“My days have been scheduled tight for this year, Miss Wood but next year, perhaps even as early as July, I could take a few months off for a sea journey to the Peninsula.”
The offer left much to be desired. It was past the time she had allowed herself to break her curse, and she could not fight for Mark’s affections until she was free of it.
Now that she was here, in Daniel Trenton’s presence, she realized that his new wife would not want him leaving so soon after they had begun their life together.
Daniel could not help her. She should go home. If she stayed any longer, she might burst into tears and embarrass them both.
“Miss Wood, I am terribly sorry to have disappointed you,” he said. “I owe you my happiness and this seems a dashed, deplorable way to repay that debt.”
“You owe me nothing, sir,” Nevara said. “Seeing you and Lady Faith so content is all the reward I need for any small part I played in bringing you two together.”
“All I wish is for you to experience the same bliss I have chanced upon.”
“I know, sir.”
He looked at her closely. “There is something else happening here. I see it in your eyes.”
She avoided his gaze, lest he spot her despair. “Do you recall the man I mentioned, the one who did not want me?”
“The daft idiot who let you go?” He snapped his fingers and they burst into flames. “Want me to set him on fire?”
“No!” His fingers were not only ablaze, but to her sight, full of sparkling lights, giving his hand a halo effect. “I met him again today. He asked me to accompany him to a play. Tonight.”
“Ah,” Morton shook his hand until the flames extinguished. So did the sparkles that overlaid the flames, vanishing like mist. “So, he has finally come to his senses. Good.”
“The problem is not with him, sir. It was ever with me.”
“I do not understand. You are perfection. There is nothing in you with which the bounder could possibly find fault.”
She chuckled. If that were only true. “He knows of my talent. My aunt told him once. And he disapproves.”
“Then he is many times a fool,” he said, but his face settled into lines of sadness.
Of all the alliance members, this man alone understood her predicament best. He too had believed he was once unloved by his family because he was a fire shifter. Even if, in the end, it had proven to be a false assumption, that sense of unworthiness was hard to shake.
“This is why it is so important to break my curse.”
“Miss Wood . . .”
“You are going to say that our talent is not a curse, as Lady Roselyn tells me. But for me, it feels as if it is.”
“What can I do to help?” he asked. “Other than to escort you to Spain?”
“Could you fund my travels?”
“I cannot permit you to go on your own. It is too unsafe.”
“I can take Hannah,” she said.
“You need a man’s escort. An alliance member. And I trust that role only to myself or Sir Phillip. I am sorry, Miss Wood, but in this one matter, you must give way. And I say this next bit with deepest sincerity. If this man cannot accept you as you are, then I put to you that he does not deserve you.”
Nevara’s shoulders dropped and she stood. “I understand.”
He rose with her and reclaimed her hands. “I cannot accompany you to Spain, but I can escort you home.”
She shook off his hold. “Thank you, but that is unnecessary. I walked here and will depart the same way.”
He immediately gave her a sound trimming, calling her “queer in the attic” to have done such a foolish thing.
Nevara, no longer in the least sympathetic toward Daniel Trenton, or Morton, or whatever his name was now, curtly declined his offer to have his carriage brought ‘round. “Walking will allow me time to ponder my fate.”
He had the grace to blush, but then he insisted that if she would not travel with him, at least one of his maids must accompany her home. As he went to make arrangements, Phoenix trailed after him like a love-struck puppy.
Nevara did not remind him that now he was a duke, he could summon a servant instead of physically hunting one down. Instead, not wanting company, she slipped out the door and set off toward Mayfair.
She was already late for her appointment with Mark. But, thinking on the matter, she decided she did not want one night with him—she wanted a lifetime. She wanted to have his children. If she could not have any of that, she would settle for nothing. Spending one evening in his company would merely make her loneliness that much harder to bear.
The sun was low on the horizon and clouds threatened rain. She should hurry before she became soaked. Sir Phillip disliked alliance members being out alone on London streets, especially after dark. Yet, she was not ready to face her friends yet.
Several hours later, she realized her leaden steps had brought her to Lord and Lady Terrance’s townhouse, in the heart of Mayfair. She stared at their black front door in confusion, wondering why she had stopped here. Then she recalled Sir Phillip saying his cousin was planning to travel to Europe. Did Sir Phillip intend to ask if Lord Terrance could take her along? It was a good idea. The only one she had left. Obeying a tempting urge, she knocked.
A butler answered.
She stared at him in silence, not knowing what to say. Even if she did, her throat had tightened so much from tension, only a croak was likely to make its way out.
The butler cleared his throat. Nevara panicked. Of course someone as high up the social ladder as the earl and his countess would not waste their time with a lowly librarian. Her confidence fled, and she said, “Never mind, sir.”
She retreated to the pavement.
Behind her, the door opened wider and Lady Terrance appeared with a giant dog at her side. The animal took one look at Nevara and raced toward her, barking.
Nevara screamed.
“Earnest, down!” At Lady Terrance’s order, the animal skidded to a halt, barely a pace from his victim’s skirt.
Nevara sent the beast a terrified look, then gave the same to Lady Terrance. For a petite young woman, she had a commanding tone.
“Miss Nevara Wood, is it not?” Lady Terrance approached, her violet eyes smiling a warm welcome. She scratched her pet behind the ear. “Do not let Earnest frighten you. He is as gentle as a lamb.” She indicated the open door. “We have been expecting you.”
Earnest circled his mistress to sniff at Nevara’s fingers. His wet nose tickled.
“He is an Irish wolfhound,” Lady Terrance said as she drew Nevara inside her home. They crossed a large foyer and entered a drawing room. “He belongs to my husband.”
“Do not let her fool you,” Lord Terrance said from beside the fireplace. “The dog is her devoted slave, as am I.” He bowed, looking as dangerous as his hound.
Nevara curtsied. “Good evening, my lord. I am sorry to bother you so late.” Then she recalled what Lady Terrance had said about expecting her. “Your ladyship, you knew I would come today? How? I did not know it myself until I arrived here.”
Her hostess’s smile was mysterious. “I have an advantage, Nevara -may I address you as that?”
Speechless, Nevara gave a hesitant nod.
“I have a special ability that aids me in such matters, although not always reliably. However, this time I knew we were meant to stay in London a little longer. That we would be needed.” She gave her husband a fond look. “Rufus may not understand my intuition, but he has come to believe in it. And when I told him we would have a visitor tonight, instead of going to his club, he stayed to await your arrival.”
Nevara listened in wonder. Could this lady help her? What harm could there be in asking? “Lady Terrance—”—
“Call me Belle. I believe we
are to become fast friends, Nevara, so let us begin as we mean to go on.”
It would be awkward addressing the countess so familiarly. She was a servant and this was the wife of a peer. Nevara tried anyway. She was desperate. “Belle, I wish to go to Spain.”
“Why?” Lord Terrance asked and indicated the ladies should sit.
He looked so formidable. She felt her throat contract again as she complied.
“Do not be frightened of my husband,” Belle said with a laugh, lounging beside Nevara. “He is as biddable as Earnest.”
The dog barked. Sprawled under the center table, the wolfhound watched Nevara as intently as his master did.
“I hardly frighten her, Belle. Do I, Miss Wood?”
“No, my lord.” Her voice broke, betraying the lie.
He sighed, and then smiled. His stern features softened, changing him into a very handsome and appealing man. There was no magic involved, but it was a miraculous transformation nevertheless. She consciously relaxed her tense shoulders and sat back.
“See, he is not an ogre. Now, how may we be of help?”
Nevara took a breath to steady her nerves, for anything she revealed could have terrible repercussions. Fear of discovery was an ever-present terror to any alliance member, and she had already betrayed them once, albeit inadvertently, when she made a list of the alliance members and their talents. It was a mistake she had sworn never to repeat.
Yet, she could not bring herself to impose on these kind people without first being completely honest about why it was so important that she reach Spain. “Has Sir Phillip ever mentioned the Rue Alliance, my lord?”
“No,” Lord Terrance said, “what is this ‘alliance?’”
This would be a betrayal then. She prayed this breaking of confidence would not come back to haunt her.
Lord Terrance moved closer and sat in a chair opposite her and Belle. He leaned back, crossed his ankles, and waited for her to speak.
In for a penny . . . Nevara began her plea with an explanation of the alliance members’ abilities to shape shift.
Belle gasped, and Lord Terrance sat forward with interest.
Nevara quivered as she spoke. Her audience listened avidly. In the midst of her story, a servant came to light the candles. Lord Terrance dismissed the maid, nodding at Nevara to continue.
She mentioned Daniel then, talking about his unusual ability to shift into flames and, more importantly, how she had noticed on one of his family portraits that his father displayed a crest that included an image of a heavy lidded dark eye. It had been the same image she had found this very morning in a book about Seville, confirming that this region of Spain might hold the secret of the alliance’s origins.
The sun had set by the time she finished. They sat in silence in a room lit only by the fire from the hearth. The burning coal gave off a comforting fragrance while Earnest’s loud snores reverberated through the room.
Nevara trailed her hand along the Grecian sofa’s back. “Like the other alliance members, I, too, am a shape shifter, but with me, there is something more sinister. I see things that are not meant to be seen by the human eye.”
“My dear Nevara . . .” Belle said.
Nevara held up her hand. “Not as you do, my lady. Not premonitions or apparitions. I see colors and shapes and lines that are not there. Most people appear normal, as Lord Terrance does. But others—” She stopped and looked at Belle, trying not to cringe from the lights glowing around the lady.”—appear tainted to my sight. I have spent my life blocking these visions. My aunt tried to help me. She believed I needed to be distracted with prayer and pain. However, since her death, I have been unsuccessful in containing them.”
Nevara paused and then said in a rush, “Lady Roselyn is with child, did you know that?”
Belle nodded her head. “Yes, Phillip mentioned the blessed news to Rufus. I had planned to call on Rose on the morrow to congratulate her.”
“I, too, wish her well,” Nevara said. “I want her to give birth to a normal child. I wish to find out what caused this alliance nightmare, what made us all so strange. My aunt said it was the result of a mark placed on our family by the devil.”
“That is utter nonsense,” Belle said.
“What is it you want of us?” Lord Terrance asked.
“I need to travel to Spain, my lord. I believe all our troubles began there. I wish to locate this spot, this mark my aunt spoke of. I promise, if you help me, I will be at your service and will spend the rest of my life paying you back. You have my word.”
“Would Phillip approve of this plan?” he asked.
Nevara bent her head. “I do not know, my lord.”
“I think you do. Or you would have asked him.”
A blush warmed her cheeks as she glanced into his lordship’s stern face. “He would not willingly share the alliance’s secrets, my lord. Else he would have already told you about us.”
“But you have done so?”
She nodded. “To the others, knowing the source of our shifting is mere curiosity.”
“And to you?” Belle asked.
“To me, it is much more.”
Lord Terrance leaned forward. “How so?”
Nevara wanted to be completely honest but felt unsure of their reaction if she revealed her true intention.
“The whole story,” Belle said. “We must know everything.”
Nevara’s hands shook. Around the shadowed room, the furniture, which earlier appeared handsome and inviting, was now dark and foreboding. She took a deep breath and whispered, “My aunt said that I was evil.”
“Oh, no,” Belle said.
“There is truth in her words. She said my blood was tainted and I should never marry or have children. For if I did, I would pass on the curse. That is my destiny.”
If her curse could not be broken, the only acceptable recourse was for her family line to end with her, as her aunt had advised. So, no children, ever, and no Mark, either.
Gazing directly at Lord Terrance, she then admitted her true intentions. “I wish to go to Spain not merely to discover the source of our shape shifting abilities, my lord, but to end it once and for all. If this mark is a real thing, perhaps I can eradicate it. Or bless it. Do something to break the curse placed on all of us.”
Lord Terrance raised his eyebrow. She had surprised, but not shocked him. He understood. She glanced at Belle and wished she had not. Her ladyship’s gaze was filled with compassion, but not understanding. Nevara knew immediately that Belle would never agree to what Nevara had proposed. Unlike Nevara, Belle valued her unnatural ability.
“Do you think denying them their shape shifting abilities will be as welcome to the other alliance members as it is to yourself?” Lord Terrance asked, no doubt echoing his wife’s thoughts.
Nevara returned his serious look. “I know Mrs. Weatheringham’s granddaughter, Hope, would be pleased, my lord. She is terrified her touch will harm another. She has nightmares almost every night. Sir Phillip would still love Lady Roselyn no matter what. As for the rest, they live secret lives, afraid of exposure. My solution would free them of fear.”
She thought of Mark. “We could all marry without passing on the curse. Have normal children. Is that not a worthy cause? Please, I need your help. Will you lend me the funds to travel?”
Belle reached for her hands but Nevara held back. She did not want to be let down gently. “Please, my lady, do not say no.”
“My dear Nevara,” Belle raised a hand to gently touch Nevara’s cheek.
At her touch, a dissonance of harsh colored lights exploded inside Nevara’s head. Something reached through her toward Belle. Jerking back, Nevara shouted a warning. Belle screamed.
Nevara cringed from that tunnel of evil that stretched through her to hurt Belle. It polluted N
evara and in desperation, she slammed a gate across the darkness to clamp it inside herself. The evil spread within her and was met with a flash of light so bright, it blinded Nevara. Her head pounded as never before and dizziness swooped in. She slid sideways and the floor rushed to meet her.
Nevara awoke slowly, her mind filled with the waves of light and dark that had burst within her at Belle’s touch. The inside of her cheek was sore and she tasted blood. She must have bitten herself in her fright. Her temple too, throbbed, the definite after-effects of one of her visions. Darkness still lingered in the edges of her senses, as if waiting for her defenses to falter.
The drawing room door swung open, letting in a cool breeze. The next time she blinked, Lord Terrance knelt by her side and waved a vial by her face. The astringent waft of vinegar brought her completely awake. She pushed it away and scrambled to sit up. His lordship looked displeased.
“Lady Terrance,” Nevara said, remembering Belle’s scream. “Is she well?”
He sat beside her. “My wife rests. She wanted to speak to you, but I insisted that she leave that to me.”
Nevara nodded. “One of my headaches, you see, came on suddenly. I am sorry if I alarmed her, my lord.”
“You did not frighten Belle. When she touched you, it triggered one of Belle’s visions.”
“It did?”
“She sensed the presence of evil. It reached for her.”
Nevara jumped to her feet and then held onto a nearby chair’s back to steady herself. “This was my fault!”
Lord Terrance stood, too, placing a hand on her elbow to steady her. “I know little of these—” He drew a circle in the air above his head. “—other worldly activities. But Belle insists you are not the cause.” He smiled grimly. “She said you would blame yourself. She insists this evil is in Spain and it seeks you.”
Nevara touched her chest, where her heart thumped wildly.
“Danger awaits you on the Peninsula, Miss Wood. So we will not help you with this precarious quest.” He took her hands and squeezed them, compassion in his gaze, “My advice is that you accept yourself for who you are, as my wife does. Forget Spain.”
A Perfect Curse Page 5