Chapter 3

I can’t remember ever being as cold as I was when I awoke from the abyss that swallowed me while I was at the mercy of the cougar.  I could hear activity around me, but my eyes wouldn’t focus enough for me to make anything out.

“She’s coming around,” a female said in a hushed voice.

“Go tell his majesty,” another female said excitedly.  “He’ll be relieved to hear it.”

I assumed they were talking about Geo and smiled.  I could already feel his arms cradling me while his lips caressed my forehead, eyes, and lips as he assured himself that I was okay. I tried to move my head, but the pain in my neck was acute.  I remembered the cougar’s powerful jaws clamped into my skull.  Why hadn’t I healed?

“Casey,” came a deep voice that had a familiar ring to it. “Casey, can you hear me?” I still couldn’t get my eyes to fully open and focus, so I reached up to touch the man standing over me in hopes I’d recognize him that way.  He took my weak hand in his strong ones and brought it to his lips. “Casey, my love, I’m here.”

“Luthias?” my parched lips managed to whisper.

“I’m here, my love,” he said gently.

“What happened?” I asked as best I could with a resistant voice box. “Why haven’t I healed?”

“We’re trying to understand it ourselves,” he offered. “Now isn’t the time to worry about that. Now is the time to focus on healing.  Then we can focus on what’s happening.”

“Are you a king now?” I asked weakly.

“That’s a tale for another time,” he chuckled.  “Are you able to see yet?”

I cautiously opened my eyes.  I had to squint to gain focus, but I could see him standing by my sick bed as large as life.

“You’re still so handsome,” I managed to say, “but, your voice has changed.”

“More than my voice has changed, but let’s worry about you for now,” he said firmly.  “I’m going to carry you into a more private setting.  Can you put your arms around my neck?” I managed to fondle the tiniest nod beneath the thick bandages that whoever doctored me up wrapped around my head, but it was enough for him to understand. “I’m sorry about the bandaging,” he continued. “No one here is really adept with things of that nature since we all heal so quickly.”

“I should be healed,” I complained.

“I’ve sent for Gwendoline,” he offered gently.  “She should be here anytime now.”

“Where am I?” I asked weakly.

“You’re in a very safe place, my love, and you’ll stay here until you are well and we understand what’s going on with you,” he replied.

“Geo won’t like it,” I began.

“Geo be damned!” he snapped in his newly acquired, very deep voice. “I love my brother, but I am very displeased with him at this moment.  What’s wrong with him allowing you to wander off into the forest in your condition?”

“What condition is that?” I asked.

“We’ll find out when Gwendoline arrives,” he said confidently.

“Gwendoline’s been trying to find the source of who put this spell on me to steal my magic,” I said.

“You don’t know, do you?” he asked in wonder. “Sweetheart, you didn’t just lose your magic, you also lost your vampirism.  You are human again.”

I was too overwhelmed by what he said and too exhausted from the trauma of a cougar attack on my now human body to say anything more. Instead, I allowed myself to slip back into the darkness of the abyss.  At this point, I didn’t want to face any of what was happening so the abyss was a welcome alternative.

When I awoke again, the thick bandage was removed and replaced by a smaller, less cumbersome one.  Gwendoline and my grandmother were hovered together in the corner of the room where they stirred herbs into a steaming liquid that was contained in a cast iron pot over a small wood burner.  It reminded me of the pictures of witches I’d seen in fairy tale books when I was younger.

“Double, double, foil and trouble,” I said in the best cackling voice I could muster and then made a valiant attempt at giggling.

“Well, at least she hasn’t lost her sense of humor,” my grandmother said as she rushed to examine me closer.

“I’m human again,” I said softly; noting my voice was much stronger. “How can that be?”

“I’ve never seen the likes of it,” Gwendoline said as she approached me with a bowl of her steaming liquid. “This is very hot, lass.  I’ll need ye to sit up as best ye can so ye don’t end up burning yourself.”

“I’ll feed her,” Luthias said as he entered the room.

“She can feed herself,” my grandmother said in a tone that didn’t sound friendly.

I raised a brow in surprise at her treatment of Luthias. She was always so fond of him.  I wondered if the fact that I confided about my dreaming of him had altered her opinion in some way. I certainly hoped not. It wasn’t his fault I had erotic dreams about him.

“How long will I have to have this bandage on my head?” I asked as I struggled to sit up.

“Not long,” Luthias said as he put his hands beneath my arm pits and repositioned me on the bed.  “Don’t be angry, but I gave you some of my blood when we realized you weren’t healing.”

“I have hybrid blood in me?” I gasped.

“I can’t say I’m very happy about it,” my grandmother spat. “What if you contaminated her?”

The mystery of why she was rude to Luthias was solved.

“What will that do to me?” I asked with trepidation.

“I believe it’s what helped ye stay alive,” Gwendoline said as she scowled at my grandmother.  “I’m guessing we’d be burying ye if my boy hadn’t had the presence of mind to do it.”

“Were you in Verso?  How?” I asked between spoonfuls of the hot liquid that Luthias defiantly fed me; regardless of my grandmother’s sour glowers.

“You weren’t in Verso, my love. You were miles from there. I was out hunting when I heard the cougar’s cry. You can imagine my surprise and panic when I saw you pinned beneath her,” he said.

“I invaded her space,” I said.  “I hope you didn’t kill her.  She was protecting her cubs.”

“I saw the cubs,” he said.  “I didn’t kill her, but she’s probably got a whopper of a headache.

“I can relate,” I chuckled.

“Where exactly did ye find the lass, son?” Gwendoline asked.

“She was in the field at the edge of the forest about two miles east of here,” he replied.

“I was walking in the forest in Verso when I saw the cougar kill a deer. I felt so privileged about being a witness to nature like that. I decided to follow her and see where she went.  I never left Verso. I swear,” I said adamantly. “Besides, don’t you have to go through Desolation to get out of Verso?”

“Not only have our barriers been breached, but the lass teleported,” Gwendoline said to my grandmother in a low tone that I wasn’t exactly sure I was supposed to hear. Without my vampire hearing, I was lucky I did.

“There must be a portal there,” Luthias said.  “That takes Fae magic, doesn’t it?”

“Indeed, it does,” Gwendoline said with pursed lips.

“There’s only one wizard I know with Fae magic” my grandmother said, “but I heard he died a few centuries ago.”

“I heard the same thing,” Gwendoline said thoughtfully.  She turned to Luthias, “Have ye seen anyone odd in the Fae community lately?” When he shook his head she added, “How about the wolves?”

“Wolves?”  Luthias asked incredulously. “Are you thinking a wolf is behind this? I can’t imagine why.”

“I was legally married to Jason, even if it was only briefly,” I interjected. “Do you think someone’s afraid I’ll try to claim the throne?”

“I hadn’t thought of that,” Luthias admitted.

“It is a possibility,” my grandmother said as she lightly patted my shoulder with approval. “Such a clever girl.”

“If it’s a wolf, he or she is working with a magician of Fae lineage,” Gwendoline insisted.

“Of Fae lineage or who managed to acquire Fae powers,” I said.  “Didn’t my doppelganger’s sister pay a magician with her Fae powers?  Shona, right?”

The more Luthias fed me, the clearer my head felt. I was starting to feel good and my mind felt sharper than it had in a very long time.

“Shona was the name of the female you resemble,” Luthias said. “Mari was her sister.”

“Mari is the one who gave up her Fae in payment for a spell to be cast on Shona to make her turn away from Jason Masters,” I said adamantly.

After looking at me long and hard, Gwendoline shook her head and said, “Belle.”

“She does love to gossip,” Luthias said.

“In this case, I think ‘twas a good thing,” Gwendoline said.

“It was a waste on Mari’s part,” Luthias said, thoughtfully. “Shona was secretly seeing me while her parents were planning to marry her off to Jason.  There was no need for a spell to be cast.  There was just a need for the truth to come out.  I don’t believe that marriage would have taken place even without the spell.”

“You really did love her,” I whispered.

“She had my heart,” Luthias said with a sadness.

“How it must have hurt to see her married to Geo,” I said.

“I will never forgive Jason Masters for what he did. I’m glad I killed him for so many reasons,” Luthias said.

“You were tricked out of two marriages,” I mused.

“Jason Masters played a role in it both times,” he growled.

“I just can’t understand how he could pretend to be your friend for centuries, only to turn out to be just the opposite,” I said.

“Since our worlds were so different, we seldom saw each other,” he mused. “Perhaps if we had, his trickery would have shown.”

“I guess so,” I said with heartfelt sadness.

“We need to get back to Verso and tell Geo and Arthur what’s happening,” my grandmother insisted. “I imagine they’re both at wit’s end.”

“You are free to leave,” Luthias said, “but, Casey stays here.”

“Son,” Gwendoline began.

“No, mother,” he said as he raised his hand to stop her from saying more. “On this point, I insist. Verso has been breached and Casey is now a human. It’s no secret humans are at risk in Verso. Geo is an excellent king, but even he will admit he has a bit of trouble with rogue vampires and their lust for human blood.  That is reason enough not to send her back.  Having the shield breached when you haven’t a clue who is behind it just adds to the danger.”

“Geo won’t stand for it,” my grandmother said.

“He’s welcome to join Casey here if he wishes, but I will not have her returning to Verso until we figure this out,” Luthias said with his new, deep, yet familiar voice.

“I want to stay,” I said softly in an attempt to keep the peace. “I don’t feel well enough to be moved quite yet. Maybe in a few days?”

“Hopefully, by then, we’ll have this under control,” Gwendoline said.

“You can tell Geo what’s happening,” my grandmother spat at her longtime friend. She turned to Luthias and added, “Your brother was going to send a message to you, but as long as we have you here I’ll tell you myself. We figured out how to adjust Verso so it will tolerate your hybrid energy and not kill you. You can now come and go as you please. It’s a good thing, too, since Casey may now be infected.” After a brief sigh she added, “There’s no reason to keep Casey here any longer than necessary. You can bring her home yourself as soon as she’s up to being transported.”

“That’s wonderful news. Thank you,” Luthias said with sincerity.  After a moment of silence, he added, “I only want what’s best for Casey. I won’t hesitate to bring her back if she insists on returning to Verso, but I sincerely hope she’ll stay until the danger is past and we understand what happened to her.” 

“That’s all I can ask,” my grandmother said as she started for the door. When she reached it, she turned and added, “That, and for you to please keep your hands to yourself. My girl still doesn’t know her own mind where you two brothers are concerned. I’d like things to cool down enough for her to get a handle on her emotions without her hormones in the mix.”

With what looked like a mixture of shock and amusement, Luthias assured her he’d be the perfect gentleman.