"No, be thankful you had a cool and collected head to guide you. See,
here is a blank space at the bottom of one of these musty pages. It
won't be at all _en regle_ to insert your marriage here; but I dare not
bring the new register out of the other church; moreover, there may be
another wedding soon, and then yours would be discovered."
"What a genius you are!" said Cardo, while Gwynne Ellis wrote out in
bold, black characters, under the faded old writing on the rest of the
page, the certificate of Cardo and Valmai'a marriage.
"There, you have tied a knot with your tongue that you can't untie with
your teeth! Here is your marriage certificate, Mrs. Wynne. I need not
tell you to keep it safely."
Suddenly there was a rustling sound above them, which startled them
all, and Cardo grasped Valmai hastily, to the great amusement of the
young men.
It was the white owl, who had solemnly watched the proceedings in the
vestry, and now thought it time to take her flight through the broken
wall. "There Cardo," said Valmai, "I said the white owl would be at
our wedding, and the sea breeze, and the Berwen; I heard them both
while you were writing your name."
"Well now," said Gwynne Ellis, "Wilson, Chester, and I will leave you
both, as I know what a short time you will have together."
And with many congratulations and good wishes, the three young men left
the old church, leaving Cardo and Valmai to their last words before
parting.
There was a ricketty, worm-eaten bench in the vestry, and here they sat
down together. Cardo trying to keep up a cheerful demeanour, as he saw
her face sadden and her eyes fill with tears.
"How lovely you look, my darling," he said. "How did you manage to
escape Shoni's shrewd eyes in such finery?"
"I put my scarlet cloak on and drew the hood over my head, and it
tumbled my hair," she said, with a little wan smile. Already the
glamour of the wedding was giving way to the sorrow of parting. "I had
my hat under my cloak. Oh, anwl! I am getting quite a deceitful girl!"
Cardo winced; was he sullying the pure soul? But there was no time for
retrospection, the minutes were fleeting rapidly by, he had to return
to his breakfast with his father, who would expect his last hours to be
spent with him.
"When do you start from Brynderyn?" she asked, her voice growing lower
and more sorrowful.
"At two o'clock, love, punctually; the cart has already gone with my
luggage. Valmai, how can I part from you--how can I leave you, my
beloved, my wife?"
"Oh, Cardo, Cardo!" was all her answer. She buried her face in her
hands, and the tears trickled through her fingers.
Cardo drew them away tenderly.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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