Page 46 of Eliza's Cursed Dragon

“Grab her, don’t let her get away. She’s a witch and she played your friend for a fool,” Lucy screeched, grabbing Henry by the lapel of his tuxedo. “Hurry.”

“Don’t listen to her, she’s crazed,” Daisy wrung her hands.

“Take her,” Gerald yelled, swatting at Richard.

“A witch?” Henry asked, staring at me with my nettle mantles in my arm, already giving me welts.

“That’s a new one.” Henry smirked.

“Didn’t you hear about Fable Forest?” Sean interjected. “That place is full of fairy tales and witches.”

“Not to mention Screaming Woods,” Roger added.

“Seriously?” Henry looked at his friends.

While they were discussing the validity of witches, I tried to sneak past them unnoticed. I would go find Edward who would put an end to this nonsense and if I couldn’t, I would hide until the six-year vow of silence was over, another thirty minutes or so. That’s all I need, I thought desperately, just thirty minutes.

But Gerald noticed me, despite his fight with my brothers. “Stop her, she’s running away.”

“Uhm, I’m sorry,” Roger said, grabbing my arm, but not very hard, light enough for me to rip it free and make a run for it.

“Stop her, stop her,” Lucy fumed.

I picked up my wide skirts, cursing the crinoline I had been so excited about, and ran down the winding staircase. On one of the last steps I lost a shoe and chucked the other off, all without stopping.

I raced by some startled guests who gaped at me.

I ran out the backdoor, out into the park where I figured I would find the best hiding spots.

Heavy footsteps were close behind me though, alarmed trumpeting announced that my brothers too were taking notice of something being amiss.

“Stop her, stop the bride,” someone yelled.

Like a hunted rabbit, I looked around for a place to hide, turning sharply to the left and barely evading an outstretched arm. Whoever had tried to grab me fell instant victim to two of my brothers attacking him.

“The swans have gone crazy,” someone else yelled.

“She’s a witch!” Lucy screamed above the mayhem. “The swans are her demon helpers. Stop her.”

The pond was straight ahead of me and people to the left and right stood as if to stop me. I was cornered. Helplessly, I stopped and looked around at the mayhem.

Gerald and Edward’s friends were coming at me from all sides, followed by a screeching Lucy, while Daisy stood on the balcony, wringing her hands, yelling for her husband.

Aghast, I stared at the mayhem taking place on what was supposed to have been my wedding ground. Swans descended on Gerald and the other men and I feared that sooner or later one of my brothers would be hurt.

I didn’t know what to do and did the only thing I could think of, I screamed at the top of my lungs, or so I thought, but no sound came through my choked throat.

Edward

Despite Henry and the others having run to get the key from my dad, I still attacked the door like a madman. It didn’t do any good. The door didn’t even budge an inch. The only thing I accomplished was to vent some of my anger.

I cussed loudly and for the first time since I had been cursed, I wished I didn’t only turn into a dragon at night. If I could have turned into my dragon shape right now, I wouldn’t have had any problems getting out of here—door or windows, it wouldn’t have mattered. The heat of my flames melted metal, I had experimented with it many times. Nights could be long and boring, especially before I met Eliza.

Eliza!

Her name alone invigorated me. Eliza, I nearly laughed. How perfect and fitting. Why had I never guessed that name before? I had tried Isabella, Elizabeth, Elaine, but not Eliza.

I stopped pounding the door and noticed excited voices on the other side. Yelling and screaming. Something was happening.

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