by A. W. Exley
* * *
My eyes flung open and I sat upright with a gasp. The sofa was under my bottom and Charlotte lay on the carpet beside me. Seth and Lieutenant Bain sat on the opposite sofa, both looking grim.
Seth let out a deep sigh and stood up.
"Ella," he murmured my name and moved sofas. Sitting next to me, he pulled me into his arms and kissed the top of my head. "Thank God you are all right."
"Is this real?" I asked. Please don't let this be a cruel trick or another realm.
At my feet, Charlotte stirred and sat up. One hand went to her brow as though her head pained her. "Ella?"
I reached out and took her hand as David knelt on the carpet. He stroked her face with his hand. "What happened?"
Charlotte and I exchanged tired looks. Reverend Mason clapped his hands together from his armchair. "Yes. We need the entire story. But I shall put the kettle on first. You both look parched, and I think tea and biscuits are required."
Only when the door closed behind his tall frame did I meet Seth's worried gaze. "What happened? How long have Charlotte and I been asleep?"
Seth drew me closer to his body. "Two days. David and I have waited for you both to awaken. Millicent said you had failed."
I snorted. "I did. Apparently you can't take off someone's head in the other realm because they don't have a physical form."
A frown marred his face. "But Millicent died. We saw her. She climbed out of her hidey hole and simply aged and crumpled into dust."
"Ashes to ashes and dust to dust," Charlotte murmured as David helped her to the opposite sofa.
I smiled at my step-sister. "I failed, but Charlotte didn't. She woke Millicent up. She had been suspended between life and death for over three hundred years. Charlotte returned Millicent to her body, which unfortunately for her, had a couple hundred years of aging to catch up on."
Seth kissed my forehead. "I am surrounded by clever women."
"I happen to think Charlotte is extraordinary." She really was extraordinary. Millicent offered her everything. She could have been a princess in a dark court. She turned it all down for work as a housekeeper and the humble love of a lieutenant. She was my hero.
Charlotte's spell and the defeat of Millicent were like a stone tossed into a pond. Ripples slowly spread outward, with Serenity House at the centre. Like puppets with their strings cut, Turned fell to the ground wherever they stood. It took time, but over days and weeks, it spread. First Somerset, then all of England. Then ever outwards across the ocean, reaching other shores. One by one, the Turned sighed as release was gifted to them and their souls escaped from Millicent's domain.
My time was spent writing reports for the War Office and protecting Charlotte from being further poked and prodded to learn her secrets. The War Office decided they needed a witch in their ranks, and they laid claim to Charlotte.
Seth took the pen from my fingers and laid it on the desk. "I do believe, Miss Jeffrey, that you made me a promise. That you would say yes the next time I asked if you would marry me."
Humour and love sparkled in his grey eyes. How could I ever imagine a life without this man by my side?
I tapped a finger to my chin. "I do believe I did. But I retain some old fashioned values. You need to ask my father first."
"Ah." He frowned. "I shall remedy that first. But until then—"
He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me upward. His head descended to claim mine in a scorching kiss. As our tongues sparred and heat spread through my limbs, I briefly pondered that life was good. Charlotte made the right choice. Who wanted to be a princess when you could be a real woman?
About the Author
Books and writing have always been an enormous part of my life. I survived school by hiding out in the library, with several thousand fictional characters for company. At university, I overcame the boredom of studying accountancy by squeezing in Egyptology papers and learning to read hieroglyphics.
Today, I live in rural New Zealand, where I write historical fantasy novels with heart.
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Also by A. W. Exley
Serenity House
Serenity House: Ella's Journey
Ella, The Slayer
Henry, The Gaoler
Alice, the Player
Rory, the Sleeper
Vincent the Tailor: A Serenity House short story
Silent Wings
Dawn's Promise
Day's Patience
Tales from Darjee
Heart of the Kraken
The Artifact Hunters
Nefertiti's Heart
Hatshepsut's Collar
The Unicorn's Tail
Nero's Fiddle
Paniha's Taniwha
Moseh's Staff
The Artifact Hunters Boxed Set