Savage Beauty

by Casey L. Bond

  I smiled. “Sure. You can cut these up. I’m making a stew.”

  When I started to walk away, he called out, “Where are you going?”

  “To catch a rabbit, of course.”

  “But you’re tired and you said it isn’t safe to go into the forest,” he argued.

  I laughed. “I’ll be fine. And what I said is true. The forest isn’t safe for you, but everything in the darkness is afraid of me.”

  “Is the darkness itself afraid?” he asked curiously.

  “I believe so.”

  PHILLIP

  God above, she’s fierce and slightly terrifying…and the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen in my life. The nail-shaped wound on my neck was tender. Would she have killed me if I wasn’t William’s brother?

  No. She hadn’t known that at first, and she had a chance to do it.

  Rolfe thought anyone in the forest was in danger from her, but she spent time tonight helping me, making a potion that would make me well again. I could feel it working already. Minute by minute, the pain was receding. I was getting stronger. My body was healing, the very bones and tissues mending themselves by her magic.

  Before she woke, I thought I was ready to walk out of here, but she took one look at me and knew I wasn’t ready or strong enough to face what was out there. If all the fae were like her, I wouldn’t be afraid at all. She was strange, but kind; however, I doubted all the fae were. After all, she warned me that danger lurked in the forest.

  I wanted to follow her outside, to protect her, but it was clear that she neither needed nor wanted my protection, and I would only be in her way. Luna was a force of nature. Her claim that everything in the darkness feared her? Yes, I imagined that was true.

  When she turned her yellow-green eyes on me, it was like she saw through me. She was able to see my injuries. Could she also see that I couldn’t stop staring at her when she was in the room? Not in fear, but because for some inexplicable reason, it was impossible to tear my eyes away from her.

  I took out a knife and began to chop the vegetables like she asked. There was cabbage, carrots, radishes, and onions. I took a deep breath, trying to clear my mind of her, but still she was there.

  This was ridiculous! She was a dark witch, she lived alone in the middle of a forest, and she obviously didn’t like company.

  I needed to push the thoughts of her out of my mind; banish the images of her lips and the soft, dark curls that fell over her shoulders. There was no way a dark witch would want a human prince, and for that matter, I couldn’t want her, either. I had responsibilities now that I was the sole heir.

  In a couple of nights, she said she’d take me out of the forest and back to the palace. My parents would probably ask the whole kingdom to celebrate my return. I can’t imagine what they’re going through. It’s been a week. I’m sure the searches have been called off. They think I’m dead. Like William.

  Luna had confirmed my brother was dead. In my heart I already knew it, but my head had refused to accept it. Hearing the truth was like tearing open a wound that had nearly healed. I wasn’t sure it would now. She said Aura killed him. Her sister. A fae witch.

  But the question remained: How did he end up in Virosa?

  Ember brushed back and forth on the backs of my legs, arching her back and purring. I stopped chopping for a minute to talk to her when Luna came back inside, holding a skinned, gutted hare.

  chapter six

  LUNA

  I held up the hare. “Are you good at cutting meat as well?”

  “I’ve never done it.”

  “Move over, then. We wouldn’t want you to get your pretty, soft fingers bloody.” His brows knitted, so I knocked his hip with mine and stretched the hare across the cutting board. His eyes left the carcass to glance at my hips. I made sure he knew I’d caught him looking and watched as he sheepishly looked back to the skinned animal. “Get the small cauldron near the hearth, please,” I instructed.

  “Are you going to turn me into a frog with this meal?” he teased as he walked across the room with more spring in his step. I was damn good with a healing potion, if I did say so myself.

  He bent to pick up the copper cauldron, bringing its handle into his hand. “Maybe,” I smirked, watching him stiffen for a split second. “I’m kidding. That cauldron is strictly used for cooking meals.”

  But it was funny to watch him worry.

  “Your brother liked my sense of humor.”

  “He did?” He put all the chopped vegetables into the cauldron, propped his hip on the counter, and crossed his arms. He was waiting for me to elaborate, but deep down, I knew he just wanted to know what had happened to his brother. I could see it in the tension around his eyes, the way his lips thinned.

  I cut chunks of meat from the bones and added them to the vegetables. Since he would be leaving soon, and because I’d promised to tell him, I decided to get it over with.

  Making eye contact so he would see the truth in my words, I told him the story. “William and two of his men had gotten lost while hunting. They came to a village and learned they were on Virosa land. To make sure they didn’t alarm or upset my sister or me, they rode to the palace to apologize to us in person for hunting on land that wasn’t his, and for trespassing.”

  “That doesn’t sound like William. I doubt my brother would’ve cared if he alarmed you or ventured onto your lands.”

  I shrugged. “Well, that’s what he said when he arrived, in any event. Regardless of what motivated him to ride to the palace, it turned out to be the wrong decision,” I said, fighting the knot in my throat, unable to elaborate. I sat the knife down and took the cutting board and all the leftover parts strewn across it outside, leaving Phillip behind. Ember followed me into the darkness. She loved rabbit.

  “What am I going to do with him?” I asked her, bracing my hands against the stone well in the back yard. Ember stopped eating long enough to meow and then went back to the hare. “You’re a big help,” I said, glaring at my familiar. I took a deep breath and blew it out fast. With a pail full of water, I walked back toward the house, enjoying the moonlight.

  The moon was full and I felt its cool comfort spilling down onto my skin and face. “What are you doing out there?” Phillip asked from the porch.

  “The stew needs water.”

  “I know you don’t want to talk about William, and if you’re too tired, or need a day to recover, fine. But I want to know what happened to him. I’ll drop it for tonight if you promise to tell me before I leave.”

  The tension in his voice and shoulders spoke volumes. He was letting me off the hook, but not for long.

  “I promise to tell you before you leave.”

  “On your honor?”

  I smiled. What honor did witches truly have? “On my honor.” Walking up the steps, he reached for the pail. “I do believe you’re feeling better, Prince.”

  “I am. Your potion was potent. You’re very good at healing.” I let him take the pail’s handle and brushed his finger with mine.

  “I’m good at many things.”

  His eyes flicked to mine. I expected him to jerk away in revulsion, but instead, he smirked and said, “So am I.”

  I couldn’t help but laugh. Phillip grinned and then turned around and walked into my cottage. I also couldn’t help but stare at his ass. It was a very fine ass. And I’d been alone for a very long time. I cursed under my breath. What was I thinking? This is William’s baby brother.

  From the porch, I watched him pour the water into the cauldron, walk the brass over to the fire, and hook the handle onto the hanger. It was my lightest cooking pot and wouldn’t strain his ribs by carrying it. When he stood upright and looked for me, I turned to the moonflowers growing on the vine. They curled toward my hands.

  His voice came from behind me. “How’d you do that?”

  “Magic.”

  “I know, but how is this all possible? Witches aren’t supposed to be real.”

  Ugh. The dread
ed birds and the bees talk. It was time to explain to him how half-fae witch babies were made. Not a conversation I was prepared to have with the young prince, but it was simple enough.

  “When a fae male mates with a human female, the offspring are half-fae witches. The child, or in my case children, inherit a small portion of their father’s powers. Our father must have been fae royalty, because Aura and I are different from most witches.”

  “How so?”

  I smiled. “It’s really better if you don’t know.”

  “You’re being evasive.”

  “You’ll appreciate my evasiveness at some point. The less you know about me and especially about Aura, the better.”

  He sat down on the first step and stared up at the sky. “She sounds like a monster, but if you’re her twin, I can’t imagine that.”

  I sat next to him. “She is a monster, Phillip. And so am I. You’d be wise to remember that.” Aura and I were twins, after all. If she was evil, then so was I, which meant our father must truly be some sort of fae demon. I wasn’t good. I was just being good to him.

  “I think you’re beautiful. And kind,” he added.

  “If you think I’m beautiful, you should see my sister.”

  In truth, I didn’t have a kind bone in my body. I was only being good to Phillip so I could do something to ease the pain and guilt of his brother’s death. That was the only reason. If he’d been anyone else, I would have sent him into the forest and let the fae eat him during their equinox celebrations.

  Though, even if I had kicked him out of my house, most forest fae were scared to venture too close to my cottage. They knew I was more powerful than they...

  “What made you smile just then?” he asked.

  “Trust me. You probably don’t want to know.”

  He stiffened. “Was it about you and William?”

  “No, it wasn’t.”

  He was quiet for a moment. “What about a fae female? Can she have a human male’s children?”

  “No – at least, not that I’ve heard of. The offspring die in the womb. They’re not strong enough to survive the fae gestation. The magic speeds the whole process, but it’s too fast for the developing child to keep up with.”

  He sighed, looking up at the moon. “I’m glad you survived. I don’t think I can get out of this forest without your help, and it would kill my parents to lose me, too.”

  “They love you?” It came out as a question.

  “They do, but they still grieve for William. They try not to let me see it, but I think they’d rather it was me who died. William was meant to be King. He was a natural leader, good at everything. I’m not my brother, and I can see the disappointment in their eyes, even when they try to hide it.”

  “I’m sure that’s not true.” Or maybe it was. Humans were the cruelest of creatures, especially to their own. I wasn’t sure what made me say it, but I said it nonetheless. “I’m glad you survived.”

  He and I both sucked in a breath. I wished William had, too, with all my heart, but I was so glad to have met his brother.

  PHILLIP

  We sat on the porch steps. I watched the moon flowers curl toward Luna’s every movement, drawn to her magnetism or magic or whatever it was. If I were one of the blooms, I would reach out to her, too. There was something ethereal about her, something that enticed and attracted. Large green moths fluttered by and fireflies lit the yard. A fox running by paused to look at her, and it was like she held him there under some sort of thrall until she was ready to let him go.

  “You should go inside and get some rest.”

  The dark sky was fading to blue and too soon the sun would rise. I shook my head. “I’ll stay up with you and sleep tomorrow during the day.”

  “Why?”

  “You don’t think I enjoy your company?”

  She smiled over at me. “I highly doubt you’ve enjoyed your time here, Prince.”

  That wasn’t entirely true. The first week had been... strange. But it was definitely looking up.

  “Are you looking forward to going home?”

  Not really, but she wouldn’t understand it. “Why do you live here?” I changed the subject. “You’re all alone in the middle of a dark forest.”

  “You don’t find the living conditions acceptable?” she bristled playfully.

  “If you are a Princess of Virosa, why don’t you live in the palace with your sister? She hasn’t been crowned yet, has she?”

  “She hasn’t yet, but will be next spring if I don’t stop it from happening. And I live here because I choose to. My sister lives in the palace because she wants the crown, and she can’t come here because I’ve bound her to the palace grounds.”

  “What would she do if she could come here?”

  “Nothing that would hurt me. She’s already taken everything I loved.”

  Including my brother, she didn’t say.

  Luna loved William. That much was obvious in the pain that stretched over her face when I brought him up, and in the way she couldn’t bring herself to talk about him yet. But how could she have loved someone so opposite her? It sounded more like William and Aura would have been a perfect match, not Luna and William.

  “How do you plan to stop her from taking the crown for herself? Is she not entitled to it?”

  Luna smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “My sister believes she is entitled to everything. I will show her that’s not the case.”

  “But how?”

  She turned to me, a frown on her face. “You ask too many questions, Prince. Some things, as I’ve explained before, are better left unsaid.”

  A red haze glazed over my vision. My hand reached out for her as she stood. I didn’t know why it latched onto her forearm so forcefully, or why it felt like I was dreaming. My mind felt foggy and confused. All of a sudden, something snapped in me. I’d taken hold of her, bared my teeth, and wanted to tear her apart, limb from limb.

  “Turn me loose before I rip your arm off!” she warned in a low tone.

  I finally regained control and let go of her. Swallowing, I tried to fight the feeling of rage settling in my heart. What was happening to me? I felt tired, like I’d just woken from a nightmare and was still disoriented, the fog still settled over me.

  “You’re sweating. Are you well?” she asked, looking me over.

  I tried to stand, but fell onto the porch planks. She cursed and hooked her hands beneath my arms. “Probably some side effect from the potion. Let’s get you inside. I thought you’d be well enough to leave tomorrow, but we may need to wait another day.”

  “Is it fever?” I asked as I stumbled through the doorway with her help. I’d seen people die of bone fever, shrieking from the pain. I didn’t want to die that way. I had my dagger. If worse came to worse, I could end my pain before it consumed me whole.

  She slung my arm over her shoulders. “It’s not fever. Your body just needs rest to heal.”

  “Did you poison me? Did you kill William?” I slurred. My voice echoed in my head, soft and fuzzy, and then I sank onto something plush as soothing darkness surrounded me. In the distance I heard the sweetest voice, singing something lilting and dark and beautiful.

  chapter seven

  LUNA

  The second night of autumn brought with it the promise of storms. The wind gusted outside, howling against the house. I stepped onto the porch where Phillip was sitting.

  “You shouldn’t be out here.”

  “I needed fresh air,” he answered. “A storm is coming.”

  I smiled. The silver bottoms of the leaves that were still green turned and showed me their bellies. The ones that had turned colors and were dry enough to be plucked by the wind from their branches rained down around us. Breathing in the rain-scented air, I closed my eyes. This would be the season for the spell to end. I could almost taste it.

  I stepped back inside and changed into a dark purple, cotton gown. It showed more cleavage than the dresses I usually wore, but Malex was mal
e, even if he was a strange male. If the top of my breasts would help persuade him to play nicely, I’d certainly use them to my advantage.

  Finding Malex might be a challenge. The fae Prince could be anywhere. In his palace, surrounded by floor-to-ceiling black marble, in his cave, or making trouble in various surrounding human villages.

  I grabbed my broom and stepped outside again.

  Phillip raked his eyes over my dress and settled on the flesh it exposed. My body warmed in response. This is William’s baby brother, I reminded myself. I focused on my broom, noting with irritation that cobwebs were clotted on the bristles. Looking at Phillip, he shrugged as if to say he told me he’d cleaned. “Don’t touch my broom again, Prince,” I warned with a growl.

  He simply chuckled. “You actually ride it?”

  “Of course,” I said dismissively. “It’s the fastest means of transportation through the forest.”

  He clapped his hands. “Where are we going?”

  “We?” I laughed. “No. I’m going to a clandestine meeting, and you will stay here tucked safely inside the house. I’ll lock it with a spell. Where I’m going, you would be slaughtered. I’ll be back by dawn.”

  “What if something happens to you?” He stood, his fingers flexed around an invisible hilt. He wasn’t afraid for himself, but for me. No one had ever defended me before, mostly because I didn’t need anyone’s help.

  Fighting back a grin, I told him, “I can take care of myself. You stay here and guard Ember.”

  He glanced from me to the cat, frowning when she purred at his legs. I held in my laughter.

  “Stay inside, no matter what you hear or see. Remember what I said. The forest isn’t safe tonight, but the house will be protected. I will step back inside the door at dawn, and not a moment before. If I arrive while the sky is still dark and ask you to come outside, it’s not really me.”

  His mind chewed on that possibility and he finally agreed, a hint of disappointment in his voice. “Fine.”

  I motioned for him to turn around and go back inside the door. He did, but refused to close it. Closing my eyes, I spelled the cottage with protection. I had already bound my sister to the palace grounds, but soon, I would seal my sister into the palace itself, away from her precious garden. It was a small step, but one that would make a huge difference to her. She loved her roses, and my plan would keep her away from them. Being bound to a smaller place would also make her angry, and anger was a diversion in and of itself. While she raged about being confined, I would work to set us both free. Soon, but not soon enough.