Jack and the Beanstalk (Faerie Tale Collection) (3 page)

“Me missus and I like to go a’walkin’ out in them woods every now and then, but you gotta be keepin yer eyes on the lookout because you never know what you’s bound to find in them woods. Can clean scare the hair right off yer moustache, them woods do.”

Jack raised his brows. “And you took your wife out there?”

“Oh, goodness, no!” The man laughed and pounded the thick wooden table. “Nay. Me wife took
me
, she did! She likes to scare herself silly and takes me along only ‘cuz it makes her laugh to see me catch fright too.”

“She sounds like a brave woman indeed.”

“Aye. She can outride and outshoot any man, and she’s got a temper to match! She’s a mean ‘un!”

Jack could not imagine his sweet Rachel doing any such thing. His brows rose even more. “My word.”

“Aye, she be a fine woman indeed. A very fine woman.” Charlie leaned over and nudged Jack with his elbow. The smell of ale on his warmth breath assaulted Jack’s nostrils. “But don’t you go a lookin’ at her and wantin’ her for yerself! With yer pretty looks and bright gold hair, you’d be catchin her eye right quick. But she’s mine there. Mine, I say.”

Jack coughed, positive by the worn features of the man that his wife no doubt looked to be every bit her age. “You have nothing to worry about, sir. I am engaged to a beautiful maiden. I would not look elsewhere if a world of beauties came flocking to my door.”

“A pretty speech for a pretty face, but I tells you—when you see her, you be lookin’ away right quick, if you knows what’s good fer ya.”

Jack chuckled. “I promise, I will!”

“Good.” The man grinned into his ale as he took another swig. “Anyways, as I was sayin’ afore I got so sidetracked by my lovely Mary, I was a gonna tell you—since you are new to these parts—don’tcha go down any of these wooden lanes without one of us to take ya. There are a right scary bunch of fears and jumbles of nightmares in them woods. You keep yerself along the marked and well-used paths or you never know what may come and getcha.”

The man had just given Jack the perfect opening to ask about the giant. Nodding, he said, “Thank you for that advice. I will surely take it.” He leaned closer to the man, this time ignoring the reek of warm ale. “Have you ever heard of giant men roaming about these parts?”

“Giants?” The man pulled back and looked around the group. When he saw that no one was watching them, he hissed, “Did you say giants?”

“Yes. Have you seen one?” Jack whispered.

“Have I? My great fright!” The man slapped his hand upon the table again. “Yes, I have. And I barely escaped to tell the tale.”

“Really?” Eagerly, Jack asked, “What was he doing here?”

Charlie glanced around then and fidgeted. “Aye. I probably look somethin’ odd to you about now, don’t I? But ye see, I can’t shake this feeling that the witch is what sent him to us. And I am always uneasy at the thought of her around us and maybe hearin’ right what we says.”

“The witch?” Jack’s stomach dropped. “You have a witch nearby? One who lives here in Larkein?”

The man threw his head back and guffawed a long while before exclaiming, “You means to tell me you came to Larkein and you had no’s notion of a witch abein’ here? Are you daft? Everyone knows we’s gots ourselves a witch. A downright nasty one, too!”

“Charlie, hush!” One of the men reached over and whacked him on the back of the head. “You’ve had too much ale tonight. Best be goin’ on home afore you cause trouble fer us all.”

Jack looked around the room. It was silent, eerily so. All twelve men were staring right at him. How had he not noticed the room becoming so still? The tension was as thick as butter. “I beg your pardon.” Jack swallowed. “He was just answering a few questions I had.”

Behind him, a distinct female voice answered, “I am surprised you thought to ask a simpering village fool about me when I am quite amenable to all questions. I am willing to answer them, if you but ask me personally. I am not a fan of hearsay, you see.”

CHAPTER FIVE

JACK SLOWLY TURNED IN his chair to see a beautiful woman standing just within the doorway of the inn. Her long black locks curled temptingly to the waist of her green velvet gown and she looked to be no older than him. He met her striking emerald gaze; it was hooded by thick, dark lashes. Certainly, she was one of the most stunning women he had ever beheld.

Jack cleared his throat. “Forgive my manners—I did not mean to offend when I asked about you of this good man here. I had not known you existed.”

She grinned, her full lips teasing him with the tilt of her smile. “Boy, you will soon learn that I do exist—very much so. In fact,” she took a step toward him, “I exist so well that I even know your name and your quest, Jack Waithwrite.” She raised a brow and placed a graceful hand on her hip.

He tried to hide his gulp as best as he could, but from the looks of the humored witch, it was obvious he did not succeed. “I—Well, hello,” he attempted.

She smirked. “Hello yourself, boy.”

“H—how do you know my name?”

As she laughed, Jack glanced at the men around him. No one would meet his eye. Indeed, not one of them would even look in his direction. She had the face of an angel, but from their reactions, she must be more wicked than he could imagine.

“Come with me, Jack. I have something I wish to show you.” She held out her hand and beckoned him. “We shall go for a walk, you and I.”

“Just around the stable yard?” he asked, worried to travel too far from the inn with Jill asleep upstairs.

She seemed to find his request amusing. Actually, she seemed to find every single thing about him amusing. It was a bit disconcerting.

“If you wish, I will not take you far from your fragile security.” She beckoned again. “Now come.”

Jack glanced back at Charlie, who briefly met his eyes with a slight shake of his head before staring into his empty mug of ale again.

Jack cleared his throat and stood up. Turning around, he met her bright emerald gaze. “Forgive me for changing my mind. I thank you for the offer, but it is getting quite late and I am tired.”

A flash of irritation went across her features as she asked, “I beg your pardon? What did you say?”

“I—I was merely—”

“I know what you said, boy!” she snapped, her pretty features distorting into an ugly snarl. “I am not used to being turned down. And I certainly hope that yet another Waithwrite is not attempting to do just that.” She folded her arms in front of her. “This is not up for negotiation. It was a command, Jack. You will follow me now, or you will be sorry.”

How exactly did she know who he was? A cold feeling of fear went through his body. She could not possibly be Cora Childress, not after all these years. His parents killed her, did they not? His gaze traveled the length of her intricate green velvet gown. She honestly did not look a day over twenty, and she would have to be at least twice that age. When his eyes met her impatient look, he simply said, “Yes, ma’am,” and followed her. What else was he to do?

“Smartly played, boy,” she whispered as they walked out into the dark night.

The inn was situated next to a narrow road. To the right of the tavern were the stables and large coach house, where weary travelers could exchanges horses or rest theirs up for the night. It faced a few brick cottages nestled together across the street in front of a large wooded area. The dwindling smoke from their chimneys showed that the families had more than likely gone to bed awhile ago.

The witch did not cross the road, but stayed in the wide stable yard as she had promised. She looked intently at the moon for several moments before Jack asked, “What did you wish to show me?”

His overcoat was upstairs, and his thin jacket did not hide the chill of the night breeze. He had expected to hear her speak immediately, and found that the longer he stood next to her in silence, the more frustrated he became. “Is there something you wished to say to me, perhaps?”

She brought one hand up to halt him, her gaze still focused upwards.

After a few more moments, he tried again. “Ma’am, if there is—”

“Shh!”

Jack folded his arms and tucked the jacket closer around his frame. He could feel the beginnings of a slight shiver coming on. It would not do to catch cold just because some silly witch had decided to demand nonsense of him. He shrugged his shoulders and began to return to the inn.

“I suggest you stay put another few minutes or you will never see your dear Rachel Staheli again.”

His whole body tensed before he whipped around. “Who are you?” he demanded.

She lowered her gaze and looked at him, her smirk challenging him to react badly. “Do you honestly want to know the answer to that question?”

He walked up to her. “Yes! You seem to be familiar with quite a lot about me—and I would like to know something about you. Who are you?”

Chuckling, she shook her head. “Aww… Little Jack, you should watch your temper around me. It is not wise to upset one with power.” All at once, her features twisted as one long arm snaked out and clutched the lapel of his jacket. “Remember this,” she hissed. “I am your worst enemy. I will always be the one who threatens your life and everything you hold dear! I nearly killed your father and mother, and I will not hesitate to destroy you.”

He found himself becoming more angry the longer she spoke. “What do you want, Cora Childress?”

She blinked and seemed surprised, but did not lessen her grip on his clothing. “I need you. I need to form a sort of uneasy alliance with you.”

He pulled away from her. “What do you mean?”

“I know how to get to Rachel, but I cannot go to the giant’s kingdom. I need you to do so.”

“You want Rachel?” Were all of the magical beings after his beloved?

“Of course not, you fool! What would I do with her?” Cora looked back up at the moon. “No, I want the giant—or more importantly, I want the baby he stole from me. I want my Verity back! And you and your sister are the only ones who can do it.”

CHAPTER SIX

JACK FELT AS IF his head were spinning. “Forgive me, but I do not understand. You had a baby? And the giant has stolen it?”

“Yes! And I want her back.”

“Why would the giant steal a child?”

She rolled her eyes and spun on her heel, the skirts of her dress fanning out behind her. “Because this child has a special gift, one that must be harnessed properly or it could destroy this world as we know it.”

A surprised chuckle burst from Jack. “Truly? The baby could destroy the world?”

“Yes!” She glanced back at him and then up at the sky. “It does not matter. The giant does not know how to control her gift anyway. No one knows how she does it, and I have only seen her use it twice before.”

“It must be some gift if a giant is willing to entertain a baby to have it.”

“It is.” Shaking her head, she continued, “But then again, being able to turn things into gold would be considered an amazing gift.”

Jack ran his hand through his blond curls and whistled softly. “Indeed!”

“I want her back—now. I do not like anything that is rightfully mine to be stolen away. I found her—she is mine. I need her returned safely.” Cora began to pace the gravel yard. “And you will do it for me—I saw to that.”

Wait. Could he have heard her properly? “You were behind Rachel’s disappearance?”

She waved away his anger. “Yes, of course. How else could I get Verity back? I needed a strong, brave lad to do it for me—a lad with Larkein blood in his veins.”

“Let me make sure I understand you fully.” He felt the fury within him begin to boil to new heights. “You risked the life of the woman I love. The woman I hope to marry very shortly. You have terrified her and made her completely traumatized and upset because you have a personal vendetta against a giant? And all of this you did so that I may act as your errand boy and fetch this baby for you?”

She stopped her pacing. “Yes, essentially. That is the gist of it.”

“Why?”
he roared, his rage filling the night.

She flinched and took a couple of paces back.

“Why would you do anything so dimwitted as to risk
my
Rachel?”

“Excuse me?” Cora put her hands on her hips.

“No!” He shook his head. “No, there is no excuse for you, ma’am! My grandfather, my father, and my mother were forced to play in your scheme, and now my sister and my dear fiancée and I find ourselves risking our lives for the same ignorant, selfish witch who nearly killed my family? Are you out of your mind?”

He walked up to her. “I know you have the power to do all sorts of things to me—I have heard the tales. I discern as well that you will most likely wish to eat me and my sister before this is all over. But I also recognize that you would not dare touch me now.”

“And why not?”

He grinned. “Because unlike my father in his day, I am familiar with your weaknesses.” Pulling a leather cord from within his shirt, he reached down until his fingers wrapped themselves around the small vial at the end of it and held it out to her. “I keep this on my person always. In case I will ever have use of it.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Is that my potion? Where did you find that?”

Smiling, he tucked it into his shirt again. “You left quite a bit of the stuff with my grandfather.”

“I would wipe that grin off your face. If you truly knew everything about me, you would know that I can freeze you at any second.”

He tilted his head and shrugged, hoping it would make her angry. “Yes, I know, but you will not.”

“Ha! Do not tempt me, boy. I have no use for such flippancy.”

“If you freeze me, how would I ever get to your dear golden baby? Hmm?” When she did not answer, he continued, “Rachel’s parents said the giant was not very bright. Who knows how well he is taking care of the child.”

Cora’s eyes widened at the realization.

“I am sure he has no idea how to feed her, what to give her, how to attend her—anything.”

“I am well aware of this!” she snapped. “Which is why I need you to come quickly!”

He took a deep breath and rubbed his jaw. “Two things I wish to understand at this time. First, how did you know I would come here?”