Page 12 of Blood Coven

“Wait, Ana!” He called, bravery coming back to him at last. She might be my chance to replace what I lost, to help me get what was taken from me.

Ana slowed, looking around at the people surrounding them. Then, as if deciding it was safe, she faced Matthias again. She raised her eyebrows, telling him to go on.

“May I see you again? Soon?” he asked. It was a spontaneous decision, dangerous, too. If Azalea caught scent of this, Ana’s life would be in danger, especially since Ana looked so much like her. He tried to swallow; her lack of answer perplexed him, making him feel as though he was about to wake up from a dream where she had returned to him.

Ana dipped her head nervously, like a shy child. “Matthias, I…I should not.”

“That is not a ‘no,’” he said.

She blushed, then walked towards him and placed her gloved hand in the crook of his elbow. She guided him away from earshot. The town was small enough that word spread like the plague.

“It is not a ‘no,’” she admitted, though her voice wavered.

“Then I have a chance?” he asked eagerly.

She looked at him pensively, brown eyes darting around as if to seek out familiar faces who might be listening. It was clear something lurked just underneath, desperate to be released. Finally, after much consideration, she whispered, “Matthias…I am a married woman.”

His heart sank, and his expression fell with it. Surely the world would not offer him someone to finally replace her, then taunt him like this. Matthias understood the dangers of a married woman speaking to another man and wished no harm to come to Ana.

“I’m sorry, I’ve overstepped.”

It was her turn to fumble, her hands clenching and her lips pursing. “Though I…I wish I wasn’t.”

He snapped his head up at this. “May I ask why?”

Matthias realized he’d grown so curious about Ana, he forgot his initial reason for coming to the market. It wasn’t for bread, spices, and miscellaneous items for Azalea. She’d suggested he look at women in the market and how they acted around their husbands. He hadn’t understood what she meant then, but it made sense now.

Ana flickered a gentle glance towards him, her long lashes fluttering. As she shifted from one foot to the other, her expression danced between worry and something else Matthias thought might have been longing. Her mouth opened to speak, but it appeared she had no more words.

“Does he hurt you?” Matthias asked.

“Oh no,” she said. “It was more a marriage of convenience. My parents died around the time my husband arrived in town. I would lose the house if it was not in a man’s name within the year of my parents’ deaths. I must admit…without him, I would have nothing.”

Matthias shifted uncomfortably; though he knew the laws surrounding women owning property, he hadn’t considered the issues that could arise. Here was a beautiful young woman, forced to marry someone she hardly knew just to keep a roof over her head, while someone like Azalea could own land simply because people were too scared to take it from her. Conflicted by the taste of his privilege on his tongue, he choked back his words.

“He is kind to me. He does the duties expected of a husband, and I a wife.” Her voice carried sadness and a hint of resentment. “But there is no love.”

“Do you have children?” Matthias inquired.

She shook her head. “No… I cannot…”

An insidious thought slithered in Matthias’s mind, creeping in as though Azalea forced it in there, controlling him like a witch controls a familiar. It’s all so perfect, he thought. Too perfect. A woman who looked so much like her, in a marriage she wanted to be freed from, unable to have children of her own… He had the solution to fix her problem and his.

Could her husband be the one to take his curse away? He nearly chuckled out loud at the thought; give the man a curse and take his wife away. It was a thought he should never have allowed to cross his mind. Despite the idea bringing him some hope, he knew it was far too soon to suggest something so strange and forbidden to Ana. He didn’t even know her.

She must have realized the same thing, for she pulled her arm away from Matthias. “Oh! I must apologize for all this talk of husbands and marriage. It’s wrong of me to tell you all of this. I’m deeply ashamed.”

“Ana, you have no reason to be ashamed for wishing life had granted you different circumstances,” Matthias told her, gently grabbing her hands. Above them, a glimmer of light broke through the gray morning clouds, bringing the hope of a warm afternoon. The soft hum of the market did little to distract him from Ana.

She looked down, still embarrassed.

Without thinking, Matthias used his other hand to tilt her chin up, so he could look at her. “I may be too bold in suggesting this, Ana, but already you have captivated me. I would do anything you asked of me.”

“Matthias—” she began to protest, backing away when she realized people had noticed them.

Matthias also stepped back, scanning the trees and buildings for that malicious crow of his mothers’. When he confirmed that Aegidius was not lurking and waiting to report back to Azalea, he turned back to face Ana.

“I may have a solution to your problem, but it is too dangerous to speak of here. I understand that we have just met, and if you do not feel the same, please tell me. But I feel drawn to you in ways I cannot explain. You remind me of someone.” He paused to allow himself a breath to slow down. Scaring her away now with a forwardness so unlike himself was not the right way to approach her. “I may be able to help you escape from your marriage.”

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