She’d given him up once, after all – would itreallybe so hard to do it again?
And if hedoeshave something to do with what’s happening here,Celeste thought, even though her soul rebelled at the suggestion,then he was never who I thought he was in the first place.
Chapter 4
Oh, wonderful,Hardwicke thought as he opened the wardrobe.This is just perfect.
Celeste hadn’t been mistaken when she’d told him that the clothes shop here in Portsmith wasn’t often open – he had seen its regular opening hours on the sign that was hung on the door. Right above the one that readGone for the holidays! Opening again January 5th.
So it looked like he wouldn’t be replacing his lost luggage anytime soon – but thankfully, the owner of the fisherman’s cottage had gone to the trouble of making sure there were a few clothes in the wardrobe,Since,as the note Hardwicke had found on the kitchen counter had explained,people often don’t realize how cutting the wind is here on our humble island!
Hardwicke, being as fastidious as he was,hadin fact researched the weather thoroughly before his arrival and brought everything he’d need to deal with the island’s sleet and freezing cold winds. But none of it was doing him any good now, being as it was that his luggage had probably drifted out to sea or been pummeled to pieces on the rocks at the bottom of the cliff.
But the wardrobe, did, as promised, have some clothes in it.
Well, for certain values of clothes, I guess, Hardwicke thought as he pulled what had to betheugliest Christmas sweater he’d ever seen out of a drawer.
Maybe this was the owner’s idea of a joke – or maybe they reallywerejust a fan of sweaters with huge reindeer faces on them, complete with an enormous pom-pom of a red nose stuck to the front. Little knitted holly sprigs surrounded the reindeer’s manically grinning face, and the words ‘Ho! Ho! Ho!’ filled all the space that was left over.
Hardwicke didn’t consider himself afussydresser – well, except in the sense that he always looked neat and tidy, as was professional – but this… this he wasn’t sure about.
But it’s really the only sweater that appears to be in here,he thought, as, resigning himself to his fate, he slipped it on over his head.
There was at least a waterproof jacket hanging up in the wardrobe too, but it quickly became apparent that it wasn’t really made for someone of his height or build. He could get it on – just – but it stretched uncomfortably tightly across his shoulders, and there was no way he was going to get it zipped up over his chest. But still, it was better than nothing, he supposed.
Thankfully, there was a little wider selection of pants available, and after trying on a couple which definitelydidn’tfit, Hardwicke finally found a pair of old, worn jeans that he could pull up over his thighs. They weren’t exactly what he’d choose to wear, but perhaps it was better this way – he’d noticed yesterday that people on this island tended to dress down, so he’d be less conspicuous this way, or at least as inconspicuous as it was possible for an out-of-towner to be on this small island.
In any case, if everything went to plan, Hardwicke hoped to spend at least some of today in his pegasus form, flying high above the town and using his full shifter senses to figure out the source of the earth tremors that seemed to have the higher-ups in the Shifter Patrol Corps so nervous.
Well, at least if the wind has died down a little,he thought as he stepped out into the freezing cold air of the day.
It was at least alittlecalmer than yesterday – Hardwicke thought if he could find an isolated spot to shift he’d head up into the skies right away, and at least get a quick survey done. He already knew the only things around here were Portsmith itself and the lighthouse that stood on a rocky crag a mile or so off the island, but which hadn’t actually been used as a lighthouse for decades.
That might be worth a closer look,he thought, as he made his way up the street that led out of town, into the rocky desolation that lay beyond. All he’d really need to do was find a nice big rock to shield himself from sight, make sure there was no one around, shift, and then launch himself into the skies. If he stayed high enough, no one should see him, he hoped –
“Pierce! Oh – I’m sorry, I really didn’t mean to interrupt you if you’re on your way somewhere…”
Hardwicke stiffened. Only one person had called himPiercein the last twenty years – not even he thought of himself that way anymore. But there was also the fact that, of course, he would know the sound of Celeste’s voice anywhere.
Inside him, his pegasus raised its head, snorting, its nostrils flaring.
Our mate! She has returned! She wants to see us again – she has sought us out! As she always will!
Hardwicke tried to ignore it. It was to be expected that the pegasus would get completely over-excited when Celeste was around, and he didn’t blame it. But right now, he thought reluctantly, he had a job to do. And trying to keep himself in check around his mate wasnotgoing to make doing it easy.
Still, his heart was pounding as he tried to prepare himself for seeing Celeste’s beautiful face again. Butnothingcould have prepared him for it, or the twist of pain and joy in his chest when he turned and looked at her.
“Celeste,” he forced himself to say, even as his throat tightened. “This is a coincidence! But a very welcome one, of course.”
“Uh, yeah,” Celeste said, laughing – and to Hardwicke’s ears, it sounded a little uneasy. “I guess… I guess it’s a coincidence.”
The clear note of uncertainty in Celeste’s voice gave Hardwicke pause. Perhaps it was just that, after all this time, things were awkward between them, though they hadn’t been so bad yesterday. Or perhaps –
It is that man from yesterday,his pegasus snorted suddenly, stamping its hooves and rustling its wings in agitation.He practically dragged our mate away from us. He is the cause of our mate’s discomfort today. We are sure of it.
Despite his pegasus’s use ofwe– which, really, could have been the royalweanyway, given how highly the pegasus thought of itself – Hardwicke wasn’t too sure about what it said… at least until he thought back over the events of yesterday, and how the man Celeste had introduced to him as Gordon Ledbeter had interrupted her in the middle of what she was saying, and then practically demanded that she come with him immediately, not even giving her enough time to finish her meal.
Is he threatening her somehow?Hardwicke wondered as he looked down at Celeste’s face.No… maybe it’s not that serious. I can’t just jump to a conclusion like that. But still…
