Cursed, p.8
Cursed, page 8
part #3 of Haven Realm Series
I shifted in my seat. “And you think your cousin cursed him? Have you gone back to the manor and confronted him?” A horrible churning swirled in the pit of my gut.
Ash grimaced. “We tried several times? Once, we got caught in the woods during the night and Talin’s change kicked in and stuck again mid-transformation. A madness he can’t control takes him over and feels an urgency to return to the castle.” Ash exhaled a long breath. “He almost killed me when I tried to stop him. The other times we reached the manor, Rek feigned surprise and even offered to help us find the witch responsible. He’s undermining us and has no plans on admitting the truth or helping. We all know he wants Talin to die as payback for not accepting his granddaughter’s hand.” Ash lowered his eyes, breathing heavily. “Our only choice now is to find a way to break the curse ourselves, or we lose my brother.” His voice darkened, and he sounded like a man whose spirit was on the verge of shattering.
He cleared his throat. “And Talin’s condition has worsened, his episodes now extend for full nights, instead of short periods. Every witch we hired confirmed he’d been cursed by an enchantment so dark, they couldn’t undo it. One said even if she could, she’d never touch it.”
That was exactly as I feared, and that meddling with such a spell could unbalance my energies. I didn’t need the darker side to take me over. It had happened once when I was younger, and I’d almost killed someone. The memory never left me and it reminded me why I worked so hard to keep my magic leveled.
“What we know,” Ash continued, “is his episodes happen at night. And the last witch warned us to prepare for the worst, insisting his hex used the moon cycle and on the next full moon, he’d lose his battle.”
“That’s in two days!” My mind whirling with what I’d learned and the fact that Talin would die. When a spell involved the moon, the power came from the goddess. That lent itself to not requiring a sacrifice to reverse the spell, and my knees bounced from the exciting news. I might be able to pull this off. Mom always told me my power was stronger than any she’d ever encountered, including hers, and she’d traveled to all realms in Haven. Anything was possible if you accept who you are and carry the right intent, she’d say.
“So can you do this?” Ash asked, watching me with an expectation where the only right answer would be yes. The complete opposite of the despair I’d seen in Leven and Raze’s gaze when I’d tried to discuss Talin.
My body tightened, and it terrified me to poke at such a curse. “I’ll try my hardest. If it’s linked to the moon, there might be a way to utilize its power for Talin.” Even as the words left my lips, I regretted showing confidence, especially with Ash now grinning at me. But the full moon wasn’t for another two days, so I had time to perfect this. Whatever it took, I’d assist Talin. I hadn’t been able to save Mom, but this was my chance to make a difference.
The three brothers might have put on a tough act, but on the inside, it must have killed them to watch Talin perishing before their eyes. That helplessness lingered in my chest. Mom in bed and coughing, growing frailer by the day. Every single damn spell I’d created had fizzled. Nothing had worked, as if the universe had blocked my efforts. And it had torn me to shreds to know I had the ability but couldn’t use it.
So, despite my earlier trepidation, I couldn’t walk away if I had the power to prevent Talin’s death. I wanted to believe my ability could create extraordinary things.
What was the use of wielding magic if not to set wrongs right?
Chapter 10
I tucked a bent leg underneath me, leaning back against the metal bench, watching Ash shovel soil into half a dozen pots. “Still can’t believe how much food you’re growing. Everything is thriving even while it’s snowing outside. You may need to come to my place in Terra and help me with my garden.”
Ash twisted toward me, the corner of his mouth twitching into a smile. If I could have frozen time, I’d have done it in that moment and memorized his glimmering eyes, the stubble on his jawline dark enough to give him an edge, and the way the longer strands of hair across the front of his head danced over his brow. Add to that the bonus of him being half-naked, sweaty, and dirty. Yep, I was sold.
Goddess, help me. What was it about these three princes? When they looked at me, my stomach coiled, and I lost my words.
“Let’s make a deal,” Ash said. “Save Talin, and I’ll transform your garden into a paradise.”
That sounded heavenly, particularly if he worked in my yard and I lounged with a cold drink watching him. Yes, that was very doable.
“You’ve got yourself a deal.”
He laughed, deep and powerful, and returned to his task.
“What’s with the soil and pots?”
He glanced my way. “Trying to bring dead roses back to life.”
I got up, stretching my back, admitting I knew little about gardening, but why not buy new flowers? “Okay. You must love them.”
“Something like that.” He spoke while piling dirt into a pot with his shovel.
“Well, thanks for the information,” I said. “I’m going to work on breaking Talin’s curse.”
“I’ll be right in.”
By the time I walked through the front doors to the castle, a waft of fried meat found me and I drifted toward the kitchen, following my nose. Raze was dressed and lounged on a chair, bare feet on the table corner, his hands behind his head. When he saw me, he lowered his legs to the floor.
“Is Ash coming to join us?” he asked.
Leven glanced over his shoulder my way and nodded his morning hello, then returned to collect the strips of cooked meat from the frying pan. Was it dear or rabbit?
“He’ll be here shortly,” I responded, though I wondered how they’d known I’d been in the greenhouse. Probably went searching for me when they’d found my bedroom empty. “He’s planting a shitload of roses. He’s into flowers, isn’t he?”
Leven joined Raze at the table and set down a plate with a mountain load of cooked meat. “Come and eat.”
Raze took two pieces and stuffed them into his mouth, his cheeks full, reminding me of chipmunks. “Our family crest is a rose,” he said, his lips smacking.
“Oh, yeah, I saw it last night in the grand ballroom.” Joining them, I sat next to Leven and grabbed a piece. The gamey morsel melted on my tongue. Divine. I kept helping myself.
Raze wiped his glistening mouth, and with his hair slipped off his face, still wet from a wash, his thick, dark brows brought out his eyes. He had one of those hard faces where frowning seemed to come naturally, but to see him laid back and not brooding brought out a softer, approachable side.
Or I was just fantasizing instead of focusing on the issue at hand. These brothers were princes… royalty. And if I could help them, they’d be back to their fancy lifestyle without a second thought to what a witch like me did. And I had enough of my own issues to worry about, like ensuring Dad and I didn’t lose our family home, to worry about.
Leven swallowed the food in his mouth. “Ten years ago, every rose on our property died, and Ash kept the stems that never rotted or perished. He took that as a sign that one day they will grow again. The plant is called a snow rose, and apparently, our mother’s grandma grafted the first flower to resist the icy chills of winter, and that’s how it got its name. I still think Ash is wasting his time.”
“The snow rose sounds impressive.” I’d never heard of such a plant before, but Ash had said their parents died ten years ago too.
“Ash thinks it’ll bring peace back between the royal houses in White Peak and to all bear shifters,” Raze added.
“Interesting. I’m assuming the roses all died after your parents’ and sister’s passing.” I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. “Do you think there’s magic in the plants?”
They both stared at me with widened gazes, and Raze responded, “Ash sure loves to talk. What else did he tell you? Where the family treasure is? Did he also mention he still keeps his old teddy bear in his closet from when he was five?”
The kitchen door swung open, and Ash stood there, filling the space. “Fuck you. I see you’re in one of your moods today.”
Raze shook his head, grimacing, and reclined in his seat. “Not me.”
Leven pushed the plate across the table toward Ash, who joined us and sat next to me, snatching a handful of cooked meat strips.
No one said a word and only the sound of chewing filled the void. I didn’t know if the brothers fought often or whether it was a stress thing. After all, they were minus servants or anyone to help them, and were dealing with a dying sibling. Tension was a guarantee.
“So, after breakfast, I think we can get started. Ash said the curse involves moon magic and that’s given me some ideas to—”
The door slapped open, and I flinched against Ash’s arm. In the entranceway stood a man—muscular, hair wild, and his body covered in fresh scratches. He wore only ripped pants reaching his knees.
My breaths jammed in my chest because I recognized Talin from the cage upstairs, but he was a full human now.
Around me, no one moved and kept eating. What the hell?
“You better be making another batch of those.” Talin had a honeyed drawl that caught my attention. He marched inside, as if all was right, and while he might have been the smallest of the brothers, he carried himself with an air of importance.
Ash leaned closer to me, his warm meaty breath on my ear. “It’s rude to stare.”
“Are you kidding?” I looked up at Ash, and he winked so sexily, I squeezed my thighs together to cover that tingling sensation. But no… no flirting to blindside me.
“Sugarplum,” Leven said, “you’ve already met our brother, Talin.”
He sat across from me, sizing me up with the same ravenous expression he’d shown me when I’d found him in the cage and he’d readied to tear my throat out.
“Does anyone see a problem with this picture?” I pulled back in my seat, scanning the counter for a knife.
“Relax.” Raze leaned forward. “Talin’s episodes come at night, and during the day, he’s okay. Sometimes he’s a prick, but we love him.”
Talin chuckled, his facial expressions softening, the tense lines around his mouth fading. He threw a torn piece of meat at Raze, who caught it and stuffed it into his mouth.
Ash touched my shoulder, his fingers warm. “I checked on him before coming for breakfast and found him back to normal, so I let him out. You’re safe.”
I glanced from one man to the next, all four eating and unperturbed. “He could have killed me last night, and now it’s all normal?”
“Yeah, sorry about that.” Talin winked my way. “But you smelled so delicious. I have no control of myself at night these days. But Ash said you’re here to help. Fantastic. Hope you’re better than the last three Raze hired.”
Raze cut his brother a serious look, both eyebrows climbing his forehead.
Surely, I was in some twisted world where they allowed someone who could morph back into a bloodthirsty beast wander freely through the house. What if the encroaching full moon trigged his humanity to slip faster away and he transformed during the day? Curses were tricky like that and never predictable.
“I’m not going to harm you,” Talin insisted as he crammed morsel of food into his mouth. His face was thin in the cheeks, and his brown hair short carried a golden hue. His lithe form might not have matched his brothers’ bodies, but upstairs, his grip had been iron strong. He wore the healed marks of his initiation across his shoulder and collarbone.
“Sure you’re not.” I curled my hands in my lap. Okay, they were all looneys. “You know his curse might accelerate as the full moon approaches, so maybe someone should chain him up when he’s not in his cage.”
Raze burst out laughing and slapped the table several times. What the hell was his problem?
“Oh, Talin,” Raze began. “You are so getting added to Bee’s erotica in a bondage scene. I see it now! You’re tied to a wall, and she’s in charge.”
Fire hit my cheeks, and I burned up in an instant. Was he talking about my writings? “What did you just say?”
Leven butted in. “Am I going to be in it?”
My stomach plummeted, and my brain numbed at the realization that not only had Raze searched for me in the bedroom, but he’d searched through my belongings and read my tale. I balled my hands into fists. How dare he?
“Leven, we’re both already in the story, and damn, this girl has a filthy mind. You should see what she wants to do with us.”
“Shut up!” I yelled, trembling as anger raged in my veins, while embarrassment had me blushing.
“I want to read this now!” Leven glanced my way, his head nodding, his mouth opened as if he were a starved dog.
Raze smirked. “I never knew you felt that way, but I’m ready whenever you are.”
I was mortified and pushed away from the table. What I’d written that morning was a stupid fantasy and private. And I hadn’t done any editing on it yet.
Four sets of gazes watched me in awe as I stood with my back to the fire, the heat wrapping around me. “I’m an author who writes romance. Not erotica. And you two”—I pointed at Raze and Leven—“are not in my story. They’re fictional characters.” I never should have made the characters bear shifters or described them like the two princes. I gripped my hips, refusing to admit I’d used them as my inspiration. “And who gave you the right to go through my stuff?”
“Your book lay open on the bed when I went to fix the sheets.” Raze wiggled his eyes my way.
“Liar! No way in hell were you making my bed!” I gulped for air, no longer able to stand being in their company.
Ash’s fingers found my hand, stroking me. “Hey, Bee, can I be in your story too?”
“Gah!” I spun and stormed out of the kitchen.
Behind me, their laughter boomed. Assholes, the lot of them. When I reached my bedroom, I slammed the door shut and locked myself in. “Bastard. Fuckwit. Dickhead.”
I stared over at the bed, where the sheets were pristine and pulled tight over the mattress, as was the blanket. And right there on the puffed-up pillow was my book left open. I marched closer and discovered on a new page with handwriting that wasn’t mine:
Bee, I will never just take you from behind. I’m not an animal. I’ll strip you naked, lick every inch of you, and then tongue fuck you until you came into my mouth.
Chapter 11
I reread Raze’s sexy sentence for the tenth time, my pulse thrumming in my ears, and I snapped the book shut. Except the words kept floating through my mind and already a tingling roused deep in the pit of my stomach. Damn, he wanted to do those things with me? For real? Or was he teasing and making fun of me? Because in all honesty, if we were anywhere but, in our situation, I’d be taking him into a private room this instant. That was how I rolled… I desired something, I went for it. But here, it felt wrong. Like they were being mischievous, and after all, when men got together, that pack mentality took over. Worse yet, now they all thought I wrote erotica and fantasized about them.
Okay, I did, but they hadn’t needed to know that. Goddess, I blushed so hard. Raze had blurted out about my story out to everyone, and then they’d laughed. Now I felt as if a boy I had a secret crush on saw me naked and poked fun at me.
I shook myself and stuffed the book into my bag. Nope. No more writing stories on this adventure. Once I got home, I could scribble away to my heart’s content and put my ideas for dirty tales with four bear shifters to paper. Now if only Ariella agreed to sell them and stop calling my writing “erotica.”
With a huge huff, I collapsed on the couch. “Get your head straight.” It was time to collect my ingredients and break the curse. First, I had to get my heartbeat under control and ground myself. I crossed my legs, balancing the backs of my hands across my knees.
Waterfalls. Tranquil mornings. In my mind, I followed a path in the woods. The sun slid down from gaps in the canopy overhead, warming my shoulders. Birds chirped, and a soft breeze washed through my hair, ruffling my clothes. Nothing could touch me. I was safe, calm, and protected.
Silence enveloped me, and I opened my third eye to the brightness around me. Outside, the falling snowflakes sparkled. The peace in my head.
“I call upon the goddess to protect me, to enhance my magic, and eradicate the curse placed on Talin Ursa.” Tendrils of energy tingled at the tips of my fingertips, then swept across my palms and up my arms. The sign she listened to my call.
Once my pulse slowed, I collected my prepared potion from my bag; herbs, salt, bones from a dead bird I’d found in my yard, and wolfsbane, all ground to a fine powder. Plus, the small sack of black salt.
I’d read enough in Mom’s old spell books about reversing an enchantment, and I summoned the strength to make this work. It had to. At its core, all spells were vibrational patterns of an energy field around someone or an object being manipulated. And the best way to deal with that was to rebound the curse back to its owner.
Back downstairs, voices streamed from the kitchen, and I crept closer, not because I was intent on spying, but hell if I didn’t want to know if they talked about me.
“It’s getting worse out there,” Raze said. “Rebels are surrounding the property, but it won’t be long before they breach the protection circle. Then what? They beat us until we submit to Rek?”
Someone sighed. “And if I marry his granddaughter, he’ll find ways to control White Peak, manipulate us, and how long before he kills us all? Then he’ll take over the realm as he’s always wanted.” Talin’s voice carried heavy tones.
Silence.
My throat dried. Wasn’t Rek their cousin, but he wanted the throne for himself? The four royal princes had been left alone to face a life-and-death battle. I admired them for their courage and for sticking together. It said so much about who they were and how they treated people.
