Thirteen - Felix
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There was nota single Truth spell that summoned alcohol in a form I could consume. Wine and spirits all came bottled with a glass. I tried, but I couldn’t open any. There was either no beer on castle grounds or Duke Valois hadn’t been a fan of the drink and hadn’t bothered to make a Truth to summon a mug.
Once it became clear that I wouldn’t be getting drunk, I gave in and made plans to deal with the fact that my node was unlocked. I had suspected as much since Cecily cursed me, but I had maintained a sliver of hope that I was wrong. That hope had sustained me as I worked to break the curse, but now it was time to admit defeat.
Not that I’d give up entirely, but I’d have to continue my attempts on my own, and I was realistic enough to know my odds of success were minuscule. Isa would be free once I passed the contract I had sent her father through the node. I’d amend Marc’s contract at the same time, sending him on his way, since he didn’t seem to have my best interests at heart, anyway. Neither of them could betray what had happened.
To maintain the secret, I’d become a hermit. Even if I broke the curse, it was the best option. Though the node was unlocked, it still enforced contracts, so I’d still have to fulfill my duties as the primary node-tie holder. I wasn’t sure how it even worked that I could be the primary holder of a tie to a node that was no longer locked, but the spells Duke Valois had cast centuries ago still pulled on the node.
To fulfill my duties, I had to continue witnessing contracts. I’d have the clerks and secretaries continue their jobs from Leort and Haiwella. It had worked fine these past two months. Besides, I wouldn’t be the first duke who chose not to have contract negotiations take place in his residence.
The difficulty would be communicating with Berklay and arranging for deliveries of contracts and food. Without Marc as a go between, it would be harder to hide my condition.
I banished the various bottles I had summoned from my desk and called in a stack of paper and a bottle of ink. The ink bottle had a lid. I thought about it for a moment and called in a pen and ink together. As I had hoped, the inkwell came uncapped, the pen balanced inside. I gripped the pen with my teeth and tossed it to the floor, then dipped my claw in the ink.
I had signed my name multiple times since my transformation, but the last time I had tried to write anything more, I had decided it made more sense to dictate to Marc. It was too easy to send my claw tearing through the paper, and too hard to hold it in place as I wrote without smearing the words and covering myself in ink.
But it wasn’t impossible.
By the time I finished my letter to Berklay, I really regretted the lack of a drink. Once the ink dried, I folded the letter without too much difficulty—it wasn’t neat, but it would do. Then I contemplated how to seal it. I would send the message to Leort with Marc, one last task before his duties would be complete. I did not want him reading it, though.
The wisest course of action would be to ask Isa to stamp my seal on the letter rather than trying to melt the wax myself. She’d respect my privacy and not try to read the letter.
I looked down at the paper on my desk and decided that I wasn’t worried about Isa reading the letter and knowing my plans at all. It wasn’t that she was bound more tightly by a contract than Marc. She was, quite simply, a better person than my secretary. In fact, I’d feel better if I asked her to deliver the letter to Berklay. I wouldn’t even need to include the task in a contract with Isa.
Glancing at the clock over the mantle, I realized I had spent hours drafting my letter to Berklay. It was well past midnight, and I was exhausted. Marc would return the next afternoon. By the morning after, I’d bid my companions farewell.
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I opted toavoid Isa until I could present her with the contract addendum with her father’s signature. I needed to prepare myself for a lifetime of solitude and spending more time with her would not help. Better to think about the fact that living by myself would undoubtedly be better than having Marc around.
Isa had only been at the castle for half a week. I couldn’t already be used to her presence. I shouldn’t crave it. Nonetheless, I found myself tracking her through the castle as the morning went on. She had already been in the southeast spire by the time I awoke. She stayed there for hours, then went to the great hall.
I couldn’t even tell her to forget about breaking the curse. What did it matter now that I knew the node had been unlocked? To maintain the secret, I had to keep everyone away. It hardly mattered if I regained my human form under such circumstances. Maybe it’d even be better if I stayed a cat; they were supposed to be solitary creatures, right?
Then again, Isa already knew the secret. She was also bound by a very careful non-disclosure agreement. It would be safe for her to return to Rose Castle. Perhaps I didn’t have to spend my days in complete solitude, in which case breaking the curse might still be worthwhile.
I caught the direction of my thoughts and laughed at myself. Once she was free, Isa would never want to see me again, whether I was a man or beast. Wasn’t that the point of Cecily”s curse? That I was an unlovable monster?
I had certainly done my best to ensure Isa saw me the same way.
So, my form didn’t matter.
I returned to my study, once more calling in the materials to write a letter. This time I addressed the missive to my cousin, Charlotte. Though her parents were still alive, my uncle had decided he had no interest in signing an heir’s contract when I took the title. Instead, his daughter became my heir. Before signing the contract, she had told me in no uncertain terms that I was to marry and produce an heir, a spare, and a few more spares just to be safe. She didn’t want to be pulled from her life in the capital city to live in a castle on the edge of the kingdom, hours from the nearest town.
I was going to have to tell her what had happened. Though looking on the bright side, if the node was unlocked, perhaps we could break her heir’s contract and abandon the family’s duties to Truthhold altogether. The thought wasn’t particularly cheering to me, but perhaps Charlotte would see it differently.
I hesitated with my claw dripping over the paper, not sure how much I could risk committing to paper. I might have to beg her to make the trip out to Rose Castle so I could tell her in person. Or perhaps Isa would be willing to deliver this letter, too? If I paid her expenses, a trip to Haiwella might even be something she saw as a reward. She could make sure the letter went nowhere but into Charlotte’s hand, with a warning to read it in private.
With that thought in mind, I wrote my letter.
Even knowing I would only send the letter if Isa agreed to deliver it, I still struggled to decide what to say. I went through several drafts, not sure which was best.
Then I felt Marc cross the boundary to Rose Castle lands.
I glanced at the clock in surprise. I had missed noon and a couple more hours besides. Hopefully, Isa hadn’t had any trouble calling in her own food. That was two meals in a row I hadn’t sent her anything.
I moved from the tower room to the public office where I usually met Marc. I didn’t want to wait a moment longer than necessary to get my hands on the contract freeing Isa. He would come directly here to deliver any contracts I was supposed to witness, otherwise the castle might decide to file them somewhere we’d never find. The provisions and his own bag could be left anywhere on the hillside, and they’d move to the correct locations without trouble.
Marc greeted me with a curt nod and placed the familiar satchel on my desk. “Here are the latest contracts for you to witness. Since I arrived a few days ahead of the normal schedule, there are fewer than usual.”
“Thank you.” I itched to get to one contract in particular, but I could handle a few minutes of politeness first. “Did you have any issues on your trip?”
Marc shrugged. “I did what I needed to.”
His words left me wondering what Isa would have heard if she had been in the room. “Well, I’m sure you wouldn’t mind a chance to rest. I’ll see you at supper.”
“Until supper, Your Grace.”
Marc left, and I worked the satchel open. There were only a handful of contracts inside. I glanced at each, then went back and looked through them all again. I shoved my head into the satchel, certain I must have missed one, but it was empty.
The contract releasing Isa wasn’t there.