WB

by test

  “Anna, these horrible men wouldn't let us in to see you ….” Patty began with a disgusted look around her. All the guards looked worn out and mud stained. One of the muscle twins had a trickle of blood leaking from his nostril.

  Leah interrupted, “So we tried to sneak in, but they attacked us before we could call out WARLOCK’S BRIDE JENNIFER RINEHART 107

  for you!”

  I couldn't help it, I started to giggle and once I started I couldn't stop. Everyone looked so bedraggled, Rosco had a hand imprint on his cheek and both muscle twins had shocked looks on their faces as they stared at Patty and Leah like they were beasts from the lowest levels of hell,.

  Pretty soon I was bent over with laughter and when I looked up I saw that Patty, Leah and Taryn who had run after me and was standing in the doorway, had joined in.

  When I could finally catch my breath, I gave a nod to the guards and ushered Patty and Leah inside. I heard grumbling that sounded like, 'crazy women,' as I shut door.

  Patty and Leah were staring around the house with awed fascination and I saw it through their eyes, the giant chandelier hanging from the twelve foot ceiling in the entry way. The suede couches and huge stone fireplace in the living room. The place was gigantic and could easily house three families. We sat down in the living room and I heard Taryn mumble, 'coffee' and drift off towards the kitchen.

  Leah spoke first, “We have been so worried about you honey. What's going on? When are you coming back to work? What in the world are you doing here?”

  Patty and Leah had such concerned looks on their faces and I felt a rush of love for them.

  I was so lucky to have friends like this. People who were willing to tackle armed guards to find out what was happening to me. Friends like this came along just once in a lifetime and sometimes I thought I didn't deserve them.

  My thoughts were disorganized, the problem was, I didn't know where to start. So much had happened in such a short time. The last time we were together like this we were making plans for a cruise and griping about Leah's awful boyfriend, Chip. That all seemed so normal and far away now.

  “I have a mother and brother, they live in Paris.” That just slipped out and my mouth curved into a wide smile as I thought of my family.

  The next hour was filled with laughter and tears as I explained about my Aunt

  Celia/Celeste, Gage, my mother Helene and my brother Laurent. I left out some stuff, of course.

  I didn't need Gage to tell me that the magic was a secret. I also left out Hugo, werewolves, my marriage contract with Gage and the sexy dreams I had been having about him. I thought the story didn't make a lot of sense leaving out all of those details, but Leah and Patty didn't seem to notice.

  I didn't like keeping it from my first, real friends, but it was for the best if they didn't know about any of it. They had questions, tons of them and it was nice to rehash everything and get their perspective on what had happened the last few days.

  Taryn brought in coffee and cookies and before long the four of us were laughing and chatting like the oldest of friends. I asked how they found me and Leah fairly glowed with satisfaction as she explained how she tracked me down.

  First she checked with Lillian. As usual, she was rude and dismissive and seemed oddly frightened by the questions and would only say that she didn't have anything to say about Lord Hawthorne.

  A little internet digging and she was able to find out some background information about him and used that, plus contacts at the Assessor's and Recorders office to find out about a huge sale, a house in Torvannen, that had been paid for, with cash, the day before. I was amazed at her tenacity. The staff at the County Recorder's office was notoriously unhelpful. She must WARLOCK’S BRIDE JENNIFER RINEHART 108

  have had to work hard to convince anyone there to help her.

  Finally, her sleuthing paid off and as soon as they could, Patty and Leah drove up to Torvannen to confront Gage and find out where I was and, hopefully, bring me back to Portland with them.

  “How did you get anything out of the Recorder's office? They aren't very helpful.” I asked in a wondering voice.

  Leah looked furious a moment, but after a couple of slow breaths she said, “Do you remember that gold bracelet Chip gave me last year? The one he had engraved, 'You are my sun and moon?”

  I nodded my head and gave Patty and Taryn a mystified look, I wasn't sure where this was going, but anytime Leah brought up Chip it wasn't good. The man was a menace and it was too bad that she couldn't see it.

  Leah smoothed her hair with a trembling hand and sat up straighter, “Well, the woman at the counter, Belinda, was her name, she had the same bracelet, with the little rose on the top and everything. I was trying to make conversation with her so I complimented her on her bracelet and showed her mine. She told me hers was a gift from her boyfriend. I said mine was too.

  That's when I noticed it.”

  “Noticed what?” I said, curious.

  “She looked like me. Same hair color, eyes, about the same height, weight and age as me too,” Leah's face was twisted up, like she was trying to hold some strong emotion inside but it was breaking her apart to stay so controlled.

  “That's weird, but you know what they say; ‘everyone has a twin,’” I said slowly, watching her.

  This was interesting, but I wasn't sure why Leah seemed so upset about meeting someone who looked like her and had a bracelet like hers.

  “Well, Belinda noticed it too and so she read me the inscription on the inside of her bracelet, 'You are my sun and moon.' Then she told me her boyfriend's name was Chip. The bastard gave us both the same bracelet! He's been seeing her for about a year. Can you believe that?” She had a shocked expression and shook her head like saying it out loud made it more unbelievable rather than less.

  I widened my eyes with shock and gave her a smile of commiseration. Wisely I kept to myself that I wasn't surprised. Chip probably had a whole drawer full of bracelets, he probably got a discount ordering them in bulk, but Leah didn't need to hear that. She was hurting, the rose colored glasses were off and for the first time she saw Chip for what he really was; a rotten boyfriend.

  “Belinda's really nice, you'd like her. After finding out we had both been dating the same stupid guy, she helped me find Gage. She made copies and even looked up the names and addresses of the Escrow Officer and the Real Estate Broker that handled the sale.” Leah plucked at the fibers of her pants in a twitchy way. Her shoulders were slumped and the rage of a few moments past had faded into a desperate kind of sadness.

  “I'm a fool, I wasted so much time on him,” she whispered, her lower lip trembled as she said this and I sighed, poor Leah.

  “No, you're not honey. You were in love, that's all,” I said and got up to give her a hug.

  * * * *

  It was Patty that suggested margaritas. Taryn made the raspberry kamikaze's and by WARLOCK’S BRIDE JENNIFER RINEHART 109

  midnight, we were all slumped on the sofas and chairs talking about, of all things, bikini waxes.

  The guards had wandered in from time to time, but as the liquor flowed, we became louder and louder and Leah, in a fit of giddy drunkenness insisted on teaching us all how to line dance. She invited the guards to join in and with grimaces of fear, they backed away and left us alone the rest of the night.

  WARLOCK’S BRIDE JENNIFER RINEHART 110

  Chapter Thirteen

  The sun was ten times brighter than usual the next morning. My mouth tasted like pickle flavored gum and I had a stabbing pain in my side. I sat up and realized I had slept on one of Patty's lime green, spiked boots and I tossed it aside with a grimace.

  Patty was snoring gently in the recliner and Leah was sprawled on the couch with an empty tub of Chocolate Raspberry Truffle ice cream cradled to her chest.

  I quietly tip toed from the room. After a quick stop in the bathroom I made my way to the kitchen.

  Taryn was sitting at the counter. Her shoulders were slumped and h
er head was in her hands.

  “Good Morning,” I said weakly, talking hurt.

  “Hello,” she said dully. Her face was pale and she looked as ill as I felt.

  “I will never, I repeat never, mix tequila with vodka and gin-” she stated.

  I interrupted helpfully, “don't forget the butterscotch schnapps.”

  “-and butterscotch schnapps, again! My head is bursting apart ….” her voice ran down as she seemed to lose the capacity to express herself and slumped forward again over the counter.

  I filled us both tall glasses of water. I knew I should eat something, a cracker or dry toast, but I couldn't face the thought of food right now. My stomach was sour and gurgling and the room was spinning a little as I stood with one hand braced on the back of a stool and slowly drank some water.

  “Has Gage called?” I asked.

  Taryn bit her lip and shook her head carefully, wincing as her hair swung forward across her face. I wondered glumly when I would hear from him. I was horribly aware of the possibility that something could happen to him. He wasn't all powerful, although, he often seemed that way, but I couldn't bear to think about it. I wouldn't even consider it.

  I heard a car pull into the driveway and my heart fluttered wildly, he was back! I ran into the downstairs bathroom, a quick look in the mirror and I gaped in dismay. Why did I have stickers on my forehead? I peeled the stickers off, little red foil hearts and stars that left pink marks on my face after their removal. I desperately tried to erase the marks with a wet washcloth, but instead succeeded in making my forehead an angry, blotchy red color.

  My eyes were gritty and bloodshot and my hair looked like I styled it with an egg beater and liquid starch. A few splashes of water and I thought I didn't look too much like someone who spent the night in drunken abandon sleeping on a shoe.

  I heard the front door opening and voices from the hall and I skipped from the room, my heart thumping in anticipation. But before I reached the entryway I cautioned myself not to act too eager. I shouldn't act too weird about him being back so soon, I didn't want him to think I had been counting the minutes waiting for him to come back. I mean, how pathetic would that be?

  I walked out with a casual smile and halted in surprise when I saw who was there, WARLOCK’S BRIDE JENNIFER RINEHART 111

  “Helene!”

  She had roses in her cheeks and a broad smile on her face as she walked forward with open arms. She kissed me on both cheeks and gave me a bone crushing hug. Then the whole process was repeated by Laurent who walked in behind her and gave me a delighted grin and a gentle pat on the head too.

  “I had to see you again. I know Gage wanted some time alone with you, so you two could get to know each other before the wedding, but I couldn't wait.”

  She looked younger to me. Her eyes glowed and her hands moved in an animated, happy way as she spoke. I winced when she said wedding, but didn't refute her. Now wasn't the time to talk about Gage's plans for me or the fact that I didn't agree with them.

  Laurent looked on with an indulgent smile. He seemed genuinely happy to see me again, but there were shadows under his eyes and his face never lost the tense, readiness that made it seem he was preparing for an attack at any moment. His eyes roamed the entrance hall and his body was whipcord taut.

  Gage said my father lost the coven, I hadn't really thought about it before now, but I wondered what that meant for Helene and Laurent. Did they join another coven? Was it like losing a business or a house? Did they have enough money to support themselves? I didn't want to pry into their personal lives, but we were family after all, so I could ask when the time seemed right.

  Patty and Leah were awake when I led my mother and brother to the living room. They were both a little embarrassed by their rumpled hair and clothes but Helene set them at ease with smiles and a few jokes about traveling in America.

  I felt proud and a little weepy when I introduced my family to my friends. At first the conversation was formal, everyone on their best behavior. But, within a few moments we were all happily chatting about local tourist destinations and our jobs in Portland.

  Patty was the first to stand up, but Leah soon followed. “We have to get back to Portland.” Patty said apologetically.

  “Yeah, we do. I'm babysitting my nephews tonight and Patty ….” Leah said helplessly.

  “I have a Star Trek Fan Club meeting. We're going to watch The Wrath of Khan and I wanna get a good seat.” Patty said with a happy smile.

  I walked my friends out and after promising not to leave the country, get married or anything similarly drastic without calling, I gave them hugs goodbye and watched as they drove away.

  Then I settled down to visit with my family.

  “Where's Gage?” Laurent asked, glancing around the living room, as if he expected to see him walk in at any moment.

  My heart sank thinking about where he was and that he hadn't called me yet. Why didn't he call! He had a phone with him, why didn't he use it?

  “He's in Idaho to kill Hugo and find Celia,” I blurted out, my voice shaky with nervous tension.

  They looked alarmed and confused, so I told them the entire story. Laurent didn't seem surprised to hear about Celia throwing in with Hugo, but Helene had tears of pain streaming down her face after I had described her part in the ambush. I hated telling her, but, she needed to know.

  “My own sister! I can't believe she would do something like this, be so cruel! I would WARLOCK’S BRIDE JENNIFER RINEHART 112

  carve her heart from her chest if I had her here this moment,” Helene said fiercely, knuckling away her tears with a shaky hand.

  Laurent looked shocked by his mother's bloodthirsty wish. But I wasn't. Every time I looked at her it was blatantly obvious she had been in pain too many years. Grief had etched a rocky landscape in her delicate face, even her voice seemed to throb with remembered anxiety and fear.

  She endured the abduction of her daughter, a miscarriage and the slow, painful death of her husband. Gage said she never remarried and as far as he knew she hadn't dated since my father died. She was a woman trapped between the world she once had and the present reality that was too full of shadows of a once happy past for her to move on.

  Finding me had gone a long way towards freeing her, but she still had a wary look in her eyes. Like she was afraid it was all a dream and she could wake up at any moment. I totally knew how she felt and I smiled at her with sympathy.

  Laurent frowned in thought, “When are they planning the attack?”

  I was embarrassed to admit I didn't know and even more upset to reveal that I didn't have a phone number to contact Gage. Suddenly it seemed ominous that he hadn't given me his number.

  Laurent left the room to speak with one of the guards about the plans for Hugo and I turned to Helene with a smile.

  “So, my darling, how are you? When will you and Gage set a day for the marriage?”

  She asked with a delighted grin, practically rubbing her hands together with glee.

  Before I could answer she burst out, “I have the best caterer in Paris. I told her all about you and Gage and she is planning a magnificent feast; white truffle canapés, goat cheese pinwheels, gravlox, oh, she is going all out for you two. Oh, and we have to get you a dress, most of the designers are full up for the year, but I know a few people who owe me favors and I think we can find you something in time or we could make a trip to New York or Milan if you like. I think it will be fun, don't you?”

  “We aren't getting married!” I didn't mean to growl it, but I was getting tired of the near constant presumption. Sheesh, everyone had us paired up and married. If I wasn't careful they'd plan our baby shower and anniversary parties too.

  She had a confused frown now and said, “He hasn't asked you yet? Is he waiting to settle things with Hugo and Celeste? Are you fighting about where to get married or the guest list?”

  “Oh, he's asked me, many, many times. He's even started demanding I marry him, that it's my du
ty as a witch. But I wont. I can't do it. He doesn't love me, I'm not even sure that he really likes me. He wants a wife, a good breeder for his purebred warlock babies.”

  My voice tapered off at the end and I had to clear my throat as I felt it tightening up with emotion. I gave her a brilliant smile and a shrug, as if to say, 'such is life.' But it hurt so much I wanted to cry and eat a pound of chocolate.

  “He has really made a muddle of things, hasn't he? I warned him, oh yes, I did. But men, they never listen, do they?” She shook her head in amazement and reached for my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

  “Everything will be right in the end. Don't worry darling.”

  I nodded to show her I agreed and she beamed at me and gave me another hug.

  Everything wouldn't be alright, it couldn't be. I wasn't sure if I would have the strength to leave him when the time came. I wasn't sure if I would want to. I was so in love with Gage that WARLOCK’S BRIDE JENNIFER RINEHART 113

  just the thought of leaving him made my vision blur with tears and my hands tremble to touch him again.

  Everywhere I looked I saw reminders of him. I was jumping at every noise I heard outside, hoping that he had returned. I couldn't pinpoint when my feelings for him changed from fear and annoyance to love and lust, but they had and there seemed to be no going back now.

  Laurent came back for a moment and told us he had just enough time to meet up with the covens for the attack. Helene tried to persuade him to stay with us, but I felt a sneaky relief that Laurent would be up there with Gage.

  He had the broad shoulders, long legs and loose grace of a hunter. I liked the thought of him fighting alongside Gage. They could keep each other safe.

  After Laurent left, we lapsed into a moody silence. The hours stretched before us, a long wait for the men to call or come home.

  Taryn coaxed us to the kitchen for lunch and dinner, but I ate little and found that no book, magazine or television program could keep my interest for long. Every few minutes I found myself in front of the windows looking out at the empty driveway. Taryn was quiet too and I remembered that it was members of her pack with Gage and Laurent in Idaho.