For Love of a Vampire

Chapter 14

I awoke to the savory aroma of venison roasting over an open fire pit. An elderly woman stood diligently rotating the spit with a slow steady arm. My stomach roared in response to the savory aroma that filled the night air.

I sat up with a start when I realized it was night. I'd slept the day away and had no clue where I was. I also didn't see Duncan or Elizabeth. Panic threatened to overtake me until I finally laid eyes on Anna walking toward me with a smile and a mug of frothy grog.

Relieved that I was free and more than likely in her coven's camp, I accepted the grog gratefully. It was sweet with a bit of bitterness and a mild bite as it slid down my throat. I reminded myself to pace my drinking since my stomach walls were suctioned to each other from the hours of enforced fasting. The grog could easily get the better of me.

A warm soothing sensation filled my being by the time I'd drank half the mug. I smiled thankfully at Anna and questioned her as to our whereabouts. I was right. We were in her coven. When I asked about Duncan, she explained that he went to visit his father and would return as soon as he could. He'd taken Elizabeth with him, as he felt she needed to be removed from the dangers that lurked ahead. She was a loyal lady's maid, but loyalty was expected to go only so far. What Elizabeth experienced for my sake was way beyond what anyone would have expected of her. I agreed.

It wasn't long before Anna and I were dining on delicious roast venison with a side of boiled potatoes and carrots. I can't remember when anything tasted so good. The open air accentuated the freshness of the food. I was so delighted to be eating my fill of the delectable fare that I almost forgot where I was and what I'd been through. It all came rushing back to me when Anna introduced me to the temporary high-priestess of the coven.

Although she was clearly skeptical of me, Helen seemed an amiable enough sort. We chatted about where I'd come from, the fact that I'd missed going through the portal, and of course, Vivian the wicked.

Helen confided that I truly looked remarkably like Margaret and she would have believed I'd returned with amnesia had she not known Margaret so well. She claimed that even with amnesia, certain habits would remain the same. I agreed.

Helen saw no sign of those habits.

Since I still felt it might prove useful to know as much as I could about Margaret -plus, my curiosity about the woman Duncan truly loved ran high- I asked her what some of those little lacking habits were. Helen was reluctant to mention them at first, but then thought better of it and explained that Margaret tended to fidget from foot to foot due to an old foot injury she'd suffered while learning to work with horses as a young girl. Her left foot was mildly deformed and pained her quite often. She also had a tendency to either touch or grab at her neckline as if she found it too confining. After having worn her clothes for a longer period of time than I'd planned on or cared to, I could completely relate to that one. The biggest give away was that I was left handed. I held my mug of grog and pulled my meat from the bone with my left hand. Margaret did everything with her right hand. I was surprised Elizabeth hadn't picked up on these things. Helen's gifts of observation were admirable.

Finally, someone believed I wasn't Margaret. I didn't know where to go from there with this turn of events. It didn't take long before Helen took control of the situation and the decision was made for me.

Apparently what I'd learned about Margaret being sent to the future to retrieve Duncan was true. What they omitted to tell me was that Margaret was a powerful witch in her own right and was the High Priestess of the coven. Helen was only standing in during her absence. The coven felt the absence of their true leader and Helen believed it was important to get her back as soon as possible; especially since Vivian managed to infiltrate their little family and placed a wedge within their core. Helen feared mutiny at any moment.