Frog Tale (16 page)

Bingo!

She glanced back to the book and discovered a spell. Her attention again fell to the threshold, still empty and no sound or sight of the witch.

Perfect.

Chloe tore the page out of the massive volume, flipped the book back to the page it was on when she entered then hurried over to where the pouch on the cord hung. She quickly snatched the sac down and stuffed the charm into the pocket of her full-skirted dress along with the paper from the spell book. On her way to the door, she scooped up the lantern she’d brought and headed back the way she came. Part way to the stairs the door at the top opened and her heart froze.

Oh hell! This is very bad―not to mention dangerous.

With a tremble to her hand, she extinguished the light and stepped out of line of sight and into a dark corner of the basement, hoping it was just as clean and bug free. Her heart thudded in her ears and she held her breath. Fear tickled down her spine as if skeletal fingers caressed her, allowing terror to chill her blood.

Swishing by in a swoop of long skirts, Ella slipped by her. She paused and glanced around, and Chloe's body chilled.

Please don't let her see me. Please get me back safe to Luc. I don’t want to die. Not now.

Ella shook her head and stepped closer to the spot in the darkness where she stood. The wicked woman surveyed the area around her, before she turned on her heel and carried on down the corridor.

Thank you, God!

Quietly, Chloe slipped off her shoes and lifted the front of her skirt with the hand that pinched her high heels in her hand. She couldn't risk the noise. After darting a quick look to make sure the coast was clear, she hurried further away from Ella's chamber and up the stairs, moving as quietly as possible. The door at the top was shut and she panicked, praying that it wasn't locked. She hooked the lantern back up and held her breath for the umpteenth time as she tried the handle. The latch gave and the door opened. She quickly crossed the threshold and shut the door. Ella undoubtedly had hear the heavy wood shut, but now standing back in the safety of the house, she didn't care.

With a quick darting glance, she stepped away from the door. Still holding her shoes, she rushed down the hall toward Luc's office. The door of his office opened and he slipped into the hall. His gaze fell on her and her shoulders relaxed slightly from the minor release of tension.

"My God, Chloe." He hurried toward her. "Where's Ella?"

She dropped her high heels to the floor and slid the pumps on before she glanced to Luc. "I almost ran into her downstairs. When she realizes what I've done she is going to be very angry." She blanched slightly. “Actually, down right pissed off and hostile is probably a closer description.”

He wrapped a strong hand around her arm, pulled her back into the office, and shut the door. “Let's go out the back door and around." He stopped and stared at her beneath the soft glow of moonlight shining in through the window. "I'm scared of losing you."

"No, we've been through so much already as it is. No. Neither of us is dying and as much as I loved you as a frog, I'm more than in love with the man." An unsettled sensation worked across her shoulders and down her back. "Get me out of this house. I think its time to send your guests home."

Luc tugged her toward the back door of his office that led out into the large lawn and gardens. "Why are you nervous? Do I even want to know what you've done?"

“
Do I have to answer that?” Her palm started to sweat from nerves, despite how cool her skin felt against Luc’s warmth. Normally she would be stressed since there was nothing less sexy than clammy. However, dead did rank up there.

“Why do I dread what you are going to tell me?”

Because you’re smart and know me too well.

The fresh cool evening air of Cammarata’s countryside filled her lungs. She slipped her hand into the pocket of her full skirt and withdrew the pouch on the chord. “I liberated this from Ella’s witch room. The place is as creepy as her.”

Luc darted a look to the bag and he glanced around. He took the chord from her fingers and shoved the small satchel on a string into his pocket. “You’re right, she is going to be right pissed off.”

“To put it mildly.” What had she done? She hated arguing with her sisters
, what possessed her to pick a fight with a wicked sorceress. Temporary insanity? She met Luc’s gaze and saw the worry but more so, his feelings for her reflecting in his eyes. No, at the end of the day her reason for wanting to stop Ella, Ramona―whatever the hell her name―was love.

The
ground of the garden trembled beneath her high heels and Luc’s expression darkened. “Now, might be a good time to get my guests to go.”               He pulled a cellular phone from his inside suit coat pocket and with his other hand took her fingers in his grasp. He punched a quick number and he tightened his hold on her. “Yes, it’s me. Clear the house of the guests as quickly as if they should have left ten minutes ago. Have you managed to get the guards on alert? We’re about to have a big problem. Call me when the house is clear of the guests, I probably won’t answer though.” He ended the call and stuffed the phone back inside his pocket.

Again the ground trembled, this time a little more. “Not good,” she breathed.

He glanced to the palace. “Sweetheart, I think it might be wise for us to back away from the castle. Things are about to get nasty.” The undertone of his words carried a slight fear and revealed he believed things were going to get ugly fast. “We need to get around to the side where the ballroom is and see if we can make it to our fathers.” He frowned. “By the way, where is your mother?”

She sighed and shook her head. What possessed him to ask this question now? “Mom hates to fly; you should know that
because she has never come here.”

He digested her words. “Good point. Let’s go, at least that is one less person to worry about.” He led her through the dimly lit garden
. The beauty surrounding them was magnificent under the moonlight. She could only imagine how perfect the flowers and shrubs would look under the warmth of the. Chloe hoped that if the wicked one turned into a dragon, that there would be gardens tomorrow to appreciate. She also wanted her and Luc both in one piece and him not a frog.

Why do I feel like I’m asking for too much?

A strange chill ran over her and she hoped that the guests were gone soon.  Somewhere in the pit of her turbulent stomach she sensed the evil one drawing closer and undoubtedly with a personal vendetta. Another tremble assaulted the ground with more force and the heel of her shoe snagged in the soft turf of the grass and she stumbled. Luc’s strong body stopped and prevented the fall her in a fluid swoop.

Her heart raced and she smiled. “Nice save.”

“What kind of prince would I be otherwise?” The corners of his mouth, turning up into a smile warmed her and eased her rattled nerves. Still her heart raced. His gaze scanned her face then his smile faded as the sky filled with dark clouds. “We better go. It’s not safe out here in the open.”

Something deep in the pit of her stomach told her
that whatever she and Luc were about to face would be scarier than any nightmare she’d had. “I think we better run.”

A loud thud shook the ground similar to an earthquake and his hand tightened around her as he took off. She hurried behind him and hoped things would get better. Too bad a voice inside her head taunted.

The situation is about to get much, much worse.

A light rain started as Luc rushed up the steps to the ballroom patio. Thankfully, it was empty except for his father and Albert. He reached for the handle and sighed in minor relief that the door was unlocked. Quickly
he ushered Chloe inside and fear scraped over him like icy fingers staking their claim to his soul. There wasn’t a single doubt in his mind that Ella was Ramona and things were about to get ugly fast. He would kill her if she so much as touched a hair on Chloe’s blonde wig. Whom was he kidding? He planned to kill her anyway.

His father breathed a rushed sigh as he shut the door. “The guards had the guests leave, some are still waiting for the cars, but at least they are out of the palace. Where is Ella?”

The ground rumbled again and a protective arm went around Chloe’s waist. “I think she will crash the party any minute and she isn’t going to be in the best of moods.”

Albert winced and glanced to Chloe. “What did you two do now?”

She winced slightly. “Nothing.”

Her father chuckled weakly. “I want to believe you, but I remember a certain remote controlled Porsche going down a flight of stairs.”

Despite the circumstances and how being stuck in that out of control remote car had been one of the most terrifying experiences of Luc’s life, the memory was still a happy one. He reached into his pocket and withdrew the sachet on a string from his pocket. “Chloe took this from Ella―or whoever the hell she is and―”

A loud bang echoed as the ballroom doors slammed and a gush of wind filled the air despite no door or window open and Ella floated in. “I believe you have something that belongs to me.” Her voice no
longer belonged to Ella, instead Ramona. Her eyes remained a pale blue, the floating was a bit out of the ordinary, then again so were his months as a frog.

His father stiffened his back as he glared at the witch disguised as his wife. “Ramona…it’s you.”

“That’s right.” The blue of her eyes changed to a blood red. “And since I am also your wife that makes me queen. Have no fear Mario; one day I will rule this country.”

The eyes of his dad narrowed on the floating witch. “You will never rule. That’s why you killed my first wife, so you could go after the throne. You forgot though that Luciano was there. Only once you thought you had changed him and sentenced him to death you would get away with everything.”

She lowered to the ground and inched closer. “I almost got away with it too.” Her attention shifted to Chloe. “But no, you had to come along.” The pale of her eyes shifted in an array of colors until two pools of blood red stared at the woman he loved with a deadly vengeance.

Chloe’s frame came against him
as she stepped in closer. His heart picked up speed, his protectiveness over her ran high, and he knew he would die to save her. However, no one was dying tonight―except the witch that had ruined his life and now threatened his future.

The witch took another step toward them. Her eerie crimson gaze never left Chloe. “I’m so glad that my husband and your father are here to witness what I’m going to do to you. You see my pretty, breaking the spell on the prince was damn near unforgivable, but I put it aside―
sort of. I visited your dreams and haunted your sleep. I wanted you scared. Then you found out the truth.”

Her attention focused on Luciano. “Both of you failed miserably. Disappointing really, I really hoped the two of you would just put the thoughts of true love to rest, but oh no, you had other plans. You finally went
to see the woman who had broken the spell, and her silly lovesick notions about her frog prince. But she didn’t completely break the spell did she Luciano?”

There was a chance she had. If they lived through this minor bump in their relationship, he would be able to find out. However his confidence ran high and inside he knew that all would be well, providing they both lived and the witch was dead. “I wouldn’t know. I do know you are still the rotten wench you were thirteen years ago.” His fingers loosened the bag. He glanced around to the décor of the ball room on one wall hung his family’s coat of arms. On another wall, the one farthest from where he stood, held the swords of the males born to the Mercury family, including his
. Though they were more for decoration, he would use them.

Ramona’s eyes dipped to the drawstring bag. “Now if you don’t mind I will take that back before I kill you all off.”

Chloe trembled next to him and her soft curves stepped away from him. He longed to have her sheltered behind his frame, but apparently, the strong-headed woman had plans of her own. What they were, he had no clue, but knowing Chloe she was going to take matters into her own hands and that could be bad, considering Ramona’s hate for her.

“
Just give it up, Ella. No one is impressed with your almighty evilness.”

“
Il mio cuore,
that may not be the best approach.” What the hell was running through her wig covered head?

“
You should listen to the frog.” Ramona sneered. She still did look like Ella with the exception of the red eyes glowering.

“
He isn’t a frog, for such an ancient sorceress it’s too bad you can’t tell the difference between a human and an amphibian.”

Anger burned in Ella’s expression and she rattled something off in a foreign language he had never heard. Chances are what she spoke would have bad results. A giant wind rose up from outside and rain started to come down. The palace trembled and Luciano knew things were going to get worse before better. At least he hoped for better. He shielded his face and stepped near Chloe.

“You can’t save her or yourself!” Ella shrieked as the wind in the ballroom swirled with greater gust. Her hands stretched out toward Chloe and fear clawed at Luc’s soul.

The string to the sachet tugged from his fingers as Chloe’s body trembled then zipped through the air three or four feet off the ground. Her back slammed against one of the walls and her soft form slid down and landed on the floor like a rag doll. In her hand, the pouch on a string clutched in her grasp. Her body lay motionless and his heart slammed to a stop.

A shrill laugh echoed through the air and her attention snapped off the lifeless form of the woman he loved and directed at him. His anger raged and though he longed to go to Chloe’s side he stood his ground as Albert hurried despite the wind to his daughter. The doors to the ballroom filled with the designer suit wearing guards. Guns were drawn and their presence indicated all the guests were gone and they had come to protect their king and prince.

Ella spun around toward them and again levitated her high heels off the ground, again she hovered midair. “I certainly hope you don’t plan to use those weapons.” All movement from the guards stopped as they stared at the floating witch. Her arms waved and again she chanted, scattering the guards in ten different directions. A couple bullets went off but they completely missed the wicked woman who was out for the throne and destruction.

He and his father stepped back as she continued to toss the guards around like paper airplanes. The need to get to his sword on the wall near Chloe increased. More bullets went off only encouraging Ramona to blow the guards around from the magic radiating off her. She had become a cyclone of terror. When the guards didn’t move anymore, she turned her blood red gaze on Luciano.

“
So, Prince Charming ready to watch Chloe die?” Her cackle sent a chill down his spine and anger penetrated to the root of his soul.

“
Not today.” From the corner of his eye, he detected minor movement from Chloe. Thankfully she was still alive. He stepped closer to his dad and leaned in. “I want you and Albert to get out of here.”

His father frowned and looked at him. “I almost lost you once because of he
r,” he whispered. “I―”

“Please.” He didn’t mean to beg, but he wasn’t going to risk his father’s or Albert’s life
. He already feared for Chloe but knew she wouldn’t leave him if she was conscious. However her lying with barely any movement didn’t deem her too much of a threat to her royal witchiness.

“
Do you want us to take Chloe?”

“
No, leave her for now, I’ll protect her. Just go over to Albert and the two of you get out of here.”

“
I don’t like this at all.”

Luciano blinked at his father. “You don’t have to like it, but this needs to be done. I need you to trust me. I’m going to finish this witch off once and for all.”

His dad nodded, darted a quick glance in the direction of Chloe and Albert then met his gaze. “Be safe.”

He simply nodded then turned to Ramona and took a step toward her. “Tell me,
witch, are you prepared to die?”

“
You're running out of time. It’s almost midnight. The day of your birth will arrive and you will be a frog again. I will be sure the chef cooks you up just the way I like.”

Sick, sick woman.

He glanced to the clock on the wall. He had less than ten minutes to finish this. “I won’t be a frog, and if you’re dead, you won’t be doing much of anything. Especially, eating frog legs in cream sauce.” He inhaled a deep breath and took another step forward, closing the distance between he and Ramona.

“How dare you!” She swiped at the air and sent his body sailing.

He struggled against the force, and landed not far from Chloe on the floor. His gaze met Albert’s.  “Get my dad out of here. I’ll protect your daughter.”

Albert nodded and
at the same time Luciano pulled himself off the ground. On the bright side, he now stood within a few feet from the swords hanging on the wall. He didn’t care which sword he grabbed since he knew that each and everyone of them had special blessings from a powerful mage in another country―a detail that he really hoped that Ramona wasn’t aware of. Could he be that lucky?

He darted a glance to Chloe. “I’m going to distract her. Please get my father out of here.” His g
aze worked over the unconscious guards and despite minor movement from a couple of the men, he knew he was on his own.

Ramona’s laugh sent
goose bumps over the surface of his skin. The evil cackle drew his attention and his rage pumped through his entire body. She had taken his mother’s life, haunted Chloe’s worst nightmares and had turned him into a frog. Only if she hadn’t…

“I wouldn’t be laughing
witch, since I plan to kill you.” He stepped forward and reached for the swords, his grandfather’s blade caught in his grasp and he with drew the blade from the protective sheath.

“So Prince Charming wants to play tough. Very well!” The woman started to spin, Luc’s gaze fell toward the door he and Chloe had entered. Albert and his father slipped through the back entrance unnoticed by the wicked one still spinning. He turned back to the evil sorceress who had disappeared behind a cloud of blue smoke; things were looking bleaker by the second.

I’m going to hurt tomorrow.

Chloe didn’t want to move. The last thing she wanted was for witch to lift her off the ground and throw her against the wall again. The warm wind circulating in the room teased her skin and she opened her eyes. She shifted with the slightest of caution in order not to draw the wrath of the witch. Tonight had turned out to be bad enough, with the exception of the incredible sex with Luciano. Blue smoke met her gaze and terror tickled her spine. She had only seen that hazy colored cloud in one other place, in her worst nightmares. Slowly she reached into her pocket where she had stuffed the paper from the spell book and carefully withdrew the ancient parchment.

A loud bang filled the room and echoed around her. She darted a quick scan and didn’t see her father or King Mario anywhere. Her eyes rested on Luc, not far from her and a sword in his hand. Things were about to get uglier. Another sound similar to thunder and lightning crackled around her and the temperature of the room started to rise. The smoke changed to variant shades of blue, gray and even black. A pointy tip from the end of a tail poked through the multi-colored haze and a long talon exposed itself. The bitch was going dragon. Her worst nightmares became a reality with every tick of the clock on the wall. How long did Luc have before he tur
ned back to a frog―providing Ella didn’t kill them both first.

No
, not tonight.

She came to a sitting position and with
trembling hands, unfolded the spell she had stolen from the ancient book. It’s not as if wicked witch would miss the page, she wouldn’t be doing much of anything. Ramona would be dead and maybe for once she would get a decent night’s sleep, without the nightmares and hopefully with Luc by her side. For a fleeting moment, exhaustion worked over her and her lashes became heavy at the mental reminder of her lack of peaceful rest.

Her gaze worked over the spell and
she wished again that she knew what some of the words meant. On the bright side, she could pronounce the words and, if the sketches below the spell were any indication, she had a good idea what the words accomplished when uttered.

Fear coursed through her veins and terror seized her muscles making movement near impossible. However, she knew death would find her and Luc if she didn’t fulfill her main reason for coming to
Cammarata―kill the wicked sorceress.