Beauty's Cursed Prince

by Mary E. Twomey

  Ella took a steadying breath and sent out her Listening in the direction of the shifting bramble. She rolled her shoulders back, assuming a position of ease, which Remus had trained her to do. A long drag in through her nose, followed by a cleansing breath out through her mouth pushed her Listening farther, spreading it from her like slow-creeping vines along the snow. She did her visualization exercises, imagining herself to be a ballerina, lengthening her posture and reach with grace, rather than tumbling through hard surfaces, as she was used to doing. Remus’ way was slower, but far less taxing on her body and mind. It was easier to control, doing things his way, and she was starting to get more accurate results the more she practiced.

  Remus had sent Cordray, Henry and Rory to separate rooms right next to each other, and instructed them read a string of nonsense. Ella’s task had been to hear only one of them, and then broaden her Listening, so she could take it all in. Then back to narrowing her focus, and then widening again. It had been mentally exhausting, but now that she was in the woods, searching for voices she wasn’t sure she could hear, she understood why he’d gone to such lengths to make her a pristine Listener.

  As the wind whistled through the trees, she tuned out nature’s dull shriek, and instead heard only the soft crush of paws on snow. More than that, she tuned in to a frequency that had a radio static quality to it. The sound crackled behind gravelly voices, which suddenly became clearer.

  “Remus is back,” one of them mumbled. “It’s a good thing he is. I’m starving.”

  “Who’s the girl he’s got with him? Doesn’t he know better than to bring outsiders to us?”

  Ella stiffened, but didn’t retreat as their bodies finally emerged from the thick of the woods. It was too late now; if she ran, they would surely catch her. They were huge—easily the size of mid-grown bears. Their fur was thick, and their eyes glowed through the night with an eerie quality that made Ella wonder if they could see straight through to her very soul.

  A brown-spotted wolf said, “Maybe he’s taken a wife finally.”

  “Woman, you know Remus is gay. And that girl is about fifteen years too young for him.” He looked Ella up and down. “Nice legs, though.”

  “Shut up, Errol. I don’t need to hear every lustful thought that pops into your head.”

  Ella swallowed hard, realizing why it was that the great Remus Johnstone had never settled down with a woman, even though he was a highly sought-after bachelor. She vowed to keep the secret he hadn’t meant to reveal to her, and still didn’t realize she knew.

  “Can you hear them?” Remus whispered.

  Ella gave him a tight nod, clinging to his arm. “They’re not thrilled you brought me. They seem to like their privacy, and distrust outsiders.” She kept her eyes on the wolves, counting three of them. One of them was limping, and all were littered with deep abrasions marring their thick fur.

  Remus’ arm flexed with excitement, and he all but bopped from side to side with glee that he’d shifted the puzzle piece into the correct spot. “I knew it was possible! Ella, do you realize what this means? You can be a witness for them! You can be their voice in court!”

  Ella’s chin jerked to him in surprise. “What are you talking about?”

  “So many crimes have been committed against them. I mean, their property was seized, for one, because they were deemed unfit to speak for themselves. Ella, you could grant them so much by just giving them back their voices!”

  “I… But that would mean going public, which I’ve told you isn’t a wise thing to do!”

  Remus’ eyes tightened, and his chin jerked up and down once. “Of course. I’m getting ahead of myself. For now, let’s just celebrate that we’re learning what nature intended for your gift.”

  Ella’s mouth went dry as Remus broke from her to greet his old friends. Though he couldn’t hear them, Ella observed that they’d worked out a basic one paw stamp for “yes”, and two paw stamps for “no”. He breezed through explaining Ella’s abilities in such a rush, the wolves barely understood him, and conferred their confusion to each other with quizzical head-tilts.

  “Do you think it’s possible more people can hear us?”

  “No. Remus is just trying to be helpful, grasping at straws. She’s pretty, though. Think she’ll let me nuzzle her tits? It’s been a long time since I’ve felt a hearty pair like those.”

  The wolf with brown spots scoffed. “And you never will again, Errol. You’re disgusting. Connor, knock some sense into him. If I do it now, I’ll draw more blood than he’s got to give.”

  Connor, the wolf with pure slate fur, sighed. “Errol, honestly. Even if you were human, you wouldn’t have a chance with a woman that beautiful.”

  Errol blew off their chastisement with a hearty snuff. “She can’t hear us. Only Red can, and she’s angry with us.”

  “Why is Red mad at you?” Ella asked. Then she crossed her arms over her chest. “And don’t talk about my body. It’s rude. I’m surprised you can see my shape through this bulky coat.”

  There was total silence, and then the radio static was back as they all clambered to be heard. They’d gone from woodland menaces in one breath, to excitable puppies in the next. They raced to Ella, startling Remus, so they could lick her face and jump on their hind legs to get her attention. If someone was listening, it seemed they were ready and desperate to be heard.

  24

  Part of the Pack

  Ella hadn’t been expecting such a greeting, and was just grateful she hadn’t lost a hand in the exchange. The more they licked her face, the more she let her guard down, giggling as they tickled her cold skin. They jumped over her body when she fell backward in the snow, laughing at how quickly they’d gone from feared nomads to loveable pets.

  Remus shooed them off of her, his expression vacillating from horrified to amused. He hoisted her back to her feet, shaking his head at them them while she dusted the snow off her jeans. “It’s working? You can hear each of them?” At Ella’s excited nod, he ran his hands through his hair, messing it as his mind raced. “There’s so much I want to know!” He pulled a binder out of his satchel and clicked his pen, scribbling as fast as he could every time he called out a question that Ella answered for the pups.

  “Why didn’t this Red person translate these things for you?”

  Remus kept his wide eyes on his notebook, flipping the page to get to the next slew of questions. “She interprets what she likes. Many of my questions go unanswered because she doesn’t like humans knowing too much about the Lupine. Doesn’t trust us. Plus, she’s not always around. Her and Rafe like to travel without the packs, moving in and out of each group as they please.” He glanced to the wolves, who were devouring the carcasses at their feet. “I could tell for a while now that they want to answer me, but Red wouldn’t give them that freedom. They know I’m not some follower of Malaura’s. I’m a student who only wishes to learn about them so I can help.”

  “Maybe we don’t need Red anymore, if we have Ella. She can help us find shelter.”

  Ella frowned. “Okay, what’s the deal with Red? Did you guys have a fight or something?”

  They went back to eating, bending their necks down to avoid eye contact. Finally, it was the brown-spotted wolf who spoke up. “One of the other packs attacked someone, based on information we reported. Red doesn’t like when any of us maim humans, so when one pack does, she punishes all of us by pulling back from everyone until we get the hint.”

  “The pack who fought the human, were they in danger?”

  “No, she would’ve understood that. It’s Adam. Adam Fontaine. Do you know him?”

  Ella shook her head. “I know of Adam Fontaine, but everyone does. His story’s not exactly a secret. Why was it necessary to attack him?”

  Remus went very still, tuning in to every word. Ella recalled Henry mentioning that Adam had stayed at Remus’ home many times, and was tutored by him as a boy, before his run-in with Malaura that cursed him into a slowly-transform
ing beast. He was doomed to join the Lupine on his thirtieth birthday, which everyone knew was coming up this year.

  “Adam doesn’t belong in your world, and he’ll never belong with us. Our pack is the only one that’s tried to welcome him to ease his transition, but the others want him ostracized.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “A while ago, Adam set traps for us when one of the packs grew overzealous and trespassed on his property. Killed one of us.” The brown-spotted wolf lowered her head. “Plus, he’s got the kind of money that could really help us gain more favor with the people so we’re not cast out, but he doesn’t. Even though he’s going to become one of us, he won’t fight for change. Us three will still take him in when he transitions, but the other packs won’t.”

  Ella chewed on her many responses, but tucked them away until she gathered more information.

  Connor slowed his feasting and brought a chicken’s head to lay at Ella’s feet. It was an odd peace offering, but Ella respected the gesture all the same. “Thank you.”

  “You are the loveliest sight this forest has seen in far too long. Had I a hat, I would’ve laid that at your feet, instead.”

  The corners of Ella’s mouth pulled upward as she indulged him in a curtsey, to which he bowed, as if they were two members of proper society making pleasantries. “Thank you, kind sir,” she teased.

  “You’re a wolf, Connor,” the brown-spotted wolf next to him said glibly.

  “And what’s your name?”

  “Guadalupe,” she replied. The nuances of her long maw made her look perpetually serious. She was stuck with a romantic, and a perv, so Ella couldn’t fault her for being the one to force logic into the mix. “Once we found that Adam took a wife, the more aggressive pack began making plans to take her out, just to make his human life more miserable. They found her driving and attacked, but Adam showed up, and things got complicated.”

  Errol huffed at Guadalupe. “Shut up, Lupe. We finally have someone who can speak with us. Don’t go scaring her away with things she won’t understand.”

  Connor bumped him out of the way. He had pure gray fur and was the largest of the three. “Enough, Errol. It’s clear she can hear us. Remember what little manners you had in your human life.”

  Ella knelt down in the snow, not caring that her jeans were thin and soaking through. She extended her hand and ran her fingers through Lupe’s fur, and then Connor’s. “Explain why attacking Adam’s wife helps their situation.”

  Connor leaned into the touch, practically purring with affection. “It doesn’t, but some of the Lupine feel that it’s all the justice we have. We can’t exactly press charges in a courtroom setting. We don’t have rights, and people are allowed to hunt us without cause. We didn’t join the pack that attacked Adam, but we understand it well enough. We wish Adam would fight for us, too.”

  Ella nodded, her face solemn. “I see.”

  Guadalupe rested her maw on Ella’s shoulder in total submission. “Red didn’t like that they attacked Adam and his wife. Said that doing it made us exactly the monsters the world has written us all off to be. She and Rafe left us, and they haven’t been back since. They do that when she’s angry, but they come back eventually.”

  “What can you tell me about Rafe?”

  Connor shook his head at Remus, and nuzzled closer to Ella as if to protect her from the world. “Your teacher should’ve educated you on this. He really brought you to us without telling you our names?”

  Ella shifted uncomfortably, and then stood, brushing off her jeans. “I’m a servant. People—including Remus—don’t tell me things unless I need to know.” She kept her scolding confined to that, taking Remus’ apologetic bow with a polite nod.

  Connor shook his head. “What a backwards world, that they’d take someone like you, who clearly has more magic in her little finger than most, and confine you to housework.”

  Ella could hear the disgust in his voice at the state of the world that had cast him out, as well. “Tell me about Red’s wolf.”

  “Rafe is the alpha. The oldest of the Lupine. Pure white coat. Bigger than the rest of us. He’s Red’s favorite, though they bicker like children all the time.”

  Ella touched her forehead, unsure of all the details. “I’ve never met Adam, so I can’t speak to what kind of person he is. But I’m guessing they’d never met his wife before they attacked her, so they don’t know what kind of redemption she’s bringing into his world.” When the wolves didn’t speak, she pressed forward to make sure the disgruntled demeanor that dictated the actions of the more violent pack didn’t bleed into this one, as well. “Wouldn’t you want that for your enemy? For him to find something as transformative as love?” Her eyebrows bunched as she turned to Remus. “Did I miss some big news announcement? I would’ve thought Adam Fontaine getting married would be a huge deal. Does Henry know?”

  Remus shook his head. “No. Adam’s not married. Henry hired a woman who’s a housekeeper and a nurse to look after him. Adam’s… He’s not well.”

  The wolves exchanged culpable looks of horror. “No. No, no.”

  “We saw them walking and talking together in his home through the windows.”

  “We saw the way they were looking at each other. Of course they’re married.”

  “She lives there! She has to be his wife!” The more they argued, the more they realized how very wrong they’d been when they’d reported the new staff member to the Lupine community.

  “They attacked a housekeeper? You realize that’s what I do, right? And did she set those traps for you guys?”

  They each laid on the ground at her feet and buried their noses in the snow, keeping their eyes scrunched shut. Errol whined for forgiveness at not trying harder to stop the renegade pack, but Guadalupe seemed to understand that mercy was a thing they didn’t deserve. “Please don’t leave us,” she begged quietly, her nose inching through the snow to touch Ella’s boot.

  Ella shoved her fists in Henry’s pockets, wishing he was with her. Even through the chill of the outdoors, she could smell his soft cologne on the collar of the jacket. She took a long, deliberate breath, locking his scent in her lungs before she exhaled her verdict. “I think the best way to get people to stop hunting you and give your voices serious consideration is to make sure you’re not the monsters they assume you are. You’re in a tough spot, and I get it, but if you don’t have any clue who you are or how to be kind, then what good is your voice? You may not have attacked Adam’s housekeeper, but you set it all in motion, giving that info to a pack you knew wouldn’t be able to see things calmly.” She shook her head at them. “You didn’t have the courage to be kind.”

  Guadalupe whined in distress, resting her throat atop Ella’s boot. It was an act of total trust that stilled any further lecturing. When Connor mirrored her actions on Ella’s other boot, she exhaled, unsure what the right move might be. She leaned down and ran her fingers through Guadalupe’s brown spots and Connor’s gray fur, softening when she saw how starved for touch they were. She reached over and scratched behind Errol’s ears as well.

  Remus pulled out his phone, but frowned when he realized they were too deep in the woods to get a proper signal. “You’re saying Adam is hurt, as well as Belle? Did they make it back to his castle?”

  “They made it back,” Errol replied with a nod, leaning into her touch. “They weren’t mortally wounded. If she’s a nurse, she would’ve been able to stitch them both up just fine.”

  Ella’s mouth drew to the side. “Maybe we should go check on them.”

  Connor inched closer, leaning his ear against Ella’s shin as he nuzzled the outside of her calf. “You can’t go there. I don’t want you near him. He’s not a good man.”

  Ella’s heart tugged in her chest that so tight a bond had been formed already. She wanted to scoop him up in her arms, but Connor was the size of a muscular, oversized Saint Bernard, and she wasn’t sure if he would fit in her arms. Instead, she lowered herself to her
knees again and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing his fur. “I’ll be alright.”

  Connor took a chance and licked her earlobe, and then her cheek. “We’ve needed someone to hear us for so long. I won’t let you go to Adam’s castle. He’s unbalanced. People who set traps for the Lupine aren’t the sort I want you near.”

  Ella held tight to Connor, resting her temple to his. She relished the warmth of his fur, and the way it tickled her nose. “If only you understood how much of a nobody I am.”

  “You’re not nobody. After tonight? After tonight, you’re our somebody. You’re our only somebody. Finally, we have someone to listen to us.”

  “Where are you staying? How can I help?” The snow was falling too fast. Ella wondered in the back of her mind how they would get the town car out of the snow if they didn’t leave soon.

  Connor licked her jaw. “We have thick coats, but food is hard to come by in the winter. Tell me where your home is. Let me watch the grounds for you.”

  Ella’s lashes swept shut. “I don’t make the rules for my home. But if I did, of course I would take you all in. Of course I would give you a place to rest.” She glanced up at Remus, who was too shocked to speak. “Remus, how can we help them? Rafe and Red left them, and food is getting scarce. They’re scared.”

  Remus put his notebook away with a wary expression. “Ella, I can’t take them in. If people knew I was harboring the Lupine? They wouldn’t be safe on my property. People would hunt them, and they’d be easy targets if they were confined to my grounds.”

  “We can’t just leave them here! They’ll starve. I can’t sleep with that on my conscience.” Light danced in her eyes. “The barn. Lady Tremaine and her daughters never set foot inside it. It’s far too dirty for them.”