His grip tightened. “I know. But I don’t want you to leave. Please, Isa.”
“I can’t stay.” Not shouldn’t. Couldn’t. “Princess Charmina is coming to Rose Castle tomorrow. I need to get back to Leort before she realizes I rode out here tonight. It will cause you more problems if I stay. I’ll find a way to bring a few constables along to deal with Marc and Cecily, too.”
“Isa—”
I gently freed my hand, but couldn’t resist the urge to reach out and brush my fingers over his cheeks. “I have to go. I don’t want you to suffer because my actions reinforce the rumors. Tomorrow you have to remember to treat me with polite distance and nothing more.”
Felix blinked, and I knew he was on the verge of falling unconscious once more. I hated to leave him like this, but I had to. He’d wake tomorrow morning, recovered from the transformation and ready to deal with the princess. My presence would only make things worse.
Forty-One
Felix
???
The headache pulledme awake. The world was fuzzy, my thoughts a disjointed mess, but the pain throbbing at my temples was clear. I reached up to rub them and started when I realized I had hands. I tried to remember what had happened the night before.
Marc and Cecily had come, but I kept them from using the node. Then, in the middle of the night, Isa had arrived. Ignoring the headache, I reached out with my magical senses, scanning the castle. Marc and Cecily were locked in the blue salon, but Isa was nowhere to be found. What had happened?
I remembered Isa writing something, then making me sign it. I had held it to the node, the bright blue when it transformed into a scroll in the archives almost blinding. Then there had been pain. So much pain. My mind shied away from the memory.
She had broken the curse.
I tried to remember the minutes after that, but everything after the transformation was a blur. Memories came to me in snippets that followed no particular order. Vaguely, I remembered pressing my lips to hers, her hands on me, and I was annoyed that the memory wasn’t clearer. Then I remembered asking her to stay and her refusing. Maybe I didn’t want to rememberthat kiss.
No, damn it. I wanted—needed—to remember. But the harder I tried, the more the memories slipped away. I groaned and rolled out of bed. My dressing gown gaped and tangled around my legs, and I recalled the cold marble under me.
So. I had transformed back into a man, kissed Isa, and begged her to stay. During at least part of that I had been naked, and now she was nowhere to be found on castle grounds.
The light coming into my bedroom was stronger than it should have been. I had slept well past morning. First, I’d eat. Well, after I got dressed. Then I’d decide how to approach Isa next.
I’d have to deal with Marc and Cecily, too.
My headache grew, and I sat back on the edge of the bed. Tea. A cup—no, pot—of strong black tea was what I needed. I summoned the pot, ignoring the way the use of magic made my head hurt worse. The joy of being able to pour a cup for myself almost made up for it. As I sipped, I tried not to think too hard about the night before, knowing the memories would come easier if I let them surface naturally.
It left me with little to think about except how I wanted to handle Marc and Cecily. I could keep them trapped until the princess and her entourage arrived in a few days—a few days? Why did that sound wrong?—but then I needed a story to tell Her Highness.
I’d have to tell her the truth. It wasn’t as embarrassing to admit I had been cursed now that I was human again. Granted, I didn’t want word to get out that other people could gain ties to the Truthhold node, even if it wasn’t unlocked. Hopefully, Princess Charmina would appreciate the need for discretion.
By the time I had eaten and dressed, I felt a bit more myself. It was strange, feeling like a stranger in my own skin, but I had adjusted to being a cat within a few days. Surely I could readapt to human form faster. A mug of willow bark tea dimmed the edges of my headache, and I left my room.
I didn’t know where I intended to go, but my feet carried me to the node without hesitation. I sank into one of the chairs next to the brazier and stared at the flames.
Bright blue. Truth. Whatever Isa had written to break the curse had been an absolute truth. So why hadn’t she explained her plan to me? She had even left the paper folded when she asked me to sign it. Maybe I could find the scroll in the archives. Would it help to know how she had broken the curse?
Magic flared, and I sensed half a dozen people crossing the boundary into castle lands. I recognized three of the sparks: Isa, Berklay, and the constable who had tried to break in not a week ago.
I stood up and moved to the front doors. I didn’t care who the others were; I needed to speak to Isa. Opening the front door, I watched the crowd dismount. I couldn’t see Isa behind the others, but though I wanted to push past everyone, I couldn’t help but notice the young woman in the center of the group. Flanked by two royal guards, her identity was obvious at a single glance.
I bowed. “Your Highness. I did not expect you for a few more days. I have no staff in residence at present, so please allow me to take care of your mounts using the enchantments of Rose Castle.”
???
After an awkwardround of introductions, we all filed into the castle, through the great hall, and seated ourselves in the meeting room. Well, everyone but the guards seated themselves. Princess Charmina ended up in my usual spot between the two long tables. Isa and the constable sat at one table, Berklay and I at the other across from them.
I had tried to catch Isa’s eye several times already, but she was determined not to look at me. When I noticed the way her constable friend watched me, I stopped, worried that my fixation would only cause more problems. The princess had already made it clear that her purpose in coming out to Rose Castle had shifted since she left Haiwella. The contract she needed witnessed was no longer her priority.
“I am glad to see that whatever magical ailment that afflicted you seems to be cured, Your Grace.” The princess spoke with grave formality, though I got the impression it was not her natural inclination. “Fortuitous timing, that, after three months, you get well just in time for my arrival.”
