Casson's Bride

A lonely man in love with a woman who can never know him for who he is . . . Casson built beautiful Lanore a house of stone on top of a mountain overlooking the tumultuous ocean. She has decorated the home with flowers that change that hear her commands, with rocks, which speak to her, and with some small beasts of the forests, such as singing birds. Yet the moment is soon arriving when Casson will discover who she truly is. For all he has done for her, his life is now at stake. Who can distinguish between madness and love?Excerpt:Inside the stone cavern, he usually found Lanore tending to her flowers with exquisitely gentle fingers, almost as if she played a harp. The flowers, ones he could not name since he had no idea what they were, or if they really existed at all, must have spoken to her. From time to time, she canted her head to one side, as if listening. Rarely, in the language he had never been able to learn, nor would he be able, she would use her tongue and the roof of her mouth to click. He watched in wonder as the plant stood straighter, and shifted into a more vibrant hue right before his eyes. Perhaps, he thought, greatly disquieted, she could hear the rocks speak to each other and those were the sounds she imitated. However they might be silent in his presence, they might not be in hers.At times, Casson heard scampering sounds. He never knew whether the feet belonged to a mouse or a squirrel or some other unnamed creature. For those existed here too. Those without monikers, those who simply lurked in the hallways or in the rafters. Often he felt those eyes watching, waiting, but when he glanced up, emptiness greeted him. Once in a great while, he saw luminous, golden-brown eyes peering at him, but they quickly disappeared. Perhaps they closed their eyes when they suspected he watched. He did not know.With careful footsteps, he entered the house. The quiet that was part of the forest’s eternal nature reigned. There were silent, hidden creatures, which protected Lanore. Once, when he had walked in, a screaming eagle with outstretched wings had flown at his face. Casson had shouted, but instead of driving away the huge bird, the sound of distress had angered it further. From another room, Lanore had spoken to the frenzied creature in the same language she always used. Abruptly, the eagle had veered away, made one swift pass over Casson’s head, and vanished. Where had such a fearful creature come from? Where had it gone? He had no idea. Knowledge of such matters was not always enlightening.

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