She had been married for less than twenty-four hours and already it seemed everyone that she didn't want to know, knew. She sat with Matinus on the edge of his bed, tucking him in. She had ensured the boy had a bath and his hair was combed, and he looked at her with his lilac-colored eyes and gave a drawn out yawn. "I'm glad you're here," he said simply. It was a small act of gratitude in her day that made her feel emotional. Chaos was too easy a word to describe what Sanria had walked into.
She'd gotten into a shouting match with Thasmudyan, though she'd anticipated his anger in a way. Left without his powers, fresh from saving Lyvinnia from Maya, he had admitted he felt betrayed and angry. She could only say she felt fear. Thasmudyan had left her before, disappeared on her before, even slept with Maya while he was supposed to be with her. Yes, she loved Gilean, but the speed with which she'd acted on their marriage was predicated by the fear of being with Thasmudyan. After all those years of wanting nothing more, she couldn't handle the idea of being back together with the one who had held her heart for so long.
She gave him some of Nioma's clothes to take back for Lyvinnia and confronted the second irate person - Leandra. Her daughter was utterly furious, and accused Sanria of not only ruining her life, but Colin's as well. The rancor that poured from Leandra's mouth shocked Sanria and made her feel small. The ultimate insult was when Leandra insisted that, no matter what Sanria felt, she had an obligation to be with Colin. It was so final, so snappish, Sanria was stunned into silence. "You don't need to worry, I'm leaving this place. The farther away I can get so I'm not reminded that I'm *your* daughter, the better."
Matinus had salvaged the night. She had made at least one person outside of Gilean happy. She stood up and blew him a kiss goodnight. When he sleepily returned it, Sanria could barely keep herself from crying.
