******************

Jade greeted Tyrone as he stood at the front door, hat in hand. "Have you heard the wonderful news?" she said, placing her hand on his arm.

“If you mean have I heard about your impending marriage to a man I once called my best friend-Oui, I heard," he said stonily. "Bad news travels fast, as they say."

Jade looked into his eyes, trying to discern his meaning. "I thought you would be happy for me. Let us go into the garden where we can talk undisturbed, Tyrone."

With great long strides, he moved ahead of her and waited for her to join him.

"Why have you done this, Jade?" he asked coldly.

She was puzzled at his anger. ' 'Are you speaking of my betrothal to Raige?"

His one hand twirled and untwirled a gold watch chain in agitation. “You said nothing of this to me-neither did Raige. I had to hear it from my mother."

Jade gave him a questioning stare, and said in surprise, "And you are not happy for us?"

He regarded her with caution, then said with frosty politeness, "You know how I feel about you, you've always known. You played me for the fool, Jade."

Even though the day was warm, she shivered, feeling winter form in her heart. "I did no such thing, Tyrone. I will ask you to explain what you mean by that."

He stood ramrod straight, his eyes boring into hers. "I always thought, given time, you would come to love me."

Her anger melted, and she was anguished that she had hurt him. If only she had known how he felt about her. "Your mother told me as much, but I did not believe her. I promise you, Tyrone, I would never purposely hurt you."

He looked stupefied. ' 'My mother spoke of my feelings for you?"

"Oui."

He ran one hand nervously through his hair. "Forgive me. It's just that this has all been a shock." He smiled tightly. "I only need time to grow accustomed to the idea."

She brushed her cheek against his. "There is nothing to forgive among friends. We will pretend this never happened."

"You won't tell Raige that I was such a fool?"

"It will be our secret."

He tenderly touched her face. “I do want your happiness above everything else; I had only hoped it would be with me." Without another word, Tyrone turned and walked away.

Thick fog suddenly blanketed the land, and Jade walked numbly into the darkness. The black mist of dread engulfed her and she gripped the railing of the garden gate, which was cold beneath her hands.

She shivered as a raw wind hit her in the face with the force of a blow.


* * *

Jade was so busy with the many social gatherings held in her honor that there was little time to think of anything else. Then there was her trousseau to be fitted, and, of course, her wedding gown.

To her disappointment, she had not seen much of Raige. But it was planting season, and as master of a large plantation, he was needed at Tanglewood.

Jade stood perfectly straight as she was laced into the creamy white silk wedding gown made of brocade with sprays of cream flowers. A long train trailed behind her, and she could imagine how it would look as she walked down the aisle to join her love in marriage.

The dressmaker stood back with a look of satisfaction. "A perfect fit, mademoiselle."

"Jade, dearest, you will make a lovely bride. Wait until Raige sees you!" her mother exclaimed.

The gossamer lace veil was placed on Jade's head. It drifted softly across her face. She caught her breath as a feeling of foreboding swirled around in her mind. The wind sounded mournful as it rustled the leaves on the magnolia tree, and it seemed to whisper, "You will never be a bride."

Jade yanked the veil from her head and tossed it on the bed, covering her ears with her hands to block out the sound. "I am weary. I will try on no more gowns today."

Emmaline nodded for the dressmaker to leave, then she hugged Jade to her. "You are just tired, dear. Why don't you rest a bit."

Jade wanted to tell her mother about the feeling of deep foreboding that would give her no peace, but Emmaline would only worry.

She closed her eyes and thought of Raige, and was caught by a longing so sharp it was almost painful. She wanted desperately to make him a good wife. She would give him sons with his same dark eyes and sense of honor, and daughters with his wonderful humor.

Again she heard the voice, this time in the deep recesses of her mind.

"You will never be mistress of Tanglewood Plantation!"

Chapter Six

Betty Allendale chatted as she moved about the already immaculate living room, straightening a picture, centering a vase on a table, picking an imaginary speck of dust from the arm of the sofa.

"Tonight will be the masked ball I wrote you about. It's quite fun, really," she said, thinking it might be good to distract Olivia. "If you didn't bring a costume, we'll find you something suitable."

"Oh, I brought a costume. I had it made by a seamstress in Boston. It's a lovely creation. I'm going as Juliet." She did not tell Betty that she had once seen the gown in a dream, when Jade had worn it to a masquerade party.

"Good. The ball will last into the wee hours of the morning, so you had better rest this afternoon."

Olivia could not keep the excitement out of her voice. "Will there be a lot of people there?"

"But of course. We inhabitants of New Orleans never miss an opportunity to have a party, and a masquerade is always the most fun."

"Where will the ball be held?" Olivia asked with interest.

"This year it will be at another inn. It was once Brevelle Plantation."

"That was the home of Jade's friend Charlene before she married Tyrone," Olivia said, going over in her mind what she knew about the woman.

"Yes, it was. Sadly, Tyrone and Charlene never had children, so the plantation fell into ruin, and much of the rich bottom land was reclaimed by the swamp."

"Pity," Olivia said, her mind focused on the red gown and mask she would wear tonight. If only she could meet her Romeo, someone to love her, then perhaps she would not be so caught up in the life of a girl who had lived so long ago.


******************

Dawn burst upon the land with the luster of bright sunlight. Jade yawned, stretching her arms over her head, watching the maid move about the chamber, tidying as she went. Remembering that today was the beginning of the carnival season, she threw aside the coverlet and slipped out of bed. Tonight she would be a guest at the most exciting party of the year, a private costume ball that was attended by all the elite families of New Orleans.

Jade had been looking forward to the masquerade for months, hoping Raige would be her escort, but she had neither seen nor heard from him in over three weeks. It was with profound disappointment that she realized she would be escorted to the ball by her mother and father. Why was Raige ignoring her when their wedding was only three days hence?

Jade was filled with doubts. Did he regret asking her to marry him? What would she do if he didn't really love her?


* * *

As far as Jade was concerned, the fun of the ball was trying to see how long she could keep her identity a secret. So she insisted on entering the ballroom alone, because everyone would recognize her mother and father, who once again wore their Caesar and Cleopatra costumes, the same ones they wore every year.

The room seemed to explode with shimmering lights, and Jade was equally shimmering in her red gossamer gown and matching red mask. Atop her head she wore a veil that concealed the color of her hair and atop the veil she wore a beaded cap.

Jade had taken great pains to keep her costume a secret, and she was irritated when she advanced into the room and several people greeted her by name.

The ball was not as much fun as it had been in previous years. Jade had hoped that she could spend some time with Raige, but as the evening progressed, it was apparent that he would not be attending.

Charlene appeared at Jade's side and whispered in her ear, "What a calamity. Everyone knows you are Juliet and I am Queen Elizabeth. Would it not be a lark if we exchanged costumes? I could be you for the evening and you could be me. Of course, we would have to speak as little as possible so no one would recognize our voices."

Jade was intrigued by the idea. "Oui, let's do it! I'm certain that we could fool everyone, because they would not be expecting it."

A short time later Jade emerged from Charlene's bedroom, where a maid had helped her dress in the dark green Elizabethan gown with lace ruff and red wig. Charlene was still in her room, being laced into Jade's costume.

Jade moved through the crowd of merrymakers until someone grabbed her about the waist and whirled her around the parquet floor.

"Charlene," he said laughingly, "you fooled no one with your disguise. We all knew you the minute we arrived."

Jade smiled, making no reply. The ball was becoming more amusing because of Charlene's plan.

It was later in the evening when the man dressed as a knight approached Jade and Charlene. He bowed before Charlene and spoke in a disguised voice, but they both knew it was Tyrone all the same.

"Fairest of the fair, my Juliet, you have won the heart of this knight," he said, unaware of the laughing glances the girls exchanged.

Delightedly, Jade watched her friend being led outside by Tyrone. Jade knew that Charlene desperately loved Tyrone, and she was certain that they would make an admirable couple, if only Tyrone would realize it for himself. Perhaps tonight Charlene would get her fondest wish.