Once Enchanted

by Marie Higgins

  He narrowed his vision, trying to get his eyes to adjust to the darkness. He strained to hear any odd sounds. Finally, he noticed a movement in the darkness. He crept closer. Slowly, a woman’s body formed in the shadows. She lay on her side, wearing some kind of night dress and slippers. The woman on the ground released a sob and struggled to sit up.

  “My Queen? Is that you?”

  Her sobs grew louder as she nodded. Behind him, Clarissa released a cry and pushed past him to her mother. Clarissa fell beside the other woman, wrapping her arms around the trembling body.

  When Ryder’s vision adjusted fully, he could see the queen’s arms and legs were tied with ropes. Moving swiftly, he knelt beside her and untied the bindings. As he lifted the frail woman up in his arms, she fell against his chest, sobbing.

  “We need to get her out of this dank room,” he told Clarissa. “Quickly, go retrieve the blankets and meet me at the entrance.”

  Clarissa wiped her wet eyes and hurried out of the queen’s cell. Ryder shifted her weak body in his arms. “Not to worry, my Queen. I shall have you home safe very soon.”

  “Thank...you.”

  His heart twisted to hear how weak she was. How long had she been here? And had she been fed at all? Thankfully, they had food in the basket.

  When he carried her out of the dirt room, the queen squinted against the brightness. And yet to him, it wasn’t bright at all since the gray clouds still hung thick in the sky.

  “Oh, Mother!” Clarissa cried as she placed the blanket around her. “Who put you down there?”

  Her mother nodded and seemed to want to speak, but failed. Holding the queen, Ryder could tell she was getting weaker by the second. He knelt underneath the protection of an overhanging tree. If it rained, the branches and leaves would protect them. “Rissa, we need to try and feed her before we leave. She’s so weak.”

  Clarissa found the basket of food and brought it over. She ripped off a piece of bread and carefully fed it to her mother. She also helped her drink the water from a water pouch. Once the bread had been eaten, Clarissa fed her the few grapes.

  She raised her watery gaze and met Ryder’s stare. “Who could have done this to her?” she whispered brokenly.

  “I have a feeling it was the witch.”

  “But...why?” A tear slid down her cheek as she moved her attention back to her mother.

  “I’m not sure, but somehow it has to be connected.”

  “What’s got to be connected?” she asked.

  “The king’s guards who have suddenly taken ill—or died—and the prince having the spell put on the flowers to make you fall in love with him. And, of course, your mother being taken prisoner.”

  “Mother?” Clarissa asked as she gently stroked her mother’s cheek. The queen’s eyes flittered open, but the woman struggled to keep alert. “Who did this to you? Was it the witch?”

  Her mother nodded once and closed her eyes again.

  “This makes no sense.” Clarissa sniffed and shook her head. “What reason would the witch have to do all of this?”

  “I don’t know, but once I take you home, I plan on finding out.

  “Oh, Ryder. You cannot take us back to the palace. The witch is still there. She has to be the one who is acting as queen!”

  He blew out an exasperated breath. “You are correct. Until your father knows what is going on, the palace is not a safe place for your mother. Instead, I’ll take you both to my mother’s home. She would be honored to care for you and your mother while I confront the witch.”

  “Then let’s go quickly before it rains.”

  “I’ll carry the queen on my horse.”

  When they stood, she placed her hand on his arm and smiled up at him. “Thank you for being here and helping me. I honestly don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  His heart melted. How could he not love this woman with all of his soul? “If I get my way, you’ll never find out.”

  CLARISSA SAT ON THE edge of the bed, holding her mother’s frail hand. Outside, the rain beat against the house, making the dreary mood even drearier.

  She’d never seen her mother like this...and she never wanted to see her this way ever again. The once vibrant woman was too thin and lacked energy. Her eyes didn’t even sparkle when she stared at her own daughter. It was almost as if the life had been sucked clean out of her.

  Clarissa had been mentally beating herself up ever since they left the tower. Why hadn’t she realized that the woman in the palace was not her mother? Of course Clarissa had seen the signs—the queen’s short temper, most of all—but she never would have thought her mother could just become someone entirely different. And when had the switch happened? How could she have missed it? Sighing, Clarissa struggled to hold back tears. She really should have realized that woman was not her mother!

  Before Clarissa could reconcile her thoughts, Ryder had delivered them safely to his mother’s house, who was indeed very honored to care for them. Mrs. Grey allowed the queen to sleep in her bed. Ryder’s mom fixed some soup and fed it to the queen. The other woman even helped Clarissa change her mother’s nightgown into something clean and warm—after giving her a sponge bath, of course. Color actually shown in the queen’s cheeks now, and Clarissa was relieved her mother was recovering so quickly.

  Within a few hours of arriving, her mother had perked up considerably. Ryder had been in the other room with his own mother while Clarissa sat with the queen. He’d told her he would figure out a way to put a stop to the witch. Clarissa just prayed he could.

  “Mother? Do you feel strong enough to tell me what happened now?”

  Nodding, the queen struggled to sit up. Clarissa stuffed a few pillows behind her back until she was comfortable, and then she adjusted the blankets over her again.

  “I honestly don’t know what happened, my dear,” her mother began. “One minute I was preparing myself for bed, and the next minute I woke up in that cold, dark cellar, all tied up. My head ached as though I’d been hit, but I cannot recall anything.”

  “Did the witch feed you or give you water?”

  Her mother shook her head. “Not every day. Sometimes I thought she was trying to starve me to death.”

  Tears gathered in Clarissa’s eyes again, knowing the pain and fear her mother had suffered. “How long had you been there?”

  The queen shrugged. “I’m not certain. How long have you been home?”

  Gasping, Clarissa’s blinked with wide eyes. “You weren’t there when I returned from my trip?”

  “No.”

  “Oh, Mother.” She lowered her head to her mother’s hands as she tried to hold back the tears. “I’ve been home for a week now.”

  “Then I think I’ve been gone nearly a fortnight. I recall being excited that evening because you would be home in seven days.”

  Clarissa couldn’t take any more of the agony plunging through her...and the anger for what the witch had done. She snapped up and looked back at her mother. “Ryder will find the witch and kill her for what she’s done.”

  “Now, my sweet daughter,” the queen patted Clarissa’s cheek, “killing isn’t always the answer.”

  “Well, then...” she took in a deep breath, trying to think clearly, “I’m sure Ryder will arrest her and then Father can throw her in the dungeon...as long as someone takes her powers away first.”

  “I’m sure your father will deal with this woman in the manner she deserves.” The queen smiled sweetly.

  Calmness spread over Clarissa. Now this was her mother...not the mean woman who yelled at the servants daily over tiny things. The queen had always been sweet and kind. She never said a mean thing about anyone. Clarissa smiled. It was good to have her back.

  Boot steps creaked on the bedroom floor and she whipped her head around to see who was coming. Ryder, with his two-day-old goatee, mussed brown hair, and dirty clothes, still looked as gorgeous as ever. Her heart lightened, and she held out her hand to him. He took it and stopped by her s
ide, looking down at her mother.

  “My Queen, I am going to leave you and your daughter in the care of my mother. I need to find the witch and arrest her.”

  The queen frowned. “I fear it won’t be that easy, especially since she’s a witch.”

  He nodded. “True, but I cannot let her get away with kidnapping you.”

  “Talk to my husband first. He will know what to do.”

  Ryder scratched his bearded chin. “I pray the king will believe me.”

  Clarissa squeezed his hand. “I’m going with you. If anyone knows how to talk to my father, it’s me.”

  “No, my sweet princess. You’ll be in harm’s way if you go with me. I cannot allow that to happen.”

  “But, I won’t be—”

  “Clarissa?” Her mother’s voice stopped Clarissa’s protests. “Listen to Mr. Grey. He is one of the king’s guards. He knows what is best.”

  Sighing heavily, Clarissa frowned. She didn’t want to be proven wrong on this, but darn it, her mother was right...which meant Ryder was right. “Fine. I’ll stay.” She couldn’t help but smile as Ryder lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles. “Please be safe,” she told him.

  “I will. There’s too much happiness in my life now, so rest assured, I’ll return the victor.”

  As she watched him walk back into the other room with his mother, Clarissa’s chest tightened. She had happiness in her life, too, but she dared not get her hopes up just yet. Who knows what else that witch was up to—and how many other lives she had ruined? Would Ryder really be able to stop such evil?

  “Oh and, Clarissa?” Ryder said, glancing back. “I know my mother has a beautiful garden, but please, don’t go smelling any more flowers.”

  SIXTEEN

  “Ryder, wait.”

  He paused, his hand on the doorknob. “What is it, Mother?”

  “Before you go, I want to give you something.”

  As his mother walked toward him, she swiped a grayish-brown lock of hair off her forehead. When she stopped in front of him, she withdrew a dark blue women’s wrist purse from her apron pocket. He’d seen her carry this before and assumed it held spare change. But he didn’t hear any clinking of coins as her fingers pulled the strings apart before delving inside.

  She pulled out a small object, and he narrowed his gaze. A rabbit’s foot? As a lad, his father had mentioned how keeping a rabbit’s foot brought good luck to the owner. Over the years, Ryder had realized that was just an old wives’ tale.

  “If you are to face the witch,” his mother said, “I want you to take this.”

  He arched an eyebrow, meeting her stare. “Mother, do you honestly believe a rabbit’s foot is going to bring me good luck?”

  The older woman released a broken laugh and shrugged. “I don’t know for certain, but it was given to me by one of your father’s dearest friends after Charles died.”

  “Who was this friend?”

  “The king.”

  Gasping, Ryder stepped closer to his mother. “The king gave this to you?”

  She nodded. “He told me he had carried this around for years, and because your father was always fascinated with it, the king decided to give it to me, to help protect me from anything unnatural.”

  “You cannot be serious,” Ryder muttered, taking the rabbit’s foot and cradling it in the palm of his hand. “Why would the king think you needed this after Father’s death?”

  “Because the king thought your father’s illness was unnatural.”

  With a sigh, he frowned. “As did I.” He kept his gaze on the furry object. “But do you think it will work?”

  “I know not, my son.” She clutched his forearm. When he met her stare, her eyes were filled with tears. “But I don’t want anything to happen to you, and if believing in a little rabbit’s foot might save your life, I’m willing to take that chance.”

  A lump of emotion caught in Ryder’s throat, and he swallowed hard. He wrapped his mother in his arms and held her tight. “I don’t plan on having anything unnatural happen to me.”

  “I don’t think one plans these things. They just happen.” His mother sniffed back a sob.

  He smiled and gave her a kiss on the forehead. “As always, you are correct.”

  She stepped back and wiped the moisture out of her eyes. “Take care, and may good fortune be with you from now on.”

  He took one last glance toward the bedroom. With the door still open, he could see Clarissa sitting beside her mother. However, her head was turned toward him. She offered a shaky smile and a small wave. He returned the wave before leaving the house.

  The rain wasn’t as heavy as it had been earlier, thank goodness. Wearing his leather hooded cloak would help in keeping the water off his head and clothes. He quickly mounted and took off toward the palace. Not many people were on the main road in the middle of town, which gave him more confidence in pushing his horse faster.

  His head had been spinning with thoughts since they had found Clarissa’s mother. His investigative mind had been trying to piece everything together to make some sense of what had been happening. Unfortunately, nothing was clear to him at the moment.

  One conclusion he had come to was that the old witch wanted to take over the kingdom. Clearly this was the case, yet what was her motivation? Taking over the kingdom could be the only reason she’d want to make everyone think she was the queen. That could also be the reason she poisoned the king’s guards—to get them out of the way. However, it didn’t fit with what happened with Prince Ormond and Clarissa. Why would the witch put a spell on the flowers? What did the witch gain by having the princess marry Prince Ormond from Edan? Unless it was to get Clarissa out of the kingdom so the witch could rule it without anyone knowing.

  Out of the corner of his eyes, a familiar figure hurrying out of one of the shops caught his attention. The round glasses on her face and red scarf around her hair signaled this could be no other person besides the witch he sought.

  He hardened his jaw and pulled back on the horse’s reins, bringing the animal to a stop. Quickly, he dismounted and hastened toward her. When she didn’t raise her head to look at him, he called out, “Pardon me. You there with the red scarf.”

  The boardwalk was empty, so his voice carried. She jerked to a stop and looked at him. Pointing to her chest, she mouthed the word, me?

  Anger fueled his steps until he stood in front of her, staring down at the petite woman, who tried to look innocent. He was at loss for words due to the frustration building inside of him. Perhaps he shouldn’t say anything about the queen yet. He should start with what he knew about her and Prince Ormond, which of course, would lead to the queen’s kidnapping.

  “I need to discuss something of importance.”

  Her eyebrows rose above the rims of her glasses. “Out here in the rain, Sir?”

  He grumbled under his breath. Angry as he was, he couldn’t make her stand in the rain for what may be quite a long discussion. “No.” Glancing up and down the road, there was only one place they could talk. He pointed to the barn that stood in back of one of the stores down an alleyway. “In there.”

  She shrugged and walked with him to the shelter. Once inside, he tied his horse to the post before turning to look at her. He folded his arms and scowled. “I want you to tell me why you placed a spell on Prince Ormond’s Rapunzel flowers.”

  The many wrinkles in her face smoothed out slightly as she smiled. “Because he is such a nice boy, and he sorely needs help trying to find a woman to marry. I knew I could help him along.”

  Irritation sparked inside of him, again. This was no laughing matter, so why was she smiling? “Listen, madam—”

  “My name is Cordelia Brewster.”

  It upset him even more to see how calm she acted. “I’m Ryder Grey, one of the king’s guards.”

  “Nice to meet you.” She smiled, showing crooked and missing teeth.

  He took a deep breath to calm his temper and started over. “Cordelia, I unders
tand how the spell you put on those flowers worked, but do you realize that you nearly ruined lives by casting that spell for Prince Ormond?”

  Her pleasant expression disappeared and her eyes widened. “I...ruined lives?”

  He studied her for a few silent seconds. She really did appear shocked over this bit of information. “Yes. Princess Clarissa is in love with me, and I’m in love with her. Once Prince Ormond presented the flowers to Clarissa and she smelled them, she then tried to shut me out of her life—even keeping me prisoner in a tower. She didn’t know why she acted in such a way, and she was confused the whole time. Finally, she could fight her heart no longer, and she chose me instead of the prince. But, I’m very upset that you would do that for the prince. What was his purpose? What was your purpose?”

  She gasped and pressed her bony knuckles to her mouth. Blinking, her eyes slowly filled with tears. “My purpose in casting spells is to help good people. I don’t cast spells if they will harm anyone. I’m not a bad person, really I’m not.”

  Ryder bunched his hands into fists. What in the blazes was she talking about? If she didn’t put spells on people to harm them, why was the queen harmed?

  “But it did harm someone—two people, in fact.”

  She shook her head. “Prince Ormond told me that Princess Clarissa was not courting anyone, and of course, I knew he needed help—”

  “I wasn’t courting the princess until the day the prince gave her the flowers. I’ve loved her for years, and she’s loved me, but we just never told each other.”

  “Oh, forgive me.” She clutched his arm in desperation. “If I had known her heart belonged to another, I wouldn’t have put a spell on the flowers.”

  Why did he believe her? Was she a skilled performer as well as a witch? “All right, so what about the king’s guards? Are you poisoning them?”

  Her eyes widened even more. “Why would you think I was poisoning them?”

  Perhaps he shouldn’t have blurted that out, but he was on a roll and couldn’t stop his thoughts now. “The few guards I’ve talked to who have gotten sick—and before they died—described talking to you of the same day they became sick. Tell me, does that sound coincidental to you?”