Bluebeard's Curse (Dark Tales Book 1)

by Regine Abel

  Eric met us as we reached the dining hall. Tormund bowed and retreated while Eric escorted me to my chair. The look on his face told me he had heard of my escapade and it worried him. A pair of servants laid a meal of braised venison, boiled vegetables and fresh bread on the table. They served us wine and left a full jug near Eric before making a discreet exit.

  Eric raised his glass to me, and I returned the gesture. We both drank before tucking into the perfectly seasoned food.

  “How has your day been, Astrid?” The intensity of his gaze belied his casual tone.

  “It has been… interesting,” I said, non-committal.

  “I hear you were upset.”

  Pushing the vegetables around my plate with my fork, I pondered whether to be truthful about what had driven me out in a state of panic.

  “Are you having… difficulties?”

  His words and the tension in his voice made me realize he feared I was already failing.

  “No, Eric. I’m not feeling any compulsion to break my oath.”

  And I truly didn’t. Aside from a mild curiosity, I didn’t have the slightest urge to approach the Sealed Door. Eric’s eyes flicked between mine, assessing the truthfulness of my words. I held his gaze without flinching. After a moment, he blinked and the tension seemed to bleed out of him.

  “Good, good… So why did you run away?”

  “I saw my name in the gallery.”

  The silence that settled between us was thick and uneasy. With an unreadable expression on his face, Eric drained his glass of wine, and then refilled it from the jug.

  “It is only a name, Astrid.”

  “One of many,” I said. He frowned at my words. “But rest assured, Eric, I intend for it to be the last.”

  A strange expression crossed his face. “Nothing would please me more, Astrid. Remain steadfast in your promise, and so it shall be.”

  I nodded. We continued eating quietly for a while. Breaking the silence, I told him about the abandoned greenhouse. To my surprise, he didn’t object when I asked to restore it.

  “Ask Tormund for anything you want done. He will have the servants perform the work to your specifications.”

  “Actually, I would rather do it myself,” I said. “The only help I need is for someone to replace the rusty door and clear the overgrown path leading to it.”

  His raised eyebrow told me he was taken aback by my answer. “As you wish.” Pushing his plate back, he reclined in his chair. “Will you play the harp again for me tonight?”

  My face heated with pleasure. “Of course, Eric. I would be delighted.”

  * * *

  Morning found Eric in an even stranger mood than last night. At his request, I had played the harp for nearly two hours. His eyes never left me, as if he was trying to memorize my features. It had been… uncanny. When he finally seemed satisfied, he carried me to our room and made love to me with an intensity that bordered on desperation. It went on for hours. While it had been amazing, I couldn’t deny the soreness I now felt.

  Unable to withstand the uneasiness any longer, I confronted him. “What’s wrong, Eric? You’re acting strange.”

  “I have to go away for a while,” he said, his voice impassive.

  “Oh… When will you leave? And how long will you be gone?”

  “Within the hour. I will be gone a fortnight.”

  That hit me in the gut. I clutched my chest in shock. My distress was due to far more than losing my only real companion. There was no question I would miss him. But with Eric gone, I would be completely alone in the castle every night for the next two weeks. I shook my head in denial.

  “You can’t leave me all by myself. Take me with you.”

  He clenched his jaw and his eyes hardened. “I can’t take you.”

  “Why not? I will make myself scarce. You won’t even notice I’m there.”

  “No, Astrid. I cannot take you because you cannot leave the castle’s grounds. Not until the year is up.”

  I backed away from him, wrapping my arms around my midsection. “What are you saying? Am I a prisoner?”

  “In a manner of speaking, I guess you are,” he said. As if unable to withstand my disbelieving stare, Eric turned away from me and stood by the fireplace. Looking into the dying embers, he said, “The medallion cannot leave the castle’s grounds without dire consequences. And you cannot part with it without incurring dreadful repercussions.”

  Eric faced me, his expression a mixture of sadness and guilt. “The property is vast. You won’t feel confined. If ever the medallion pulses red, you must return to the castle.”

  “But I will be completely alone, Eric! What if something happens to me during the night?”

  Eric emitted a growling sound, like an enraged beast. He marched up to me and held my head in an iron grip. “Nothing will happen to you, do you hear me?” he said through gritted teeth. “Nothing… You will lock yourself in our room every night and go to sleep. Nothing and no one can get inside the castle without a guard catching them. You’re safe. Be true to your word and all will be well. It’s only a few days and I will return to you.”

  I put my hands on his muscular chest. My eyes flicked between his, searching. “But can’t someone come stay with me in your absence? I don’t want to be alone in the castle. I’m scared.”

  He shook his head again, and my heart sank even deeper. “You can have guests during the day, but they must be gone by nightfall. For their sake and yours.”

  There was a sharp knock on our bedroom door. Eric sighed and rested his forehead on mine. “It’s only a few days, Astrid. Be true, and I will return to you. Be strong.”

  I wanted to argue but he crushed my lips in a passionate kiss before walking out. Running after him, I shouted his name outside our bedroom door. He didn’t turn back and kept on walking with Tormund shadowing him.

  Resting my forehead on the doorframe, I wept.

  * * *

  Even with the servants buzzing about during the day, I couldn’t stand to stay within the castle. I devoted every waking moment to restoring the greenhouse, and dreaded the oppressing silence that awaited me come nightfall. The first three nights were the worst, despite Tormund’s best efforts to reassure me. In the evening, he had the servants light every candle, chandelier and candelabra along any area of the castle I might cross or enter during the night. They would continue to burn until the servants put them out in the morning. It was a huge waste and I felt guilty for squandering resources like that, but there was no way I would dwell within the deserted castle with oppressing shadows closing in around me.

  I locked the door to my room and wedged a chair under the handle. Lying in bed, my own mind became my worst enemy. It conjured fantastical monsters lurking outside my door, transformed the faintest sound into demonic whispers, and every object or shadow into hellish beasts on a mission to steal my soul.

  The crackling sound of a burning log crumbling in the fireplace awoke me with a start. Realizing I had somehow managed to doze off, my eyes darted to the door to ensure the chair was still safely wedged there. It was. The dim light provided by the fireplace allowed me to somewhat make out the shape of some of the decorative items on the dresser across from the bed. One looked like a human head facing me. The more I stared at it, the more defined it became. I knew it was just my imagination playing tricks on me, but the pounding of my heart wouldn’t let the matter rest. Getting out of bed – my eyes never leaving the ‘head’ – I grabbed the candleholder on my nightstand and warily approached the object of my fears. It was an ornate vase. Feeling like an idiot, I returned to bed.

  Moments later, despite knowing it was just a vase, my eyes kept flicking back to it. With an aggravated groan, I got back up, grabbed the vase and hid it in the closet. On my way back to bed, I paused, picked up a chair and wedged it under the closet door. Sleep didn’t come quickly after that, but I felt better. I would need to put the vase back in its place in the morning though, to avoid any awkward explanation to
the servants.

  The next two nights were a repeat of the first. The fourth night though, the strangest thing happened. I woke up to find a beautiful woman with long raven hair sitting on the couch in front of the fireplace. How she had gotten inside my bedroom with the chair still wedged under the door handle was a mystery. Her presence should have scared me, but for some reason it didn’t. I sat up in my bed, my eyes never leaving the intruder.

  “Ah, you’re finally awake,” the woman said.

  “Who are you, and what are you doing in my room?”

  “My name is Traxia, and I’m a friend.”

  Traxia wore a servant’s uniform, but I didn’t recall ever seeing such a beauty among the staff. I pulled down the blankets and sat at the edge of the bed.

  “What do you want?” I asked, tension seeping into my voice. “You shouldn’t be here after nightfall. It isn’t safe.”

  “You’re right, your Highness, but this was my only chance to speak to you away from prying eyes and ears,” Traxia said. “I have a proposal for you that could be highly beneficial to both of us.”

  I immediately became suspicious. “What kind of proposal?”

  “I know where to find some of the lost treasures from the merchant and trade ships that sank during the years the kraken threatened our shores,” Traxia said, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “Together, we could retrieve it and split the bounty. There’s a fortune to be had.”

  “Why would you tell me this? If there’s such wealth lying about, why not keep it to yourself?” I didn’t try to hide the skepticism in my tone.

  “Your wariness is both wise and understandable, your Highness,” Traxia said in a conciliatory tone. “I would no doubt react the same. The reason I confide this to you is because the only way to access it is through the dungeons. The guards will become suspicious if I go there by myself during the day and I’m not supposed to be in the castle at night.”

  “You could have told King Eric about this and claim finder’s reward,” I said, still feeling uneasy about the woman.

  Traxia snorted. “Finder’s fee would put food on the table for a few months at best. The full treasure will have my family set in a life of luxury for generations.”

  She rose from the couch and took a couple of steps toward me. I tensed and stood up from the bed to be in a less vulnerable position.

  “With your share, your family would never have to worry about their finances anymore. Your bride token only kept your father and sister from becoming destitute. But still, your sister needs to accept the first decent proposal she gets or end up living hand-to-mouth within the next few years.”

  Her assessment was right. I didn’t know the amount of the bride token, but that money would need to be spent sparingly until my sister Kara found herself a good husband. It was a tempting offer, but something about Traxia rubbed me the wrong way.

  “How did you get past the guards? No one is allowed into the castle after sunset.”

  She gave me a blank stare. “I hid inside the castle when everyone left. But…”

  I pointed at the chair still jamming the handle. “How did you get inside my room with the door blocked?”

  “What does it matter?” Traxia snapped. “We need to go get that treasure. I won’t have another chance to do this. So can we…”

  “No. We can’t. I want you out of my room this instant.” I walked toward the cord to ring the bell which would summon the guards.

  “You stupid cow,” Traxia snarled before launching herself at me.

  I took a step back and raised my hands in protection. In my haste, I tripped and felt myself falling. My scream startled me awake. Heart pounding, it took me a while to realize it had only been a dream. I didn’t sleep for the rest of the night.

  That morning, I was beyond exhausted and ended up sleeping half the day. It was early afternoon when I finally got up. After a quick breakfast-lunch, I headed to the greenhouse, berating myself the whole way there. My irrational fears were driving me insane and it was time to put an end to it. Three nights and nothing had happened other than keeping myself up in a frenzied state. I vowed to chase any silly thoughts from my mind. Failing that, I would busy myself reading or embroidering rather than succumbing to wild imaginings.

  The workers assigned to the greenhouse by Tormund had done a wonderful job of clearing the path and overgrowth. The rusty door had been replaced by a shiny new one and the glass walls and ceiling were gleaming. Brand new pots and gardening tools lay atop the workbench. I was eager to discover what plants would sprout from the seeds in the sealed containers. I grabbed some fresh dirt from the cart outside and went to work.

  An hour into it, I turned to take the trowel from the workbench. My attention was drawn to the locked drawer when the reflection of the sun glimmered on its golden handle. Curious as to what it might contain, I used my jeweled hairpin in the keyhole to force it open. I was about to give up when a sharp clicking sound indicated my success. Shrieking with delight, I carefully pulled the drawer open. It creaked and squeaked, the wood having swelled from humidity and disuse. Inside lay the most unexpected treasure.

  A golden locket hung at the end of a long, delicate gold chain. On one face of the locket, a mermaid with wavy hair and a crown curled her tail around a circular gem oddly similar to the one on my nautilus medallion. On the other face, there was a long-maned rearing horse with a fishtail. The fins of its tail constituted the locket’s clasp. The mermaid and seahorse were clearly the same from the broken fountain. Frowning, I opened the locket and my breath caught in my throat. Inside, there were two miniature portraits. A beautiful woman with silver eyes, midnight blue hair, and a crown of corals and precious gems was smiling from one side. On the other side, a man bearing an uncanny resemblance to Eric, except for his dark blond hair and blue eyes, stared back at me.

  They weren’t Eric’s parents. His father, the late King Brandt Thorsen, had been brown-haired and blue-eyed. When his blond-haired and also blue-eyed mother, Queen Dagmar, had given birth to Eric, many had questioned her faithfulness to her husband. Despite his unusual hair and eye coloring, Eric’s likeness to King Brandt as he grew up soon quelled any doubt about his legitimacy.

  His parents died eighteen years ago when their ship was attacked and sunk by a kraken. It was the first time since a Thorsen had ascended the throne, nearly eighty years ago, that the seas had turned against us. In the four years following their deaths, the creature terrorized the fledgling kingdom of Rathlin Islands and nearly brought us to our knees. At age nineteen, Eric had sailed off to face the beast. Many good men died that day, but Eric returned triumphant… and cursed. It was unclear who cast the curse on him. Some say it was a sea witch who had considered the kraken her pet. We only knew that from that day forward, Eric had to be married and his wife had one year to break the curse or die trying. Should he remain unwed for more than ninety days, the kraken would rise again.

  And so, for the last fourteen years, he had watched wife after wife fail. Closing the locket, I resumed the long walk back to the castle, and vowed to myself that I would succeed.

  CHAPTER 5

  Eric

  The last two weeks were pure hell. I learned years ago that leaving my young bride by herself so early after our hand fasting would likely result in tragedy. But I was the King of Rathlin Islands and couldn’t shirk my diplomatic responsibilities, even for my bride. My Astrid…

  I was starting to care for her more than it was wise to. The way I had left her a fortnight ago was shameful. To be honest, I had delayed informing her of my departure to grant her one last peaceful night… not that I actually allowed her to sleep. I should have delivered the news more gently, given her the chance to absorb and accept it. Instead, I had fled like a coward. Her distress had been unbearable, especially knowing it couldn’t be helped.

  Not for the first time, I wondered if I should have explained to her the nature of the evil that lurked beyond the Sealed Door. However, I had tried that before with
a few of my previous brides, with catastrophic results. Some had shunned me once they found out about my true nature, and fought the losing battle alone. Others, once they understood the threat, saw it everywhere, even where it wasn’t. And when they didn’t, they sought it out, making themselves more vulnerable to its lure. Astrid was different from my previous brides; more perceptive, more focused and incredibly strong beneath her gentle demeanor. Maybe she could handle the truth, but I didn’t dare risk it.

  Since my departure, every day, every hour, every minute, my eyes stared at the ring on my finger, dreading the moment its gem would announce Astrid’s failure. But the iridescent gem thankfully retained its whitish glow. After the first week passed, I began to hope. On the thirteenth night, I stood vigil on the bridge as we sailed home on an oily sea, made darker by the moonless sky. We made good time and would be home one day early. It was only when the first rays of the rising sun burned in the horizon that I finally believed I wouldn’t lose her – at least not yet.

  The fierceness of my happiness left me perplexed. Obviously, I didn’t want to be widowed once more… or ever again for that matter. But it was the thought of keeping Astrid specifically that made my heart soar. The strength of my attraction to her, the ravenous hunger she stirred within me were unexpected. She didn’t exactly fit my usual type. I liked my women strikingly beautiful, tall, lean, and fair of hair and skin, sophisticated, bold and fierce. Strangely, Hilda fit that profile perfectly yet I couldn’t stand her or the thought of touching her. While Astrid wasn’t short, I towered over her by a full head. She wasn’t a beauty but her features were attractive. My new bride was deliciously plump, with silky, golden skin, luscious lips, full breasts and the most perfect ass. Just thinking of her had blood rushing to my groin.