Debra L. Rollins - Revenge For the Huntsman

“You and Virginia really are going to have a baby?” The thought dawned on Tony. “I’m really going to be a grandpa?”

Wolf looked sad, but Tony didn’t notice.

“I figured you already knew by now, Tony.”

“Well, sure…I supposed she was. After all, you threw me a pretty large hint by calling me “Grandpa” before leaving through the mirror, didn’t you?” Tony stood there shaking his head in befuddlement. “I wonder why Virginia didn’t tell me herself?”

“I don’t know, Tony. I’m afraid to wonder.”

For the first time Tony heard the anxiety in Wolf’s voice and the hurt look in his eyes. Something was going on with Wolf and Virginia, but what? Surely nothing to do with the baby, he hoped.

“What’s wrong? Is it the baby? Is Virginia doing okay? What’s going on? Tell me, Wolf!”

Wolf saw the concern in Tony’s eyes and decided to ask his friend if he thought Virginia deserved someone better for his daughter then he, himself. If Tony said his lovely daughter needed a better husband, then Wolf would leave that very moment and let her go on with her life. He knew his cub would be well taken care of, there was no doubt Virginia would be a great mother and Tony a wonderful grandpa, no matter his previous personal shortcomings. Perhaps with him out of the picture, nature would take its course and Virginia and Wendell would end up together and live happily ever after.

“Tony…I need your advice,” started Wolf. “And I need your very, very honest opinion.”

“Yeah? What is it?”

“Well, Virginia and I, well…you know, we…”

His question was cut short by the arrival of a land baron Tony had met earlier in the week, a portly gentleman that reminded Tony uncomfortably of Mr. Murray, his old boss.

“Lewis…my good man!” he interrupted loudly, slapping Tony on the back with a hard thud, causing him to wince in pain. “Any new development on those castles of yours? My little Katrinka is looking forward to one of her own, you know.”

“Soon, very soon and I’ll be able to let you know.” Tony answered.

The stout, little man stared rudely at Wolf with beady, little pig-like eyes and proclaimed loud enough for those close to them to hear, “Why don’t you come on over to our table, Lewis? Much better company there, eh-what? It’s amazing who these young blue bloods let into royal functions nowadays. Such a disgrace!” He then turned and left as quickly as he came.

Tony stared after the Baron’s wide backside with his mouth hanging wide open. What nerve! Served the bastard right if Wolf decided to have the fat little man for dinner. He turned back to his future son-in-law to say as much but Wolf had disappeared into the crowded ballroom without a word.

The tenth hour approached and yet more guests arrived, fashionably late, plotting to gain that extra bit of attention for their daughters, sisters, cousins, you name it, in the hopes that one would catch his eye and win the heart of King Wendell. Gowns all the colors of the rainbow painted the ballroom and corridors leading to it like an artist’s pallet. Many wore green, the official color of the Fourth Kingdom, others their own kingdom’s favorite. All the ladies gowns were lovely, thought Wendell, but none compared to Virginia’s beautiful turquoise gown. It was as if she was awash in a magical lagoon and he were swimming in its depths. Strange, he swore he had seen it somewhere before, but did not ask as it would be very ungentleman-like of him. Perhaps some inquiries, discreetly of course, into Virginia’s maid and where she found the gown would shed some light on the subject. In his world of poisoned apples and evil stepmothers, he could not be too careful.

Horns blew jauntily behind him, introducing, he supposed, yet another possible wife. He was half tempted to sneak out of his own ball, sorry now that he had even agreed to find a wife this way. Fate would see a way to find him a proper wife and if he came to love her, well…so much the better.

“Introducing Lady Cierce Lupine of the Eighth Kingdom and her escort…er, I didn’t catch your name, sir.”

“Burly…Ouch!” Burly began until he felt the heel of Cierce’s slipper crunch his large toe. “Er, Lord Burlington Llort…cousin to the Lady Cierce.”

“And Lord Burlington Llort, of the Eighth Kingdom,” the announcer finished.

Wendell turned, meaning to give the new arrivals a cursory glance but stared mesmerized at the vision gliding elegantly down the grand staircase. The woman wasn’t a beauty in the sense of the word. Her nose was perhaps a bit too long, her lips too full, but her hair caught your attention right away. Pure silver in color, so thick and long, it made a man want to wrap it around his body like a silk cocoon. If her hair caught your attention, it was her eyes that held you fast. A strange and beautiful icy blue, they were, but in their depths a smoldering fire was hinted at, encompassing every man in the room. Were they all under a spell, he wondered as she continued toward the landing?

As she stepped down to floor level Wendell cleared his head as best he could, noticing her gown for the first time. It too was pure silver, matching perfectly the color of her hair. No jewels adorned her body and he realized she did not need any. Her eyes were the only gems she needed to set her gown off to perfection. His heart beat wildly in his chest and his stomach fluttered like a thousand fairies lived there as he watched her make her way toward him. Could this be the woman he was looking for? Slow down, boy, he thought as he found himself panting. Good, Wendell…good boy! Oops! Forget I just thought that and quit panting for goodness sakes. Sometimes the old doggy habits took over…just for a moment and he would feel decidedly canine once again. Usually certain smells or sights would bring back the habits he learned during his time as a dog, but for the life of him, he couldn’t figure out why this woman would trigger an episode.

“Your Royal Highness,” Cierce curtsied deeply, nearly brushing her head to the floor in such limber grace that the guests witnessing the sight, gasped in amazement. “I am pleased to make your acquaintance.”

“As I am yours,” Wendell said in return, as he helped her up and pressed a light kiss on the back of her gloved hand.

Burly hung back, an expression of distaste on his face. All these nicey-nice manners with the kissing of the hands were quite disgusting to him in his way of thinking. If it were up to him, he’d grab the little blonde king by the throat and choke the location of the traveling mirror out of him. If he had Blabberwort and Bluebell with him, he would have done just that. Well, maybe the Troll army would have helped to accomplish the feat quicker and with less chance of his untimely death, as he saw a multitude of guards watching for signs of any trouble.

“May I introduce my “cousin” Lord Burlington Llort, Your Highness?” said Cierce in her most husky of voice, making sure the King had to lean forward to catch her words and become enveloped in her scent. Madam Tatler had said she would be enticing to the male of her species, but little had the witch known that now Cierce was human, that meant the human species. Luckily this Wolf was half-human, otherwise her scent would probably be lost on him.

“Most happy to make you acquaintance, Llort,” Wendell said, not taking his gaze off Cierce. “If I may be so bold as to ask your cousin for the next dance? It would please me to no end, I assure you.”

The edge of the crowd surrounding the King and the two newcomers took a giant step back as Burly’s face turned red with heated anger. A surge of guards raced forward to protect their king from possible harm but Wendell saw none of this going on around him; he was lost in Cierce’s eyes.

“I do not dance and I certainly will not dance with you, even if you are a king!” growled Burly, ready to tear Wendell from limb to limb.

Cierce rolled her eyes in aggravation as she glared at Burly. The fool was going to ruin everything.

“He didn’t mean you! He meant me, “Cousin Burlington”,” Cierce stated sweetly, then turned back to Wendell. “Will you excuse us, Your Highness, for just one moment? My “dear cousin” and I need to chat for one teensy minute.”

“Of course!” he fawned, still influenced by her scent. “But please hurry back…I’ll be waiting for that dance.”

Cierce sent him a sugary smile, then grabbed Burly’s arm and led him to a balcony away from the king and the group of men that now fluttered near her like bees to a flower. The night was warm, but Cierce felt nothing but coldness in her heart towards the fools hanging about just outside the entrance to the balcony waiting for her return. A human had murdered her family, she could trust none of them, but unfortunately she did have to trust one…her mistress, to let her go when this mission was fulfilled. She did so look forward to reuniting with her own kind. To run wild and free once again as she was intended to do as a child of the moon. It was strange, but in human form she was able to control her monthly urge during the full moon, something she had never been able to do before. She felt incomplete as small bits of her wolfen self remained to override her human body…such as her easy seduction of the opposite sex. But then again, were not all males fools over the feminine gender…no matter what form they were born? Cierce shook her mind free to concentrate on the bogus human beside of her.

“Look here, “Lord Burlington”, if that is who you wish to be known as while we mingle with the other guests it’s fine by me,” Cierce fumed at Burly. “But understand this…King Wendell can lead us to the traveling mirror faster than we could ever find it by searching this castle room by room. We must find it and soon! We can not linger too long or we shall have no excuse but to leave the castle. Then my chance for freedom and your own kingdom will be lost to us forever. Do you understand, Troll?”

“I hate King Wendell!” growled Burly, lowering his voice so none would hear. His emotions were getting the best of him. “He helped the little witch who killed my dad escape. Now I want to tear him apart!”

“You’ll do nothing of the sort, but do as I say!” Cierce jabbed a finger in his suited chest to bring her point home. At least the Troll had taken a bath at Dooren’s insistence. The little Dwarf had stood guard outside the bath to make sure he'd stayed in long enough to come clean. Otherwise she'd threatened to go in and scrub him down with a stiff brush.

Cierce had found this most amusing and she smiled at the memory of the tall Troll bowing down to the wishes of one as little as Dooren.

“What’s so funny?” Burly grumbled, irritated that she found him amusing. He shook his head to clear his brain. Something about the transformed she-wolf muddled his thinking whenever he stood too close. Quickly he stepped back as she slipped by him to re-enter the ballroom. She threw a backward glance at his simmering face but lost not a step.

“Nothing, Lord Llort…nothing at all.” In the ballroom, music heralded a new dance. “Now if you will excuse me…my dance partner awaits.”

As Cierce slid into Wendell’s arms, Burly could feel his mind clear of her sensual scent, but the tightness in his chest remained as he watched the two of them glide with ease over the ballroom floor.

“What do you mean he left? Left for where?”

Virginia found her father cornered rather uncomfortably by a matron of the court determined to marry her horse-faced daughter off to any unattached male she could find that would have her as a wife. Tony sweated under the woman’s scrutiny, feeling much like a prize bull at an auction house, and breathed a sigh of relief as he slipped away at Virginia’s appearance.

“I don’t know, he just left…took off,” Tony explained. “Some jerk was rude to him and I think he took it rather badly. Don’t blame him for being upset, the guy was a complete ass.”

“And you let him go?” Virginia cried.

“I told you…I didn’t know, Virginia. By the time I turned back to Wolf, he had disappeared. “What do you want me to do?”

“Help me find him, Dad.” Virginia replied, frustrated by the turn of events. “He’s been pretty moody lately and I can’t figure out why. It’s not just the full moon bothering him either. There’s something else, I just know it!”

“Well, where are we suppose to start looking? He could be anywhere by now! This castle is huge, he may even have left the grounds.”

“Let me go back to my room and change out of this dress, then we can start looking.”

“I’ve been meaning to comment on your dress, Virginia. You look lovely…just like your mother when she and I first met…”

“Daaaaaad…!”

“Okay, okay, I’m coming,” sighed Tony as he followed the flurry of turquoise silk back to the wing of the castle that held their bedchambers.

Virginia hurried to her room as quickly as her gown would allow. It was hard to run in the many folds of the dress and her slippers weren’t made for running either. She passed the door of the room where the traveling mirror was located and was surprised to find the door ajar. Wendell had promised it would be kept locked when not in use. Her stomach flip-flopped uneasily. She had a bad feeling about this. Could it be?

Tony caught up with his daughter as she entered the mirror room in time to see what she feared in her heart. The mirror was turned on and beneath its length lay an embossed gray jacket in a wrinkled heap.

Wolf had gone back to the Tenth Kingdom alone.