This Curse

ONE



Tiny daggers of white starch dug into the tender soles of my bare feet. I ran my fingers through my hair, scratching my scalp in order to dislodge the more determined grains.

I slid the soapy sponge along my side and winced with pain. Memories flooded my mind and my skin broke out in a fine layer of goose bumps. The hot water sluiced along my aching flesh and I rested my cheek against the stone tile. The slow ache in my side began to fade; yet, despite the heat of the water I was chilled.

No matter how hard I tried, my mind always found its way back to Seth. He invaded my brain far too often for my liking. Even though we had come to an understanding since our encounter, I still found myself dwelling on my injury and the mystery of what had happened afterward.

I stepped from the shower and studied my reflection. The woman staring back at me looked annoyed. Well, pale with huge mascara smudges under her eyes, but annoyed. I stepped off the bath mat only to discover that thousands of lethal little shards of rice were scattered all over the bathroom floor just waiting to jab into the soles of my damp feet. I cleared them away with a thought and picked up my bridesmaid’s dress. A few thousand grains of rice fell to the ground as I tossed it into the hamper. I shook my head; they must have thrown a couple hundred pounds of the stuff.

Poor Ann I thought, smiling. She was the first human to ever wed an elf and they wanted to honor her by following all of her native wedding customs. Oh man, what a mess. They meant well, but from the completely outdated notion of throwing rice to the monstrosity of a wedding gown the elves swore was traditional, the whole thing was way over the top. Her dress was so large that even as pregnant as she was, you would have never noticed. It was a stiff tower of ruffles and lace that could practically stand on its own. But none of that mattered to Ann. She was marrying the man of her dreams and that was all she cared about.

Remembering the groom, I didn’t blame her one bit. He had been utterly magnificent in his Elvin wedding garb. His beautifully toned upper body had been bare. The only adornments were a few thin golden cuffs that wrapped around his wrists and wound up his arms ending in a curling flourish around his muscular biceps. His pants were made of soft white suede, decorated with thin gold threads. His long dark hair had been twisted and tied back with dozens of the thin strands of gold, accenting his handsome face. He was so incredibly gorgeous that he was almost unreal. Gavyn, the leader of the elves, had presided over the ceremony looking just as amazingly beautiful.

The women of the village were also responsible for my beautiful bridesmaid’s dress. It was nothing more than a very large scarf that they had tied around my body to form a short dress. It matched the traditional Elvin wedding wear making Ann’s dress stand out even more.

I was the only person to stand up with Ann and in my mind, that made me the maid of honor but I had no desire to be rude and point that out to them. They were proud of their preparations and Ann couldn’t have been happier.

The wedding had been short in duration and Ann and Tobias were quick to retire to their honeymoon chambers. I’d stayed long enough to visit with Gavyn and his family. It’d made me incredibly happy to watch my best friend marry. I felt warm, and glowing when I’d prepared to leave. That is until Gavyn cornered me. He’d noticed my pain and shocked me by being annoyed.

The steam was evaporating quickly as I stood in my bathroom, remembering what Gavyn had said to me. His advice had been simple ‘pull my head out of my ass and deal with my new life.’ It was a slap in the face and made me feel incredibly stupid.

I threw on my bathrobe and twisted my hair into a thick towel, settling it on my head firmly I reached for the door. The movement pulled at my side and I flinched.

This was getting ridiculous!

I threw the door open and stalked into my bedroom. I was a mess and pretty damn tired of it.

I’d struggled with my decision to eliminate my injury for far too long. I still held on to the idea that to hurt was to be human. If I still felt pain, it was part of the balance and helped to secure my humanity, but after traveling to Ann’s wedding, I discovered that the more I resisted using my powers, the harder it would be for me to accept the new me.

I was once human, an everyday bartender from Reno. Then in a twisted shift of fate, I found myself the keeper of a powerful and magical ring. A ring that had hidden itself away until the day it chose me. I often wonder if it truly was fate that had me sitting on the sidewalk that day. Was the ring waiting for me to see it sparkling there amongst the sludge? If this was the case then fate was a real bitch because once I placed that ring on my finger, I was never the same. Not only did the ring fill me with all of its power, but it actually changed me physically, altering my DNA.

And this was my current dilemma. I was no longer human, and it really messed with my head. My mom and dad were human along with everyone I loved.

Monsters were inhuman.

I didn’t want to be one of the monsters.

As far as I was concerned, I had already used too much magic for my liking, so I tried to use it sparingly and only if I had to, which was why my side still burned with pain.

I sat on my bed. Folding my legs, I drew in a deep breath of air. It was time. I had to step up.

I released my breath and concentrated on the burning pain that hid deep inside. As Gavyn had pointed out, the reality was that the wound had healed, my emotions about it had not. He’d said that in order to heal, one must achieve a form of inner peace that would translate to the wound. He’d said that in my case, the wound was no longer festering. I felt the pain because I wouldn’t let the memory go.

Great, I huffed a breath, flipping a stray hair into the air. I might as well stick a friggin’ Bandaid on it and call it good. I let out a cleansing breath and concentrated on the ache in my side. “Okay, girl, get it together.” I mumbled, closing my eyes. I focused my mind again, releasing all my inner turmoil. Step by step, I released my memories.

He was angry. He would reclaim his power.

My chest rose and fell rapidly as it unfolded. His hands squeezed my shoulders, I was frozen with terror. He would take me again. He would send me to some cave far away. The long ago threats of his Council had sent chills up my spine. I’d be alone, chained to some rotting wall just waiting to be pulled from the darkness. He would use my body and steal my power.

He wanted me. His lips had been like ice on my neck, his teeth, like white hot needles threatening to take.

Always take.

But then, a light had come on in my soul. I was stronger. My nightmare was over because I was stronger!

I gripped the bedding in my hands as the memories assaulted me.

I’d pulled away and it had angered him. He’d turned me roughly and yanked the ring from my hand. I remember the joy as I used my power to turn the precious metal into liquid, destroying the ring for ever. I smiled then, as the precious diamond rolled away as worthless to me as a stone.

His smug face had changed, his smile gone, and was replaced with a mask of fury. I tried to use my magic on him. Make him sorry he ever saw me!

Nothing.

He was immune.

I felt my body jerk as the ghost of his fury washed over me. We flew at each other, his movements were meant to subdue. He was so quick and his body so sleek that he was able to avoid my blows while still trying to drag me from the house. I slid out of his grip at every turn.

He was so much stronger and his patience was inexhaustible. I was not.

His grip had been solid around my middle, forcing the air from my lungs as I struggled to scream. He was going to win, he’d gained the front door.

Then I had an idea. My power didn’t work on him, but it still worked on me. I filled my body with supernatural strength and tore myself from his grip. His fingers dug painfully into my flesh and I was suddenly free. Pain seared through my side as I flew through the air, falling fast to land on the splintered wood of my porch.

Shock paralyzed my limbs as my blood painted the scarred wood. A hunk of my flesh had torn clean from my side.

Seth’s wail of terror still pierced my ears.

Horror filled his eyes as my blood soaked into the wood. He rushed to me; his eyes had been wild as my blood flooded the ground.

White hot fear still screamed through my body as the memory of him lifting me from the porch filled my mind.

That was when everything had stopped.

I woke in my own bed, Lucian by my side.

Where had Seth gone? How did Lucian know I needed care?

My eyes jerked open and I looked around. I was still sitting on my bed. The adrenaline that raced through my veins slowed as I accepted what had happened. I closed my eyes again, forcing my body to calm while taking in oxygen deep and slow. My mind was less troubled. Lucian never said how he knew that I needed him or how long I had been out. When I woke, all signs of my struggle with Seth had been cleared. The roses had vanished and the blood I’d spilled had been scrubbed from the porch.

I took in another cleansing breath allowing my thoughts to flow freely. Seth was no longer after me; he was now a tiny traveler in my life. We tolerated each other because there was just no other way to manage it. I really didn’t mind him stepping into my life every now and again, which was strange because I knew that I should hate every cell in his body, but no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn’t. Seth also seemed perfectly content with our mutual tolerance, although he did always try to press it further and further.

The reality was that fighting Seth was pointless. He was shocked and horrified with what he had done. Spilling my blood had never been part of his plan. I saw it on his face and that was a hard pill to swallow. Seth, the vampire, with a heart? What a crock of crap that was.

Still, I had woken up in my own bed with Lucian at my side and something told me that he wasn’t there by coincidence.

I rolled my head around my shoulders as more tension fled. Peace gradually settled in my heart. My body had grown warm, almost relaxed.

I focused on the pain and my side grew warmer. Opening my mind to what had happened was the key. The pain began to fade replaced with even more heat. The heat grew with each passing second and then I jumped. “Shit!” I yelled, scrambling off the bed, I yanked my robe off and ran into the bathroom patting at my side frantically.

My reflection was laughable. My eyes were huge orbs of panic. God, I thought I set my damn robe on fire! I turned, examining my skin. It was glowing.

Oh hell.

I winced and spun from the mirror in a panic before the reflection of the real me could make my day any worse. My true Madea face was just too much for my psyche to take, so I spent every moment in a constant glamour of my old self.

I straightened my shoulders and walked from the room, painfully aware of the fact that I had way more issues than a simply achy side.

A knock on the door had me throwing on a new glamour and a full set of clothes. My hair was pulled back into a braid before I opened the door.