Bewitching My Love (5 page)

“
You don’t want to know, trust me.” Rowen yelled back before he disappeared down the trail the old woman had followed.

Peering back around at the cave, Fern started noticing things about it that she’d missed earlier. The sun was shining in well enough now to give her sufficient light to see. It wasn’t large, in fact only about the size of a broom closet.
“Well, I suppose I could tidy up a bit.”
She listened to her words echo against the walls and cringed. Was the entire place creepy or was it just her frame of mind? Either way, she didn’t appreciated being left alone.

After tossing the rock she had in her hand out through the opening, she dug around until she found all of the loose ones she could and threw them out as well. She was just finishing up against the back of the cave when her fingers wrapped around what felt like a chain. She pulled gently until it came loose from the rock it was buried under. Scooting over to get closer to the light, she looked at her treasure. In her hand lay the most exquisite gold cross she’d ever seen. It was gothic-looking with stones that looked like rubies placed in a line down the middle and out toward each side of the cross. Rolling it over in her hand she read the inscription “
For my Mary.”

“
You have found my child’s cross. Give it to me now, lest I not spare you.”

Fern looked up into the dark eyes of the old woman. Holding the cross to her bosom she jumped backward, until her back was pierced by the rocks of the cave wall. The old woman’s laughter mixed with her shrill scream. Together, they echoed against the walls of the small cave.

* * * *

Rowen stood staring at the map he’d printed off the Internet. If it was accurate, they had to be in the Northfield’s. Last night it was to dark for him to tell, but he knew they’d walked a ways before finding the cave. He continued on until he crossed a creek close to the orchard farm and then turned west toward the village.

He was wondering how the old woman knew who they were. They would have to avoid her, she was apparently a much more powerful witch than his ancestors realized.

His desire to see Jonathan was tempting. Maybe he could just a take peek before going back. But he knew better, they had to remain as discreet as possible. Even still, it would be interesting to see what his ancestor looked like. Today he would only be gone long enough to purchase their supplies, and then he’d head straight back. Fern had him worried. If he couldn’t convince her to stay put, this might all be for nothing. Now that he’d stopped her from killing Sarah and Jonathan, he had to stop the curse completely, even if it meant Fern would have to die.

Although Rowen had been primed for the next few days all his life, he hadn’t been prepared for the possibility of being attracted to Fern. The image of her red hair as it fell down her back when he undressed her in his bedroom, and the sweet lift of her breasts. “Damn it!” he cursed to himself. He had to keep his emotions in check and his hands off when it came to Fern; they couldn’t afford the luxury of romance right now. Managing to push the thought aside, he continued toward town.

* * * *

The sun was beginning to beat down on the top of the woodshed, bringing forth heat waves from the slanted roof. Inside, the occupants were oblivious to anything but themselves.

“
Oh my Mary, you are but a vixen. What am I to do, but love thee.” Jonathan held Mary close to his damp chest. They’d just made love and he was exhausted from the union, as always.

“
If it please my lover, then I shall love only him.” Mary cuddled close to Jonathan. It was morning and she knew they would have to be getting back. Her mother would be angry if she woke to find her gone again. “Jonathan! When will you take me as your wife?”

“
My love, you know it shall never be. Sarah is with child, I cannot not leave her now.” He was left alone when she stood to dress. “Would you have me abandon my child, Mary? I cannot and will not.” He noticed the flush in her cheeks almost matched the color of her hair. He could tell himself that it was caused by their lovemaking, but knew it was more from her anger.

“
Are we never to be together, Jonathan? Am I only to have you in these shameless acts of adultery?” She wept as she dressed. Now that he was to be a father by Sarah she could never tell him about his own girl child. She understood his silence to be his answer. “I love ye Jonathan, but I cannot continue to wait for ye. Is my heart mistaken? Does my lover truly love me?”

“
Aye, you know I do, my Mary,” he replied.

“
Then you know why I cannot wait for ye.” Her red mane blew into tangled wisps when she stood in the doorway to leave. “But I will think on it, Jonathan.”

Jonathan watched her slam the door hard behind her then stood to dress. Sarah would be waiting for his return. How he loved his Mary. If only God could have seen fit to bring her to him before his betrothal to Sarah. It was a cruel fate to love her, but not to have her. He’d just finished lacing his shoe when the door flew open again. There, in the light of morning, stood his young wife Sarah. Full with child and torment written upon her face.

“
My husband has dishonored me! You bed with a whore whilst your wife sleeps but a few feet away.” Turning away, Sarah let her anger guide her.

Jonathan tried to follow but she’d gotten away before he could get his other shoe on. He knew this wasn’t good, should he warn Mary? After hobbling back to the house with his other shoe dangling from his hand, he paced in his study. He would wait for Sarah to return then make his excuses. She was young still, but surely she understood the ways of a man. Tomorrow he would make it up to her and purchase her a new dress and maybe some fresh peaches for cider.

CHAPTER FOUR

By the time Rowen got back to the cave, Fern was gone. Cursing under his breath, he laid his purchases down then went in search of her. He was hoping she hadn’t gone too far. He didn’t see her along the way, and he hadn’t seen her in the village. He prayed she didn’t try to go back to the wardrobe, there was no telling what the old woman would do to her if she was caught.

The grass was tall so finding her tracks wasn’t hard. He’d just cleared the top of a hill when he saw her; she was sitting next to the Wooleston River. Breathing a sigh of relief, he descended the hill toward her. Her cape was down and her hair was fanned out around her face from the wind. With her bare feet dangling over the rock she was sitting on, to rest in the cool water, she looked as if she didn’t have a care in the world. “Fern, I told you to stay in the cave. Someone might see you here.”

Fern smiled up at Rowen from her spot on the rock. “I couldn’t sit in that cave all day, Rowen. Besides, it is a beautiful day and I’m so hot in these wretched clothes. I needed something to help cool me down.” She turned away to look out across the water. “Salem is beautiful without all of the pollution in the air, isn’t it, Rowen? I find that my senses are more acute here in this century for some reason. Tell me, did you get a look at Jonathan?”

“
What makes you think I wanted to?” he replied.

“
Because I want to see Mary. It’s only natural to be curious, Rowen! After all, they are our ancestors, aren’t they?”

Rowen watched her chew the end of a piece of grass. She seemed way too content for his liking. “What’s going on, Fern? I thought you would have still been angry with me for leaving you behind today.”

“
I don’t know, Rowen! It’s strange, but I sensed somehow that I would be all right. What do you think that means?” She looked at him with her brows furrowed and her lips puckered to one side.

“
I don’t know.” She was really starting to scare him. “Fern, no one saw you today, did they? The old woman didn’t come back while I was gone, did she?”

“
No, of course not. It’s just been me, all alone.” She watched as uncertainty crept across his face. “Really Rowen, I swear! You have nothing to be concerned about.”

“
Let’s get back to the cave, then, I have some new clothes and food for our dinner.” Taking her hand he helped her to her feet when she reached out to him. As they made their way back up the hill she started humming a strange little tune, one he’d never heard before. It was giving him the creeps.

* * * *

“
Atce, atce, atce ete el ikaw.”
Fern hummed the words over and over in her mind all afternoon until she thought they would drive her nuts. What did they mean? She didn’t even know the language, why would she know this tune? As she tried to push it from her mind, she concentrated on the items Rowen brought back with him from the village. Amongst the items there were some candles; she lit two of them when it started getting dark and they were now casting their glow against the walls of the cave.

Rowen had remained deep in thought all afternoon. They had so much to do and he had no clue where to start. Fern was still humming her tune with a cheery little smile and it was beginning to irritate him. When she stood and twirled around with the dress he’d bought her pressed to her body, he almost lost it.

“
This dress was a wonderful choice, Rowen, thank you for picking it out for me.” She smiled, then sat back down and ate a piece of her cheese.

After throwing the rest of his cheese into the bag he looked up at her. “What the hell is wrong with you, Fern? This morning you were prepared to kill me for bringing you here, and now you act as if you haven’t a care in the world.”

“
What is there to be worried about, Rowen, we can’t stop the past, now, can we? Don’t you think it would be better to start trying to figure out a way to ensure our future? Like you, I have no intention of falling in love right now, so we obviously will have to come up with a better idea.” She smiled at him sweetly. “You know what? I’m hot. I’m going to undress and lie down on this beautiful blanket you brought me.” Standing up in front of him she did just that. Throwing her clothes in a pile at the end of her blanket, she stripped all the way down to her royal blue wonder bra and matching thong.

Rowen was in such a sweat over her strip tease that he didn’t know what he should do, throw her down and take her, or turn his head and act like a gentleman. He closed his eyes and thought about what it would be like to touch her soft skin. His eyes hadn’t missed even one inch of her voluptuous curves. She was laid out perfectly, with a sort of a Rachel Welch look, only with a little more flesh to make her even more tempting. If ever given the chance, he knew exactly what he’d do first. He’d start by winding his fingers deeply into her red hair, and then while holding her naked body hard against his own he’d....

Cursing himself he laid back on his own blanket and rolled away from her, he didn’t trust himself not to touch. If he touched her he might want to taste her, then after that he would have to nibble on the soft flesh below her ear. Then after teasing her cute little belly button with his tongue he would…. Frustrated with the direction his mind was taking him, he turned away to avoid temptation. “I’m going to get some rest, Fern, I didn’t sleep well last night sitting up.”

Fern didn’t answer; she couldn’t because she was still fighting the battle that was raging through her blood, like hot lava from a volcano it rushed through her veins. The temptation to force Rowen away, to get rid of him was becoming so strong,
so, so strong
. What was happening to her? She’d never wanted to hurt a soul in her life. One minute she couldn’t stop herself from wanting to seduce him and the next she couldn’t wait to be rid of him. The voice, it was becoming so loud. It was chanting the same thing over and over
“Kill him, kill him Fern.”
Sitting up, she put her hands over her ears and screamed a silent plea.
“Leave me be, please go away, I don’t want to listen to you.”
But the pleas bounced right back against her like rocks from a lynch mob, forcing her to listen.

“
Fern, what’s going on?” Rowen saw the torment in her eyes instantly. In the dark of the cave the whites of her eyes glowed against her fair skin. “What the devil?”

“
Atce, atce, atce ete el ikaw.”
Fern yelled the words out loud this time. “I’ll do as you bid me, please stop tormenting me.” Leaping from her blanket like a female tiger that had just caught its prey, she landed on Rowen’s chest. A rock hovered in her hand as she prepared to take her first strike.

Rowen gasped as the wind was knocked out of his lungs when Fern landed on his chest. She had her head raised to the roof of the cave with her eyes wide as she screamed the strange words over and over again. Her arm was posed over her head as if she would strike out any second. He knew he would have to do something, or she would. “Fern, look at me!” he yelled. She brought her eyes down, they were still wide open and her breathing had become heavy as if she was gasping for air. “Put the rock down, honey.” She raised her head back to the ceiling and the strange words came out of her mouth again, loud and slurred.

Fern’s mind was screaming, telling her to stop. She could see the fear in Rowen’s eyes; that much had at least registered. But it was as if she were possessed, she couldn’t stop herself, no matter how she tried. “Rowen, please help me. I cannot stop this.” She pleaded.

Fern’s knees were pressing on the inside of his elbows making it difficult to move. She wasn’t heavy, but the awkwardness of the way she sat made it difficult for him to get out from underneath her. With effort, he managed to get one arm free, grasping her fist just as it took its first swing. In one quick movement, he had her underneath him. Her body thrashed as she screamed the
atce, atce
words again
.
“Fern, stop it, stop this now.”