McNeely, Rachel - The Marquis' Mystical Witch (BookStrand Publishing Romance)

by Rachel McNeely

  “All right, I’ve prepared for us to leave early tomorrow for home. We’ll just change our route. We can stay at the Owl’s Inn tomorrow night and finish our journey the next day.”

  “Can’t we drive straight through if you get fresh horses?”

  “I have waited all these years for the answers. One more day will not make a difference and I want you well rested.”

  “Will you still want me as your wife after we get rid of the curse?”

  Wulf held her at arm’s length. His brows rose and his eyes widened. “Whatever gave you an idea that I wouldn’t?”

  “You hate the idea my relative brought the curse on your family. You were angry the day I told you the truth.”

  “Only briefly. I wasn't thinking clearly. I soon realized I couldn’t blame you for another’s evil deeds.” He framed her face with his hands. “I should have told you, but I thought my actions said more than words.”

  Thea reached up and covered his hands with hers.

  Wulf ran his finger across her lips. “We have one more thing to do, before we join the others.” His lips brushed across her mouth, taking little nibbles along the way. “I apologize for having so little control the first time we made love. I did not take precautions and feared we might have a son to suffer as I have.”

  “I understand. That's why you have kept your distance from me.” Thea said.

  He pulled her body against his hard frame. “Yes, but tonight I will be more careful, because I can't stand another moment without this.”

  His lips roamed down her neck, her shoulder and to her breasts. She gasped, and he straightened, lifting her into his arms. “Damn the dinner. All I'm hungry for is you.”

  Chapter Twenty-one

  The carriage rocked along the rutted, dirt road. Thea wished she had ridden outside with Wulf, but he insisted she had not regained enough strength after her ordeal. She pulled her fur-lined coat around her and leaned her head against the velvet seat. She was as comfortable as one could be traveling over such roads. They should arrive at the Owl’s Inn within the hour.

  Thea needed to sit alone for a time and center herself. Memories of last night kept interrupting her other thoughts. Wulf kissed every spot on her body. Thinking about his mouth touching her most private areas made her blush. When he rose over her and went inside in one smooth push, she'd had to struggle not to scream with pleasure. Only the thought of her mother-in-law overhearing stopped her.

  The carriage slowed and entered the courtyard of the inn. Wulf opened the door. “Welcome, my lady, to the Owl’s Inn.” He held out his hand. “I sent a rider ahead to order us a hot meal. Are you hungry?”

  “I’m ravenous.”

  “Good. I believe I can see all your hunger is quenched.” His eyes sparkled at her and his lip curved into a smile.

  Thea's face heated from his teasing. “I have faith in you, my lord,” she said, as she stepped down and started toward the inn’s open door.

  The proprietor met them. “Follow me, Lord and Lady Radford. I have our private dining room ready as requested.” The short, stout innkeeper led them down a long corridor and opened a door on the left, motioning for them to enter.

  “My wife will bring your meal shortly,” he said and backed out, shutting the door.

  Thea went to the fireplace and held out her hands. The evening air seeped around the worn window frame and the room had a slight chill.

  Wulf poured a glass of dark red wine and brought it to her.

  “Drink this.”

  “Will you not join me?”

  “Of course.” Wulf returned to the small rickety table where the wine bottle sat and filled his glass.

  “To us and finding the cure.” Wulf held his glass high, saluting Thea.

  Thea raised her glass and took a sip, before she walked to the large round table dominating the center of the room.

  “We must talk,” she said.

  Wulf joined her. “What's wrong?”

  “The closer we get to my grandmother's, the more I sense danger. The curse will not end without a struggle. Grandmamma hid the book with the information in a safe place. She showed me where it would be. But, if something happened and she felt she needed to change the hiding place, it may be hard to find.”

  Wulf reached out and held her hands. “What can I do to help?”

  “Have faith in my ability. You must let me do what has to be done and not interfere—not even if you fear for my life. Do you understand?”

  “To see you in danger and stand back?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’m not sure I can make such a promise.”

  “If you interfere, the curse will not be broken.” She reached out and touched the right side of his face. “You must trust me.”

  “Will the scars go away too when the curse is broken?”

  Thea’s hand caressed the ruined side of his face. “No, my love. These you will have to live with forever. I’m sorry.”

  She saw the brief golden flame flare in his eyes. “But, with the new cream I have been using on you, the pain will be minimal, if at all.”

  He paced around the room then stopped in front of her. “They,” he touched his scars, “have never bothered you.”

  “No. To me, they are a part of you. They helped draw me to you.” She went to him. “Without them, you would be a different person.”

  She hoped he understood what she was trying to say. The scars had affected him in many ways, his outlook, his temperament, the essence of his being. Taking away the wolf would remove his negative side. The impact of the scars was almost as powerful.

  After standing silent for several minutes, Wulf nodded. “A battle with another more powerful wolf caused these scars about six years after the curse affected me. At twenty-two, with a beautiful wife, I believed I could accept the dual sides of myself. I’d given up trying to break the curse. My wife need never know, and I had everything I wanted—or so I thought.

  “When she rejected me because of my scars, I was filled with anger and pain. She left me shortly afterwards with one of my best friends.” He motioned for Thea to sit, and he sat across from her. “I went after them as I told you before. I intended to kill him and perhaps her. The rage raced through my veins. The wolf was in control.”

  Thea didn’t respond. She let the story pour out. His eyes flashed with fire and the skin on his face drew taut.

  “But you didn’t kill them? You told me you found your wife dead and beat your friend before he left for the continent.”

  Her question drew his attention to her, and she knew he saw her fear. “I told you the truth.” He walked back to the window and stared out. “I followed them as the wolf and changed when I saw the wreckage. She was dead.”

  “My friend was bruised and bleeding when they tore me away from him at the docks, but he was alive.” He faced her. “Do you believe me?”

  “Yes, I must. If I have any doubts when the time comes to end the curse, my strength won’t be enough.”

  A harsh laugh erupted from him. “I began this story to explain more about how the scars had shaped me and my life afterwards. All I managed to do is frighten you.”

  She started to rush to his side when someone knocked on the door. The landlady came in with steaming bowls of hot stew, thick slices of brown bread, ham, a chuck of cheese, apples and grapes.

  “I hope this simple meal will suffice. It's all I have to offer right now. The meat pies will be done within the hour.”

  “A veritable feast. This will be more than enough. Thank you,” Wulf said.

  She nodded, bowed and backed out.

  Wulf pulled out a chair for Thea.

  “Wulf, I—”

  He held up his hand. “We’ve talked enough. Eat.” With that said, he proceeded to fill his plate and moved one bowl of stew to his side.

  Thea bit her lip. Things were beginning to go wrong. He misunderstood her.

  She looked beyond Wulf to the window. In the darkness, she swore she saw
black hair blowing around the wicked smile of her ancestor. The tentacles of the evil entity awaiting them at her grandmother’s were reaching out already to touch them. Thea directed her thoughts to the apparition. You will not win.

  Thea heard the faint sound of laughter as the illusion faded away.

  Wulf glanced up from his food and turned toward the window. “Did you hear something just now?”

  “No, I didn’t,” Thea said, denying the sounds that had come from her ghostly grandmother.

  Wulf studied Thea. “I was sure I heard shrill laugher.”

  Thea shrugged. “Probably new guests arriving.”

  * * * *

  The rooster crowing in the courtyard woke Thea. Glancing to the other side of the bed, she realized Wulf had not joined her. He’d walked her upstairs, checked the room and excused himself. She fought sleep, hoping he'd return. Their conversation last night had upset them both. A soft knock on the door, followed by a young maid sticking her head inside, brought Thea to a sitting position.

  “Yer husband said you might like to bathe.”

  “Thank you, yes, I would.” Thea watched as the young girl came in with one bucket of hot water and returned to the hall for one of cold. A small tub was pulled out from a corner of the room. After pouring the water, she went downstairs for two more buckets.

  Thea wrapped a blanket around her shoulders and went to the window. Fog clung to the trees and lay low to the ground in the courtyard. She noted their carriage being brought around to the front. A shiver ran down her spine and a heavy weight seemed to be pushing down on her.

  Today, and for the next few days, she must control whatever confronted them. No negative thoughts or doubts could be allowed to enter her mind. She swung around when the door opened.

  Wulf stood in the opening. “When you have bathed and dressed, join me for breakfast. We need to be on our way.”

  His eyes did not meet hers directly and no emotion showed on his face.

  “I missed you last night,” Thea said.

  “Did you?”

  “Yes. I wanted to apologize for upsetting you with my words. I do trust and believe in you.” She took several steps toward him, but he held up his hand.

  “We can talk of this later. Hurry.” He closed the door, shutting her inside, alone.

  * * * *

  Wulf took the steps two at a time. He had spent a miserable night pacing the floor of the private dining room, fighting the desire to change and roam the woods. Thea’s question, her doubt, and her words had unsettled him.

  Why did he tell her in more vivid detail about his desire to destroy the two who hurt him the most? Hadn’t he expected she'd recoil in fear? He’d hoped she knew him better. Perhaps in a way he had been testing her. A dark mist clung around him, and he couldn’t dispel it.

  The wolf raged inside and wanted out. Wulf was tired and ready to quit fighting. How easy to let the wolf take over. He’d seen the power grow stronger inside him over the years.

  He knew in his bones this was his last chance to rid himself of the beast.

  The delicate woman upstairs, his beautiful wife, held his future and that of his family’s in her small hands. She lied last night. He did hear shrill laughter and she saw something. Her face went white and a determination came into her usually soft eyes.

  This battle, she said, was hers to win. But he would not stand aside and watch her harmed. The air swirled around him steamy and thick. Whatever awaited them grew impatient and created a vortex of air, drawing them inexorability toward their destination.

  * * * *

  Hawley drove the carriage, and Wulf rode along outside. Thea looked out the window when she heard the wheels roll across the cobblestone road. When they reached the curve and went left, she'd see her grandmother’s cottage. Wulf had been polite and attentive during breakfast, but a wall remained between them. She agonized over her brief moment of doubt last night. After all he had done for her, how could she have questioned his integrity? Even in wolf form, he didn’t try to frighten or hurt her.

  The carriage rounded the corner, and at the end of the dirt lane, she saw her grandmamma's home. The old wood structure appeared to lean to the left. No smoke curled out of the chimney. The reality of her grandmother’s death hit Thea like a fist in her stomach. Grandmamma, I miss you so much and fear what I must face without you.

  Wulf opened her door as soon as they stopped. His strong hands closed around her waist and swung her to the ground.

  “Do you want to visit her grave or go inside first?”

  “I prefer to open the house and then we can walk the short distance to the church graveyard.”

  “Hawley,” Wulf said, “unload our luggage. I'll take it inside. Then, take the carriage to the town stable and take a room at the inn.”

  “Yes, Lord Radford.”

  “Check back with us each morning. I'm not sure when we'll be ready to leave."

  They watched as Hawley put their few pieces of luggage on the ground and turned the carriage around to head toward the main street. Wulf kept his arm around Thea as they opened the unlocked door and went inside.

  Thea went from window to window, pulling back the thin, worn curtains. The room was dank, cold. All life had drained out of the cottage. Her grandmother’s spirit had given light to the small area and nothing was left but a shell.

  Thea clasped her arms tight around her and rubbed her upper arms. After checking the bedroom, Wulf went outside, first to bring in their bags and then he brought in kindling and logs to make a fire. “After I get this going, we can start the search for the book you mentioned.”

  “I’ll start now,” Thea said. She went to the brick wall on the right side of the fireplace. Moving her hands carefully from brick to brick in the middle section, she prayed she could find the hole covered by two bricks. “Here, the bricks are loose.” Hurrying, she worked the bricks out and reached in the black hole.

  Her arm was dusty when she pulled her hand out. “The book is gone.”

  Wulf looked in and stuck his hand all the way back. “Who would have removed it?”

  “Grandmamma must have decided to change the hiding place. We must find the book soon. I sense the ghost of my great-great grandmother will come to challenge me before the dawn and if I don’t know how to break the curse, she will win.”

  "Why didn't she just give the book to you when you were here? Didn't you say she wasn't well?"

  "Yes, but it can't go to the next descendant until after the death of the one who holds the book."

  “Well, we'd better start searching. You look in here, and I’ll start in the other room,” Wulf said.

  “No, first let's go to the graveyard.” She saw the questions in Wulf’s eyes. “Trust me.” How ironic, she thought. My trust in him wavered last night and now I ask him to trust me.

  Thea led the way down a narrow path to the small country church. Beside the church was the graveyard. It wound around from the side to behind the building.

  A fresh mound of dirt helped them find her grandmother’s grave. She knelt at its side and placed her hands just above the surface.

  “Grandmamma, Wulf and I are here. We need your book to break the curse. Show me where to look.”

  With closed eyes, she cleared her mind of all other thoughts and concentrated on the cottage and the book. On some level, she knew Wulf stepped away. Unmoving, she waited. Nothing moved, not even the wind. Finally, Thea gave up. As she stood, she swayed, and Wulf came quickly to wrap his arms around her.

  “I will have to do this alone. Something or someone is blocking any thoughts she might send my way. We must hurry back to the cottage and continue our search.”

  Wulf nodded, picked her up and ran back along the same path. She wrapped her arms around him and nuzzled his neck as he sped toward the small frame house. The scent of him and his warm body gave her strength. She would not lose this man. Her powers would break the spell.

  Inside the cottage, they turned up furniture and o
pened cabinets. Darkness encroached on their work, and Wulf lit several candles. Time was running out.

  Thea stopped her hunting and stood in the middle of the main room. Where would be the most unexpected place to hide the book? Her eyes searched the room, going from the furniture they already checked, to the opposite side of the stone fireplace, the window sills, and to the small shelf by the fireplace with her grandmother’s favorite books.

  Wait. They’d taken the books out and found nothing. Thea pulled them off the shelf again and ran her hands over the bricks behind. Nothing moved, and yet she knew this was the place. Her fingers tingled when she moved them along the wall until she touched one brick on the right side where the shelf attached. That particular spot burned her fingers.

  “Wulf, come quick,” she called to him.

  “You found it?”

  “I hope so. Can you pull these two bricks loose?”

  Wulf grabbed a knife lying among several cooking utensils and used it to remove the bricks. Reaching in, he pulled a book out of the opening.

  A huge sense of relief flooded over Thea when her fingers closed over the text that held her families knowledge of magic and rituals. Outside, the wind banged a tree limb against the window and lightning crackled in the night sky.

  Thea sat at the rough-hewn kitchen table and pulled a lantern close. She only had time to read the section regarding curses. Flipping pages, she scanned for the information. A shiver ran across her shoulders. Where was it?

  Taking a deep breath, she centered herself and placed the book in front of her. “Wulf, please open the window.”

  Wulf had been standing nearby. Now he went and shoved the partially stuck window up halfway. “What else can I do?”

  “Sit on the side in the shadows. We want her attention on me when she comes, not you.” Thea saw the flash of annoyance cross his face. “I know you want to protect me. You can’t. Please stay still no matter what happens.” He didn’t agree, but she hoped he'd do as she said.

  A slight breeze came through the open window and ruffled the pages. When the wind stopped, Thea leaned forward. The section she’d looked for so frantically had opened in front of her.