tasmarin was going with this.

"Well, this morning," his master continued, "when he left, he tried taking one of my roses." At Will's gasp, he added, "It doesn't excuse him from stealing, but there are so many he thought it wouldn't be missed. Anyway, I-confronted him about it, and-" Tasmarin's voice trailed off.

"And..." Will prompted him. He turned towards Will with a light in his eyes.

"And I found out he has a daughter."

* * *

"So are you going to go back?" Rose asked her father after a long silence, during which the rest of the family digested the astounding information he had given them. He sighed heavily.

"I feel as if I have to," he replied unhappily. "He specifically told me there would be dire consequences if I don't."

"But won't there be dire consequences if you do go?" his wife joined in. He looked at her.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Well, it sounds to me like if you do go back," she explained, "that-that he'll kill you." Rose's father drew his hand over his eyes.

"I know," he said softly. "But I'm afraid that if I don't go back, he'll come and kill us all. And I can't let that happen to you. It's my job to protect you, and if I let him kill you, I would be failing. Far better that I go back and-if he kills me?" He shrugged. "He kills me." Rose, who had been listening carefully, entered the conversation again.

"You're not going to be killed," Rose said firmly.

"How can you know what the beast will or will not do?" her father asked, raising one eyebrow at her. She lifted her head determinedly.

"Because he said you would return home if your daughter came and stayed with him. You can't very well return if you're dead' she said. "That's how I know."

"Hold on a minute," her father said, almost before she had finished speaking. "I will go back, because I must. But you are not coming with me, Rose! I will not allow you to go to your death for my crime!"

"Don't you see, Dad?" Rose cried. "If I go, nobody will die! He promised that I would not be harmed while I am there!" She took a deep breath and added, "I'm pretty sure being killed is also being harmed."

"Rose, he is a beast! A monster! You-you can't trust the word of someone like that!" her father protested. Rose looked him in the eye.

"Actually," she said quietly, "I can. And I do. from the way you told it, it sounds like he was very sincere in his promise. Whether you agree or not, I'm going! It's for me that you tried to steal the rose, and therefore, I'm the one that should go. If you refuse to take me at the end of a month, I'll find my way there by myself, and we won't even have a month together!!!" Rose's father buried his head in his hands, silenced at last.