Belle Lied Read online

  After that, the cub and his mother would often find me on my walks and the cub would play with me. Or he would cry until I sang something. I named him Robbie, after a round little boy from the town who I would watch on occasion. I called his mother Aunt Nan. I missed them when they went into hibernation that winter, but by then, I had a menagerie of friends to visit with.

  We had lived there for about five months when I came back from playing with a little fox named Jessie and we got the news that changed things in our home. Not that we had any idea that it would, of course. Few things in life are obviously life-changing, and those that are usually are the result of something else. Eric and Roderick called the family to the drawing room to speak to us. My stepfather had a few investments in a nearby city that were paying out and needed to be attended to directly. He, unfortunately, was recovering from a rather nasty cold and could not go. Eric, however, could and was able to coordinate it with his yearly report to the prince. My stepfather said my brother would be back by spring, but thought it might be sooner if the weather stayed clear. It had been very pleasant that year.

  “As I am going to the city, is there anything you girls want? Any small trinkets that I might buy you to make you smile when I get back?” Eric asked, teasingly.

  Pearl smiled. “We only need you back safely, but if you must bring something back at all, please some new boots. Mine won’t last more than another season and the cobbler cannot make fine boots in my size. His fingers are like sausages!”

  Eric laughed and turned to Beryl. “Some thick canvas for a new smock? Some of the medicinal plants have thorns and they ruin my gowns so quickly!” she told him.

  Belle had been in a foul mood all day after she found out that a village boy had torn a page in one of her books. As a result, she made her fateful request. “I want a rose.” Everyone’s eyebrows lifted at this. Roses were lovely, but impractical plants for the area. They were also wildly expensive and difficult to grow in good weather, let alone early winter.

  “Why do you want a rose, pet?” my stepfather asked.

  “Because, I miss them from our old house. They are a civilized flower, not barbaric like everything here is.”

  I stared at her incredulously before bursting into laughter. “Civilized? They are covered with thorns! You once refused to look at them again when you pricked your finger on a stray. In fact, you called them ‘horrid little fairy jokes,’ and had the servants throw all of them out.”

  She glared hotly in my direction. “Obviously I want one of the new hybrids that grow without thorns! Don’t be stupid, Nolana. And for your information, that was years ago. You shouldn’t hold the past against people! It is hurtful and wrong!” Of course, it was only wrong if anyone used this tactic against her, but she regularly brought up old hurts to use against me. Anyway, on with the story.

  ~

  Eric left for the city of Stonesford in early December. It was a two weeks journey there, and we did not expect to see him until February at the soonest. He surprised everyone when he arrived mid January, a few days after a large snowstorm hit the area. We had just sat down to dinner when he opened the door and knocked his boots against the doorframe.

  “Hello all!” he said with a smile as he came into the dining room. “Did you miss me?” The next few minutes were full of exclamations and hugs before he settled down with a bowl of soup and told us of his journey.

  “I got to town in record time and the investments took hardly a week to settle. My meeting with the prince went just as quickly. I spent another few days there and then decided to come back early since I had nothing to do. I was doing fine until that blizzard hit. I got lost in the snow and wound up stranded at a big house not far from here. Turns out, it belongs to an old school friend of mine. He sheltered me while the storm blew itself out and then showed me a shortcut back here across his property.

  “He used to be a good tempered fellow, always overly proud of his appearance, but generally pleasant. I guess he had an accident recently that scarred up his face a tad. It put him in a unhappy state, I’m sorry to say.” Eric paused there, considering something. “I got what you all asked for, except for you two, Belle and Lana. Well, Lana, you didn’t actually ask for anything,” he blushed slightly at this, probably realizing he forgot to ask me, “but Belle, I couldn’t find the roses you wanted in the city. My friend, Cristoph Helmswright, does. He wanted to know if you would like to come and choose the plant from his hot house. Maybe spend the winter and help catalog his library?”

  Until he said the word “library,” Belle had been ready to refuse him. We all knew that she could care less about the stupid flowers. But books, well, she couldn’t deny herself the opportunity to read new ones. “Of course! I would love to go!” If only I had known then what a mess she would make of our lives because of this. But I wouldn’t discover that until the next summer.

  Belle had been languishing in the house, complaining constantly, while winter held its sway on the world. We were all more than happy to help her pack and go on her little adventure while we enjoyed a quiet house for the first time in two months. No one expected her to stay much past March, depending on how big his library really was. That’s why it came as a shock when she arrived for a short visit in April, declaring that she had to return by the end of the week. Apparently, Cristoph had grown attached and swore he would languish if she stayed longer than that.

  We laughed a bit at that, convinced she just wanted to get back to his library, but were perfectly content to allow her to return. Not two weeks later we received a visit from the man himself to tell my stepfather that he had asked for Belle’s hand in marriage and she had accepted. To say we were astonished does not quite convey our feelings. Belle had always declared that she would never marry, but grow old alone with her books. Still, my stepfather and Eric happily accepted the change, even as I grew worried. Cristoph was a pleasant man, but seemed a bit blind to Belle’s faults. Still, it was none of my business who she married. She neither wanted nor needed my help.

  Belle married Cristoph on the 12th of June. It was then that I learned the truth of our family’s misfortune. Belle was always a bit of a gossip, surprising considering how little she liked people, and she also loved hyperbole and metaphors. As I walked among the wedding guests, I heard the most dreadful version of how she and Cristoph met and married: my stepfather bankrupt and basically selling her to an enchanted beast to save his own life; my older sisters, not exactly painted as cruel, but asking for jewels and silks despite poor living conditions; Cristoph cursed with a beast-like countenance and temper; and at the center of the story, saint-like Belle selflessly falling in love with a beast and breaking the curse. Complete and utter poppycock. She hadn’t saved him from a curse! What she had done was make him happy with her company and show him Beryl’s recipe for a scar salve that reduced the red marks until they were nearly nonexistent. She had stretched the story to the breaking point!

  When I told the rest of the family what was being said, they brushed it off, as if the flights of fancy were nothing to worry about. “After all,” my stepfather told me. “Who would believe such nonsense?”

  Chapter 2: Consequences

  It had been nearly six years since Belle’s wedding, and we had begun to see the harm my sister’s stories had caused. I was 20 and, despite our money and association with the gentry, my sisters and I had been shunned by a good portion of high society. Not that we cared much, or even noticed in Pearl and Beryl’s cases, but it bothered my stepfather. For his part, Roderick had lost some of his good reputation and it affected his business interests. Luckily, none of the villagers had believed the story. Most of them thought it was silly and teased us about it, but otherwise treated us no differently. Still, the whole thing made me uneasy. I felt unnecessarily anxious about the whole thing, like there was more to come. And when none of my family would speak with me about it, I talked to my forest friends about the problem. They, at least, had a reason for not responding.

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nbsp; “I worry that the wrong ears will hear the stupid story and my stepfather and Eric will suffer for it. After all, she told people that my stepfather had lost all his money. Investors don’t want to hear that and the prince would not appreciate a story that makes it look like the man he granted a title to was unwilling to help his family,” I explained to Jessie, Robbie, Aunt Nan, and a bobcat named Ruff. I often had a group of them around me, but the various species never seemed to be aggressive to one another. I chalked it up to the Fey Forest adding its own strange magic to the mix but wasn’t sure. Just before I could continue my complaints, I heard my name being called by Beryl and said my goodbyes. My friends melted into the trees just before my sister appeared.

  “There you are! Father needs to speak with you. A stranger is at the house and demanding to speak with you. Come on!”

  I followed as she ran back to the house, but my mind was whirling around trying to figure out what was going on. There were very few people who chose to visit our little town and even fewer had any idea who I was. We ran in the back door, panting and Beryl quickly dusted me off before pulling me into the drawing room. Eric stood near the door, looking intensely uncomfortable. Pearl was close to the fireplace, fingering her new throwing knives. My stepfather sat calmly across from a stunningly perfect looking woman in her mid-thirties.

  “Nolana! Good, come meet Miss Skylar of the Silver Woods. Miss Skylar, this is my daughter, Nolana, whom you requested.”

  “Stepdaughter, correct?” our guest asked. Her voice rustled like the wind in the trees in spring. It made me feel both safe and uneasy at the same time. Her sharp eyes rectified that dichotomy quickly. It is hard to feel safe when you are being examined like a farmer would an unbroken horse.

  “Yes, but I have always thought of her the same as my blood children,” my stepfather replied, slightly perturbed. He hated the idea I would be slighted for not being his. I had been back in the city on a regular basis and it had caused some problems.

  “I meant no offence, Roderick. Indeed, it is her unique bloodline that makes her special. Child, do you know what I am?”

  I ignored her odd comment on my bloodline and instead looked at her closely, noting the fine weave of her clothes, the lack of gems or metals used in her jewelry and the slight iridescence in her sky blue eyes. “Half-Fey? And a sorceress?” She frowned, so I went on to explain. “You have magic in your eyes, something only sorcerers are prone to and your dress and wooden bracelets and necklace look like what Aunt Harmony told me Fey wore.” Her dark hair and tan complexion were proof that she wasn’t a full-blooded Fey. Well, that and the fact that she was mostly able to speak to us without being overly condescending or sounding slightly insane. Fey really only had those two modes from what I’d heard.

  She smiled tightly and moved her hair from her ears to expose the slight point. “Very good.” And I stand corrected about her lack of condescension. “Your aunt must have seen the spark in you and decided to help you learn your heritage.”

  “My heritage?” My family tensed around me, ready for any possible insult she might level against me. We’d heard most of them before when we’d lived in Perim.

  Skylar nodded. “From what I can tell, your parents both had magic in their blood. Your father was a sailor? Yes, well, he had some magic from Brenlew in him. Probably from sailing there many times in the past. It’s magic has a tendency to... attach itself to anything compatible. What’s more, your mother appears to have been part Fey. An unusual combination, to be sure. Your magic seems to finally be activating, albeit much later than most. Perhaps due to the forest’s influence or the magical herbs your stepsister has been feeding you.” Beryl blushed at this and tired to apologize before Pearl cut her off.

  “Why are you here? I doubt you came just to tell Nolana that she is slightly magical.” Pearl was being unusually brisk. She normally hid that trait among strangers, finding it strategically important to be underestimated.

  Our guest’s eyes widened. “Oh no! I don’t especially care about her magic! And in truth, your family’s assistance is requested. It has been said that your other sister broke a curse on a young lord. We were hoping Nolana might render us a similar assistance.”

  “You’re here because of Belle’s story? And you need Lana?” Eric asked. “Not Pearl’s strategic thinking or Beryl’s medicinal knowledge, or even my father’s investing prowess?” He glanced at me with an apologetic expression, but I just shrugged. It was well known that I didn’t have any exceptionally special abilities. I was capable of many things, but had mastered none. Additionally, it did seem odd that she would want my help after hearing Belle’s tale. Curse breaking sometimes ran in families but not always, and when it did, it definitely followed bloodlines. As she’d already established that I wasn’t actually related to anyone there, there should have been no reason for the sorceress to remain.

  Skylar shook her head sadly. “You don’t seem to understand. You are all are quite talented, I’m sure, but I don’t need talent. I need someone with the proper bloodline. There was a curse placed on someone of importance many years ago and it needs to be broken. These lands have been unstable ever since he was struck down and his people need him to bring them back from the brink. There have been whispers of your presence for quite some time, ever since someone saw you save the cub from that sinkhole. And after tales of your sister reached us, well we decided to ask for your assistance.”

  My brows creased in confusion, not understanding what that had to do with her wanting my help. Luckily, I didn’t need to explain anything about the incident, having told my family all about Robbie the bear right after it happened. Instead, I moved past it. Instead, I chose to deal with the main issue. “Look, Belle didn’t break any curses. She told a story to increase her self-importance. That’s it. She gave him a scar treatment Beryl discovered and pretended that she was saving him from a monstrous curse.”

  She blinked and smiled, causing me to shiver from the lack of warmth in the expression. “I don’t really care. Your presence is required by the King of the Fey. You have no choice in this matter, dear. In fact, I have the right to take trespassers into custody and you have most definitely trespassed in those woods, as well as stolen valuable resources. Now, you are coming with me.” And with that the world went black.

  ~

  I groaned and rolled over in my bed, not wanting to wake up. Beryl had been sending me out into the forest before dawn for the past week to find night blooming flowers, so I was exhausted. I settled back under the silk sheets and tried to fall back asleep. That was working quite well up until I realized that I didn’t own silk sheets. I’d never seen the point in wasting that kind of money. That’s when I remembered the Lady Skylar’s visit and popped up to look around my new room.

  “Where am I?” I muttered softly. The bed I was in was huge and completely white, from the counterpane to the pillowcases to the bed skirt. The mahogany frame depicted will-o’-the-wisps gamboling with foxes and bears. As I stood, the rest of the room swayed for a moment before settling in place. Everything seemed to have an organic feel, like it wasn’t made with hands but rather grown. Each piece of furniture had feet that looked like roots reaching down for moisture. All of the fabrics reminded me of flower petals or moth’s wings or spider webs. The only metal that was in evidence was the silvering on the back of the mirror.

  As I moved to the window, I became aware that someone had changed me into a nightdress. It was a bit disturbing to think about, so I chose not to and turned my attention back to the view outside the glass.

  “Oh my skies! It’s a tree house!”

  “A tree castle, actually,” corrected a voice from behind me. I turned so quickly and had to grasp the wall to keep from falling. Skylar stood there watching as I tried to regain my balance. “You may want to sit down. The spell I used is know to cause some vertigo for an hour or so after waking.” She shrugged, as if she could care less. “I was told to bring you here by any means. I doubt he’ll be pleas
ed with what he sees, though, not after hearing all about your stepsisters’ beauty. Too bad neither of the other two would do.”

  I ignored the insult and teetered to a chair, determined to recover quickly. “Where am I?”

  “You are in the home of King of the Fey, also known as Eavan Oran.” I froze at her pronouncement. Aunt Harmony had versed me very well in the particulars of elven society. Eavan Oran was a warrior of great renown who had been given the crown after protecting the entire race from near extinction when they were attacked by a Wraith army. He was also, purportedly, nearly insane.

  “You kidnapped me and brought me to the castle of an insane king with a penchant for killing things in a bloody fashion? Seriously? There was definitely no mention of a king, not until you decided to arrest me.” Yep, I was splitting hairs after being kidnapped. That’s me and my lovely logic at work.

  She raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t specify for a reason. I told you he was cursed.” Skyler sighed, realizing she’d have to tell me something. “If you must know, he denied the Wraith queen and she decided that he deserved to be driven insane. He’s not a cruel man. Well, he wasn’t. He’s actually a wonderful ruler, if a bit temperamental and slightly delusional at times. Honestly, it is more his appearance that drives people off.”

  I cocked my head to the side. “Okay, you’ve kinda lost me. Please, explain how he is considered insane if he can still rule well. And what is that about his appearance?”

  Skylar sighed again, clearly feeling put upon, before weaving her tale. “Honestly, why must humans rattle off questions so incessantly? Near the end of the war with the Wraiths, when victory was still uncertain, the Wraith queen came to Eavan Oran and told him that if he became her consort, everything would end. He laughed at her, of course, and told her that she would never have him or our lands and people. She grew angry, but went away and no one thought anything of it after we won. Unfortunately, she had not forgotten her humiliation and cursed him to be formless and incapable of connecting with another pure being.”