Courage of the Witch

by Deanna Chase

  “No, she didn’t. My daughter never—” Mary started.

  “Yes, she did,” Walter said, cutting her off. “About a month after we lost Charlotte. Don’t you remember when she started badgering me for lessons?”

  Mary blinked at him. “She did?”

  “Yes. And you were not having it. That’s why she tried out for the surfing team,” he said.

  “I didn’t want her to do that either,” Mary said into her teacup.

  “It was a hard time, sweetheart. Don’t beat yourself up about it.”

  Rhys started to feel like an intruder on their decade-old pain and wondered if he should excuse himself.

  “That’s why I told Rhys to do it with her. So he could keep an eye on her,” Walter added and patted the younger man’s arm. “And he did. She never once got hurt out there in the Pacific.”

  Rhys gave the older man a nod. “I have to admit we both loved it. It was the one place where nothing else touched us.” He meant the pain of losing the people they loved, but it had also been an outlet for his confusing teenage emotions.

  “We all know that grief takes time, son,” Walter said. “Everyone deals with it in their own way. I suppose surfing under the direction of a coach was better than a sixteen-year-old learning to fly.”

  Rhys laughed. “I guess so.”

  Mary cleared her throat. “What does surfing have to do with your relationship with Hanna now, Rhys? What changed your mind, and why should we be happy that you’ve suddenly decided that it’s okay to let Hanna walk your uncertain journey with you?”

  “Mary,” Walter said very quietly. “You’re not saying what I think you’re saying, are you?”

  “I’m sure I am, Walter. Someone needs to look out for Hanna’s well-being. What do you think it’s going to do to her when she finds herself with two babies and no husband five years from now?” She gave Rhys a pained looked. “I’m not trying to be cruel, Rhys. I’m not.” Tears filled her dark eyes. “You’ve been a huge part of our lives, too, you know. No one wants you to leave us prematurely. But there’s no ignoring that it’s a great risk. And our girl has been through so much all ready.” She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. “I don’t know if I can watch her suffer like that again.”

  Rhys didn’t know if she meant the pain Hanna had been in after they lost Charlotte or if she was talking about the last time Rhys had called things off. It seemed pretty over-the-top if she was referring to the breakup. But he hadn’t exactly been there for Hanna, had he? He knew he’d pissed her off, but he didn’t know he’d broken her heart. Clueless. That’s what he was. Completely clueless.

  It was Rhys’s turn to suck in a deep breath. He let it out slowly and got right to the point. “Listen, I don’t know what’s going to happen next week, next month, or next year. I can tell you that I spend a lot of time with a healer getting checked out, taking preventative medications, and taking care of myself in general. I’ve spent my entire adult life trying to protect Hanna from what might happen. But then I learned that she also carries a gene that could drastically alter her life.”

  “Nothing is going to happen to Hanna,” Mary Pelsh said stubbornly.

  Walter turned to her, squeezed her hand gently, and said, “We are hopeful that it doesn’t. The odds are good that what happened with Charlotte won’t affect her, but we don’t know that for sure, love.”

  Mary pulled her hand away from her husband. “I don’t want to talk about that.”

  “Fair enough. It’s not my favorite topic either,” Rhys said. “But it made me realize that Hanna is fearless. She doesn’t sit around worrying about what-ifs. She lives without regret. It’s courageous and inspiring, and I’m taking her lead. If she can be brave, then so can I.”

  “Good for you, son. So, when are you going to ask her?” Walter asked him with a gleam in his eye.

  Mary sucked in a sharp breath. “Ask her what?”

  Rhys’s palms were sweaty, and his heart was a little erratic, but he steeled himself and prepared to have Mary Pelsh throw him out. “Mr. and Mrs. Pelsh, I’m planning to ask Hanna to marry me tomorrow. I’d like to first ask you for your blessing.”

  “Of course, Rhys,” Walter said automatically. “Now that you’ve removed your head from your backside, I’d be honored to have you as a son-in-law.”

  “No!” Mrs. Pelsh cried. “It’s irresponsible. You can’t do this to her.”

  “Mary!” Walter stood and loomed over her, his expression full of disappointment. “You can’t make this decision for Hanna. It’s her life. You have to let her live it as she sees fit.”

  “She’s not thinking clearly,” his wife said, but her voice was soft and a little shaky.

  “I’m pretty sure it’s you who isn’t thinking clearly.” Walter crossed his arms over his chest. “You just dismissed a man based on a genetic abnormality that he can’t control any more than Charlotte could control hers. What would you have said to her if she’d just stopped living… stopped loving… because she was afraid for her or Drew’s future?”

  “Charlotte was a teenager—” Mary started.

  “She knew what was coming,” Walter said quietly, his voice strained with the decade-old loss. “We all did. And yet, did anyone warn Drew?”

  “No,” she said, staring into her tea.

  “He survived it, didn’t he? Would you have deprived either Charlotte or Drew their time together because of the inevitable?”

  “No.” She slammed her eyes shut.

  “Then I hope you can find it within yourself to accept whatever Hanna’s answer is tomorrow, and I also suggest that you apologize to Rhys. He does not deserve to be treated like a ghost of a person.” Walter wasn’t shy about letting his frustration show, but there was plenty of understanding in his soft tone, too. The older man turned to Rhys. “You’re a good man, and I’d be honored to call you son-in-law.” He held his hand out.

  Rhys felt a warm tightening in his chest as he shook the man’s hand. “Thank you, sir.”

  Mary Pelsh got to her feet, opened her mouth, but then slammed it closed and ran out of the room. Her footsteps were heard on the stairs shortly before a bedroom door slammed.

  Walter sighed. “She’ll come around eventually. I think this has more to do with her lingering grief over Charlotte than it does you.”

  “I wish there was something I could do to ease her concerns,” Rhys said.

  “Me, too, son. Me, too.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Rhys tapped his fingers rapidly against the Jeep’s steering wheel. He’d only gotten four hours of sleep the night before and was running on pure adrenaline and too much caffeine. He rarely had more than one cup in the morning, but he’d needed liquid courage, and alcohol was out of the question. Coffee had stepped in, but now he was paying for it. His nerves were off-the-charts jumpy.

  But then Hanna’s small house came into view, and he spotted her sitting on her porch swing. She was dressed in leggings, a sweat shirt, and her hiking boots, looking like his fantasy come true. He loved that she was just as excited as he was to hike ten miles to the top of a clearing, not only for the view but because she enjoyed the challenge, just like he did.

  Rhys parked the Jeep right behind her RAV4 and jumped out. “Looks like you’re more than ready to go.”

  “I was ready a half hour ago,” she said, leaning in to give him a soft kiss on the lips.

  “You mean I had that third cup of coffee for no reason?”

  “Oh, Rhys. You didn’t.” Her pretty lips curved down in disapproval. “You’re going to be a jittery mess all day.”

  “Nah. I’m fine,” he lied. She was right of course. Keeping his leg still on the ride over had proved impossible. But who could blame him? Today could be the biggest day of his life. “Come here.” He pulled her into a hug, wrapping his arms around her just because he could.

  “Your heart is thundering away in there,” she said, pressing her palm to his chest. “You better hydrate.” She rummaged
around in her backpack she’d had slung over one shoulder, producing a banana. “And eat this. It should help.”

  He grinned at her stupidly. God, he prayed she’d say yes. He loved how adorable she was when she was bossing him around.

  “Why are you looking at me like that?” She frowned.

  “I love you.”

  Her irritation melted away, and her expression softened as she said, “I love you, too. Now eat the banana so you don’t have a potassium crisis.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” He took the piece of fruit she offered and tugged her over to the Jeep. “Let’s get out of here.”

  “Finally,” she said with mock irritation as she jumped into the passenger seat while he took his place behind the wheel. “I’ve been dying to get out for weeks now. Where are we headed? Did you say?”

  “Witchling Peak. On the way back, I thought we’d stop at the pools.”

  “Perfect. And this time, I won’t even pass out on you.” She grinned. “Unless you stashed some cider in a cooler I don’t know about.”

  “Definitely not. Just water today.” That was a lie, too. He had a small bottle of champagne in his backpack, but that would only surface after she said yes.

  Even though the trail entrance wasn’t that far away, it still took over an hour to get there due to the winding mountain roads. But because it was a weekday and the trail was somewhat out of the way, Rhys’s Jeep was the only vehicle in the small parking area.

  “Looks like we have the place to ourselves today,” Rhys said.

  “Perfect,” Hanna said, taking the lead.

  The hike was nothing short of magical. The forest was alive with pink, purple, white, and yellow wildflowers that thrived beneath the canopy of the majestic redwoods. They wound their way along a stream, around a giant redwood that had split the path, and paused at the crystal clear pools that reminded Rhys of what one would normally find in a tropical forest. “Do you want to pause for a dip now or when we’re on our way back down?” Rhys asked her.

  Hanna bent and trailed her fingers through the cold water. “It’s a good thing we have the ability to heat this pond, otherwise we’d freeze our butts off.”

  Rhys chuckled. “No polar bear club for you?”

  “No way.” She shook her head and gave him a look that said he was slightly crazy. “I’m not into freezing my bits off.”

  “I have other plans for those bits,” he said, his voice coming out husky and full of heat.

  She stood and walked over to him, placing her hand on his shoulder. Her touch was warm even through his T-shirt, and it was all he could do to not tug her down onto the forest floor and show her exactly how much he wanted her.

  “We better wait until we come back down from the peak, otherwise I have a feeling we might not make it up there at all.”

  There was so much desire in her heated gaze that Rhys actually groaned. “Hanna. Gods.”

  She laughed. “Suck it up, Silver. We have a hike to finish. Think of the dip in the pools as your reward.”

  “You’re going to be my reward, gorgeous.” He tugged on her hand. “Let’s go. I don’t want to wait any longer than we have to.”

  The last third of the hike was steeper and more treacherous than Rhys remembered, but Hanna handled it like a champ. Damn, she was in good shape. In fact, Rhys was the one having trouble catching his breath, and by the time they made it to the peak, he was breathing hard and needed a moment to get himself together. He sat on the stone that overlooked the Keating Hollow valley and waited for his pulse to slow.

  Hanna sat down next to him and pulled out her camera. “Goddess above, Rhys,” she whispered. “This place is gorgeous.”

  “Not as gorgeous as you,” he said, still a little short of breath.

  She glanced over at him and grinned. “Someone has been slacking on the incline portion of his workout.”

  He nodded his agreement. “Apparently so. Maybe we should start working out together.” He patted her knee. “Clearly, you’ve got that part covered.”

  “When?” She laughed. “With our schedules, it would have to be either at midnight or four in the morning.”

  Rhys grimaced because she wasn’t wrong. He turned to watch her profile and said, “It might be easier to find time if we lived together.”

  Her eyes widened with surprise as she turned to him. “Um, Rhys, is this your way of asking me to move in with you?”

  “How would you feel about that?” he asked and nearly kicked himself. That wasn’t at all what he’d intended to say. She opened her mouth, but he held a hand up. “No, don’t answer that.”

  “Why?” Her face was a mix of disappointment and confusion.

  “Because, Hanna, my love. I have an entirely different question I want to ask you.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out the vintage rose gold, oval diamond ring Faith had helped him choose and held it out to her.

  “Rhys?” Hanna asked, her voice shaking. “What are you doing?”

  All of his nerves fled, and an eerie calm came over him as he smiled gently at her. “Hanna, you have been my best friend for so many years. Then you weren’t, and it was devastating, I think for both of us. But now we’ve found our way back to each other, and I just don’t want to waste any more time. I love you. I always have. Will you do me the honor of being my wife? Will you marry me?”

  Chapter Twenty

  Hanna couldn’t move as she stared at that beautiful ring in Rhys’s hand. She’d heard what he’d said, felt his words deep in her bones. Her heart was nearly bursting from joy. This is what she’d always wanted. Rhys had just asked her to marry him. She should be screaming yes. Jumping up in excitement. Throwing her arms around him. Crying the happiest tears.

  Instead she heard her mother’s words in the back of her mind. It is unreasonable for a man to take a wife knowing his heart is on borrowed time. Panic set in and tears sprang to her eyes. One single tear rolled down her cheek. She stood and shook her head as she backed away, hating herself for her reaction. “I’m sorry, Rhys, I…”

  “Hanna? What’s wrong?” Rhys jumped up and took a step forward, but even as he was reaching for her with one hand, he clutched his chest with the other and sucked in a sharp breath.

  “Rhys! Oh my god. Are you okay?” Hanna cried. “What’s wrong?”

  He blinked at her and opened his mouth to say something, but then the color drained from his face, turning him a sickly shade of gray as he fell to the ground.

  “Rhys!” Hanna dropped to her knees, pressing her fingers to his pulse. It took her a moment to locate it, but it was there. A little thready, but definitely there. “Thank the gods!” Leaning down, she put her ear near his mouth. Yes, he was breathing. A tiny wave of relief rushed through her. He’d just passed out. “Rhys?” she tried again. “Wake up. Come on, baby. We’re on top of this mountain, and you can’t do this to me. You just asked me to marry you. You have to wake up so I can say yes.”

  His eyelids fluttered, but he didn’t open his eyes.

  She wanted to sob. The urge to just completely break down and give in to her overwhelming emotions was right at the surface, but she couldn’t do that. Rhys was counting on her. She quickly rummaged through her backpack and grabbed her phone. It was a longshot that she’d have service on the mountain, but she had to try. After getting to her feet, she held the phone up high, looking for bars. There weren’t any.

  “Dammit!” She ran across the clearing, tears making her eyes blurry. If she didn’t find reception, she was going to have to haul him out of there in a fireman’s carry. She was strong and knew she could do it; she just didn’t know if she had the stamina to do it for miles until they got back to his car.

  The phone suddenly beeped indicating she had a message. “Oh, thank the heavens.” She immediately dialed 911.

  “911, what’s your emergency?”

  “I’m on a hike at Witchling Peak and my fiancé just collapsed at the summit. He was clutching his heart.”

  “Is he br
eathing?”

  “Yes.” Hanna glanced over at Rhys, hating that she was thirty yards away. But if she ran back over there, she’d likely lose her connection.

  “Is he conscious?”

  “No. Please send someone. We’re at the lookout. It’s miles back down the trail. I can probably—”

  “I’ve already dispatched a chopper. Help is on the way, ma’am.”

  Hanna slumped, relief flooding her. “Thank you.”

  “I’m going to stay on the line with you until they get there. Are you near the patient?”

  “No. I had to move to get reception. I can see him, but he’s not moving.”

  The dispatcher asked for all of Rhys’s personal information and any medical information Hanna might know. She informed them of his family history of sudden heart attacks and that she knew he was on preventative medication.

  “That’s good information. Do you have any aspirin on you? Or energy potions?” she asked.

  “I’m not sure. I don’t, but I don’t know what’s in his pack.” Hanna started to run back over to Rhys.

  “Okay, if you find an aspirin, give him one. If he’s having a heart attack it will help. If you find any energy herbs or potions, try to get him to ingest some.”

  “I’m on it,” Hanna said. “If I lose you it’s because I’m out of range.”

  “I understand. I’ll call you back and will keep trying if we get disconnected.”

  “Thanks.” Hanna reached Rhys’s discarded backpack. She didn’t find an aspirin, but she did find the champagne, and seeing it instantly made her hate herself. Why had she hesitated when he’d asked her to marry him? Why had she doubted him and their future? Dammit! She dumped the contents of his backpack out, finding a bottle of energy potion.

  “I found a potion,” she said into the phone, but she didn’t wait to find out if the dispatcher was still on the line. She scooted over to Rhys. His eyes were open, and he was blinking up at her. “Hey, you,” she said softly. “I need you to swallow some of this potion.”