by Briers, M L
THE LYCAN THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE
By
M L BRIERS
Copyright © 2013 by M.L Briers
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof
may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever
without the express written permission of the publisher
except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
THE LYCAN THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER ONE
Nicole had seen it in the window on the night they placed it there and her heart had sung with the knowledge that it would soon be hers, all hers. There would be no ifs, no ands and no buts this time- that piece was coming home with Mama. Old man Grey had out manipulated her the last time and stolen it right from under her nose, but this time, she had it firmly in her sights and it would have pride of place in her bedroom.
That Wardrobe- that vessel of craftsmanship with an extra little kicker that she had longed to claim back in her possession. Her grandmother’s pride and joy, sold to pay off debts instead of being a family heirloom. It was rightfully hers and she would have it.
If only Mr Porter would open the damned shop up ! Two weeks holiday indeed and in this economy.
She snorted her contempt for the man as she continued to eye the piece through the window.
“Nose pressed up against the glass-“ Darcy mused coming to stop beside her friend and catching the whimsical look in her eye.
“It will be mine Dar- I have to have it- it’s just so-“ She took a long deep breath and sighed.
“Ugly.” Darcy caught herself a moment too late as Nicole turned on her pointy little heels, big brown eyes wide as she placed her hands on her hips and tilted her head confrontationally towards her friend.
“Ugly? “ It was a question demanding an answer on an attitude of disbelief and Darcy mentally slapped her own forehead.
“Well not ugly so much as-“ she waved her hand in front of her, her eyes narrowing as she tried to find a word that conveyed ugly but in a nice way. “Yeah I’ve got nothing Nic- sorry.”
Nicole made a point of motioning towards the window with both hands like an airhostess showing the escape route and truth be told- Darcy knew she could use one of those right about now.
“That is a classic-“ The fire burned brightly in Nicole’s eyes as she challenged her friend to disagree with her.
“Well so is mangle but I wouldn’t want one those in my house either.” Darcy spat out and mentally slapped herself again when Nicole almost choked on her own tongue. “But each to their own right- it’s kind of sentimental value too.” Darcy added before the witch before her really did give her a drop dead stare.
“Philistine.” Nicole blurted out with a certain amount of disgust that had Darcy grimacing as she turned to look anywhere but at her annoyed friend or the ugly wardrobe thing in the shop window that she was still drawling over.
That was when she saw him- again. Mr Tall dark and deadly gorgeous, the same guy she had seen in her dreams over the last few weeks, the same guy who had been chasing Nicole through the woods like a hunted animal in those dreams, the same guy she had spotted watching Nicole twice now. That wasn’t coincidence- that was prophetic.
When his dark eyes locked with hers she felt the shiver run long and hard through her body and turned back to Nicole grabbing her upper arm and squeezing the life out of it until Nicole let out a squeak of pain, trying to pull back from her grasp.
“We should go now-“ Darcy spat out as she started walking, forcing Nicole along with her as the woman protested her intrusion on gazing in the window.
“What’s the rush someone giving away free donuts?” Nicole spat out as she tittered sideways on the street- her feet getting caught up beneath her as she slapped out at Darcy’s grip on her arm.
“Do you want me to smack you one?” Darcy scowled using her other hand to turn her friend in front of her as she continued to force her along the street ahead of her.
“Darcy- what the hell?” Nicole blurted out trying to dig her heels into the pavement and still finding herself dragged along as Darcy sidestepped her and started pulling instead of pushing.
“Let’s just say we have outstayed our welcome in town and get the hell out of here.” Darcy hissed as she spun a look back over Nicole’s shoulder to see Mr Tall dark and persistent following them down the street.
“What are you doing?”
“There’s something I haven’t told you but if you just go with it and get the hell out of here I will, but we need to go now.” The urgency in Darcy’s tone let her know to stop fighting and get on board. If there was one thing about her little witch friend – she was usually right on the money when it came to trouble coming their way and she would stake her life on Darcy being right this time.
“Well why didn’t you say so.” She snapped back irrationally and Darcy took a moment to roll her eyes as she felt her friend’s reluctance to move change into a strong quick pace that had them heading back towards her car.
“Well silly me- next time I’ll draw a damn pictogram.” Darcy hissed out between clenched teeth shooting another look behind them to find the street empty, almost heaving a sigh of relief.
“So spill sister- what had you all goosebumpy back at town?” Nicole dropped down onto the kitchen stool and pulled the cup of coffee Darcy had placed for her into her eager waiting grip.
When Darcy didn’t say anything Nicole looked up at her friend who was sitting there all slyly staring down into the blackness of her mug- a buzz of knowing went through Nicole as she regarded her friend with a sigh.
“Is this one of those I’ve had a dream moments that I just love sooo much?” Nicole watched her friend lift her Jade green eyes and stare back at her with a poignant look that caused her heart to skip a couple of beats inside her chest.
“You told me not to tell anymore- after the last time.” Darcy reminded her with a little pout of her lips and the slightest incline of her chin.
“Yes I did and with good reason as you well know-“ Nicole shot back giving her friend a look of disdain, she could pout all she wanted- things had taken a turn for the worst last time she had opened her big mouth and put her foot in it.
“Well that couldn’t be helped- I interpreted the dream wrong-“she pouted again this time with a small shrug of her shoulders.
“You said Jordan was going to kill me-“ Nicole accused and Darcy’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“Well he did stab you with scissors-“ She hissed back and Nicole lifted her hands and dropped them in frustration.
“Because he tripped over your stupid rug and it was just a scratch not a stab.” She reached for the mug and brought it to her mouth blowing the steam away from her lips.
“Well excuse me for being right-“ Darcy huffed turning her body slightly in the chair so she could cross her legs and her arms at the same time, her lips set to a permanent pout.
“So what is it this time?”
“Thought you didn’t want to know?”
“Wow PMS time.” Nicole shot back smirking behind her mug as Darcy rolled her eyes and gave a deep sigh.
“I had a dream-“ Darcy started- but the smug little chuckle that came from Nicole had her stopping and turning her eyes on her friend expectantly.
“Do you want to know or not?” She demanded all hoity and Nicole pressed her lips together and replaced her mug on the
table making a show of getting herself comfortable.
“Ok shoot.”
Darcy dropped her arms and turned back towards her, palms flat on the table as she leaned in, a buzz of excitement emanating from her, “He was chasing you-“
“Jordan?” Nicole gave her a look of disbelief.
Darcy spit out imaginary nails, “No not Jordan.” She said in disgust and Nicole raised her brows and sighed.
“You wanna start at the beginning?” Nicole shot back and Darcy slapped herself upside the head.
“Sorry. Ok- there’s this guy-“ She leaned further towards Nicole who regarded her with an extra dollop of disdain.
“A guy- great- just what I need.”
“Will you let me tell you or do I need to tape your mouth shut?” Darcy shot back with annoyance and Nicole shrugged her shoulders in defeat, reaching for her mug as she sat back and waited for the rest of it, because she had a feeling that Darcy was going to burst if she had to keep it in any longer.
“Go for it.”
“Ok so he’s like a six foot odd super male model of brooding heat and sexual tension-“ That all came out on one long breath.
“Really? This is how you give me news?” Nicole deadpanned as she raised her brows and regarded her friend who snapped her mouth shut on a grimace.
“Damn it Nic-“ she slapped her palms down on the table in front of her and Nicole spat out a chuckle.
“Well come on Darcy- less emphasis on the brooding sex god and more on why I needed to hightail it back from town, when I hadn’t finished ogling the family heirloom.”
“Snotty- very unbecoming of you Miss thing.” Darcy was back to folded arms and a pout and Nicole gave in.
“Ok- so Mr Broody is a sex god and?”
“I saw him at town again today- watching you.” Darcy’s eyes widened as she tried to emphasis her point, but it was lost on Nicole.
“Looking isn’t a crime-“
“Not looking- watching.” Nicole shrugged long and hard and even gave a little shake of her head to show that she couldn’t care less what a sex god was up to- she was sure she could resist even Adonis’s charms.
“Spooky-“ Nicole teased and Darcy balked.
“So to go back to my original statement- my dream- he was chasing you down-“ She delivered the news in a less than sensitive way, it was more like a so there attitude and Nicole shrugged again.
“Chasing me down like how?”
“Like you were running from him as fast as you could and he was chasing you to get you.” Her wide green eyes nearly caused Nicole to spit out her mouthful of coffee and she swallowed hard, coughed against the niggle in her throat and nodded her head in understanding.
“Cool-“
“Not cool- it was like your very life depended on you getting away-“ Darcy was back to playing the dramatics and Nicole nodded her understanding.
“Where was this?”
“The woods.” Darcy was making a habit of emphasising the points she felt were the weirdest.
“So I should stay outta there then right?” Nicole shot back before sipping her coffee again to save the smile spreading across her face and Darcy sighed slinking back against her chair.
“Fine- but when your fleeing from Mr Tall dark and oh so deadly gorgeous spare a though for me putting flowers on your grave and saying I told you so.”
“Ouch. Bitchy witchy- someone’s feeling twitchy- you not getting any?” Nicole teased and Darcy shot her a look that said don’t bust my chops.
“You have been warned.” She pointed one long thin finger at her friend across the table and Nicole nodded her agreement.
“And I promise to stay out of the woods.” She agreed feeling a twitch of something deep within her- troubles coming, she thought quickly- too quickly to brush it aside, causing her to stare down into the black liquid of her cup, a frown on her forehead as Darcy nudged her under the table.
“You ok?”
“Yeah- bad donut.” Nicole mumbled feeling slightly put out by the feeling that was starting to gather within her.
Maybe I just will stay out of the woods for a while.
Nicole sat out in the back garden and let the world pass her by. In truth she had been half contemplating what Darcy had told her hours earlier- he was watching her- watching, she had used that specific word and it wasn’t as if she hadn’t felt like trouble was coming for a while now- could it actually already be here and just lurking in the shadows?
Nicole stared out across the garden at the darkness of the tree line that formed a semi circle around her property- the woods. Not that she had any cause to go into them on a daily basis, but she did like to walk under the canopy of the trees when the sun was high and blazing hot in the sky- luckily autumn was well on the way and she could forgo reliving her childhood and kicking up the fallen leaves if she needed too and the way her palm was itching she felt she might just need too.
Even now, sitting there- she felt a strange sense of something out of place, perhaps there were eyes on her now, she would lay odds that it was a little furry rabbit giving her as much space as she was giving him, but still she felt the shiver run through her and cursed Darcy for putting such worries within her mind- the last thing she needed was to be constantly looking over her shoulder. Still- you could never be too careful.
Nicole tipped her head back and sighed long and hard as her eyes caught sight of the waxing moon- her eyes widening when she caught sight of the subtle crimson sheen around the outer edge and she almost gasped in a breath- blood on the moon- a bad omen.
The sound of a branch snapping under the weight of something had her head snapping round to the left and her eyes searching the shadows in the trees for signs of movement.
“What the hell Darcy- you’ve got me jumping at bunnies.” She muttered between clenched teeth as she dragged herself up to her feet, walking back into her house and closing the door firmly behind her- flicking the lock for good measure, before yanking the curtain across and taking a long slow breath as she tried to settle her racing pulse.
Ryan cursed himself for his stupidity. He hadn’t meant to be here in the first place, he certainly hadn’t meant to be spying on her, at least that was his story and he was sticking to it. If he had stayed in human form he might just have been able to stand damned still and not manage to break a small branch with his huge pads, but she might have seen him in human form and he wasn’t ready for that yet, he didn’t want to scare her- at least that was also the story he was sticking to.
Ryan knew his wolf was drawn to her- he hoped it was just lust, she was a defiant little thing after all, he had seen her challenge her friend when she had seen him as a danger- just why that was he wasn’t sure, he thought it best to stay away from that one, she seemed sensitive to him- maybe even to his wolf and the last thing he needed was to draw attention to his pack.
Every day for the last two weeks he had watched Nicole practically camped out in front of the antiques store eyeing up that god awful wardrobe with more enthusiasm than anyone should ever lavish on such an ugly piece of woodwork and every day for the last two weeks his wolf had pinned within him- she was beautiful- he gave his wolf credit for his taste and yet there was something about her that he couldn’t quite put his finger on- human, yes- but something else, something he had no business messing with, he was almost sure and yet here he was again, checking on her.
Ryan turned and padded away deeper into the woods- the time had come to leave all thoughts of this human in the past and yet he had told himself that a thousand times and here he was again on his early evening scout of her property. Damn, he had more important things to attend too.
It has to stop- now.
Nicole slammed the door of her car and took off down the street like the devil was on her heels. Today was the day when Mr Porter came back from holiday and she could finally buy back her heritage- that wasn’t the devil on her heels it was Angel’s wings on them – she could almost hop, skip and jump along the pavemen
t.
Nicole turned her head to look at the wardrobe as she happily passed by the window and stopped dead in her tracks- there was a sudden vacuum around her where the universe had decided to put zero gravity or at least that was how it felt as the air was physically pulled out of her lungs and she tried to gasp it back in- but nothing came.
No. No. No. No. And hell no!
She almost smacked her palms against the pane of glass that separated her from her beloved drobe as she took a step closer and then another, the rush of her blood pressure the only thing she could hear as her eyes took in the sold sign on the polished wood- her mouth gaping open at the sight that killed all the happiness within her in one swift move.
Nicole couldn’t move- couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think and then suddenly all at once it came back to her and she raced for the entrance to the shop, throwing the door wide as she rushed inside and her eyes took in the two men at the end of the shop, the smiles, the handshake, the knowing nods of a done deal and she wanted to scream with the sheer madness of it all.
“Be with you in a moment.” Mr Porter called not even looking in her direction, because she didn’t really exist did she, she was one minute late and the man had already sold the piece- her piece.
“The wardrobe?” She managed to blurt out and brought the younger man’s eyes towards her- sinfully dark eyes that seemed to be cataloguing her like she was one of his purchases.
“Excuse me Mr Porter-“ the old man waved a distracted hand as he counted out his money and those sinful eyes cut a path towards her through the haphazard placement of useless objects that dotted the floor.
“You like the wardrobe?” His eyes were still fixed on hers as he came to stand before her and she tried to turn her head back towards the piece but found herself unable to look anywhere but at him.
“Love it- wanted to buy it-“ She half snapped and half gasped out causing him to smile at her and she felt the desire to just reach up her hand and smack him right in that gloating handsome face of his.
