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Chapter 15
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2024-10-29 19:42:56I shouldn’t have been surprised to discover that Jasmine had never left the plantation, but I was. I found her excitement over the concept of making a three mile trip in the barouche to be a delightful pick-me-up for the gloomy mood I’d developed.
Away from prying ears and eyes, my lady’s maid proved to be amusingly animated. She had comments and curiosities about the simplest of things, such as names of trees or types of birds. We closed our eyes and listened to the sweet songs of the whippoorwill and gasped at the sight of a fox chasing a rabbit. We rooted for the rabbit, of course.
I enjoyed the little ride so much that I hardly noticed the time or felt the inconvenience of the antiquated mode of travel. We’d left just after sunup to avoid the heat of the day, but, even so, I still would have suffered from heat and dust had I not been so distracted by this animated young woman. Her comfort level around me, once we were
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Even though I was tired from travel and the stress of discovering that my pseudo parents from the future were visiting my biological parents in the past, sleep eluded me. I was haunted by the way my parents and uncle reacted to Sophie’s mentioning of Elsbeth. My gut told me that there was a family secret concerning my aunt that they didn’t want me to know. What could it be?Easing my body out of bed, I lit the lantern on the small nearby table. It provided lighting for only a fraction of my surroundings. I wanted more lighting. Heaving a sigh and longing for electricity, I lowered the chandelier in the center of the room. Wrinkling my nose at the smell that the many candles that the chandelier held gave off, I took shallow breaths as I carefully lit them. My parents used a more modern paraffin candle in the public rooms, but since tallow was easier to come by and, therefore, less costly, the private family rooms were stock
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Sometime, while imagining my aunt’s life from her entries in her journal, I managed to relax my body enough to fall asleep. Unfortunately, the horsehair stuffed tapestry didn’t provide the same comfort that modern day foam would have. That, and the fact that I wasn’t in the most comfortable position, caused my body to inevitably suffer. When Jasmine gently shook me awake to present me with a tray of tea and biscuits, my shoulders were so stiff that I could barely flex them, my hips refused to release my legs to mobility, and there was a nagging in my head that was rooted at the nape of my neck and circled around to my temples.“You should have slept in your bed instead of me, mistress,” she scolded. “I am accustomed to sleeping on a floor mat. Now, look at you. You will suffer the day for the inconvenience.”“I have no qualms about sharing a bed with you,” I insisted. &ldquo
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When the world returned to me, I was stretched out on the parlor sofa with my aunt Sophie mopping at my forehead with a cool cloth.“If there is one thing I do not miss and am happy to be free of, it is those damnable corsets,” she complained. “This child has a perfect figure. She has no need for such contraptions. They are horribly unhealthy.”“They are part of our world, sister dear,” my mother said in a soft voice.“I don’t know,” Nora said as she swirled her skirts while entering the room. “I feel a bit like a princess in this outfit.”“We’ll see how you feel in a few hours,” I muttered as I struggled to sit up. “Wait until the heat of the day hits you.”Nora gave me a sympathetic look as she seated herself in a nearby chair. “Are you feeling better?”“What are you doing here?” I asked as my head
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It took a considerable length of time to catch my parents, aunt, and uncle up with Jason’s antics. I hadn’t realized that my parents had been left in the dark concerning Jason’s deal with Marduke. When they were told, you could have pushed them down with a feather. Not one of them could believe Jason to be of such a nature.I secretly questioned what they’d think if they knew the depth of what Jason had done to me. Since I’d shared that with no one, I had no intention of divulging it. Just seeing their reaction to the severity of how his actions had jeopardized our family was all I needed to know that more news of his vile antics could very well push my mother over the edge. Which mother? Past or future? Since they both wore similar expressions, it would probably be both.They didn’t know who Killian was, so I shouldn’t have been surprised that their reaction to his be
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It was dinnertime before Nora lifted her head off the pillow and joined the living.I’d rested only briefly beside her before seeking out my father to converse with him about what we might do to rescue Killian.Whether Anton told him or he simply guessed by my behavior, I wasn’t certain and I didn’t bother to ask. Whatever the reason, my father was aware that Killian and I had a relationship that went deeper than simple friendship. To my relief, he didn’t lecture me about being unfaithful to my husband as I’d anticipated with dread. He did, however, explain in depth how, because of the fact that very few socialites married for love, taking a lover was quite normal and acceptable as long as the relationship was not made public. Although a good deal of married couples were actually open with their spouse about the fact that they had extra-marital interests, he didn’t feel Lance would be pleased
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“You were surprisingly quiet this evening,” Lance said as he entered our bedroom after having a male servant that my father lent to him assist him out of his dinner attire and into a thick, cozy robe. Removing the robe and tossing it onto a nearby chair, he added, “I have missed you, my love… more than you will ever know or possibly understand.”Had I not been so mesmerized by his rock hard erection and the many pleasurable possibilities that it promised, I would have questioned his choice of words and voice inflection. Or, I would have asked why his man, Radcliff, who always traveled with him, hadn’t come along this time. Both were clear clues that something was amiss. Instead, I hurriedly threw back the coverlet that was draped over my nakedness and beckoned him with eager, extended arms to join me.With a smile that could charm a wild beast, my husband dove onto the bed. Landing at a convenient location at
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My father took his time settling us down with tea and brandy before he steeled himself for the tale that he clearly didn’t want to tell.His voice was slow and steady as he said, “Your mother was completely smitten with a young man from the county next named Jeremiah Freeman. His family is as magical as ours, if not more so, but they do not agree with our policies for the use of magic. They are also less cautious about concealing their abilities. It is because of this that we separated from them when we formed the society.”“It’s my understanding that you and a few of your peers formed the society,” I said. “Was it in existence when grandfather killed my father?”He squeezed his eyes shut and made a guttural sigh. “That sounds horrific, but, alas, it is the fact of the matter… It is because of this horrible event that the society was formed. It created a cover for those of
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I was grateful that Lance slept through my return to the bed. It was his habit to want sex upon awakening and I was not in the mood to do much more than brood over the information that had just been sprung on me.What I wanted more than anything was to go into blissful oblivion, but I thought for sure that my brain was too busy mulling over the heavy load it carried to allow sleep to take over. When I arose late the following morning to discover that my husband had long ago awakened and begun his day, I was surprised.My head felt rejuvenated, but I was still troubled by the information that I’d been burdened with. I needed to know more about this other magical group of people whose genetics I carried. With just the little that I did know, much of my level of abilities was explained to me.My parents were of good magical stock. So good, in fact, that Marduke coveted their abilities. Add that to Jeremiah’s mag
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I was furious with the society. They not only informed me that they had no one available who could assist me in returning to the past alongside my husband, they insisted upon returning him to the past immediately since his body was decomposing at record speed. Apparently, teleporting a body back to the past did not require that someone skilled in time travel accompany it, while teleporting a human being did. I imagine I taxed their nerves when they had to repeatedly assure me that they were positive that Lance would end up in the right place. They might have been doing things the way it was done for centuries, but it wasn’t my way and my confidence level was low.A full day passed before Anton appeared before me.Rushing into his arms, I wailed my dismay over the chain of events that occurred.“I saw to his burial myself, lass,” he assured me. “He was laid in the family plot. You can visit his grave her
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Lance rejuvenated enough to be coherent and conversational for a few days. As I watched the color return to his face, I began to feel encouraged.Sadly, it was short lived.He’d returned to his old self long enough to reassure me of the love that he had for me and to make sure that I knew that I was to move forward with my life. Reminding me of my magic and my ability to time travel, he struggled to get me to go over the running of the estate with him to be sure that I understood and could handle it on my own both in the past and in the future. I didn’t want to have that conversation with him, but I eventually lamented and allowed him his say.When he felt confident that I was prepared for the inevitable, he told me something that shocked me to my core. He’d been Marduke’s prisoner since the night I’d learned that he intended to take me back to the past. With the help of Killian to keep me occupied, Jason and his w
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My head felt like it was filled with lead as I sat at the kitchen counter and stared into my empty coffee cup. I had no idea how long ago I’d finished the beverage. I was numb with despair.“How are you doing, my beautiful Esmerelda?” Anton asked as he walked up behind me and placed his hand on my shoulder. “What can I do for you?”“I feel like my world has just crashed and burned,” I moaned as I leaned back against his rock hard, yet comforting chest. “I don’t know what to do next.”“There is very little to do, but be supportive,” he said with sadness.“He should be taken back to his time,” I whimpered as I wiped at a stray tear. “I think he’d be happier if he was.”“I agree, but the doctor said that he can nay return to the past,” he said. “It would take what little life he has left in him. I
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We eased Lance into bed and inspected his condition. He was in very bad shape.“I fear I can do very little for the man. We need better medical help than I can provide,” Anton confessed.I was at a loss over what to do. Taking Lance to the hospital would bring on a slew of questions that neither Anton or I were prepared to answer. I thought about calling Roger, but he was never totally brought into our world. Since he wasn’t magical, Killian had felt it best to keep him in the dark about most things. I also knew that one of the main reasons why he and Nora broke up was because she hadn’t shared much with him either. How could I tell him that his partner had been turned into a vampire and that Lances condition was a result of his work? There was also the question of explaining what happened to Nora to him.No, Roger was not the answer.“I can take him back to the past, but I ques
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We reached the area with the portal just as Killian came rushing forth. Or should I say the remnants of Killian because he’d been turned vampire? His dark eyes were now a fiery orange that literally looked as if they were spitting fire. I didn’t remember Nora’s eyes being that bad. I assumed it was because, although he didn’t possess as much magic as Anton, Lance, or me, he did possess magic.“Oh no!” I bellowed as I pointed out the fact that Killian was rushing toward us. “Look! It’s Killian! They turned him!”Anton picked Lance up over his shoulder and urged me to find the portal right away. My entire body trembled from shock over seeing my former lover and friend in such a state as well as in fear of what I knew that he was capable of doing to us.Because we were focusing on Killian, neither Anton or I paid attention to what was happening to Nora. Being this close to a v
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Getting into the torture chamber was far easier than we’d anticipated. It was so easy, in fact, that we were on the alert for danger even more than normal.It took time for my eyes to adjust to the dim lighting. When I finally did and was able to move about without fear of bumping into something and bringing attention to our presence, I headed for the small cages along the back wall.There were six cages in all. Two were empty. I moved close enough to see the occupants in the other four. Only one was a human from my world. He was in the very last cage in the dank and darkest corner.I emitted an agonizing gasp as I peered between the bars to better inspect the cage’s occupant. Before me was what looked like the remnants of my husband. Instead of the robust, sexy, handsome man with raven hair, he was gaunt, hunched over, and sallow in complexion with streaks of gray running through his now dull black hair.&l
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I don’t mind admitting that I was overtaken by nerves when we entered Marduke’s prison realm. The danger of being discovered and captured by him or his cronies was all too real. For a brief second, after crossing through the portal, I questioned the wisdom of my decision to look for Killian there. I even had a split second urge to turn back. I literally had to stop and summon the courage to keep going without letting on to my companions that I was wrestling with what to do.“Which way?” Nora asked as her eyes darted nervously about.“Take a moment to compose yourselves, ladies,” Anton suggested, “while I get a feel for our location.”With that, he closed his eyes and raised one hand over his head with his index finger pointed toward the sky. I watched with wonder as tiny speckles of light swirled around his finger. When it stopped, he lowered his hand and opened his eyes.&ldquo
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We’d searched for Killian for several hours with no luck.“The problem is that this place is so vast,” I complained. “It’s like looking for a needle in a haystack.”“How long can we stay here without being at risk of discovery?” Nora asked.“The deeper we go, the more probable that is,” Anton grumbled. “It was foolish to think that he would be an easy find.”I sat on a boulder and put my fingertips to my forehead.“I need to think for a moment,” I said, more to myself than to them. “I opened and closed more portals for Marduke than I can even remember. Some led to realms that were literally used as prisons. If he hasn’t been killed or turned vampire, I’d wager he’s being held there.”“What if Marduke wants him for his magic?” Nora asked. “You weren’t put in a prison, were you?&rdquo
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I’d questioned whether it was a good idea to take Nora with us since she possessed no magic. After conferring with both her and Anton, we decided that she might come in handy since she still possessed a connection to the vampires. We weren’t sure the type or strength of the connection, but both Anton and I could feel that there were still mild vampire traits within her. Even if all she did was alert us to their approach, it would be an enormous help.“This place is creepier than I remember,” Nora said in a low tone that reeked of fear.“You have time to go back,” I assured her.Vigorously shaking her head, she said, “I’m in for the long haul. I’m just saying that it’s really creepy here.”“That it is,” Anton agreed. “It is a wonder how you managed to survive it for so long.”“It isn’t all like this,” I informed him.
