Chapter 14
Rolfe hastened to the tower,hoping that he would find Annelise waiting for himthere.
The sight of Mephistopheles and the palfrey standing outside the tower seemed a sure sign that his expectation was sound. Both horses were saddled and the saddlebags appeared to be packed. Rolfe smiled with pleasure that his lady understood his intentions so well. He found his garments neatly folded within the destrier’s saddlebags and dressed his wound as well as he was able. It was in an awkward location, but he managed to staunch the blood. He did not want Annelise to see it at its worst. He dressed quickly and took the stairs three at a time, calling forher.
But the tower room wasempty.
Indeed, it did not look as though anyone had entered the chamber since he had left it that morning. Rolfe looked out the windows, certain he would catch a glimpse of his wife on some errandoutside.
Nothing moved in the surroundingforest.
Where wasAnnelise?
Rolfe frowned, then went down the stairs to confront Mephistopheles. “Where is she? Where did you takeher?”
The steed eyed him for a long moment, then snorted and bent to push his nose into the snow. He might have been disgusted with his master, though Rolfe could not fathomwhy.
The sun was sinking toward the horizon. They should depart soon, if they were to put most of the forest behind them beforenightfall.
Rolfe frowned. Where could Annelise havegone?
Surely no evil had befallen her while he was battling Enguerrand? The very notion made his chest tighten in fear. Rolfe surveyed his surroundings. Perhaps she had left footprints in the snow. He jumped when he saw the second djinn sitting in a tree, watchinghim.
She had not been there when he arrived, he was certain ofit.
He had learned from his past, to be sure, and was determined to not insult her. “Good day to you,madame,” he said with a lowbow.
She smiled. “If nothing else, you have learned manners from thisadventure.”
“Then it isover?”
The djinn nodded with an enthusiasm that made the balls on the rim ofher hat swing. “That it is indeed. Just as Iforetold.”
Rolfe bowed again. “I must thank you for your intervention in this matter. It is impossible to imagine how bleak it would have been to spend my entire life alone as awolf.”
The djinn eyed him. “I did not break the spell alone,” she said. “Though I appreciate your thanks, you owe the greatest gratitude to someoneelse.”
Something about her tone made Rolfe fear that something wasamiss.
“Why exactly did the curse end?” heasked.
The djinn stood up and brushed her kirtle. “It was ended by the power of love, ofcourse.”
“Whoselove?”
“Why, Annelise’s love for you, of course!” The djinn shook her head. “Did you not witness the events of thisday?”
Rolfe sensed then that Annelise’s absence was a bad omen. “Perhaps you could be so kind as to review events forme.”
“You were busy with that troublesome knight, were you not?” The djinn shrugged and took a step toward him. She produced a familiar dark bottle, its cork firmly in place, and tossed it between her hands before Rolfe. “Annelise trapped Leila within the bottle again, which, naturally, is why the palacedisappeared.”
“Buthow?”
“It does not matter.” The djinn waved her hand and the bottle danced from her grip. Both knight and djinn gasped, and Rolfe snatched the bottle out of the air just before it hit the ground. He handed it back to the djinn, relieved that it had not shattered, and she smiled. “Suffice it to say that Annelise used the tools she possessed to solve thatdilemma.”
“What will you do with thebottle?”
The djinn eyed the decanter and pursed her lips. “I shall appoint myself as its guardian. There truly is no other way to ensure that it remains corkedforever.”
