Enchantment (41 page)

How many times could her heart break before it shattered? She knew she should just get it over with, but she couldn’t do it. Not yet. The Veyjivik trackers wouldn’t be back for another month. She could wait until the wedding to tell him. But she’d have to do it before she and Hunter exchanged vows. She knew that Josh was planning to comfort her as soon as Hunter did what he had to do and left. It wouldn’t be fair to let it go that far. But for the next few days, she wanted to spend every second with Josh and she wanted those seconds to be happy. It was the last gift she’d ever be able to give Josh. It wasn’t enough, but it was all she had.

When they got back, Channie gave Josh her willow basket and sent him to the hen house to collect eggs while she skinned and cleaned the rabbit on the butcher block behind the cabin. Aunt Wisdom had already cut up the meat and added it to the stew pot when Josh walked in and set the basket on the kitchen table.

Channie peeked inside and frowned. There were only three white eggs. “Is that all you found?” Unless a fox had raided the hen house, or the Rhode Island Reds had quit laying, there should have been at least a dozen brown eggs.

Josh said, “Why don’t we eat the chickens instead of trapping rabbits?”

“Rabbits don’t lay eggs.”

“They don’t bite and scratch either.” He held his arms out to show Channie the welts and peck marks peppering the back of his hands.

“Wanna bet?” She pulled back her sleeve to show him the faint but jagged scar that ran up the inside of her forearm.
 

“A rabbit did that?”

“I thought it was dead, but when I loosened the noose, it kicked the living daylights out of me. Got away too.” Just thinking about it made her mad. Channie grabbed her basket and said, “Come on, I’ll show you how to handle the hens.”

Josh bowed his head and said, “I hate chickens,” then followed her outside.

Channie grabbed a handful of corn from the feed bin and scattered it. All but one of the hens abandoned their nests and flocked to the ground.
 

Josh rolled his eyes and said, “Why didn’t you tell me to feed them first?”

“I’m sorry, it’s just something I’ve done all my life, It never occurred to me that you wouldn’t know.” She lifted the broody hen off her nest, much to the chicken’s dismay, and held her against her body while Josh grabbed her eggs.
 

When they finished, Josh set the basket on top of the feed bin, pulled Channie into his arms and kissed her. It was almost painful, the way he crushed his mouth against hers, desperate and needy. She shouldn’t let him kiss her, it was cruel to let him think she’d changed her mind, but she was powerless in his arms. Josh filled her senses and crowded out everything else, pushing Hunter, the Veyjiviks and the Book of the Dead to the far recesses of her mind.
 

When they came up for air, Josh said, “I’ve been wanting to do that all morning.”

“Why didn’t you?” They’d been alone in the forest all morning, the fresh scent of pine tickling their noses. Channie couldn’t think of a less romantic place to make out than the hen house.
 

“I didn’t want to give you the wrong impression.”

Channie lifted her eyebrows.

“You know? … that all I care about is the physical stuff?”

Channie brushed the curls off his brow with her fingertips and said, “I don’t want to give you the wrong impression, either.”
 

Josh’s eyes filled with tears, but he smiled and pulled her close before they overflowed. He kissed the top of her head. “I’m not giving up on us. Not yet. After you’re married, if you still want me to leave, I’ll go.”

How did he know? How could he possibly know what she’d been thinking? It shouldn’t have surprised her. Josh always knew what was in her heart.

~***~

The next two days passed in a blur of misery. Channie and Josh tried to pretend that they were coping, for each other’s sake, but it was clear to both of them that they weren’t.

When Channie woke up on December 2, Josh was gone. She didn’t even bother to get dressed. She ran to the front porch and collapsed against the rail with relief when she saw that his car was still there. Still parked at the bottom of the hill. She was afraid he’d left without saying good bye. The bike rack on the roof was empty. That made sense. If Josh had any chance of finding comfort today, it would be on his bicycle.

But there was no comfort for Channie, and there never would be again. Her stomach clenched around the cold stone of dread in her belly. She wrapped her arms across her chest and rocked forward in pain. This was not how she’d imagined her wedding day.

She grabbed a couple of logs off the pile stacked against the south side of the cabin and stoked the fire in the potbellied stove. She drug a chair away from the kitchen table and huddled in the corner next to the stove. Within minutes, her skin glowed red but she still felt cold inside. Shadows crept across the splintered floorboards as the sun moved across the sky, reaching for the western hills, dragging her heart with it as it fell behind the ridge.

It was nearly dark when Hunter knocked on the door then opened it without waiting for an invitation. “Hey, Channie.”

“Hey.”

“Where is everyone?”

“I don’t know. They were gone when I woke up this morning.”
 
She barely recognized her own voice. Monotone, overly polite, empty.

“Why are you sitting in the dark?” Hunter set a bouquet of Sandwort, Lady’s Slipper and Larkspur on the table then lit the lantern hanging from the support beam.

Channie suppressed the urge to chastise him for magically forcing the wildflowers to bloom out of season, causing irreparable damage to the plants.
 

He slipped out of his overcoat and hung it on a nail next to the front door. “Um … the moon will rise soon. Shouldn’t you get ready?”
 

Channie followed his gaze from her tangled hair to her dirty hands as she absently picked at a hole in her flannel nightgown.

Hunter was wearing a threadbare suit coat that fell from his shoulders and covered all but his fingertips. The waist band of his dress trousers was pleated and cinched around his waist with a belt. His pant’s cuffs pooled over the tops his hiking boots — the only part of his getup that fit. He’d gone to a lot of trouble, borrowing a suit and gathering flowers.

She still didn’t want to marry him … much less sleep with him, but he was trying to make the best of the situation. The least she could do was change into a dress and brush her hair.
 

She nodded towards the kitchen and said, “Have a seat, I’ll go change.”

Channie found the dress Momma had made for her social debut hanging in the back of her chifferobe. Her debut would have been at the gathering during winter’s solstice which, ironically, just so happened to be Josh’s birthday. The irony of all ironies was that when Momma had taken Channie to Walmart to pick out the fabric, she’d chosen the emerald green velvet because Hunter had once commented on the unusual color of her eyes and she’d wanted to impress him.

Channie went into Momma and Daddy’s room and pulled the dress on, but couldn’t reach all the buttons in the back. She cracked the bedroom door open and said, “Hunter? Could you …?” She turned around and lifted her hair.

“My pleasure.” Hunter’s hands shook as he buttoned her dress.
 

Channie took shallow breaths through her mouth and silently counted each button as he fastened it.
Four, three, two, one, done!
She stepped away from him and shut the door.

How was she going to endure her wedding night if she could barely stand his touch on her back?

He knocked on the door. “Channie? Are you okay?”

“Could you get me a drink of water? I’ll be right out.”

“Sure.” Hunter sighed so loudly, she heard it through the closed door. “Take as much time as you need.”
 

Five minutes later, Channie opened the door.
 

The front room was unnaturally bright. At first she thought Hunter had lit another lantern. But kerosene lanterns didn’t pulse and buzz. Channie’s heart plunged to her feet, smacked the floor then bounced back into her throat. Hunter was holding the Book of the Dead … and the damned thing was glowing.

“Hunter! What are you doing? Put that down!”

“Is this it? Is this the book that’s causing all the ruckus?”

“Put it down. Now.”

“Okay, okay.” He laid it on the table, but kept one hand on the cover. “I was just curious.”

“And incredibly stupid.”

“I didn’t know what it was at first, but when it started glowing …” he nodded towards the book, “I thought I’d better check it out. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Channie wanted to smack him, but she settled for cussing him out, which had the same effect. He stepped away from the table and the book and gawked at her. He’d only known her as sweet, submissive, Enchantment. Chastity’s magic was gone, not its vocabulary. The poor boy had no idea who he was really marrying.
 

By now, the interior of the cabin was as bright as the noon-day sun. A tendril of smoke rose from the book as sparks carved a new name into the cover …
Joshua Veyjivik
.

~***~

Hunter said, “Holy mother of god. Your boyfriend is a Cumberland Mountain Mage? A freaking Veyjivik?” He backed away from Channie, reciting his own impressive vocabulary of cuss words, until he bumped against the back wall. Even then, it looked like he was trying to force his body through the mud chinks between the thick round logs. His voice rose until he was yelling loud enough to wake the dead. “What the hell? Are you trying to get me killed?”

“Josh isn’t a mage. He’s an Empty. His last name is Abrim, not Veyjivik.” Channie’s breath caught in her throat. Her hands tingled then went numb. Her fingers curled into fists against her will. Mr. Abrim had adopted Josh when he was a baby. Joshua
Vincent
Abrim …

She didn’t know any mages named Vincent, but … there was one named Vengeance. Dominance’s oldest son, Vengeance Veyjivik, the crown prince. He refused to participate in the coup that deposed Dominance’s father so she could take his place. According to all the stories, Vengeance died along with the rest of the royal family. But he must have escaped the palace fire and hid amongst the magically disabled, at least long enough to father Josh.
 

The front door slammed open. Josh burst into the cabin and said, “What happened? I saw the glow in the window.”

Hunter pointed at the table.

Josh crossed the room in three strides, took one look at the book and said, “How’d that damn book know my name?” He rolled his eyes then ran a hand through his hair, leaving behind a wake of rooster tails. “Not that it changes anything.”

Tears filled Channie’s eyes as her world splintered into a thousand pieces, then rearranged itself into a glorious, new reality. “It changes everything.” She cupped his cheeks in her palms and gazed into his sapphire eyes. “You, Joshua Veyjivik, are my royal mage.”

~***~

Hunter said, “Um … I hate to interrupt, but that book is on fire.”

Channie pulled her mouth from Josh’s with an audible smack that made them both laugh. Until they smelled the smoke. This time it was all lemon and sandalwood. Not a trace of lavender or sage.

She reached for the book, but Josh grabbed her wrist and said, “Don’t you dare go all Harry Potter on me.” He pointed at Hunter and said, “Go find Channie’s Aunt.”

Hunter said, “Yes sir,” and ran outside, slamming the door behind him.

Josh did a double take then cocked his head and quirked the side of his mouth into the crooked smile Channie loved so much. “Did he just call me… ‘
sir
?’”

Channie giggled, then slapped her hand over her mouth. Josh was still Josh, but he was also a Cumberland Mountain Mage. A freaking Veyjivik, as Hunter had so eloquently put it. But that wouldn’t protect him from Dominance. In fact, if she learned there was a legal heir to the throne, she’d forget all about Channie’s family and focus all her resources on finding and killing Josh.

Josh reached for the book.

“No!” Channie grabbed his arm and dug her fingers into his bicep. Things were complicated enough without adding another curse to their lives.

Josh turned around and hugged her, resting his chin on her head as he rocked her back and forth. “It’s okay, babe. I have a feeling.”

“Of course you do.” Channie didn’t want Josh to touch the book much less open it, but it was his name on the cover, his scent in the air, his magic guiding him. She knew instinctively that everything they’d gone through had intentionally led them to this moment. She stepped to the side but kept a hand on Josh’s shoulder as he opened the book.

Just like before, sparks danced across the page and revealed a new set of instructions in poetic form …

Son of Vengeance seeking light,

Grasp the hilt and join the fight.

Claim your place among your kin

And lay to rest your father’s sin.

For you were born to rule and reign,

To save us all from ruin and pain.

You have one year to learn and grow,

To gain the skills you need to know.

For the total eclipse on solstice night

Ordains the heir that wins the fight.
 

Nothing is promised, nothing is given,

Never give up, ‘till all is forgiven.

Follow your heart and save her life,

Take the enemy’s daughter and make her your wife.

Josh snapped a photo of the words with his phone then said, “You are my enemy’s daughter, right?”

“Your clan swore a blood oath to kill my whole family.”

“And I have to marry you … or you’ll die?”

Channie folded her arms across her chest. “If that’s your idea of a marriage proposal, Joshua Vincent Abrim, you can just kiss my lily white—”

Josh kissed her all right, full on the mouth and with so much passion it took her breath away. Her heart stopped then made up for lost time, pinging against her breastbone, ribs and spine like a ricochetting bullet.