by Juniper Hart
“What did you do to him?” Nora cried, her heart thumping furiously. “Where is he?”
“He won’t be screwing anyone else’s wife again, that’s for certain,” Jerome chuckled, and Nora’s fear fell away to rage. She bolted up against her ties.
“I am not your wife!” she spat. “You are pathetic! No one would marry you if given the choice. You are a sadist and a sociopath!”
From where she sat, Nora saw Jerome’s jaw tense.
“You had no complaints for a decade,” he snarled. Nora gazed at him in disbelief.
Does he really believe I was happy all that time? Or is he trying to make himself believe that?
“You’re insane, you know that?” She laughed, though there was no mirth in her tone. “You can kill me if you want, but you’re never going to find anyone to love you! That won’t change, no matter how many of us you kidnap and kill!”
Suddenly, Jerome slammed on the brakes, the car sliding forward on a patch of ice before it stopped in the shoulder. He leapt from the car, and Nora was once more consumed with terror as he dragged her from the backseat, pushing her over the guardrail and into the snow-covered field beyond. Despite still being in her nightgown, Nora did not feel any cold.
So this is how I die, she thought, a strange calm falling over as she was dragged through the snow. Half insane and at the hands of the captor I was forced to learn to love. I’m so sorry, Marc… I’m so sorry, Adrienne…
The loss of the two people she had barely known was a blow to her gut, but not nearly as bad as realizing she would never see Ansel again.
I am so sorry, Ansel.
Jerome stopped and dropped her against a pine tree, reaching into his pocket to pull out a garrote. Nora closed her eyes and waited.
“Useless bitch,” Jerome spat. “I am not surprised your boyfriend married that other woman. He made the right choice.”
His words made something snap inside of Nora. At first, it was only a deep feeling of déjà vu, but she soon realized it only felt that way because she had heard similar words before. Her eyes flew open, and she turned her head to stare at Jerome as a small smile of disbelief formed on her lips.
“Is that amusing?” Jerome taunted her. “I’m glad you think so.”
She shook her head. “No. No, it is not that.”
“Oh?” he questioned. “What is it, then?”
Nora exhaled sharply. For the first time in probably the last decade, she knew deep in her bones that everything was going to be fine.
“I remember everything now.”
Jerome smiled cruelly.
“It is a shame that it will not benefit you in the least,” he retorted as he approached her, wrapping the garrote around his fists. His cruel smile turned into shock when Nora jumped easily to her feet, her grin widening. “Are you eager to die, chérie?” he asked, but the cloud of uncertainty in his eyes was clear as he paused just out of her reach.
Nora relished his fear. He deserved to be afraid for once. She felt her head begin to elongate, her dark eyes turning into amber pits of fire.
“What the…?” Jerome gasped, slowly stepping back from her.
Nora ran her slithering tongue along her gleaming teeth, allowing a short burst of steam to emanate from her nose.
“If I were you, mon amour,” she growled, “I would run.”
15
“Do you know what father would do to me if he knew we were talking?”
“He said I was not allowed to speak to you for a decade,” Ansel growled, “which is exactly what I’ve done. And I wouldn’t be calling you now if it wasn’t important.”
Titus snickered. “I don’t know what you think I can do for you. What you need is a good lawyer, not a—”
“This has nothing to do with that,” Ansel interrupted, looking around to see if he was being overheard. It didn’t matter if he wasn’t. He knew the call was being recorded. “I need to see you.”
“Oh Ansel,” his brother sighed. “I can’t help you.”
“You can,” he snapped, “and I need you to come immediately.”
“Call someone else. I have meetings—”
“Titus, this is not about me,” Ansel insisted. “It is about Nora. I need you to come at once. Please, do not make me beg.” Silence followed his plea, and Ansel heard his brother inhale sharply.
“I don’t know…”
“I would do it for Bella, and you know it,” Ansel reminded him. “I am being held at Scotland Yard. Just… please come now.” He replaced the receiver and fell back against the brick wall, his heart thudding nervously.
Fly! he cried out to his brother. Please hurry, Titus, there isn’t much time!
“Come along, mate,” Andy said, leading him away from the payphone. “You can wait in the cell until your visitor arrives.”
Ansel nodded curtly and followed him back toward his holding. He was doing everything in his power to keep from springing through the ceiling and flying to Nora. Her message had come through perfectly, and for the first time, it was clear to him that Nora had lost her powers somehow. He didn’t know what had happened—what he did know was that she was scared.
I should have gone to her before, he chided himself. I knew it from the minute she reached me that something was off, and I waited too long to look for her.
He couldn’t blow his own cover. He couldn’t reveal his true form and endanger not only himself, but everyone he cared about. Titus was his last hope. Of course, if his father was angry before, revealing his secret would enrage him, but Ansel was running out of options.
In a few hours, he would be on a plane back to the United States, and who knew where Nora would be.
The door closed behind him, and Ansel gritted his teeth as he began to pace the small space, nervously wringing his hands.
Andy stared at him warily from the corridor.
“Mr. Williams?” he said, almost anxiously. “Your…visitor is here.”
Ansel exhaled in relief. His brother had come for him, after all.
“The resemblance is uncanny,” Andy mumbled, but Ansel did not reply. That was exactly what he was counting on.
Andy led him toward the meeting room, and Ansel hurried to meet Titus.
“You must switch with me,” he said quietly. “I must go.”
Titus’ eyes widened in shock, and he rose to back away. “What, no! I should have known that is why you called me over anyone else.”
“You must do this now. I will return, I swear it!”
“No, Ansel, please!” Titus argued. “There must be another way. I will go to her—”
“It’s too late for anyone else but me to go,” Ansel told his brother. “And you would never permit such a thing if it was Bella in danger. You must cover for me, please!”
“Ansel, I cannot! I have—”
“Guard!” Ansel called, and the constable hurried forward. “Andy, right?” he asked. He knew what his name was, but Titus didn’t, and if this plan was going to work, Titus needed to know everything Ansel did. “I’m done talking to my twin brother. You can take Ansel away now.”
Andy stood, looking from man to man, as if waiting for one of them to crack a smile.
“I have to go,” Ansel said, brushing past Andy, who raised an arm to stop him. He then reached for his baton, but Ansel was already bolting through the halls, Andy’s voice echoing around him as the guard yelled after him to stop.
Ansel built up momentum as he burst through the doors, whirling through the courtyard and around the side of the building. For once he didn’t bother to see if anyone was watching, and he transitioned into his dragon form, his green body flying into the air as he desperately called out to Nora.
She didn’t respond immediately, and fear like Ansel had never known before clutched his chest. What could have happened to her that she had forgotten who she was? He didn’t waste time questioning her plight. He only knew that he needed to find her, and he had to do it quickly.
Flying southeast t
oward Switzerland, he whipped through the thick clouds of the United Kingdom and coasted across the North Sea, into France.
Ansel could not remember a time he had ever flown so fast and without regard for the beauty of all below him. He just had to make it to Lucerne. From there, he hoped that his instinct would guide him toward his long-lost lover, and he closed his luminous yellow eyes, crying out for her to answer.
I am coming, Nora, my love! Tell me where to find you!
He breached the Swiss border and lowered his massive frame across the alp, honing his sixth sense. Lucerne became clear, the city aglow with quaint lights as he swooped lower and eyed the countryside. Where was he going to find her? Where would he even begin to look for her? He circled lower, his eyes taking in everything at once. He flew away from the town, and as soon as he had left it behind, he felt a familiar jab in his soul.
She is nearby, he realized. She’s near! I can sense her!
But Ansel could sense more than just her presence—her fury was almost searing, and he allowed it to lead him toward her.
Soon, he saw her purple figure levitating over a field of white snow, her tail flicking dangerously from side to side. The closer Ansel got to her, the more he could see a figure cowering before her.
“I’m sorry!” the figure wailed in French. “I won’t do it again!”
If possible, Ansel felt Nora’s ire escalate, and she unleashed a wave of fire around her prey, burning through the snow. Once Ansel landed at her side, he noticed the figure was a man on his hands and knees, tears pouring from his eyes. The stranger’s face went translucent as he saw Ansel, and he fell to the ground.
“How many of you are there?” the man gasped, horrified. “I am hallucinating! Kill me now, Nora! I want to die!”
Nora turned her majestic head to Ansel and blinked at him.
You came! she cried, her eyes widening. You came for me!
Of course I did! Ansel replied. Who is this man? What has he done?
Nora shook her head slightly and released another spark of flame.
“Where is Adrienne?” she growled, her voice ethereal and terrifying to the man before her. “Where is that farm?” She was speaking in French, just like the man was.
“You can have her!” the man screamed. “I swear it, you can have her!”
“You’re going to guide me to her, Jerome,” Nora said. “Climb on my back and take me to her.” The man only gaped at her.
“Do it!” Ansel roared. He did not know the details of what had happened between them, but anyone who inspired that amount of rage in his gentle, kind-spirited Nora was no friend of his.
Jerome tried to rise unsteadily to his feet, but he was taking too long for Ansel’s liking. He reached forward to snatch the Frenchman by the nape of his neck, razor sharp teeth sinking into the fabric of his collar. He dropped Jerome unceremoniously onto Nora’s back, and together, they thrust themselves skyward.
“Direct me,” Nora snarled. “If you lead me anywhere but where I need to go, I will toss you from the stratosphere.”
“It is just down Libellenrain, near Rotsee,” Jerome mumbled through clattering teeth.
“You say that as if it means something to me,” Nora hissed. “Guide us.”
“That way!” he cried, pointing. Ansel eyed the man, trying to imagine who he was and what he had done for Nora to reveal herself before him. “A right at the water, Nora.”
Who is this man? Ansel called out to Nora, but she did not seem to hear his question as they made their way toward a lone farmhouse on a lake.
“Here, Nora!” Jerome instructed. “It is here, and she is fine, you will see!”
“As fine as I was when you held me in a similar place?” Nora snarled, landing on the lawn and tossing him from her scaly lilac body.
“What did he do?” Ansel asked aloud, his yellow eyes becoming slits as he advanced toward Jerome.
No! Nora called to him. Change back. There is a girl being held captive inside. She is already scared enough, we do not need to add to it.
Ansel snarled and gnashed his teeth, but Nora nudged him gently, her giant frame falling away to the girl he had fallen in love with hundreds of years ago.
“Come on,” she insisted. “I don’t know how much time she has left.”
“You stay,” Ansel hissed, and Jerome only nodded, falling back onto the snow in shock. He shifted with every step he took, his scales becoming skin as Nora entered the house.
“Adrienne?” Nora called, rushing toward the cellar door. “Adrienne, are you down here?”
Together, they ran down the rickety steps and landed on the dank bottom steps. Ansel stared into the darkness, and he saw a body crumpled on the floor.
“Jerome?” the figure weakly called out in French. “Is that you? I’ve missed you!”
“Merde,” Nora swore. “He’s already broken her.” She ran to the girl, and Ansel followed behind her. They helped her get up to her feet, and the girl gasped at them.
“You are not Jerome,” she whispered fearfully, her eyes on Ansel. “What have you done with him?”
“Shh, chérie,” Nora murmured comfortingly. “You are safe now.”
“He will keep me safe!” the girl cried, trying to fight them off. “He is the only one who can keep me safe now!”
Ansel stared incredulously at Nora.
“What has he done to her?” he demanded, but Nora could only shake her head, tears of rage filling her dark eyes.
“Nothing that cannot be undone,” Nora replied firmly. “We need to get her to a hospital. Jerome had a cell phone on him, and I would rather she not see anything else. She has been traumatized enough.”
“Anything you want, love,” Ansel agreed, his mind still trying to reconcile everything he had seen that day. They ascended the stairs, Adrienne still trying to fight them off.
“No, I can’t leave!” she cried. “Jerome will be looking for me!”
“Go ensure he does not say a word to her,” Nora instructed. “But do not hurt him. He is mine to dispose of.”
Ansel swallowed his protests and nodded. He had not earned the right to argue with her, no matter how much he longed to snap the weasel’s neck. He hurried forward to pick up Jerome where he had left him, a quivering mess in a pile of snow.
“I didn’t do anything wrong,” he whimpered. “No matter what she says, I didn’t do anything—”
“If I were you, Jerome, I would keep my mouth shut,” Ansel said quietly. “Nora has made me promise not to kill you, but I am not renowned for my patience.”
Suddenly, Jerome cocked his head to the side and stared at Ansel.
“You are Ansel Williams,” he gasped. “You—you’re that boxer… the one—”
“The one who murdered that girl? That is what they’re saying, yes,” Ansel agreed. “I would say you’ve picked the wrong crew to screw with, wouldn’t you, mate?”
“Jerome!” Adrienne screamed, catching glimpse of her captor. “Jerome, I love you!”
He opened his mouth to respond, but the look in Ansel’s eye seemed to stop him from speaking.
“What is she going to do to me?” Jerome whispered.
Ansel grabbed him by the throat, his fingers crushing into Jerome’s windpipe. The crunch of the bones was almost too good to give up, but he had promised to contain himself. “Whatever it is, I assure you, it’s a thousand times better than what I would like to do.”
“Ansel!” Nora yelled. “Put him down!”
Reluctantly, Ansel lowered the man, but he did not immediately release him. He glanced back at Nora, who stood near the entranceway of the house, huddling with Adrienne, her ear to a cellphone.
She is safe, he realized, exhaling slightly. She is safe, and we are together again.
“The police are coming, Ansel,” Nora said. “When we hear them come, we must leave.”
“He will only deny everything!” Ansel protested. “And she doesn’t know what is going on!”
Nora chuckled. �
��He is not staying here. He is coming with us.”
Ansel stared at her warily. “Nora…”
“What?” she asked. “You always wanted to get a dog. I’ve been told pigs make much better pets.”
16
Ansel couldn’t believe he was watching Nora pace around the sitting room. It almost didn’t seem real.
“You are making me queasy,” he informed her from his spot by the hearth. “It is done. He is not going anywhere.”
“I loathe that I cannot kill him,” Nora muttered.
“I can,” Ansel reminded her. “And I would be happy to do that for you.”
Nora paused her pacing to look at him, and her gaze softened. She must’ve been able to read the naked remorse in his eyes.
“You have nothing to feel guilty about,” she told him gently, covering the distance between them and sitting before him on the plush rug next to the crackling fire.
“You disappeared for ten years,” Ansel mumbled. “In seven centuries, you have never gone more than two months without coming back to me, no matter how angry you were. I should have known something was terribly wrong. I just never imagined that you could ever be in such danger.”
“I never imagined any of us could be,” Nora said. “He kept me drugged until he finally turned me into the woman he wanted me to be. Who knew beings as formidable as us could be so easily brainwashed.”
“You weren’t so easily brainwashed,” Ansel reminded her. “The second you saw that girl in trouble, you did everything in your power to save her. I am glad he did not get the chance to harm you any further.”
He carefully studied Nora’s face, going over the words he wanted to say to her. When he began to spoke, his voice caught in his throat.
“Nora. I… I don’t even know how I have gone on the last ten years without you,” he choked. “I thought you would eventually find your way back to me.”
Nora leaned forward to embrace him, cupping his face between her palms. “I would have if I could have,” she told him earnestly.