Spellbound: The Awakening of Aislin Collins (18 page)

“I said sit near me wench,” he yelled, as he
pulled my arm and tried to place me on his lap.

I fought with him, but that only made the
carriage sway and the horses' rear up in protest. Poor Becky
screamed. She hated horses and certainly did not enjoy the threat
of being thrown from the carriage. Zachariah laughed at Becky's
cries.

“See what your resistance does?” he said
proudly.

I thought of Becky and submissively placed
myself on his lap.

“Good girl. Now if you can only learn to
fetch a hare or bark on command,” he snickered.

I ignored him as best I could and engaged
Abigail in conversation. “What have you learned about your
fiancé?”

“Not much really,” her expression was dreamy
and distant, “He enjoys hunting and imports many things from
overseas like rum, jewelry, and slaves,” she said proudly.

“Will that not bother you?”

Zachariah slapped my thigh, “You are such a
stupid girl Aislin! Why would her husband's activities bother her?
They are none of her business. He makes a hefty profit and that is
all Abigail needs to know.”

“What about compatibility? What if Abigail
finds out that she does not like him?” I demanded from her
brother.

“Well not all women are as lucky as you
Aislin. They do not get to be in love with their betrothed.”

I was about to respond to his despicable
remark when the carriage stopped short. I was thrown off
Zachariah's lap and onto Abigail.

“What the hell did you stop for you fool?”
Zachariah swore at the driver.

I could hear Becky breathing heavily and the
driver did not respond.

“Stay here,” he commanded, as he climbed to
the carriage door to let himself out.

Abigail and I sat quietly. She was wide-eyed
and trembling.

Becky let out a shriek and I heard Zachariah
tell her to be silent. I pushed passed Abigail and opened the
carriage door.

“What are you doing?” she whispered.

“I want to see. It is better then sitting in
here blindly waiting to be attacked by highwaymen,” I said to
her.

She froze at my words and buried herself
under her cloak. She looked like a rabbit scurrying down into a
burrow.

My vision was blocked by the side of the
carriage. I peered out to find Zachariah standing over some object
that lay in the middle of the road. I could not see Becky or the
driver from my angle, but I could tell from their quickened breath
and shaken voices that both were frightened.

“It's dead,” Zachariah said while kicking the
object with the tip of his boot. “There's not much left of it
though.”

I jumped out of the carriage and made my way
to his side. He was standing over some kind of large animal and it
looked as though it was shredded to pieces.

“Did I not tell you to stay in the carriage?”
he asked snidely.

“What kind of animal was that?” I asked.

“A bear.”

“What could do that to a bear?” I
whispered.

“Nothing I have ever seen. This is different
to what has happen to our animals, which is why you should
get
back into the carriage
.”

I looked down at the poor beast. Its fur was
completely gone and large cuts of flesh were missing, exposing
bone. Fresh blood was splattered everywhere and stained the road
with dark red patches. Entrails were strewn across the path.

The horses were uneasy and kept kicking and
bucking as though they sensed something that we did not. I felt
lightheaded and swayed; and as I did so, I caught a fleeting
vision. I knew what had done this. It was the Puca.

I looked over at Becky and knew that she had
come to the same conclusion.

“I feel ill,” I leaned on Zachariah's
shoulder to steady myself, which he immediately mistook to be a
sign of affection. He placed his arm around me, and I quickly
pulled my hand away from him.

“Once again . . . go back to the carriage,”
he snapped, as he realized that I recoiled at his touch.

“Can Becky tend to me please?” I asked,
hoping that he would allow me to usher Becky to safety.

“I do not care,” he said in an annoyed
tone.

Becky was at my side in an instant and
whispered, “Thank you,” in my ear, as she pushed me up into the
carriage.

Abigail was still buried underneath her cloak
when we seated ourselves.

“It is just a dead bear. They will move it
and then we can go,” I said to the trembling mound of fabric.

She peaked out from underneath and then
decided that it was much safer beneath the cloak. Only a strand of
her carrot colored hair was left to the outside world.

Becky rolled her eyes at the silly girl, and
I clutched tightly to the contents of my pocket. We both knew the
danger that lurked outside the carriage, but we had both faced it
before—although I had not fully known what it was capable of until
now.

********************

Zachariah and the driver tried to move the
carcass but it was far too large for them to manage. Instead, the
horses were led around the remains and we drove on to the port.

Abigail's spirits lifted the moment that we
stepped out of the carriage. Mine dropped. All I could think about
was the Grey Man and our first encounter.

Zachariah left us to go to the tavern and we
walked towards the merchant tables, where we hoped to find white
silk for Abigail. The sun was shining brightly, although the air
was cut with a chill. Winter was upon us now and the breeze that
swept up from the harbor lodged its chill into the bones.

Abigail bounced happily from merchant to
merchant, telling all who would listen of her engagement to the
wealthy Mr. Sutphin. Becky and I stayed behind Abigail and followed
her around. Neither of us was happy to be at the port. Becky seemed
rather nervous and looked upon Abigail with exacerbation.

“If she keeps telling pirates of her
engagement, she's liable to be kidnapped for ransom,” Becky
warned.

I heeded her advice and stopped Abigail's
bragging. She was annoyed. She liked receiving as much attention as
she could, but seemed to understand my concern and ceased her
behavior.

Abigail linked arms with me, “You have always
looked after me, Aislin and for that I love you.” She smiled at me,
as she moved through the crowd of shoppers and merchants strolling
leisurely from table to table.

As we continued to amble, I noticed that a
young man was following us. At first, he kept his distance, but his
range had been closing in on us for several minutes. I wondered if
Becky's warning had come too late, but then I recognized him.

“Abigail,” I said turning her around from
where she stood draped in three colors of fabric, “Isn't that
Jack?” I glanced back at the boy, with his mop of light blonde hair
pulled back into a ponytail and his big brown eyes gazing sullenly
at Abigail.

Her face flushed and she smiled widely at
him. I looked to see him blushing as well.

“I thought you did not care for Jack?” I was
bewildered by their blatant flirtations.

Abigail told Becky to go down the rows and
look for white lace to go with her gown, giving us privacy. She
then pulled me away from where a group of Burlington women were
talking and shopping. She meant to tell me something that was not
meant for all to hear.

“We have been having a tryst!” she giggled
while covering her mouth with her hands, her face turning bright
pink.

I could not believe my ears. Before me stood
young, sweet, Abigail, surely she could not be caught up in such
things. After all, she swore that she did not care for Jack
anymore.

“Are you
mad
? What if your father
finds out?” I hissed.

She kept smiling and then started acting as
though she was very mature and very wise, puffing her chest out and
speaking in a tone of grandeur. “Oh Aislin, it is just a little
tryst before my wedding. Is it wrong to want to know the lips of
someone young when I am to marry someone who is near my father's
age?”

“How long has this been going on?” I
demanded.

“Ever since the night the hunting parties
began,” she said deviously, “We meet at your father's shop as soon
as all the men have gone into the woods!”

It was hard for me to believe that the silly
girl who could not even muster up the courage to say hello to Jack,
was now slipping away with him for an affair.

“Do you have feelings for Jack?”

She rolled her green eyes at me and sighed,
“You are so naïve Aislin. This is not about love. This is about
enjoying my womanly rights before I am bound to the side of an old
man. You could not possibly understand what I have been feeling
because you are promised to a young man yourself. But I will be
forced into the arms . . . and bed of someone old.” Her mouth
twitched as her last words resonated in the air.

I understood more than she knew. Not of age,
but of being betrothed to one you did not desire or love.

“Does Jack know about your marriage?”

“Yes, of course. The whole town knows of my
marriage. It is just for fun Aislin.”

I looked over at the smitten Jack who was
following Abigail as though he was her puppy. I had a feeling that
Jack had no clue of Abigail's motives. I turned toward Abigail,
waiting for her to expound on the situation, but she had already
walked back to the merchant tables to shop. She ignored Jack when
he called her name and draped herself in more white fabric.

Instead of following her, I walked a few
tables down. I had a feeling that Jack was about to approach her
and I did not want to be in the middle of that conversation. I
meandered passed a few tables in search of Becky, but saw a
specific display that caught my eye. The table was covered in
exotic fabrics and I moved in closer to inspect. This particular
table was crowded with people, but I pushed my way forward and
picked up a spool of white silk. It reminded me of the material
that I was wearing in the painting that hung in Greer's bedchamber.
I wondered if I could afford to buy the fabric just in case Greer
and I ever were able to marry. I went to put the fabric back down
when something grabbed me. It happened so fast that I could not
even breathe. Everything was blurry as I was moved away from the
port.

Then all movement stopped and I was being
pressed against a wall. I looked up and was immediately encompassed
in a kiss—Greer's kiss.

“I could not resist you,” he whispered, as he
gently kissed his way down my cheek.

I struggled to catch my breath but found it
impossible to fight the sensations that I felt.

“How did you find me?” I asked.

“I have been escorting you the whole
journey,” he smiled at me and stared into my eyes.

I stared back, his eyes looked beautiful in
the soft light and a crooked smile pulled on his lips. “Did you
think I would leave you alone with that brute again?”

I looked around and saw that we were in a
small, dark room. It was covered with wooden planks from floor to
ceiling, and it seemed to sway. We were on a ship.

I reached up and ran my fingers through his
dark hair, the soft wavy strands felt like silk to the touch. He
was so close to me that I could not feel any space between us. He
kissed my lips and my knees weakened. I wanted to be closer still.
I was completely encompassed in the moment we were sharing. Time
slowed down, we were together and alone, and it was perfect.

“We should stop.” He gently moved my arms
from around his neck.

I was broken from the spell of our embrace,
“Why?” I asked sadly.

“Because we never did get our wedding night
Aislin . . . I want it to be perfect,” he said shyly.

“Then you plan to marry me?” I asked
hopefully.

Greer's expression became dark, his brows
creased together and I began to dread the answer to the question I
had asked.

“Of course I plan on marrying you! How could
you think otherwise?” his temper was showing now. He seemed
insulted by my words, and worse still, he appeared hurt.

I found myself stuttering, tripping over my
words, “I was not sure… you said that you would not allow me to
marry Zachariah, but you never said you wanted to marry me. I did
not know . . . I hoped you wanted me.” I could not look at him so I
studied my hands.

His expression softened towards me and he
kissed me strongly, “I am so sorry my love. Even though we have
been apart for so long, when I’m with you, it feels as though we
were never separated. At times, I forget that some things need to
be said aloud. I should be more understanding.” He bent down on one
knee and took my hand in his, “Aislin, I swear that I will marry
you,” he looked away from me as though some horrible thought
overtook him, “If, of course, you will have me?” he asked
quietly.

I bent down so we were at eye level, “I want
nothing more than to be with you.”

“You do not know what you are condemning
yourself to,” his voice was full of regret.

“I do not care that you are like Dearg-dul. I
only care that I am with you.”

“I fear that I may hurt you,” he
whispered.

“You will not. You love me.”

“Indeed, I love you more than life itself.”
He pulled me toward him and we embraced. The waves beneath the ship
gently rocked us back and forth as he kissed me. He brushed his
fingertips across my neck, just as he had done in my vision. His
eyes were half- open and he leaned in to kiss just above his
fingers, but then he stopped abruptly and recoiled.

“I must take you back,” he said shortly,
“Before you are discovered missing.”

“Can we run away? We could hide, and then
find a ship to take us somewhere far away.” I spoke the words as a
thought, but it was obvious that I was pleading with him.

Greer smiled at me but I could see pity in
his eyes, “You read too many books Aislin. We must stay here and
fight our battle.”