20. Gwen
Fear nearly immobilized Gwen, but she wasn’t sure if it was general dread or fear for Charlotte, who seemed so bright and lovely. Gwen had allowed herself to be swept up in excitement at the unexpected discovery of a friend and in their exchange of confidences. The feeling—however brief—of being part of a team, united in the search for Easton, had been heady. But reality fell far too quickly.
From the bright, almost tender, expression on her face, Charlotte had no idea of the danger she was in. Gwen guessed she even felt affection for her husband, despite his transformations. But Gwen couldn’t brush aside the coincidence.
Away from her mother’s sleeping drafts, Gwen had been forced to endure her own transformation every night since her escape. She hid in the forest, away from the valley folk until the sun rose each morning, and she had yet to meet another bear of any sort, let alone one who was actually human.
If there was a man in the mountains who turned into a white bear, he must be part of the same enchantment as Gwen herself. And the only people trapped in the enchantment were her mother’s people—the mountain court and the queen’s guards.
Bile rose in her throat as she put it all together. She had been swept up in their talk of Easton and forgotten where she had first seen Charlotte. It hadn’t been in this clearing but in her mother’s bedchamber—in a portrait that had also featured Charlotte’s husband.
At best, Charlotte’s husband was a member of her mother’s court, loyal to someone unspeakable. But her friend claimed he was a bear during the day and a man at night—the opposite of the enchantment on the mountain court. The more she considered the strange anomaly, the stronger grew an even more horrifying possibility. What if this man wasn’t a member of the court but the original owner of whatever object her mother had used to create the curse?
Was he even a man at all, or was he some creature of nightmare who had managed to assume the trappings of a man by night? It was entirely believable that her mother would be allied with such a creature.
Creeping fingers of cold slid up Gwen’s spine. Her friend had said she only ever encountered her husband as a man in the pitch dark. She had never seen him, not once. Did his dread enchantments allow him to assume the voice and size of a man but not a proper appearance? Was that why he hid in darkness?
Charlotte’s bright smile was fading in the wake of Gwen’s long silence, and she knew she needed to speak.
“Charlotte,” she gasped, “are you sure you’ve never seen his face?”
“No, never.” Charlotte leaned forward, looking concerned. “Are you well, Gwen? You look ill.”
“I…I’m well enough.” Gwen exerted all her will power to push down the horror that was making her sick. “It’s you I’m worried about.”
Charlotte laughed and waved a hand as if to brush off Gwen’s concerns. “I know it’s an unusual situation—to say the least!—but Henry is everything considerate.”
Gwen caught the soft glow in her friend’s eyes when she spoke his name, and her heart sank. She had spent years forced to attend the events of her mother’s court, always watching and listening from the sidelines. While she might have engaged in few conversations herself, she had long ago learned that sometimes the most charming of faces concealed a rotten core. This Henry had clearly won Charlotte over, but that fact provided Gwen little reassurance. He would show his true colors eventually, but when he did, Charlotte would be trapped alone in his castle.
What could Gwen do about it, though? Charlotte had known her for less than a day. Why would she listen to her speaking against her beloved husband? In any ordinary situation, Gwen would even have applauded Charlotte for that loyalty.
But her friend was caught up in a dark enchantment, and Gwen couldn’t leave her to fight it alone. Especially when Charlotte didn’t even know the danger she was in.
“Don’t you think you should at least insist on seeing him once?” Gwen suggested tentatively.
Impatience crept over Charlotte’s face, as if she was disappointed in her friend’s reaction.
“I can’t do that. Of course I’d like to see his face—I’ve imagined it too many times to count—but I trust him. He has a reason for keeping it hidden, and he’ll show me his full self when the time is right.”
But will you like that full self when you see it? Gwen pleaded in her mind.
Aloud, she said, “But surely it couldn’t hurt to see him only once?”
Charlotte shrugged. “Even if I wanted to, it’s impossible. The castle is Henry’s, and he controls the sources of light. None of them work during the nighttime hours. It’s not just a matter of taking a peek.”
Gwen bit her lip. She could think of strategies that might circumvent the enchanter’s machinations, but it was clear her friend didn’t want to hear them. Already Charlotte had deflated at Gwen’s questions. She feared that if she pressed any harder, Charlotte would close herself off from Gwen entirely.
Gwen couldn’t risk that. Not when she had finally found someone who might become a friend, someone who would help her make a plan for finding Easton. And even for Charlotte’s sake she didn’t want to destroy the fragile beginnings of their friendship. If her suspicions were even partially correct, Charlotte would need every possible ally in the future.
“I’m sorry,” Gwen said softly. “It’s just such an…incredible story.”
Charlotte relaxed, laughing. “Imagine what it was like living it! I wasn’t sure if I was in a dream half the time.”
The two chattered on a little until Charlotte noticed the afternoon sun waning. She leaped to her feet.
“We really must be getting back. Otherwise my family will start worrying, and you might miss your evening meal.” She smiled at Gwen. “Shall we meet again?”
Gwen agreed eagerly, and the two began the walk back, staying together until they had to part ways to reach their separate destinations. As they walked, Gwen’s mind raced, and when they paused for a final farewell, she made a suggestion.
“I could meet you at your house tomorrow, if you’d like. I remember where it is, and I’d be happy to have the chance to greet your parents and sisters again.”
Charlotte paused for the briefest moment, and Gwen wondered if she’d rather keep their friendship separate from whatever complicated dynamic Charlotte shared with her family. Gwen could certainly understand that desire. In ordinary circumstances she wouldn’t have dreamed of intruding. But the circumstances weren’t ordinary, and while they were walking, she’d realized what she should do. She just needed a chance for a quiet word with one of Charlotte’s parents.
Charlotte might not have a reason to listen to a friend of a few hours’ standing, but surely she would listen to her own parents. Gwen just needed to convince them there was something terribly wrong with Charlotte’s husband—something beyond the fact he turned into a bear each day.