Turned: A werewolf love story

Chapter 9: Crushed hopes

The mage tower was divided into three floors, accessed by a staircase that climbed from floor to roof in a spiral. The first floor, where Charlotte entered, had the look of a sitting room. Leather chairs, wooden tables, and inlaid liquor cabinets. It stank of sweat, pipe smoke, and the sharp aroma of brandy. Apparently the serious business of magic and alchemy took place upstairs.

Two mages in blue robes stood with their heads together in hushed conversation, and looked up as Charlotte and her entourage entered.

"Another one?" said an older man, whose gaunt face belied the opulence of the room. "Why is it not muzzled?"

"I need no muzzle," said Charlotte.

The two mages stared at her. Charlotte's captors explained the situation, while Charlotte clenched her teeth to restrain her own questions about Bernard. Why had they allowed Allard near him with the Staff? Didn't they know who he was?

"That was Bernard Preston?" said the older mage. "Allard was nearest the door, so he opened it and used the Staff immediately."

The weight of despair crushed upon Charlotte's shoulders. "He did not have a chance to speak?"

"No," said the other mage, eyeing her. He was a short, stocky man with a dark complexion. "I regret it deeply, because I'm his close friend."

"You are Kryn?"

He nodded.

"Did you receive his potion instructions, then?"

Kryn shook his head. "My scroll stone never received a message. Perhaps he forgot to send it."

Charlotte's heart sank.

Kryn looked at his fellow mages. "She may be a wolf, but she is still a lady! Would you like a cup of tea, ma'am?"

They untied her hands, warily. Charlotte carefully sat in a chair, which felt strange and off-balance in her wolf body. She accepted a steaming cup, but the scent was foreign and unappetizing. Still anguish over her husband hummed within her.

"Kryn," she exclaimed, "while the elixir restores a man's mind, the Alpha Staff removes it."

To her shock, Kryn and the other mages nodded. They had taken seats around her with their own tea, keeping watch.

"Allard has been teaching is to make our own Alpha Staves," said Kryn.

Charlotte scanned their somber faces. "But why? When there is a cure so close?"

"It is not a cure," said another mage. "At best, it is a treatment with effects easily overpowered by magic."

Black fog swirled through her brain. She fumbled through it, seeking understanding. "But--then you agree with Allard's attempt to curse all of Grayton?"

"Ma'am," said Kryn, leaning forward, "the curse has spread to most of Grayton already. We cannot hope to stop it--therefore we must control the beasts."

"But if Allard cast the curse--"

"He did not," said the gaunt-faced mage. "The curse was placed upon one man by a demon. Allard merely replicated it for his own uses. None of us have the power to lift the curse--only manipulate it."

The mages had sided with Allard. Bernard was lost. Charlotte dig her claws into the fur on her cheeks. "But if the elixir could be made, what then? Would you bring men back to their right minds, only to control them with the staves when it suited you?"

Kryn's face darkened. "If a man has control of his mind, mere magic will not strip it from him. Whatever else you may think, Bernard must not have truly have retained his sanity."

Her thoughts flew to the days and nights of Bernard hunting for her, keeping her warm, slowly articulating his feelings. He had been human! But he had also enjoyed being a wolf...

"No," she whispered. "He was himself. But I fear he embraced the wolf too readily. It was how we survived."

Kryn stared at her. "What about you, ma'am?"

Hot anger surged through her. She rose to her feet and set aside the teacup. "I may look like a monster, sir, but I am Lady Charlotte Preston."

The door opened and Allard stepped in, gripping his staff. Charlotte faced him, and he raised his staff as a warning.

"Arch mage," said Charlotte, "are you going to strip me of my humanity, too?"

Allard smiled, but his eyes were hard. "I don't understand what you mean."

Charlotte's fingers curled into claws. "You tried to burn Bernard alive when your staff did not immediately harm his mind. Will you seek to destroy me, as well?"

The room was silent. The other mages stared at Charlotte and Allard.

But Allard smiled. "He threatened me. What else could I do? If you threaten me, I will restrain you as well."

Charlotte suddenly was aware of how tall she was, of the sharp tips of her teeth, and the strength of her muscles. She could rip Allard into bite-sized pieces.

But that would not help Bernard.

She drew a breath and restrained her murderous urges. "Take me to Bernard. And if I can return him to his senses, you will destroy these accursed staves."

The mages murmured dissent.

"Very well, my lady," said Allard, the words mocking on his lips. "I will escort you to the pens. If he tears out your throat, we will keep our staves."