“It was horrendous,” Leo groaned. “With no one to compel me to sleep, I writhed on the floor in agony for hours, but the end result was more than worth the pain.”
Elliot sighed. “Well, you are here to tell the tale.”
Leo winced as he recalled their recent adventure in Scotland. Damn it. They had almost been bitten again.
Ivana turned to Christoph, who was sitting next to Grace. “Do you remember me, Christoph? Do you remember your time in Bavaria?”
The child shook his head. Leo knew Ivana had spent many days and night
s worrying about the boy.
“Do you not remember when we were at the castle?” Grace said softly. “We rode in a carriage all the way home and Edwin had a stomach ache for days.”
Christoph’s eyes widened. “Yes, mama, I think I do.”
Ivana gasped and put her hand to her heart. She opened her mouth a few times but struggled to speak.
“So I assume your three-week journey was not as treacherous as I suspected,” Alexander said.
“We did not come here directly,” Leo informed. “We spent some time in Scotland before venturing south.”
“Scotland?” Elliot repeated. “What on earth were you doing there?”
“It’s a long story, but I shall tell you about it this evening. For now, let us relish the time we have together. I never thought I would ever see the day when we would all be sitting together like this.”
A few people stopped and stared as they all lay on the grass smiling up at the cloudless sky. For no reason at all, Elliot chuckled loudly, the contagious sound leaving them all in fits of laughter. They held hands, the physical bond a sign of the love they shared. They were a family. Nothing would ever break the bond of the brotherhood.
Thank you!
Thank you for reading Abandoned to the Night.
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Adele x
Lured to the Night
A Brotherhood Novella
Chapter 1
Castle Craig, Perthshire, Scotland, 1822
“They think I’m a witch?” Isla Maclean jumped up from her chair near the fire and gaped at the man she had known all of her life. “Och, I dare say the villagers would have a shock if they knew I had the fangs of a wolf and drank blood for supper.”
Douglas growled and clenched his jaw. He hated her speaking so candidly about her affliction. “I swear I’ll kill that foreign beggar if he so much as looks at ye again.”
Her bottom lip quivered at the thought of Nikolai returning. Her father’s trusted friend was no match for a monster. “It’s been almost three years, Douglas. Let us pray he has tumbled from his horse and broken his wicked neck.”
The corners of Douglas’ mouth curled up. “Aye, now isn’t that a sweet thought.”
“It is what I hope for each day when I’ve no choice but to hide in the shadows.” The image of her father’s harrowed expression flashed into her mind. Witnessing his daughter’s abominable cravings had been too much for his weak heart to bear. She would never forgive Nikolai for that. “But there are more important matters to concern ourselves with now.”
Douglas shook his head so vigorously a strand of long grey hair fell from his queue. “They’ll nae listen this time. There’s talk you’ve brought a curse down on the village. That you’re the one responsible for the death of their livestock.”
Isla snorted. “What, am I stealing animal organs to use in my evil potions?” She had said it in jest but the solemn look on Douglas’ face suggested there was an element of truth in her words. “It was a joke, Douglas. Please tell me they have a little more faith in me than that.”