Last Wild Boy by Hugh MacDonald Page B

followed Mabon deeper into the woods.

C h a p t e r 14
    â€œYou’re much too young. I won’t hear of it.”
    Alice had never seen her mother so angry. The stress of the past few days was obviously grating on her.
    â€œI’m sorry, Mother. But I know my rights. I turned eighteen today. The law says that I am ready. It’s my choice, not yours.”
    â€œThat may be true,” said Blanchefleur, “but there are other factors to consider. You know that the law exists to encourage insiders to bear children. It was never intended to be used by spoiled children to threaten their parents. You are free to make your own decision, but I am under no obligation to continue my support for you if I disagree with your choice.”
    â€œYou could never throw me out, Mother,” Alice said, taking her mother’s hand. “I know you better than that.” She looked up at her mother with wide blue eyes, eyes that could conquer a world. “Come on. This is important to me.”
    They were standing in the huge washroom adjoining Blanchefleur’s bedroom. Alice sat down on the closed seat of the sculpted toilet and watched as her mother carefully removed the makeup from her eyes.
    â€œI don’t want to fight, Mother,” she continued. “My life has been empty since Nora disappeared. Now that she’s gone I need someone of my very own to love.”
    â€œNow isn’t that just the point? Without Nora, you have no one to share the difficult job of parenting.” Blanchefleur turned and looked her daughter square in the eyes. “You are aware that partnership is one of the main elements of the temple ceremony?”
    â€œYou never had a partner.”
    â€œI had my reasons. In a position like mine, partners who will be a support and not a burden are difficult to find. And even the most supportive of partners can be a drain on one’s resources at certain times.” Blanchefleur shifted uncomfortably on the bench of the marble vanity that spanned almost the full length of the wall.
    Blanchefleur’s fury failed to intimidate Alice as she knew it ought. When she was little, Alice had loved to sit in this washroom and watch her mother put on her face. Now, years later, she was still her mother’s girl, and the pleasant scent of the perfumes and powders lined up on the vanity still made her feel secure and happy.
    Sometimes, when she was younger, Alice would say that she wanted to live with the mayor as her companion always. When her friends spoke of their mothers’ partners, Alice had told them that she was the only partner her mother would ever need. It never occurred to her that Blanchefleur might be lonely. Blanchefleur had never expressed even a hint that she was missing anything as she’d raised her child. It really hadn’t been until Alice had met Nora that she’d begun to understand there was another sort of love.
    â€œI have my own reasons for doing what I do, too, Mother…”
    â€œAll right, Darling, let me ask you just one question.” Blanchefleur paused while she patted her face with a towel.
    â€œWhat?” asked Alice, looking up impatiently. She had her foot propped up on the edge of the big tub and was applying a soft pink polish.
    â€œMy question is one directed to your heart,” she said. “Does this have anything to do with Nora’s sudden disappearance?”
    â€œOf course not, Mother. I just want a baby. That’s all.” Alice put the put the lid back on her nail polish, placed it in the drawer of their vanity, and closed the drawer firmly.
    Blanchefleur turned and put a hand on her daughter’s shoulder. She focused intently on Alice’s almond-shaped eyes. She spoke slowly and deliberately. “Nora disappears. A woman dies after giving birth to a child, possibly an outsider, who also disappears — from right near the summer home. And suddenly my daughter is feeling maternal