Wild Fire (The Fairy Tale Match Series) (38 page)

Shaken, Laura stood frozen against
the side of the cave wall. Victoria didn’t move. She didn’t even twitch.
Horrified, Laura inched slowly towards where Victoria lay. Reaching out a
shaking hand, she slowly gripped Victoria’s shoulder and rolled her over. She
choked back a cry, closing her eyes against the staring, twisted features of
the very dead Victoria, a knife sticking out of her chest where she’d landed on
it as she fell.

Laura lurched backwards, diving for
the entrance of the cave. She stumbled out into the forest, nausea rising
swiftly in her stomach. Hunching over, she threw up, retching long after her
stomach had emptied its contents. Wiping her mouth with the hem of her top, she
wished she had something to rinse her mouth out. She stumbled through the trees
with no idea where she was going. She only hoped she’d somehow reach the road
or some sign of people.

Over and over again, all she could
see in her mind’s eye was Victoria’s dead body. A sob worked its way from deep
inside. She hadn’t wanted the woman dead. She had simply wanted to stop
Victoria from killing her. Now she had someone’s death on her conscience. She
wondered how she was going to be able to cope with living with that memory.

It took several moments before the
sound of distant voices calling her name, penetrated her daze. Stopping, she
listened her heart pounding. Finally she recognised Jake’s voice. She opened
her mouth and screamed his name, wanting nothing more than to be in his arms,
safe and sound.

She heard crashing through the trees
as he thundered towards her. “Keep shouting to me sweetheart. I need to hear
where you are,” came his wonderful heaven sent voice. Laura shouted his name,
calling to him over and over again until suddenly he burst from the trees.
Running to her, he swept her into his arms, holding her close as she sobbed out
her ordeal. She didn’t even notice when Dan and the Sheriff arrived close
behind Jake. She simply clung to the man she loved and who she’d thought she’d
never see again.

Finally, as she began to calm down,
Jake pulled back. He smoothed her hair back from her injured face, gently
avoiding her bruises. He checked her over with his gaze. “Where are you hurt?”
he asked frantically, running his hands over her body.

“My ribs hurt,” she said quietly.
“Victoria went crazy back at the shed and she kicked me in them. I’m not sure
if anything is broken. Apart from that, I think I’m just bruised mainly.” She
touched her hand to her injured leg. “Oh and she caught me with the knife……”
She trailed off, her eyes going vacant.

Jake closed his eyes against the
trauma he could see in her expression. “We’ll get you to the hospital and have
you checked over,” he promised. She nodded vaguely. He hated to have to ask her
in the face of her ordeal, but they had to know. Gulping hard, he braced
himself for her reaction.

“Sweetheart, where is Victoria?” he
asked her softly, worry colouring his voice.

Laura closed her eyes against the
horror of what had happened. She knew she had to tell them. She couldn’t just
leave Victoria laying there, unseen to. “She’s in a small cave, somewhere
around here,” she whispered at last. “She had a knife and she was trying to
kill me. I thought I could hide in there from her, but she found me. We fought
and she……….oh God Jake, she’s dead!” she sobbed out, collapsing against his
chest.

He held her close, rocking her
backwards and forwards as if she was a small child. He glanced at Dan and the
Sheriff, shaking his head when the Sheriff looked like he wanted to question
Laura further. “Not yet,” he mouthed.

The man nodded acceptance. He took
out his radio and called for back-up. They would need to retrieve Victoria’s
body as soon as possible. Jake picked Laura up in his arms and carried her
swiftly through the forest, heading back to the parking area. She clung to him,
her arms holding onto him so tightly she was nearly choking him, but he didn’t
care. He knew she needed the comfort and support right now and he was
determined to give it to her.

“It’s alright now sweetheart,
everything is going to be okay,” Jake crooned to her comfortingly. She
continued to cry into his chest, soaking his skin with her tears. He gave a
worried glance to Dan who was walking swiftly beside them, texting Kerry to let
her know they’d found Laura alive.

They exited the forest at last and
climbed into Jake’s truck with Dan driving. Jake held Laura close, closing his
eyes and sending up a prayer of thanks that she’d been the one to live through
the confrontation. He felt himself shudder at the horror of all they’d been
through. He wondered if he’d ever know the truth of why Victoria and Walter had
put them through this. He drew his Laura against him, looking at her pale
bruised face. He’d almost lost her today. His body began to shake. He wasn’t
sure how they’d survived, but he’d thank God for the miracle every day of his
life.

*****

Lotta and Flo stood silently above
the dead body of Victoria. Sadly, they stood vigil until someone came to take
her away.

“Why do some mortals turn so bad
Lotta?” Flo asked, her usually jubilant nature very reserved for once.

“It is hard to say. It is different
for each person. Sadly Victoria never let herself see the truth of her father
or the reason her life really turned so bad. She let her anger and bitterness
twist her into something evil.” Lotta patted Flo comfortingly on the shoulder.

“Didn’t she have a fairy godmother?”
Flo asked bewildered. “She seems to have ended up a forgotten child. Was nobody
there to watch over her?”

Lotta sighed. “There is only so much
a fairy godmother can do, remember. A person has to be receptive to our help.
Victoria would have been blessed at birth with a gift and a fairy godmother,
but as the years went on, she no longer wanted to find love. Her heart was so
filled with hatred, her fairy godmother couldn’t have reached her, no matter
how hard she may have tried. We can’t be there for every mortal, when we don’t
have a chance of making a difference.”

“It seems so very sad that some
mortals doom themselves to a loveless life,” Flo mourned.

“Indeed it does,” Lotta agreed.

“Is there nothing we can do for her?”
Flo asked, turning teary eyes to Lotta. “It seems so sad to leave things as
they are.”

Lotta smiled suddenly. “I believe now
would be the best time to send a spell to Victoria to bless her spirit and soul
with the hope of love for the next life she’ll live. That way, there can be a
seed for her to make better choices next time.”

Flo smiled, some of her joyous
personality surging forward again.

They stood, one on each side of the
fallen woman. Raising their wands, they chanted special words of blessing over
the body. The chant became a song of life, love and hope. A pure white light
came from the ends of their wands, encircling Victoria’s form. Dazzling and
bright, the light filled the small cave as the spell was completed, burning in
its brilliance.

For a moment, the fairy godmothers
could see Victoria’s soul, wrapped in the light. She glanced their way, her
eyes filling with tears of gratitude. She bowed her head, allowing peace to
fill her heart at last. The image faded, leaving Lotta and Flo comforted in the
knowledge their spell had been felt and had worked. Victoria would have the
chance to find her own happily ever after one day.

“Why aren’t you and Dan wearing
shirts?” Laura asked puzzled, tracing a finger over his chest. Jake nearly
laughed with relief. It was the first thing they’d gotten out of her since
they’d left the forest. They were both sitting in a hospital cubicle, waiting
for the results of her x-ray to determine if any of her ribs were broken.

“We used them to protect our hands
while we broke down the shed door,” he told her softly, linking his fingers
through hers.

“Well I wish you’d find something to
put on,” she grumbled. “I’m sick of seeing the nurses ogling you.”

He did laugh then. Laura punched him
gently in the chest and gave him a disgruntled look, which just made him laugh
harder. He gently pulled her closer, planting a soft kiss on her lips, trying
not to hurt her.

“They’d be wasting their time,” he
told her, his eyes full of love. “I don’t see any other woman but you.”

Her heart turned over at his
declaration. She sniffled. “Even when I look this bad?”

“You look so beautiful to me, no
matter what,” he assured her. The doctor came in at that moment. Jake was
relieved to hear that no real damage had been done, but Laura had sustained
some fractured ribs and had a mild concussion from the blow to her head she’d
received. With everything else that had gone on, Laura had barely remembered
that.

They remained at the hospital a while
longer as the doctor arranged for some painkillers for Laura and gave
instructions to Jake on how to take care of her injuries at home. Laura was
relieved they were letting her go home rather than making her stay in for
observation. All she wanted was her familiar, safe surroundings and to be with
her loved ones. She needed time to recover.

Jake helped her down from the
examination bed and they left to collect Dan from the waiting room. He jumped
up from his seat, relieved to hear the verdict on Laura. The hour was
incredibly late by the time they reached the ranch. Kerry shot out of the house
when she heard them arrive, Bill close behind. Both looked pale and worried.

“Oh Laura,” Kerry sobbed on seeing
her face. “What did they do to you?”

Before Laura could reply, Jake
interceded. “I think we can leave any questions until the morning, don’t you?”

“But the Sheriff phoned about five
minutes ago. He missed you at the hospital and he wants to question Laura on
the details leading up to Victoria’s death,” Kerry told them softly. “He wanted
me to tell you he’s on his way over.”

Jake shook his head. “Call him back.
He can come over in the morning. Right now she needs some food, a bath and
bed.”

“What am I going to do about the
diner tomorrow?” Laura worried. She wasn’t sure she was in any fit state to
work. Her head had begun to pound and her ribs hurt like hell. She really hoped
the pain killers she’d taken in the truck on the way home began to work soon. Now
that her ordeal was over, every inch of the battering her body had taken was
letting itself be known.

“I’ve already spoken to Martha. She
knows what’s happened and she insists she doesn’t want to see you at work
tomorrow,” Bill said with a pointed look.

Laura felt relieved. After everything
she’d been through, she had barely any energy left in her. Slumping against
Jake, she allowed him to lead her into the house. He ran her a hot bath while
she choked down a little food. She wasn’t really hungry, but she knew the
others would worry if she didn’t eat anything. The soak in the tub helped to
ease out some of her pain and discomfort. By the time she got into bed, she was
nearly completely done in.

Laura closed her eyes and tried to
think on anything but what had taken place. Unbidden, the image of Victoria
rose in her mind, making her shudder. A soft sound made her jump. Looking up,
she saw Jake creeping into the room quietly to check on her. She held her arms
out to him and he climbed into the bed next to her, pulling her against his
chest.

“Please don’t leave me tonight.” she
whispered into the darkness.

“I won’t,” he whispered back. “I’ll
be here when you wake up. Don’t worry.”

Shuddering again, Laura attempted to
sleep.

*****

They slept in late the next morning.
It had been a restless night, with Laura waking up nearly every hour with
nightmares. Jake had soothed her each time, but he felt pretty useless in the
face of her trauma. He knew it would take some time before Laura would be able
to put things behind her.

They headed downstairs at
mid-morning, to find the Sheriff already waiting for them in the lounge. He
paced back and forth across the room impatiently. Bill stood guard, his arms
crossed over his chest and his expression mutinous. It was clear he’d been
blocking the Sheriff from heading up the stairs. The man wasn’t at all amused
by it.

“We need to talk!” he insisted the
minute he saw them. “This can’t be put off any longer.”

“We haven’t even eaten yet Sheriff!”
Jake growled.

“It’s fine Jake. We can eat and talk
at the same time. I knew this would have to be done sometime. I would like to
get it over with.” Laura touched his arm reassuringly. She glanced at Kerry,
who was seated on the sofa. “Is Dan here?” she asked softly.

Kerry glanced at her startled and
shook her head. “He thought it best to give everyone some space to process
everything that happened yesterday.”

“Please will you call him and ask him
to come over. There are some things I think he needs to hear.” Laura wouldn’t
say more, even though Jake and Kerry battered her with questions. She wanted to
be able to tell them all together what Victoria had told her. She hoped
something good would come out of the horror that the previous day had been.
They all deserved closure.

The Sheriff ground his teeth together
impatiently. “Now see here, I need certain things answered and I won’t be put
off any longer. There’s a dead body in the morgue and I need to know what
happened that put her there.”

“I’m not trying to delay anything,”
Laura assured him. “I’ll tell you everything that happened while we wait for
Dan. Then I want to tell everyone what Victoria told me while she had me tied
up in the shed.”

“What do you mean?” Jake asked
puzzled.

“She told me why she wanted revenge
on you. She obviously didn’t expect me to ever see you again to tell you the
tale but since I did; I really feel it’s important to share it with you all.
Especially as it so affected every one of you.” She wouldn’t say more.

Kerry phoned Dan while Jake made some
toast and coffee. They sat at the kitchen table as Laura filled the Sheriff in
on the events of the previous day. Dan walked in while Laura was still being
questioned. Kerry offered him some coffee and toast as they listened in horror
to the terrible ordeal that had happened to Laura.

When she’d finished, Laura felt
drained. Her face was white from the effort of retelling how Victoria had died.
She looked at the Sheriff with tortured eyes. “Have you told Walter yet?”

“Didn’t know it was that important
for him to know,” the Sheriff shrugged.

“You need to tell him,” she said
quietly. “She was his sister after all.”

Everyone in the room gasped in
disbelief. “That is impossible!” Jake cried. “If they’d been related, wouldn’t
there have been some family resemblance? For heaven sake, he talks with an
English accent while hers was deeply American.”

“Not when she talked to Walter it
wasn’t,” Laura informed him. “When they talked together, her accent was as
English as his. They were brother and sister, she told me.”

Jake shook his head in bewilderment.
“I don’t believe it!”

“There’s more,” she said softly.
Quickly she related the tale Victoria had told her of her father and Jake’s.
Both Kerry and Jake listened with their mouths hanging open.

Bill cleared his throat. “I remember
something of that,” he said quietly. “Joe used to do quite a few of the racing
circuits. I went along a few times. I remember one man in particular; nasty
piece of work that one. He was always bating Joe and trying to get one over him.
Joe never had much to do with the man. I wasn’t there the day he caught the man
drugging one of our horses, but Joe talked to me about it after it happened. If
I remember correctly, the man he put behind bars was called William Jamison,
not Nobel or Price like Walter and Victoria.”

“They must have changed their names,”
the Sheriff surmised. “They probably worried someone would recognise their name
if they used their real one.”

“I don’t believe it. Walter was
always asking people not to call him Mr Nobel because it made him look around
for his father. Why would he say that?” Kerry exclaimed.

“Playing a part I guess,” the Sheriff
said, shrugging his shoulders as if it didn’t really matter. “Maybe he thought
it would be less suspicious or trying to make sure nobody ever connected him to
Victoria.”

“So they were both this man Jamison’s
children?” Dan looked as if he couldn’t take the notion in.

“Blow me, I would never have thought
that man was married, let alone had children,” Bill blew out a deep breath. “Whatever
Victoria thought, their father was guilty. Joe only gave a statement and the
evidence he could provide, but the police were already investigating Jamison
and had gathered a fair bit on him. They only needed Joe’s evidence for them to
close the net, so to speak.”

Jake was sitting quietly, looking
completely floored. “She knew who I was when we met?” he asked Laura in shock.

“Yes,” Laura confirmed. “Your meeting
was not an accident. She planned it. Originally she and Walter wanted to take
revenge on your father, but when they found out he was dead, they decided to
take revenge on you instead. They wanted to pull your life apart, piece by
piece. She made sure you met and that you fell in love with her. She targeted
Dan on purpose, knowing what it would do to you if she slept with him.” She
paused, gathering her thoughts together.

“She told me herself how frustrating
it was that Dan wouldn’t give in to her. She was frantic by the time it came to
the day before the wedding.” She looked at Dan, then at Jake. “You need to
know, both of you, that they drugged Dan that night.” Everyone sat in shocked
silence for several moments. “It was the only way they could get Dan to drop
his guard and sleep with her. That was why he acted so out of character that
night.”

Dan collapsed over the table, holding
his head in his hands. “Why didn’t I see that before,” he moaned. “I knew the
hangover I had the next day was far worse than anything I’d ever experienced
before. There was even a strange taste in my mouth but I didn’t think much
about it with the worry of what I’d done.” He shook his head, trying to take it
all in.

Jake looked like someone had kicked
him in the gut. His face had taken on a grey tinge. “I can’t believe this! All
this time I refused to forgive Dan, thinking he’d made that choice, that he’d
betrayed me and all the time……” he broke off swallowing hard, his hands clasped
so tightly together, the knuckles were turning white. He looked at Dan with
tortured eyes. “Can you ever forgive me?” he asked quietly.

Dan looked shocked. “What for? I
would have thought the same as you, if the situation had been reversed. I don’t
blame you for thinking the worst of me. I didn’t understand what had happened
either.”

“But it was my fault she ever came
into our lives. If I hadn’t fallen for all her lies and schemes, none of this
would have ever happened.” Jake’s expression was full of guilt and remorse.

Dan gripped his shoulder. “None of
what happened was your fault, my friend. How could any of us have even dreamed
what was really going on in that woman’s head? We have all been victims in
this. I think the blame lays solely with Victoria and Walter. We need to all
move on from this and not let it colour our future.”

“I agree completely!” Kerry declared,
hugging her brother and Dan at the same time. “That woman has taken enough of
our lives as it is. If you two could see your way to becoming friends again,
that would go a long way to healing the past. What do you say?”

“It may take some time to rebuild
what we had, but I would very much like to give it a go, if you want to?” Jake
held his hand out to Dan.

Dan gripped it firmly, a wide smile
on his face. “It’s all I ever wanted. A clean break and a fresh start.” Kerry
smiled broadly, tears of joy spilling down her face.

The Sheriff cleared his throat. “Well
this is all well and good, but how did all the poisoning enter into it?”

“Simple,” Laura continued. “It wasn’t
enough that they ruined Jake’s personal life, they wanted to kill his business
too. Walter got the job here as a riding instructor. He made himself so popular
with the clients, he’d managed to achieve getting to the point that if he
walked away, so would most of them. All that remained was killing Jake’s
breeding horses. Once two parts of the business collapsed, the remaining guest
side of their business would soon follow suit, as there would be no horse ranch
left for people to visit. Total ruin!”