That’s when it happened. A quick hand and cloth covered my nose and mouth, and I was out.
I don’t know how long it took for me to awake from the poisoned sleep, but when I did, the fogginess was inescapable. The darkness handicapped me and rendered my sight useless. The slow drip of water hitting some type of pool became louder and louder and relentlessly pierced my mind until I thought I’d go mad.
“Help me,” I tried to scream, but it only sounded like a loud whisper at best.
A growl responded. The warmth of the animal’s breath crept down every vertebrae of my motionless spine. I cringed and found myself mimicking my childhood’s answer to unseen fear. I froze and closed my eyes. I lay so incredibly still it hurt. Every muscle, joint, and appendage felt jammed into the rigidity I was compelled to force. I knew it had to be the wolf — the same one I saw in the forest that night, the same one I heard outside Rose’s house, and the same one I felt stalk me every step I’d made until now. But how could it have been what robbed me from Chester’s arms? There must be someone helping it. Eventually the exhaustion and poison overtook me, and I surrendered into the unknown of sleep.
The creeping sunlight glowed behind my closed eyes. I opened them slowly. My head pounded in rebellion.
“Here.” I heard a voice next to me say coldly. A tall dark featured man sat on a rock only a couple of feet away. He placed a metal cup in front of me. His face was scruffy but mysteriously attractive, even through his cold demeanor. His muscles bulged through his thin long sleeved shirt. His tactical pants were worn at the knees and were tucked into black combat boots. He didn’t look at me. His eyes stayed focused on the fire. I skeptically reviewed the cup’s contents and decided it was water. That same thirst that got me kidnapped had now made me go against my better judgment and take a drink from the man I assumed had drugged me. I finished the water and gently placed the cup at his feet.
My head continued to pound, so I lay back on the mat and looked up at the cave’s ceiling. The stalactites and mites explained the water sound that I had heard before but not the growl. I wondered if this guy had a guard dog that he kept to watch his prisoners. I lay motionless, trying to figure out what I should do. The edge of the cave was probably 15 yards away, but the looks of this intimidating man and my throbbing headache kept me from feeling like I should make a mad run for it.
“You need to eat,” he said. “Sit up.”
I obeyed. He grabbed some fruit from a basket on the other side of the cave. I was astonished he felt confident enough to turn his back to me, his prisoner. I hesitated for a moment and thought about doing something, but he turned back to face me before I could clearly decide anything.
“Here,” he said coldly and handed me an apple, banana, and some grapes.
I quietly munched on the first meal I’d had in a while and stared at my capturer. His eyes occasionally met mine, but he would quickly turn away. He appeared to be older than Chester and I. Maybe in his late twenties. I wanted to ask him why he had taken me and what he wanted from me, but I was too afraid. He probably worked for the royals. Another of their soldiers, I concluded.
After eating, I sat awkwardly by the fire wishing he’d say something. Even if he told me he was taking me to the royals for testing, I wanted to know what was going on. But he didn’t say anything. He just sat there. Occasionally, he’d grab something to eat or drink. He’d lie down on a palate across from me, but he’d never sleep. As the time passed, I found myself more and more confused. I figured he would be taking me to them, but we never left. Then I thought maybe the royals might come here, but that seemed unlikely since we seemed to be miles away from anything. I resolved not to speak until I was spoken to for fear I may be dealing with something much worse than royals.
By the time the dark had appeared again, I couldn’t help but feel sick. The silence was killing me. I desperately wanted to be back with Chester and be on our way to helping Madeline.
“When are they coming?” I finally asked. The echo of my voice bounced back to me and hung heavy in the stillness.
“Who?”
“The royals?”
“I don’t work for the royals, if that’s what you’re getting at.” He laid his head back on his folded arms.
“What do you plan on doing with me?” I asked nervously. I sat up and stared at him over the fire. A howl roared near the entrance of the cave. I jumped in fear and felt my body resume rigidness.
He smiled. “I haven’t decided yet.”
After another several moments of quiet. I laid back down and escaped into the depths of my dreams.
The next morning, I awoke to the piercing black eyes of the wolf. His shiny gray coat reflected off of the early morning rays. He strutted around the cave, always keeping a large distance between him and I. The man was nowhere to be found. I figured he was gone for whatever reason and left this beast here to keep me from escaping. I found the water and food in the same place where he retrieved them yesterday — a large woven pack. I fed myself, sat down, and studied the walls of the cave.
There were primitive, though impressive, paintings of men killing wolves under double moons, and of wolves slashing men. One was different, set off by itself, away from the brutality of the others. A man held a woman tenderly. That one was my favorite.
The wolf never seemed to tire. His eyes were on me the entire day. He watched as I walked in circles around the fire while I tried to figure out how I was going to escape. He even stared as I braided my hair. His constant glare made me feel nervous and insecure. I didn’t know what was running through his mind. I couldn’t read him like I could dogs at home. His eyes were wild.
When night approached, he stood at the edge of the cave and howled for what seemed like hours. I could hear other howls in the distance. I went to sleep that night with him sitting and starring until I finally just turned over.
Every night went on like this for weeks. Some days and nights the man would be there and others the wolf. I never noticed any rhyme, reason or schedule. The silence was maddening. Every day that passed without human interaction and conversation made me feel more and more desperate to escape, but I was never left alone.
The man hadn’t said anything really. It amazed me how another human being could be so quiet. I wanted to go back to Chester, the only person who understood what it was like to be a northern dweller in Mezzanine.
That night the wolf was on duty. I wanted something different than the same old vegetables and fruit I had been eating, so I figured I’d pop some corn. I took an iron pot, put the corn inside, and placed a plate on top of it. I positioned a rock in the middle of the fire and shifted the embers until a flame was peeking through the wood and over the rock. I waited a few minutes and sat the pot of corn on the rock. After a few seconds, I heard the first pop. The wolf jumped to his feet, and walked closer to the fire to investigate. Another pop. Then another. Then many pops. The wolf jerked at every one of them and began to growl at the noise. I laughed. He looked at me in confusion. I moved the pot back and forth with a stick until the corn fell silent. I grabbed a blanket and used it to pick up the hot iron pot. I sat it in front of me and ate in silence, fairly pleased that this simple pleasure had broken up the monotony of many days.
The wolf glared at me, but I couldn’t help but laugh. I remember feeding our dog Sugar back home popcorn all the time. She loved it. I thought about it for a moment and threw him one, but instead of lurching out to catch it, he let it fall to the dirt floor. He stared at it for a while and then looked at me. I threw a piece up in the air and caught it with my mouth. I giggled at the thought of a dog’s reluctance to eat a little ol’ popped corn. I walked over and snatched the piece up.
“If you don’t want it, I guess I’ll take it back,” I taunted, remembering how that always worked with my dog.
I sat the piece next to me as I continued eating my snack. I had almost finished when the wolf began to nudge around sniffing. I cupped my hand over the treat. He stared at me w
ith puppy eyes, almost begging. I took the piece and held it out in my palm. He came over and slowly licked it out of my hand. Without even thinking, I ran my hand down his head and back.
“Good boy,” I said happily.
Instantly, I knew I shouldn’t have touched him. Both our bodies tensed, and I feared he might attack me. I held my hand out, top up, to his nose and waited for his permission. I didn’t think he was going to give it until he finally rooted his snout under my hand. I ran my fingers down his soft back. He sat still next to me all night. We both finished off the popcorn.
Life went on like this for a couple more weeks. Some days I’d spend it slowly bonding with the wolf and others I’d sit awkwardly, almost entirely silent with the man. I looked forward to the days he left just the wolf and I. I’d talk to him and pet him. I genuinely made friends with him. Often I thought about trying to manipulate the wolf and figuring out some way to leave, but the wolf’s eyes always made me fearful. Though I had seen the domesticated side of him, I knew there was a wildness about him too. The spark in his eyes made him unpredictable, and I didn’t like the idea of taking any chances. Though death wasn’t an option here, serious pain was.
One morning, I awoke to the man staring at me. I sat up, startled.
“Good morning,” he said. Those were the first kind words he had ever said to me. I was taken aback by this and forgot to answer. He had a look of disappointment on his face and retreated back to the rock he always sat on by the fire.
“Morning,” I replied minutes too late. It was obvious he had no idea what to say next. “How was your day yesterday?” I continued, trying to evoke some sort of small talk, but he didn’t respond. He just kept dancing his glare from me to the fire.
“It got a little cold, but luckily we were able to keep warm. The wolf and I. I can completely understand what people used to say back home about a two-dog night…” I continued on awkwardly about the weather. I wanted desperately to have a conversation again.
“You like the wolf?” he finally asked, avoiding my eyes.
“Yes. Very much.”
“I think he likes you too,” he said quietly.
“What’s his name?”
“Cale,” he responded.
“Oh, that’s nice. I have wanted to know but was too nervous to ask you. I’ve just been calling him ‘wolfie’ or ‘boy.” I laughed. “What’s your name?”
“I go by lots of names in the kingdom. Few of them appropriate for ladies’ ears.” His voice was flat and cold. I could sense resentment and anger approaching, so I found my inner quiet and embraced it.
Hours went by in silence again.
Just as the fire had softened to a dull glow, and I was on my way to see Chester or Dashielle in my dreams, he spoke.
“I think your friend can be saved with a little help.”
I sat up and looked at him, surprised. His words echoed over and over, either by emptiness of the cave or by the replay button of my mind.
“How do you know about Madeline?”
“I’d been following you a long while before I took you,” he admitted. I thought that, of course, but I’d only ever seen the wolf.
“Are you willing to help me then? Is that what you’re saying?” I shook my head in disbelief that my captor would agree to help me with anything. “Wait. This doesn’t make sense. Why would you care about helping my friend? I’m nothing to you but an abandoned play toy. Why don’t you just let me go? Chester and I can manage by ourselves. Please just let me go,” I interrupted him before he could say anything. My begging frustrated him. He stood and paced in front of the fire. His black hair shined in the light, and the shadows made by the dim flickers only highlighted his chiseled features. His brow cringed in the middle, which made me anxious for what he was about to say.
“I had to do it. You don’t understand. I followed to keep my eye on you. The forest is no place for a vulnerable newcomer to be stalking around. And that boy — Chester you call him — has no idea what he’s getting into. I couldn’t let you walk into Dresdem’s trap. I had to take you — hide you — until things quieted down in the kingdom. The royals expected you right away, you see. We needed to give them some time to think you weren’t going to come, so that maybe his guards would get sloppy and into a routine,” he rambled. I tried to follow what he was saying, but this came as a complete shock to me. In a moment, my capturer had become my savior.
“You did all this to protect me?” I stood and slowly approached him until we were only feet apart. I had never been this close to him before now. I saw he had a slight scar over his right brow that was strangely familiar.
“Your safety,” he said as he reluctantly allowed his eyes to meet mine. I took a step closer.
“Thank you, but I still don’t quite understand. Why would you be so concerned about me? I have never met you before?”
“You have.”
I thought back for a moment. Just then, we heard rocks from above the cave start to fall near the entrance.
“Stay back,” he demanded and went to inspect the noise. I stood silent.
He looked around the outside of the cave for a while. I heard Cale growl. I couldn’t see him, but I felt he was nearby. When my capturer… or savior was satisfied we were safe, he returned.
“We’ll need to leave first thing in the morning.”
About an hour passed in silence. I could tell he was trying to keep his ears available to pick out any other disturbances outside the cave, just in case. I sat next to the fire entranced by the embers. Once he felt we were safe, he came and knelt down next to me. His left elbow rested on his other knee. He looked gentlemanly in that moment. I could tell he wanted to say something, but he hesitated. His brows crinkled, and his face contorted every time he looked me in the eye.
“What is it?” I finally asked, hoping to relieve his anxiety.
“I need you to do something…something that I don’t know how to do.” He turned away as if ashamed.
“Okay. What do you need me to do?” I searched for his eyes, letting him know it was okay to tell me.
“It’s stupid,” he said in a low whisper. His eyes met mine and then looked down at the ground.
“Just tell me.”
“I know her. Your friend. She’s the reason I’ve been following you and the reason I hung around the Tresels’ estate. I was trying to figure out a way to help her escape, but you and Chester beat me to it. Now she’s under Dresdem’s spell, and there’s no way I was going to let the two of you get her into any more trouble. It’s going to take a perfect plan to get her out in one piece,” he said.
“How do you know Madeline? From what she told me, she has been enslaved for ages.”
“It wasn’t until she befriended Humbert that I found her. I looked for her all those years, and one day I received a letter. She told me where she was and what happened. I’ve made it my life’s mission to free her.
“I love her. Always have. Her parents refused to let their beautiful daughter marry me. They didn’t want to have their name bred with a beast. They’d rather brag to their friends about having a daughter who works in a castle than have her marry me. The last time I saw her, we were at the town’s dance. She begged me to dance with her, but I refused because I didn’t know how. Little did I know that it’d be the last time I’d ever get the chance to embrace her. When I see her again, I want to finally agree to that dance, so will you teach me?”
“Of course,” I said. How romantic. And yet for some reason, it was comical for such a burly man to want to learn how to dance. I could easily envision this guy hiking Mt. Kilimanjaro, wrestling a gator barehanded, or ripping out someone’s throat but dancing, really? When I felt I had adequate control over my restrained laughter, I found his eyes and sincerely answered, “I’ll teach you.”
He stood and awkwardly put his hand out to help me stand. I took his warm palm and stood up, seeing my intimidating kidnapper for the first time as just another guy made a smile escape from somew
here deep inside. One side of his mouth tilted upward for a moment. My eyes must have widened incessantly to see a smile approaching his lips because within seconds we were both laughing. I let out every fear in that laugh, and for the first time in a long time I had hope that everything was going to be okay. I took his hand and placed it on my hip, wrapped one arm around his neck, and extended our other hands outward.
“You never did tell me your name?”
“I know,” he said with a grin.
I taught him how to waltz just as my dad did me when I was nine in our living room when preparing for a fathers-daughters dance. Mom stood smiling at the doorway and let out a big laugh every time my shoes crushed my father’s feet. The memories flooded my mind, and I rested in them for a moment. I repeated the instructions my father gave me, and within minutes the two of us were dancing. He was dancing with his captive in the cave; I was dancing with my father in my home.
Chapter 14
I genuinely had a good time, but I fought the homesickness the memories had brought. It felt so good to laugh again, though. I think it took him a little bit longer to catch onto waltzing than it did me, but by the end of the night, we were circling the entire cave. Our footsteps and laughter echoed through the walls providing the music to our dance. Finally, we sat down by the fire, exhausted. We smiled bashfully at one another and lay down to sleep.
“Thanks,” he said sincerely.
“My pleasure.”
I drifted off to sleep, still feeling myself swing throughout the cave. Our dance continued until I awoke to the sound of my name.
“Rowena?” he whispered so quietly I barely heard him. I lay for a moment wondering if I had actually heard anything. I looked around but saw nothing.
Chester materialized.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, sitting up. The fire, still ablaze, illuminated the cave. Even though Chester’s gift would make him invisible anytime he wished, he still felt the need to cower in the shadows.
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