Page 25 of Cursed Beasts

Looking back outside, I wondered if I should just leave before he came back, but the sound of food made my stomach growl. My anxiety had been so high that I hadn’t been hungry most of the time. I knew if I was going to keep exploring, I needed to eat. I had yet to make it outside, but the size of this place was proving to be more difficult to navigate than I had expected. Goddess knew how big the grounds were if the inside was any indication of the outside.

I slid back off the windowsill, pacing in front of it, trying to get my thoughts in order about what the hell was happening. When that didn’t help, I grabbed a pen and paper, and started to write my thoughts down, wondering if there was any way to research ghosts. I really needed to find the library, but I also needed to get the hell out of here.

A sense of dread filled me, thinking tonight could have gone very badly, very quickly. I knew a typical shifter’s bite could turn someone, but they most likely ended in death if it was a human. What would happen if they bit me? I knew some species couldn’t survive the change, but I didn’t know if witches could.

But I didn’t have any magic. Did that mean anything? Could they even turn people? These questions popped into my head, pushing me to write all of them down to research when I got out of here.

“I took the liberty of bringing you some moonshine.”

I jumped at his voice again, not prepared for him to just walk into the room with a tray of food and another with beverages.

“Please forgive me. I should have knocked.” He looked embarrassed. “I’m not used to having a Belladonna who is not so angry.”

“It’s ok, but I would appreciate it if you knocked next time,” I said, placing my pen and paper on the nightstand.

He set down the tray of food on the bed, it looked like a roast with a lot of vegetables and potatoes. My stomach growled the moment the smell hit my senses, making my mouth water.

“I will make sure I remember to do that.” He smiled at me like he was waiting for me to dive right in, until I couldn’t wait any more. I picked up the plate, took a forkful of the roast with a little of the potatoes, before I took a bite.

An explosion of flavor burst in my mouth; I couldn’t help the appreciative moan that escaped me.

It’s really fucking good, like all the food I’ve had.

“Mr. Potter, did you cook this?” I asked in between bites.

“Yes, I did. I love to cook and have found a new cookbook by someone named Contessa.” He grinned as he took a seat on a small chair that was by the window. When he sat down his body solidified, showing me more features of his face and his hands.

I smiled when I realized he was talking about the Food Network chef.

“She has the best recipes, and I can definitely appreciate her love of butter,” he chuckled.

“Butter and carbs are life, Mr. Potter.” I grinned before I took another bite of the vegetable that had a lemony flavor to it. “Your cooking is absolutely wonderful.”

“Thank you. I’m glad someone gets to eat the food I make. The boys aren’t always hungry during their hour, so most of the time it goes out to the farm animals.”

“There are farm animals here?” I asked in disbelief. “How do they survive the wolves?”

“We protect them with a spell that doesn’t allow them to enter their area on the grounds, but I let wild pigs in so that they might hunt and get their nutrition that way,” he said, matter-of-factly. “When their wolf takes over, they have no recollection of what happens during most of the day. It’s like their wolf doesn’t allow them to share their mind. So, I have to make sure they are at least getting some sort of nutrition.”

I was baffled by the way he talked about them, almost as if he cared for the men who I was trapped here with.

“You sound very attached to them,” I said, loading up my fork.

“I was a mentor to all of them when they reached the age that their wolves presented. I have known all of them since they were babies and I see them as my sons.” He smiled at me, but there was a look of sadness in his eyes.

“Wow, I can’t imagine what they must have been like when they were younger.” I scooped up the last bite.

“They were happy, at least until they presented their duties to the pack, then their young, jovial faces grew serious.”

It was at this moment that I realized that this man was full of all sorts of knowledge. I could probably ask him anything and he would probably have an answer for me. So many questions popped up into my mind that I couldn’t decide what to ask first.

“I know this situation isn’t the best, and I know the boys are a lot to handle, but I wish you would look at it from their perspective.” He sighed. “They’ve had to spend so much time living in one-hour increments that it’s taking a toll on them, their minds are slowly withering away and I fear one day they won’t have enough of themselves to pull themselves away from their wolves.”

He sighed, looking heartbroken, and all the questions I had on the tip of my tongue vanished.

“Their behavior is inexcusable and I’m sorry they left you in the library. I would have freed you if they hadn’t found a spell that would prevent me from being able to come near you.”

Now the spell that Aeon did made perfect sense. They were keeping Mr. Potter from helping me. Anger flared to life in my chest, what they had done to me and what Lucien said bothered me even more. They expected me to escape, but I couldn’t. Even if I had escaped, what the hell was I supposed to do if I ran into one of them?

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