Wonder Never (The Fairytale Diaries #2) (10 page)

Chapter 18

A
fter another seemingly endless trek, they came to a mansion roosting in the trees. Gisèle gasped as it appeared to them. It was painted a dozen different colors with towers, balconies, and elaborate stained glass windows. It would've been majestic were it not in such obvious disrepair. The sprawling manor was like a once happy thing that had died and been left to rot.

They led her to the massive front door of the place. The blonde girl pushed the door open, revealing darkness and a musty smell beyond.

"He's in there," the terse man stated. He shoved Gisèle and she stumbled into the darkness. The heavy door slammed shut behind her.

She threw herself against it, savagely beating the door. She screamed bitterly, trying the door only to find it seemed to be locked from the other side.

"Gisèle!"

She stopped short, becoming instantly quiet.

"Daddy?" she screamed into the darkness.

"Gisèle! Gisèle! Get out of here!"

The voice was muffled and distant, but it was her father. She'd recognize it anywhere. She raced into the darkness.

***

She found him in a dank cellar. Lit only by pale moonlight that snuck in a few small barred windows near the low hanging ceiling, Gisèle could barely make him out, shackled to the dingy stone wall. He sat on a dirt floor among various debris, skittering insects, and a few squeaking rats.

Upon her entry, he leapt to his feet and fought against his restraints.

"What are you doing here?" Ernest cried. "I said to leave, Gisèle! Get out of here and RUN!" His face crumpled and he began to weep.

Gisèle ran to him and threw her arms around him, crying mournfully to herself. He gently pushed her back.

"GO!" he demanded frantically. "Now, run!"

"No, Daddy! Not without you."

Their squabble was interrupted by a raspy voice.

"You can save your father."

She gasped at the sound of the voice and cowered against her father, who enveloped her protectively.

"It's him," Ernest Pettigrew whispered. She felt her father trembling from head to toe.

"How? How can I save him?" Gisèle said into the nothingness.

"Do not speak to it!" her father demanded in a distraught whisper.

The terrifying voice sounded again. "If you agree to stay, I will return your father to Enchantica, unharmed."

"NO! NO!" Ernest shouted. He took Gisèle by the shoulders and shook her gently. "No," he said, speaking directly in her face. "Now, I mean it, Gisèle! GET OUT OF HERE!"

Gisèle stepped away from her father and turned her face upward, to address the empty air again. "Yes, OK, fine. Just let my father go."

Ernest wailed, savagely yanking against the shackles, demanding his daughter be released.

"Mr. Pettigrew," the voice rasped. "You can leave, and neither of you will be harmed. Or, you can refuse, and both you and Gisèle will be killed."

"I said I'll do it!" Gisèle screamed.

In a matter of minutes, the white haired man came into the cellar, this time accompanied by a decrepit looking black man. They unlocked Ernest's restraints and dragged him kicking and screaming from the room.

The door slammed shut with a resounding boom. Gisèle fell to the floor and wailed.

***

It seemed as though a long time passed before Gisèle heard the voice again.

It told her that its name was Pierre Damien. Gisèle didn't care in the slightest who or what it was, but without much choice, she listened to the eerie whisper.

The tale that unfolded as incredible and Gisèle found herself drawn into it, despite herself. Pierre spoke of a curse that had robbed him of his physical body, his parents, and eleven years of his life. He spoke of magic and loneliness and finally of finding her through an enchanted mirror.

And falling desperately in love with her.

Pierre amazed her with how familiar he was with her own lonely existence. Different than most, he knew she was mostly ostracized by her peers and that her own sisters made her life miserable. He spoke of wanting to save her from that, and give her the magical life she'd always dreamed of.

By the time he neared the end of his tale, he'd tugged at her heartstrings; she couldn't help it. That anyone could know her so well, understand her deep inside, it touched her. But then he revealed that he had to provide a sacrifice to the witch in the woods if he wanted to return to his life as it once was.

Gisèle scurried into a corner, cowering and afraid once more. Her hopes plummeted as she realized his sad story was just a farce.

"Gisèle, my love! Don't cry! What I mean is that I'll happily sacrifice my old life. Throw it all away forever. Stay in my present state,
forever
! If you can love me as I am!"

She began to calm again, relieved. "Pierre," she said in a tiny voice. "Where are you? Please show yourself to me!"

After a moment of utter quiet, a foul smelling draft passed through the cellar, lifting the hair from Gisèle's face. And then the beast materialized before her.

Gisèle began to shriek, a piercing unhuman scream of insane horror. Her hair turned white before his eyes, the sight of him so horrified her.

***

Pierre Damien wept so bitterly as he dragged Gisèle into the woods, that his sorrow seemed to permeate the air and cause the trees to tremble. She fought him like an animal, seeming to have entirely lost her mind.

He should've known it would never work.

"HERE! HERE IS YOUR SACRAFICE WITCH!" Pierre screamed.

He didn't know what to expect. After a long time he feared it hadn't worked. He wondered if he had to kill Gisèle himself.

But then the smell of sulfur seeped around them and he knew the witch was near, even though he did not see her.

Then just like that, some unseen force jerked Gisèle from his grasp. She was dragged crazily fast into the trees and devoured by the shadows.

When the sound of her scream finally faded, Pierre turned. His face broke into a grin when he found his parents standing there. They knelt to welcome him into their open arms as he'd returned to the state he'd been in at eight years old.

He fell joyfully into their arms and it was as though not a day had passed. The beauty was forgotten.

Part V

Wishes

Chapter 19

I
t always embarrassed Alan LeBeau when his girlfriend came to his house.

He shared a small ramshackle farm with his mother Helene LeBeau, and twin brother Jack. The place, situated just outside Enchantica, had once been a profitable operating farm with rolling cotton fields and healthy animals. But after his father passed several years back, it had swiftly declined. Helene did her best to keep it up, but simply wasn't a capable farmer or good in finances. First she failed to give the machinery proper maintenance and after that the crops began to fail. Then, unable to afford feed and care for the cattle without crop money coming in, many of the animals died before they could be sold off. The small farmhouse began falling into disrepair. They were down to one milk cow, and the mortgage lender darkening their door far too frequently.

Alan's girlfriend, the lovely Roxan Richelieu, on the other hand, came from one of the wealthiest families in Enchantica. They were both seniors at Enchantica High, and it had shocked him during their sophomore year when the beautiful girl took a shining to him.

Alan felt inferior to Roxan's social status from the beginning, and that feeling never subsided. Particularly since her father made no secret of his hatred for Alan. A cold and old fashioned man, Mr. Richelieu made clear he expected his daughter to graduate and marry a man from a wealthy family who was worthy of her. Alan had no idea how he might support Roxan if they did eventually marry, and deep down he feared Mr. Richelieu was right about him. However, drawn to Roxan's exotic dark beauty and her sweet kind disposition, he went against his better judgement and fell in love with her.

Anyway, she didn't seem to notice their differences. She demonstrated nothing but pride in being Alan's girlfriend. She never mentioned the run down backdrop of his life. So he tried not to fret about his shabby home when she came around.

That morning she'd appeared after breakfast, bouncing up the front walk wearing her characteristic gorgeous smile. He was sweeping the front porch and accepted her kiss as a greeting.

"So," she said, plopping onto the rickety front porch swing. "Did you hear another girl has gone missing?"

Alan gave her a look of shock as he took a seat next to her. "No! Who is it?"

"Gisèle Pettigrew from our class!"

"Oh, no," he said frowning. "This is really getting crazy. I don't think you should be walking out here by yourself, Roxan."

She waved off his concern. "Well, there's another interesting development. It turns out; Gisèle's father was actually reported missing the night before she went missing. And now he's back, and she's gone."

"Wow, that's crazy. Where does he say he was?"

Roxan's eyes sparkled, intrigued by the mystery of the whole thing. "He was found roaming some country road fifty miles away. Now get this. Mr. Pettigrew claims he was in some evil town in the woods and that a beast from there took Gisèle. And he doesn't know how to get back to it."

Alan pondered the odd tale for a moment. "Roxan," he said, afraid she might think him a little crazy. "Do you remember those old wives' tales people told about the woods when we were kids? Doesn't this sound a little like that?"

"That's what I thought too," she whispered conspiratorially. "But, of course, authorities are saying he's had a mental break down and he's in the hospital under surveillance. They think he's done something to Gisèle. And maybe Clementine and Julienne too."

"It's sad," he commented gravely.

Roxan nodded. "Especially because, I think Mr. Pettigrew's telling the truth."

***

Roxan stayed through lunch then agreed to let Alan walk her back to her home in Enchantica. She invited him in, but feeling intimidated by the mansion and the possibility of running into Mr. Richelieu, he passed. He had work to do at home anyway.

Later he shared a quiet supper with his mother. His brother Jack was at work. Both twin LeBeau boys had jobs in local restaurants, but Alan was enjoying a day off. It was when he was clearing the dinner dishes that there came a knock at the front door.

Helene's ears perked. "You expecting somebody?" she asked nervously.

"No, Mom," he said moving in the direction of the front door.

"Well then don't answer!" The poor woman was always afraid of debt collectors at the door.

"Mom," Alan said gently. "It's OK."

"Alan! Don't answer!" she cried again as he walked away.

Ignoring her irrational paranoia, he went to answer the door, where he found an exceptionally tall man. Everything about the man was dark. Messy hair, shadowy eyes, even his complexion. He wore work overalls that looked dirty and disheveled. Something about his expression seemed menacing. Alan disliked him on sight.

"May I help you?" Alan asked, his tone hard, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"As I live and breathe! Samuel LeBeau!" Helene exclaimed as she walked up next to her son. She gave Alan's arm a gently slap. "It's your uncle, let him in!"

Frowning, Alan reluctantly stood aside to allow the man entry. He watched his mother warmly embrace him, even crying happily over the reunion. All the while, Alan wracked his brain for any memory of this man and came up with nothing.

Helene ushered them into the living room. She took a seat on the couch with Samuel, while Alan sat across the room eyeing the man suspiciously. His mother explained that Samuel was his father's brother who'd disappeared decades ago. She gushed over the man, saying she'd though he was long since dead.

Alan listened as Samuel gave some flimsy explanation for bailing on the family. He didn't buy it for a minute, and felt aggravated that his mother apparently did. Then Samuel went on to make grandiose promises of helping Helene out and restoring the farm.

Helene blubbered gratefully. Alan's blood boiled. He didn't know
how
he knew; he just
knew
the man was a snake in the grass.

Samuel went on to say he had a job for the boys that very evening. Alan quickly informed that Jack was already at his job, and that he personally wasn't interested.

Helene's face fell and the subtle darkening of Samuel's expression didn't escape Alan. But the long lost uncle kept his tone light to keep up appearances for Helene.

"Aw, come now. If you do a good job tonight, there will be more jobs for you. There's ten bucks in it for you."

"No thanks," Alan said firmly.

"Alan!" Helene snapped. "This family is in no place to turn down a paying job. Now you'll go with your uncle and do as he says." Her face softened as she peered at her son. "Besides, it might be fun. You can get to know your Uncle Sam!"