Lyse was taken aback and she looked at the refined old lady with pearls in her ears, silvery white hair and kind eyes. "I am sorry but I am not Maeve," she replied, a bit confused. "I don’t think we have t before."
The woman seed oblivious to Lyse’s denial and she ca closer and looked fondly at Lyse. "Of course you are, dear," she insisted. "You have your father’s eyes."
Lyse tried to explain once more, but the woman was adamant. She began to ramble, her voice growing louder and more agitated. "Where have you been all of these years? Your poor father, he missed you so much that he died of heartbreak."
Lyse felt a pang of pity for the elderly woman. It was clear that she was suffering from so form of dentia and this was simply a case of mistaken identity. She tried to gently disengage herself for the woman’s hold, but the woman clung to her arm, her grip surprisingly strong.
"You must co back ho with , your room has remained the sa way just waiting for you."
Lyse looked inside the ballroom nervously, she did not like being alone with this lady who thought that she was soone she was not. She wondered if soone would hear her if she scread and even though she did not want to cause a scene, she would scream bloody murder if the sweet looking old lady tried to drag her off to anywhere.
Just then, to her relief. A well maintained looking middle aged woman stepped into the balcony, as she rushed towards them Lyse saw a resemblance between the two won. "Mother, what are you doing?" she asked, her voice sharp. "You are scaring the poor girl, stop it right now."
The elderly woman turned to her daughter, her confusion evident in her eyes. "Ophelia, it’s Maeve. I have found her at last, can’t you see?"
Ophelia sighed, a look of irritation and impatience crossing her face. "Mother, please we have been over this," she said, her voice harsh even though she kept it low. "Maeve is gone. She has been gone for many years and she refused to co back despite your efforts."
The elderly woman’s face crumpled, and she began to weep gently. "No, no," she sobbed. "She can’t be gone. She promised that she would co back."
Ophelia gently led her mother away and she apologized to Lyse. "I am so sorry about that," she said. "She has been like this for a while now. She often mistakes strangers for people from her past."
Lyse nodded, her heart heavy. "It is quite alright," she replied. "I understand. Will she be fine though?"
Ophelia stopped and examined Lyse for a mont as if she was only seeing her properly for the first ti, then she said. "You don’t have to worry about that, she is fine with ."
Lyse followed them back into the ballroom and was staring at the backs of Ophelia and her mother as they disappeared into the crowd. She was left to ponder the strange encounter. Just then Laurie ca to her side and looked with interest at what had caught Lyse’s attention.
"What are you looking at?" She asked as she craned her neck.
"Who are those, that old lady with the pearls in her ears and the lady accompanying her?" Lyse asked as she used her jaw to point out the won to Laurie.
"Oh you an the Welhavens? They are like one of the richest families this side of the pond." Laurie explained, "They own so mines and deal with gems. That is Mrs Faye and her daughter Ophelia."
"Does she have any other children?"
"Apparently she had an older daughter but I never t her."
"What happened to that daughter?" Lyse asked.
Laurie hesitated for a mont, then explained. "Her other daughter, her na was Maeve and she supposedly ran away with so man, she never ca back. It was a devastating blow for the old woman. She has never really recovered." Laurie leaned closer to Lyse and said conspiratorially, "Personally I think that soone killed her because it makes no sense that she would just disappear like that."
Lyse felt a surge of empathy for the elderly woman. To lose a child must be one of the greatest pains a parent can endure. She wondered what had happened to the daughter who had run away. Had she found happiness? Or had she t a tragic fate? In the first place why would she run away from a woman who so obviously cared for her?
As the night wore on, Lyse couldn’t shake the image of the heartbroken old woman. She realized that life was fragile, and that love and loss were intertwined in a complex and often painful dance.
She thought about how many tis she had wanted to run away from her family. She knew that in her own case if she were to disappear, no one would miss her or look for her. They would probably be very happy to have her gone.
The idea that none of her family would look for her as frantically as the old lady had been looking for her daughter made her feel sad and she wondered if she would ever an that much to soone.
"A beautiful woman like you should not be glum." A voice said from behind Lyse interrupted her thoughts.
She turned around and stared into a pair of sleepy green eyes. The owner of the green eyes was a striking looking man so years older than her, he was tall with a chiseled jaw with long eyelashes and perfectly styled short blonde hair.
Suddenly Lyse heard Levi speak from behind her.
"What are you doing here?" He directed to the man who looked unbothered by the unfriendliness in Levi’s voice.
The striking blonde man smiled slowly, his eyes still on Lyse as he said, "hey Leviticus, it has been a long ti."
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