Debra L. Rollins - Revenge For the Huntsman

“He’s escaped!” cried Virginia happily, tears of joy streaming down her cheeks. Cierce smiled tightly at her mistress, delighted that Wolf had been able to get away. But how? Burly could tie a mean knot; she knew that from experience. Wolf should not have been able to untie the bonds. So how did he escape?

“You, idiot Troll!” Zenda screamed at Burly. “You didn’t tie him tightly enough.” She grabbed Virginia by the hair and dragged her closer to the ledge overlooking the valley below. “Come out, Wolf or I shall dash your sweetheart to the rocks below! Do you hear me?”

“I hear you!” Wolf stepped out from the dense trees. “Are you okay, Virginia?”

“Yes, but she pulling my hair out by the roots!” Virginia hollered back, struggling to get free.

“Hah! I knew you wouldn’t run off and leave your dear Virginia. Love does nothing but weaken one’s might.”

“You loved your son,” Wolf reminded her. “Enough to want to kill for him.”

“Love? Perhaps…if you consider the act of revenge love,” she sneered. “I taught my son that power was more important than love could ever be. A man with power would never starve nor be taken as a fool nor humiliated by a pretty face. I lost my son once when he thought himself in love, but I was able to rid him of that creature he married by slowly poisoning her. In truth, it was power and respect of the evil queen that set him back on the correct path once more. The day he killed his pathetic, sickly son was the day I got my own son back. Now there was a woman I could have accepted with open arms as a daughter-in-law. I knew she wanted Paul from the moment I first saw them together. She handed the bow to him and asked him to shoot anywhere he so desired. I knew the child was playing in the forest that day. I knew the boy was in that general direction. I chose not to say a word. So you understand now, the power is all important to me and I will avenge its loss.”

“My God!” Virginia cried. “No wonder the Huntsman was so terrible. You’re even worse!”

“How flattering, my dear. But that won’t save you, nor your dear Wolf!”

“Maybe not, Madam Tatler…” spoke a voice from behind Wolf. “But perhaps we shall!”

“Wendell!” shouted Virginia, exhilarated as hordes of royal guards and Trolls stepped from the dense trees and bushes surrounding them. “How did you find us?”

“Someone has a mirror on their person. We could see which route you were taking by asking the magic mirrors.”

Burly looked down with chagrin at the tiny pocket mirror hanging on his belt and glanced guiltily at Madam Tatler. She saw his gaze, growing furious as she realized his stupidity.

“Of all the bumbling…Burly, you idiot!” she hissed.

“Virginia!” Tony yelled. He breathed a sigh of relief. She was okay, at least for now.

“Dad!” Virginia was never so happy to see her father as she was now.

“Virginer!”

Virginia did a double take.

“Grandmother?”

“Yes, It’s me my darling!”

“Dad, are you crazy?” She couldn’t believe her eyes. “Why have you gotten Grandmother mixed up in all this?”

“Huff-puff, Virginia,” Wolf defended Tony. “Don’t get mad at Tone. She would have found out soon enough. It was just a matter of time. What if our baby has a tail like me?”

“Baby?” Zenda slowly smiled, evil lighting her face. She turned back to the young woman in her clutches, cackling without humor. “Perhaps I may not get the chance to kill Wolf myself, but to kill both his mate and his cub will indeed even the score on the murder of my son. My, how familiar this story sounds.”

She turned back to Wolf and the troops surrounding him protectively.

“How will you ever live without your fair Virginia, my dear Wolf? That is, once I have sliced your cub from her womb and thrown them over the cliff. Will you find another love or do wolves truly mate for life?” The old witch taunted him as she watched his terror grow. “Will you die in despair?”

Everyone watched in horror as she pulled out a knife, small but exceedingly lethal in appearance, positioning it over Virginia’s abdomen.

“I may die, but I will have my revenge!” smirked Zenda, assured of her triumph. She swung the knife in an upward arc, preparing to plunge it deep into Virginia and the cub.

“NO!”

An anguished wail rose above the den of shouts and cries as Cierce snapped her lead and ran full steam into her mistress. The force of the impact by the transformed wolf knocked Virginia clear of the cliff, into the waiting arms of Wolf and her family.

Virginia looked back and caught her breath. Both women wrestled for the knife on the very edge of the cliff. She gasped as the inevitable happened. Both disappeared over the ledge a second later.

Burly stood there in shock, then flew to the cliff ledge, crawled as close as he was safely able and looked down with his heart in his throat.

“Cierce!”

“Burly! Help me!”

Cierce clung to a dead tree root tightly, but it was giving way. Below her, clutching onto her leather boot was Zenda. Blood escaped from the old woman’s mouth as Burly realized that the small knife was now protruding halfway from her neck. Cierce had prevailed.

Burly reached down as far as he could, but came up short of reaching the she-wolf. He cried out in anger, then realized someone was holding both his ankles, allowing him to reach further. He stretched to his limit, triumphantly touching the top of her silver head.

“Cierce! Grab hold of my hand!”

“I can’t! If I let go, Madam’s weight will pull me down!”

“If you don’t try, you’re going to die!”

“I’m so afraid, Burly!” Tears glistened in her light blue eyes, causing his own to sting. Burly watched as Zenda’s hold weakened on Cierce’s foot. Then with a tiny gurgle, she fell, disappearing into the treetops. The sounds of her impact on the rocks below echoed in everyone’s ears.

“Cierce! You can reach for me now. She’s gone! Your mistress is dead!” he yelled to her once more then stopped. He felt funny. Like his face was swelling. “Cierce?” Even his voice sounded different now…lower and coarse…even to his own ears. He looked into her eyes, saw his reflection there. He was changing. He no longer looked human, but the Burly of old. Panic set in as he realized that Cierce’s eyes were turning, her pupils becoming mere slits, more lupine in nature. Her own voice changed to a mixture of a whine and pitiful cry.

“Cierce! Please! My hand…!”

With extreme effort, she let go of the root and grabbed hold of his hand. For a moment, Burly sighed in relief as she clung to him with both hands tightly clasped, then watched in dismay as her long fingers grew shorter and fur covered. Rough pads replaced the soft skin of her human hands. Hands that had touched him deeper than he ever realized until this moment.

She stared up, searching deep into his soul, beyond the Troll eyes, beyond the Troll face…seeing only the Burly that she knew was hidden there. She felt her body change, knew there was nothing to do to stop it. Madam Tatler was dead. The spell was broken.

“I love you, Burly Troll.”

Transformation complete, she followed her mistress into the trees below.