“I told you not to touch me.” Alecia heard a gasp, perhaps from the Queen, but she did not care. Let them think what they would.
“Alecia does not know what she says,” Finus said. Even through her frozen mind, she could tell he was furious. The slimy toad was angry that she did not fall at his feet with instant love and obedience? She would make it her mission to show him the mistake he had made on agreeing to this betrothal. Her mouth cracked a grim smile. Better to focus on Finus than on the bear and Vard.
King Beniel cleared his throat. “Can I suggest that we return to the castle to discuss this? It is hardly helping the princess to stand here in the cold when she has had a fright.”
“Quite so, brother.” Prince Zialni took Alecia’s arm in his and she was glad of his support as he guided her back to the ballroom. He spoke quiet words to the musicians and they returned to their instruments. The tune they played soothed her raw nerves a little. The prince led her to a chair and made her sit. Someone pushed a goblet of mulled wine into her hands. The heat returned to her fingertips as she sipped the warm, sweet liquid.
Alecia was vaguely aware of the guests being dismissed and of her father’s soldiers arriving with torches to begin the search for the intruder. The men gathered just inside the doors while the Queen and her ladies-in-waiting clustered around Alecia.
“What a shock you have had, niece,” Adriana said, “and on your betrothal night, too. Do not think this is an ill omen for your nuptials. All will be well.”
Alecia looked up at the Queen. She was so beautiful and self-assured. Had Adriana’s marriage been arranged for her? She seemed happy. “All will never be well again.”
Queen Adriana laughed. “Oh, Alecia, you are so melodramatic. The soldiers will catch this foul trespasser and life will return to normal.”
“That is not what I am referring to.” Alecia’s voice was cold. “Can you have someone fetch my maid? I wish to return to my room.”
The Queen grabbed the arm of a passing serving girl and spoke a few quiet words. The girl’s face blanched at being addressed by the monarch but she gathered her skirts and ran from the room.
Alecia watched her father, Lord Finus and King Beniel as they talked in low tones near the outer door. Finus fixed her with his cold eyes and then stalked over.
“Princess, I must ask you about the noise we heard.”
Alecia held her tongue.
“Yes,” Queen Adriana said. “I heard the roar of a bear. Tell us about it, my dear.”
“There was a brown bear in the garden,” Alecia said. “I do not know how it came to be there.”
“A bear and a crossbow-wielding intruder,” Finus said. “The garden was crowded this night. There is also the question of how the invader eluded the patrols.”
Prince Zialni joined the group. “Patrols you were responsible for, Lord Finus. The very same patrols that allowed an assassin close enough to shoot my daughter’s protector.”
“Is it not a little hasty to name the invader an assassin, Your Highness?” Finus smiled a sickly smile and Alecia’s insides warmed a little at his discomfort.
“What else can this be but an assassination attempt? My daughter, your betrothed, might have been murdered this night and you stand here debating? You will find out what happened to the patrols and how this man came to penetrate the castle defenses.”
“I assure you I will do so and bring this intruder to justice, Your Highness,” Finus said, “but what of the bear?”
“The bear will not get far,” Prince Zialni said. “In the morning, my men will track it and kill it. We cannot have rogue animals menacing the palace. The assassin may be a more difficult matter, unless he has left a trace of his passing. I will question the soldiers on patrol myself. You said Captain Anton was wounded, Alecia. Where is he now? Why did he leave you alone in the garden?”
Alecia frowned and bit her lip. Considering Vard’s wounds, she doubted he would ever return. Unbidden, his handsome face filled her thoughts; the memory of his embrace lent her comfort. But she would never again find solace in Vard’s arms. If by chance he should survive, how could she face him after what she had witnessed? She shivered. What would she do if she did come face to face with him? She shook her head. It could not have happened that way. Vard could not have become the bear. It was the effects of shock and fatigue and all the events of the past days that had her seeing wild fancies.
“Daughter?” Prince Zialni stood, arms crossed over his chest, brows drawn into one thick black line.
Alecia pulled herself from her reverie and met her father’s eyes. “Captain Anton was gravely wounded; even so he pursued the assassin into the forest when he fled. I believe he will die from his wounds.” A sob erupted from her throat and a wave of hot anguish banished the chill inside her. Millie arrived at her elbow. “I ask leave to return to my room now, Father.”
Prince Zialni bowed his acquiescence. Alecia curtsied to the King and Queen, completely ignored Lord Finus and swept from the room. Millie scurried behind, babbling about the events of the night, but Alecia barely listened. Her mind raced as she tried to come to terms with what she had seen. The effect of the wine lingered and her head was still fuzzy. Millie helped her undress and tucked her into the bed.
“I’ll be here beside you in the chair, Princess. You close your eyes and all will seem better in the morning.”
Alecia turned her head to the wall, away from the maid. No matter where her thoughts dwelled, she felt her life would never be happy again.
Chapter 14
The brown bear lifted his muzzle from the ruined throat of the human, blood dripping from his whiskers. His shoulder and chest throbbed. This human had caused those hurts and the chase had been difficult. The bear didn’t understand his compulsion to hunt and kill the man, just as he didn’t know why he had spared the woman. Easy prey was the best, but she had smelled familiar… and that confused him.
He felt little desire to eat the flesh before him but the energy expended had to be replaced and his wounds needed healing. He settled before the corpse, groaning as the strange hard objects that had pierced his body grated against bone, sending fresh agony into his chest and shoulder. He tasted his own blood. This human could provide the cure he needed. One blow of his huge claw opened the chest wall. He seized the quivering heart and ripped it from the vessels that fed it. The organ disappeared in one mouthful. Blood pooled in the chest cavity and the bear drank from the fluid. Nature’s healing energy flowed into him. He tore through the muscle that separated the chest from the abdomen and feasted on the liver and the spleen.
The bear knew, vaguely, that he should be moving. Hunters would come, scouring the forest with their sharp metal, and he must hide until it was safe. A vague memory of the woman flashed though his mind again but he did not understand. The huge creature dragged himself from his resting place and padded off into the forest.
The buzz of activity downstairs awoke Alecia mid-morning. After lying sleepless for most of the night, she had fallen into an exhausted doze around dawn. Her mind swarmed with thoughts of Vard and the bear, her betrothal and the ball, skittering from subject to subject, not resting anywhere for long.
Eventually she had to acknowledge one truth. Vard was far from human. His transformation last night into a huge brown bear was not her imagination, and he had contemplated attacking her. Her survival had rested on the whim of a wild creature and, worse, that animal was her protector.
There was a knock on the door. Alecia ignored it and pulled the covers over her head. Perhaps whoever it was would go away.
“Princess Alecia, my dear,” a smug male voice said from beside her bed.
Alecia sat bolt upright to find Lord Finus leaning over her, his eyes fixed to her bosom. “Why are you in my chambers?”
“Ah, my dear, you forget that I am your betrothed now. I can do almost anything I wish.” His eyes roved over her face and shoulders and returned to the bodice of her nightgown. “I have come to inform you
that King Beniel and Queen Adriana are about to depart. They wish to say goodbye.”
Alecia stifled the impulse to order him from the room. She hated the way his eyes caressed her body, as if it were already his. “I thought they were to stay several days.” It would have been better for Vard to kill her last night than to face the slow death of the spirit that Lord Finus would inflict upon her. She tried to tell herself that children would make her life bearable, but when she contemplated how those children would be conceived she felt physically ill.
“The events of last evening have unnerved the prince.” A look of fury passed across the lord’s visage. “He has decided that it will be safer for the King if he leaves now. I agree, even though it will mean the monarch misses our betrothal ceremony.”
Alecia’s stomach clenched at the mention of the ceremony but she would not be distracted. “You look angry, my lord.”
“I was frightened for your life, Princess. It is only natural. I could not forgive myself if you had been injured.”
“You believe the bolts were meant for me?”
“What other conclusion could be drawn?
“Surely Captain Anton was the target? He was, after all, the one injured.” She drew her knees up beneath the covers and wrapped her arms around them. Vard is out there somewhere, injured, perhaps dead. Vard is a bear! Her whole being started to tremble and Finus did not even notice.
“Regardless, Princess, we must assume it was an attempt on your life, and we must be more vigilant.”
Lord Finus’ voice trailed away and his gaze narrowed, but what he saw in his mind’s eye, Alecia could only guess. She was convinced that the attempt last night had been aimed at Vard. Had Finus ordered it? But why would he put her at risk like that, when a stray shot could have ended his plans to marry her? No, that did not make sense either.
“Perhaps we shall learn more when Anton returns,” he said.
Alecia drew a deep breath. “He is still missing? What of the assassin?”
“The soldiers found the mutilated body of a man in the forest this morning, just outside the grounds. There is no identification on the corpse but there was a ring on the body…” Finus’ jaw looked so tight it was a wonder he could speak at all, “a ring bearing the serpent design of the guild of assassins.” The lord seemed uncomfortable in the extreme and Alecia could well imagine her father had been harsh in his treatment of his future son-in-law. Perhaps Finus was not involved in the attack. After all, he had much to lose.
“The bear has not been located,” Finus said, squaring his shoulders and peering down his nose at Alecia. Her betrothed had a truly remarkable ability to shrug off adversity. She could almost admire that. “Our tracker is still out. Perhaps he will find the animal and it can be killed. It would not do to have a man-eater roaming the countryside.”
Alecia shivered. “You think the bear attacked the assassin?”
“There is no doubt, Princess. It seems the bear killed the man and then ate various organs. We must find the creature and kill it before it strikes again.”
Alecia had gone cold. Her mind played the scene of Vard’s transformation into the bear and she imagined the giant jaws tearing at human flesh. She shuddered. It could so easily have been her flesh between those teeth.
“Princess, what shall I tell His Majesty?”
“What?” she said. “Oh, please ask him to wait. I will be down within the hour.”
Lord Finus bent to kiss her cheek but Alecia turned away. His long fingers gripped her jaw and she gasped as cold lips descended on hers. She froze, terrified that he would push his claim right there in her room. The hard fingers left her jaw and trailed down her throat and breast. Alecia froze, unable to breathe, but just as she raised her hand to push him away, Finus straightened, cold triumph on his face. He left without another word and the tiny spark of hope left inside Alecia died.
King Beniel and Queen Adriana’s entourage had assembled on the palace drive by the time Alecia dragged on a gown and made herself respectable. Ramón stepped from his position in the line of palace staff to escort her to the monarch’s side. She refused to meet his eyes, still angry about his behaviour the previous evening.
Ramón leaned down to her and she stiffened. “I am sorry for last night, Princess. It will not happen again, now that you are betrothed.”
Alecia stared. “Your behaviour was inappropriate, betrothal or not!” she snapped.
He frowned. “It is just that I have waited so long for your love, Alecia. I could not wait longer.”
“Be quiet,” Alecia said. “This is not the time or the place.”
She swept a deep curtsy for the King and then the Queen. “I am distressed to see you depart so soon, Uncle… Aunt.” Alecia could not find it in her heart to care. Her relatives supported her betrothal to Lord Finus. She was truly alone. “Is there nothing I can say to delay your departure?”
King Beniel kissed her hand and then pulled her into his embrace. His breath held the faint odour of garlic, a fault she had not noticed when he had been the perfect uncle.
“My brother is right, my dear,” said the King. “We cannot risk the life of our Queen. We must take ourselves from this peril. By staying we further endanger your life and Jiseve’s.”
Queen Adriana stepped forward, resplendent in her cobalt-blue gown trimmed with gold lace. “All will be well, Alecia,” she said, her voice low and eyes serious. “You will come to love your husband in time.” She gave Alecia a brief hug. “Do not fight your fate.”
Alecia’s heart sank. The Queen’s words rang a death knell for Alecia’s future happiness. Perhaps her aunt was also miserable? Alecia gave her another curtsy and stepped back. She could not forgive her aunt and uncle for supporting this union.
The royal couple looked at Alecia a moment longer, as if they wished to extend the conversation, then King Beniel ushered his Queen into their coach. The royal conveyance rolled away down the drive to a blare of trumpets and a cheer from the prince’s household. A few townsfolk also cheered and clapped from outside the palace gates.
Alecia trudged up the drive towards the palace steps. Ramón caught her up on the stairs.
“Congratulations again,” he said. “You will be busy planning the wedding now, I suppose.”
“You think I will be consulted on that?”
“What is the matter?”
“I do not see why I should accept this with good grace, especially in the company of friends,” she said. “Lord Finus is the last man I would choose to marry. I hate him!”
“You knew yours would be an arranged marriage, Princess. You cannot be surprised.”
“I thought my father loved me enough to consult with me before choosing my husband. Then to pick a man almost old enough to be my grandfather…” Alecia shuddered.
“That is the way of many arranged marriages, Princess,” Ramón said. “It is to be hoped that Finus still has it in him to produce the royal heir.”
“No one understands! I will kill myself before I let that old lecher touch me.”
Ramón clutched her forearm. “You cannot mean that!”
Alecia stared at him so he could be in no doubt of her sincerity. “I will take my life, if I can. If not, he will have to rape me to get me with child. Now, let me go.”
Ramón released her arm but walked alongside her as she took the stairs to her chamber. “Let me guess whom you would rather wed,” he said when they stopped at her door.
“I am not going to have this conversation with you. I am too tired.”
“Have you heard that Captain Anton has not yet returned?”
Alecia swallowed a surge of panic at the mention of Vard. “I had heard. You did not find any trace of him last evening when you entered the forest?”
“No. I soon realized there was nothing I could do until first light.”
“What you did was foolhardy, Ramón. The captain would not expect you to take a crossbow bolt for him.”
Ramon’s clear blue gaze c
louded and sweat shone on his brow. “Your precious captain will have some sticky questions to answer when he does appear. Why he fled and left you alone, for instance.”
Alecia knew the squire well enough to see he was hiding something but right at this moment she did not care what it was. “I do not intend to stand in my doorway and gossip,” she said. “If you have news of Vard -- the captain -- let me know. Please excuse me.”
She closed her door in Ramón’s face and leaned against it, taking deep breaths in the hope that she could bring the tide of her emotions under control. Tears would not come but her entire body trembled. It had taken everything she had to hold herself in check as Ramón discussed Vard. She could not abide it if he did not return, or if the hunters brought word of the killing of the rogue bear. Equally, Alecia did not know if she could face the man who had awakened her. Her body yearned for his even now, but she was terrified of the animal that dwelled beneath his skin.
Chapter 15
Vard knelt in the shadows of the rain barrel and waited for the patrol to pass. He was loath to approach the witch but she was the only one who could help him now. He was weak, so weak. Dusk deepened the shadows. Just a few moments longer and it would be dark enough to reach her front door. There was no question of climbing in an upper-storey window in his condition.
He wondered what had occurred at the castle since the events of the previous night. A flash of Alecia’s horrified face came to him and he drew a ragged breath. She had seen his transformation and he had contemplated attacking her. It could so easily have been her body that he had ripped into last evening. The metallic taste in his mouth was testimony to the fact that he had drunk the blood and eaten the organs of a human. The foreign life force leaped through his veins, even as his stomach tightened at the forbidden meal. He might not know everything about the creature he was, but he knew that to feed from a human was taboo. What would the consequences be?
The hand that reached for the stone at his throat trembled. Perhaps it would’ve been best for him to lie down somewhere and die, but the time for that had passed. He could’ve made that choice last night and he’d not had the self-control. Now it was too late.
Princess Avenger - Brightcastle Saga Book 1 Page 13
