The Werewolf's Pregnant Bride (16 page)

Please, help!

Your Dutiful Sister,

Claire

"Bloody hell," Nathaniel muttered tossing the letter onto his bed.

Chapter 22

Sophronia sent away the breakfast tray. She still felt sick. The smelling salts had woken her but she felt as if she was in some kind of nightmare. Her husband was a werewolf. Her child would grow to be a werewolf. She was living among werewolves. She would have thought them all mad if her husband had not become a werewolf before her own eyes.

She stood up and stumbled down the hallway to the nursery. Alice was rocking Keturah. She stood up from the chair when Sophronia entered the room.

Sophronia stepped forward and took Keturah into her arms but held her a bit away from her so she could look her over. Was her baby really destined to grow up to be a monster?

"Is it common for werewolf children to be born early but appear as if they were not?" Sophronia asked. She had hoped Alice would look at her as if she was mad. She wanted Nathaniel to have somehow tricked her eyes. Alice had gone with them hunting. If what he said was true she must be one of them as well.

"It is not always the case but it does happen. Especially when the woman carrying the baby is not a werewolf also," Alice said slowly. The naturalness of her explanation told Sophronia that her husband had not played a trick nor had he lied.

"My daughter will be a werewolf?"

"We can never be certain until the change happens but she does show all the early signs," Alice said.

"Your daughters Amelia and Emily are not werewolves," Sophronia said. She had so many questions and she was not at all sure what she should ask. Everything seemed unreal.

"My first husband died in the war. We had no children and I was a young woman back then. I remarried a man who was not a werewolf because many of our number had died in the war. He knew of our kind. Many of the tenants on the land come from werewolf families if they are not werewolf themselves. Some of my children are werewolf. Some are not."

"There is nothing to be done to cause or prevent a baby from being a werewolf?" Sophronia asked. Surely, there must be some way she could prevent her daughter from becoming a monster.

"None that any of our kind has found," Alice said.

Sophronia looked at Keturah. Her daughter was smiling up at her and cooing. She reached a hand out to stroke her cheek. It was soft under her touch. It seemed impossible that once she grew up she would change into a beast at the full moon. How could such a horror happen to her beautiful baby girl?

Sophronia let out a sob as she handed her daughter back to Alice.

"I am sure it is a shock for you, mistress. I assure you that it is not as terrible as you might imagine. She will have a high place in the pack as the granddaughter of Marquess Wolstenholme," Alice said. Sophronia brought a hand to wipe away a tear from her cheek and nodded.

She tried not to hurry as she left the nursery. She did not want to draw attention to herself.

She tried to calm her nerves as she entered her room and searched for a small bag to pack her necessities in. She needed to leave. She could not stay another moment under the Wolstenholme roof with a werewolf husband and a daughter who would grow up to be a werewolf. How could she raise such a child? Keturah would be far better off in the care of Claire.

She was not sure what she would do. Deep in her heart she hated the idea of returning to her mother's house though it was the most sensible option. She could tell her mother she had been widowed. She could go into mourning and never set foot in England again.

She realized the lie would only work until her father came upon Wolstenholme or his sons while on business. Going home wouldn't be an option.

She would figure out what to do once she got back to America. All she could do now was to run.

She crept down the stairs and to the front door. She was almost surprised that no one saw her. She had just opened the door when she saw a shadow over her shoulder. She cringed and turned.

"Are you joining the search for Vivian?" Mercy asked. Sophronia tried not to register her confusion. She did not know why anyone was searching for Vivian but the fact that they were gave her a perfect explanation for leaving and she would take it.

"I am. Nathaniel is terribly worried for her," Sophronia said. She was not accustomed to lying and she hoped that Mercy would not notice.

"I would have thought my brother would want you home and resting. It is still so soon after Keturah's birth."

"I am well enough. Vivian is family and must be found."

"Does Nathaniel know where you have gone and how to reach you if she is found?"

"Of course," Sophronia said.

"If you find Vivian send word here even if you cannot persuade her to come with you. Claire thinks she has gone mad with grief," Mercy said.

Sophronia gave a quick nod then hurried through the front door. She hoped Mercy would not look outside and notice the lack of carriage. If Mercy realized that she was running away she surely would never let her go. Nathaniel and his werewolf family might lock her up and never let her leave the house again.

Fortunately, Mercy seemed distracted by her concern and closed the door behind Sophronia. She tried to take casual steps forward but as soon as she was no longer within sight of the house she broke into a run.

She needed to find a horse and once she found a horse she needed to get to the nearest harbor and on a ship to America before Nathaniel found her.

Nathaniel looked up at the sky. Night was falling. The days search was fruitless. None of Vivian's friends knew of her whereabouts. Nor did the family that they had been able to contact.

"We should see if the others have had any success," Nathaniel said. Reggie had been at his side all day. He had arrived at Claire's family home just hours before Eldon, Owen, and his father. When he had first arrived he helped Claire search the house and lands just to be sure Vivian truly was missing and not just hiding in a barn to cry out her grief. Once the others had arrived a full search had begun.

The members of Vivian's pack were alerted and any who could be spared joined in the search.

"I think you are right," Nathaniel said. He sniffed the air as they backtracked their earlier movements. As Vivian was not a member of his pack her scent would not be as strong to him but he still hoped that their time together would make it easier to detect her scent than a werewolf he had met only socially.

Since Claire had joined their pack he noticed her scent had become easier to find in the air than it had been when she was under her father's pack. 

Still, he thought he could have caught her scent in the air before that if he was looking for it.

"Nothing," Reggie said as they entered the estate's gates. Nathaniel nodded that he had caught no scent of Vivian either. If they could not smell her then she was not in the house. She must still be missing.

"Anything?" Claire asked as they walked through the door.

"Nothing," Nathaniel said.

"Has there been any word? Any requests for ransom?" Nathaniel asked.

"Nothing," Claire said.

"There is nothing to be done but to try again tomorrow," Eldon said. Nathaniel could tell that Claire was not happy with that answer but she said nothing.

"We will try again at first light. We had a late start today. We will be able to cover more ground tomorrow," his father said.

"I will meet with the butler and housekeeper and we will make arrangements for your overnight stay on such short notice," Owen said. He and Nathaniel's father both looked old and haggard. Eldon sipped from his flask as they waited for instructions. Owen was just as efficient as he was on their estate and Nathaniel's room was prepared and supper sent up in an hour.

After Nathaniel ate Reggie came in to help him undress.

He climbed into the unfamiliar bed with a sigh. He was exhausted.

He longed to go to the nursery to kiss Keturah goodnight. He thought of Sophronia and the night of passion they had shared the night before. It seemed like a month at least had passed since he had been inside of her but it had been less than twenty four hours.

He wished he could have stayed with Sophronia after he revealed his secret to her but her fainting reaction had told him what he needed to know. She thought him a monster now and it was going to take more than a few words of love to convince her otherwise. He had no time for that after receiving Claire's message.  He would need to make it up to her once Vivian was returned safe and he was home. Perhaps by then the shock would have lessened and she would be able to talk to him without needing smelling salts.

Chapter 23

Sophronia rolled over and nearly tumbled to the floor. The bed she was sleeping on was small and hard. Between that, the poor quality food, and the rocking of the boat she had been feeling ill since the day she boarded the ship almost a week before.

The energy rushing through her as she escaped the Wolstenholme estate and boarded a ship to America had fueled her. Now that energy had worn off and she had nothing to fill her days but sitting in her small cabin and waiting.

The ship was part sail and part steam so it would make the trip to America in less than a month. She wished now that she was the only passenger and could ask the captain to turn the ship around.

She ached for Keturah and Nathaniel.

She had woken up almost every morning with thoughts of running to the nursery to snuggle her daughter only to realize she was on a ship.

What had she been thinking leaving Keturah? Who would raise her? Eldon had shown no interest in her at all. Claire was a loving aunt but she was not Keturah's mother and once she had babes of her own she would have no time for a niece. Mercy might marry one day and move from the Wolstenholme estate so she could not be counted on. There was only Nathaniel who was her legal father but her uncle in truth. He might give her all the care he knew how but it was a poor substitute for her mother. She had felt so overwhelmed the day she left thinking of Keturah growing up and becoming a werewolf. Now, it did not matter to her what sort of monster her daughter became. She wanted her child.

Surely, she would not be a true monster. Nathaniel, Claire, and the Marquess had been kind to her since her arrival on the estate. They had done more than another family would for a woman showing up with a bastard child she claimed was one of them.

She had been rereading Frankenstein when the sea was calm and reading did not make her sick. Frankenstein had seen his creation and deserted it. How different would the story have been if Dr. Frankenstein had taken the time to know the monster he had created? If the creation had been loved and taught by his maker perhaps he would not even have become a monster. He certainly did not seem a monster at his core.

Nathaniel and Keturah may well be abominations of nature but that did not stop her from longing for them.

She vowed that once they came into the harbor she would return to England. She would beg Nathaniel to forgive her and to let her be with him and her daughter.

She would make her rashness up to them if it was the last thing she ever did.

Nathaniel sighed as home came into view.

They had been searching for Vivian for a full week but there was no trace of her to be found. They had contacted packs in Paris and Italy asking if anyone had seen her but it had come to nothing. Convincing Claire to come home had been difficult but after a week with no leads she had finally relented.

The carriage pulled up and a footman helped him down. Mercy was at the door. Alice was beside her with Keturah in her arms. The babe was crying miserably. He rushed forward and took her in his arms. She did not feel warm nor did she look sick.

He looked around for Sophronia but she was not there.

"Is my wife ill?" Nathaniel asked.

"I would not know. I had hoped she was with you," Mercy said.

"Why would she be with me?"

"I thought she had joined you in the search for Vivian. It is what she said when she left," Mercy said.

"When did she leave?"

"The same day you did," Mercy said. He could barely hear her above the wails of Keturah.

"No one has seen my wife in a week?" Nathaniel asked. Alice shook her head.

"Do you think she has been abducted as well?" Mercy asked.

"You saw her leave. I am sure it was of her own free will. Damn it all to hell. I should have stayed here. I should not have left after giving her such a shock. I should have-"

"What are you talking about?" Mercy asked.

"I told her what we were. I told her that I and likely Keturah were werewolves," Nathaniel said.

Mercy's hand flew to her mouth.

"She was in the nursery asking questions about were-children. I answered her and did not think much of it. Was I wrong to do so?" Alice asked.

"The fault is mine. Only mine. I knew I had frightened her but I never expected her to run away," Nathaniel said.

"I do not see how she could leave without Keturah," Mercy said.

"What would she know about raising a were-child? Of course she could not take her though it would make tracking her that much easier," Nathaniel said.

"You mean to go after her?" Mercy asked.

"She is my wife. I plan to find her and bring her back."

"Where would she have gone?" Mercy asked.

"We will have to do some searching but I would suspect she has gone home. There are few other places she could have gone," Alice said.

"This is her home," Mercy said.

"America," Nathaniel said.

"To her parent's house?"

"Perhaps. Or perhaps to a friend. We need to scour every dock and see if anyone saw her."

"And if they have?" Mercy asked.

"Then I shall get on a ship and follow her," Nathaniel said.

"There is not enough time before the next moon even if you take a ship with a steam engine you will be aboard for the moon," his father said. He had not noticed Eldon, Claire, and his father join them. He hoped they had gleaned enough from the conversation that he would not have to tell them that he had revealed himself as a werewolf and frightened Sophronia so much that she had run away and left her child.

"There are ships that transport werewolves," Nathaniel said.

"They are dangerous and not easy to find. I do not want you vulnerable and away from your pack with this murderer on the lose. If he got an inkling that a wolf was traveling alone for the moon-"

"If we find anyone who says she has taken a ship then I must go after her. I will have to accept the dangers," Nathaniel said.

"But-"

"I am a second son. My life does not count for that much," Nathaniel growled.

"You are my son. Second born and not inheriting is no reason to risk your life," his father said.

"If you die and Sophronia is not found who will care for Keturah?" Claire asked.

Nathaniel forced himself not to look at his brother. He would be useless as a father to Keturah though it was he who had put her inside Sophronia's belly.

"I will go with him," Mercy said.

"For what purpose?" Eldon asked.

"The ships that transport werewolves keep them locked in cabins. I can sit at the door of the cabin and be sure no one finds him in his vulnerable state. I shall keep a pistol on my lap as I keep watch. I would welcome the chance to avenge Daniel," Mercy said.

"This is madness," Nathaniel's father said.

"I have bedded her since the birth of Keturah. Suppose I put another were-child in her? Can you not see us risking the journey if she is carrying another pup for the pack?"

"If you wait until after the moon-"

"She already has a seven day advantage. I will not give her a full month," Nathaniel protested.

"I will not forbid you but I will advise against it," his father said but there was little heart in it and Nathaniel knew he had won.

"Mercy, if you wish to come you should be ready to leave in two hours.  Claire, you will see to Keturah?" Nathaniel asked.

"I will," Claire said though there was distress in her voice. He had to ignore it. Finding Sophronia was far too important.