To Catch a Witch [Spells of Seduction 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (3 page)

She pointed to his sword. “Then get rid of that.”

“Of course.” Gazing at his sword, he slipped it back in the scabbard at his left hip.

Looking around her, she asked, “Where am I?”

“You are in the tower in Fort Greene, my lady.”

“Fort Greene? I’ve never heard of it.”

He nodded. “It has been abandoned for many years.”

“Yes, I figured that much, sir. Tell me, does your Mistress plan on keeping me locked up and powerless for all eternity, or will her revenge come swiftly?”

“My Mistress, my lady?” He appeared confused.

“Yes, the sorceress Serona is your Mistress, is she not?”

“Ah, yes, Sorceress Serona is my Mistress, my lady.” He nodded, smiling.

Lifting her arms in the air, she asked, “So?”

“So...” he repeated with wide, confused eyes.

The poor man may be quite handsome, but he isn’t very bright.
Why on earth did Serona choose him as a servant?
The answer came quickly enough
. So he would never uncover the secret to her powers and her magic. That’s why.

As she moved closer to him, making sure not to put her weight on her injured foot, his handsome features became even clearer. Her breath caught in her throat.
Another reason is he is probably good in bed. Serona always liked them young and well-endowed.

A smile threatened to break through as her memory fell back to his sporting erection in his tights.
Yes, Serona must certainly enjoy her time with Merlin.

Coughing to rid the giggles brewing, she said, “Will the sorceress be visiting me soon?”

“Ah, no, my lady. She asked that I come and check on you.” A grin formed on his full lips as he began to walk around her, his hungry eyes intently observing her body, especially the curves of her breasts, and when he stood behind her, a shiver of excitement shot straight through her. She sensed his stare on her bare ass cheeks. She turned her head to glance at him and returned her gaze to the door. Sure enough, her assumption was correct. He was staring at her ass, his smile still present, only much wider.

He lifted the torn linen material, and in a deep, seductive voice, he whispered in her ear, “The skin on your buttocks is scraped and bruised.” His heated breath made goose pimples of pleasure form all over her body and her heart quicken its beat.

Then to her surprise, his warm hand touched her left ass cheek. She sighed in shock, and when he gently squeezed it, a low moan slipped her lips as pangs of desire shot to her cunt, making her clit and pussy lips throb. Next, she felt his gentle, teasing hands slide down her legs in a slow seductive pace, caressing her skin and making more goose pimples form on her legs, until he reached her foot.

“Does it hurt when I touch it, my lady?” he asked while softly rubbing her foot and ankle.

She almost couldn’t speak. Her heartbeat increased in speed and intensity. Her body was reacting to his contact. Wetness seeped out of her with her rising arousal. This man, his touch, his breath, his voice, all drove her mad with wanton desires. She couldn’t lose control. She must stay strong.

She shook her head and said barely louder than a whisper, “Yes, a little bit.”

He pushed her legs wider apart. His hands then started to make their way up her legs at a slower pace. It seemed he was not only touching them but feeling her soft skin and maybe looking at her ass and pussy that surely were more visible with her legs opened wider apart.

It appeared to Velona his ascent came purposely languidly, so as to excite her more. And it did the trick. She closed her eyes, savoring his every touch as he inched upward. Holding her breath, she waited with anticipation for his hands to reach the apex and see—

Suddenly, he took his hands away when they were just about to touch her cunt.
So close and yet so far.

Disappointment came over her. Although she would have stopped his curious hands’ roaming when they touched her pussy, she did want to have had him continue to caress her skin and make her tingle with pleasure all over.

Without another word, he stood up straight and walked toward the door, his gaze fixed on her.

“Are you going to get Serona now?” she asked, curious to his next move.

“No, my lady. The sorceress did not want me to disturb her at this time.”

Fear returned in her mind as she wondered what Serona told him to do next. “Then where are you going?”

He opened the door and with a mischievous smile responded, “To get something for your sprain, and your cuts need cleaning. Also, I don’t know if you noticed, but you could do with a cleaning yourself, my lady.” He didn’t wait for her response and quickly shut the door behind him.

She lifted her hand, wanting to throw him against the door in anger at his insult, but remembered she had no powers. Instead she cursed, spun on her good foot, and hopped over to the window. Leaning on the wall beside it, she glanced at her dirty foot and the leg his nimble fingers just rubbed, and had to agree with his assessment.

Taking a breath, she eagerly waited for his return. Imagining what would happen next made chills of lewd arousal swarm her.

Where in God’s name is he?
Jacob huffed.

Jacob sat at the table in the abandoned kitchen eating a piece of cheese and dried, old bread, and drinking ale. He had searched the grounds and Merlin’s room, but his brother was nowhere to be seen. After a half hour’s search, his stomach’s growl alerted him that he hadn’t eaten breakfast or lunch today. Jacob decided to take a detour to the kitchen to eat something from the wooden storage box of food they had brought, before he became weak.

Besides, he could always think more clearly and sharply on a full stomach rather than an empty one.

As he was about to take a second gulp of ale, a, “There you are!” made him jump.

Ale spilt on his gray tunic. “Bloody hell! Merlin, must you always scare me like that?”

Merlin stood at the doorway to the room, laughing. “Ah, that was priceless. Now why would I stop surprising you like that? You know I’m always in the mood for a laugh.”

Jacob sighed, raising his eyebrow while he tried to dry his tunic. “Yes, I know that quite well.”

Gazing at the large sack Merlin held in his hand, Jacob asked, “What’s in that?”

“A potion and some other things.” Merlin glanced at the bag as he swayed it back and forth.

By Merlin’s easy movements, Jacob deduced it wasn’t heavy. “A potion, you say.” Hope dawned in him. Smiling, he asked, “You figured out how to undo Pondora’s curses without giving her her powers back?”

Merlin averted his stare. “In a way.”

“Now what do you mean by that? You either created a potion or you haven’t.”

“I haven’t created a potion, no.”

“Then what on earth is this potion for?”

“For Pondora.”

“Pondora? What will the potion do? Will it put her in a deep sleep so she can’t escape before we can figure out what to do next?”

“Ah, no.” Merlin swished his lips from side to side then.

Anger began to rise in Jacob as a nagging fear surfaced. Merlin only played with his lips in that fashion when he was trying to keep the truth from him. “Don’t tell me you were wrong and she actually has some of her powers still?”

“No. No, she hasn’t.”

Jacob sneered. “How can you be sure, dear brother?”

“Because I purposely tested her.”

“You did what?” he screamed. “We had said we wouldn’t confront her alone, ever!”

“Calm down, Jacob. I went to the tower to check on her and purposely riled her up to see if she would attack me.”

“You fool. Do you realize how dangerous that was if you were wrong and she did still have her powers? Must you always take chances like that?”

“That’s where you’re wrong. I knew my spell worked.”

“So if you were so sure, then why did you go up there alone in the first place?”

“I was curious to see who exactly was the mighty Pondora. And I also wanted to prove to you once and for all that she is harmless now.”

Jacob groaned. “And is she?”

Merlin raised his head. “Yes. Quite. In fact, she’s injured.”

Jacob’s mood began to lift. Pondora wasn’t as invincible as he feared. “Severely injured?”

“No, a mild sprain.”

Disappointment plagued Jacob. “After all the torment she’s inflicted on others, she deserves far worse.”

Merlin nodded. “I quite agree. But this actually works to our advantage, as I have a plan.”

Jacob waved his hands in the air and then brought them to his head. Rubbing his temples, he closed his eyes and said, “Your plans always make my head ache with stress.”

“Well, this one shouldn’t because it is a very good one.”

He sighed. “I’ve heard that before. I’m afraid to ask what it is.”

Merlin leaned behind his brother and rested his palms on his shoulders. “She doesn’t have any idea we were the sorcerers who did this to her. She thinks a sorceress named Serona brought her here.”

“Serona?”

“Yes, have you heard of that name?”

“No, never.”

“Neither have I.” Merlin stood straight and began to pace around the table while he continued. “It gets better. She thinks Serona is my Mistress. And I played a bumbling fool to confuse her further.”

“But why did you play along? Why couldn’t you just have left her alone in the tower and worked on your spell to reverse her curses? You said you were close to finalizing a spell.”

Merlin turned away then, and Jacob’s heart fell. “Merlin?”

“I know I said that. But I was wrong. Nothing I’ve tried has worked. It’s impossible. I checked all my books and found nothing powerful enough. The only way to undo the spells is if we give Pondora her powers back and force her to undo the enchantments herself.”

“If we give her powers back, she’ll zap us to ashes without a moment’s hesitation.”

This time it was Merlin’s voice that rose. “You think I don’t know that? That’s why I am doing this.”

Jacob frowned in confusion. “Doing what?”

“I’m going to sleep with the devil, so to speak, so I can figure out what her weaknesses are. That’s the only plausible answer.”

“Answer to what?”

“To controlling her, obviously. Once we figure out her biggest weakness or weaknesses, we’ll hold that over her head and force her hand. Then we can temporarily give her powers back and have her reverse the curses.”

Jacob stood up and pushed the chair back. “So that is your perfect plan?”

Merlin put up his hands. “Have you got a better one?”

Jacob looked at him for a few minutes, not uttering a word. He wished he could come up with a better plan. “I’m afraid I don’t.”

Merlin picked up the sack he had resting on the floor and placed it on the table. “Good then, it’s settled.” He pointed to the torn loaf of bread on Jacob’s side of the table. “Give me a piece, please. And some cheese, too.”

Merlin walked to the storage box to retrieve an apple and set it in a wide cloth, along with what Jacob gave him. Then he tied it closed and placed it in the sack.

Taking a deep breath, he took out a brass hand mirror and offered it to Jacob. “I want you to use this.”

Jacob stared at his reflection. His blond hair was messy because of the wind when he went out searching for his brother. He combed his fingers through it, straightening it somewhat, and smiled, laughing. “Thank you. But I’m not the vain twin, remember? You are.”

Merlin frowned. “Why am I vain?”

Jacob placed the mirror on the table and crossed his arms frowning. “I didn’t use a youth spell on myself to look ten years younger. You did.”

Merlin laughed. “I didn’t do it for vanity, dear brother. I did it so I could be in disguise. I could have used an aging spell instead, but I realized it would hinder my situation rather than help it. And I was right, and the mission I worked on was a success.”

“So then why didn’t you reverse the spell after you completed your mission?”

Merlin’s laugh deepened. “Because I found it had other advantages.”

Jacob frowned. “What was that?”

Merlin lifted a brow, looking quite mischievous. “Seducing women, of course.”

Jacob scoffed. “See, I rest my case.”

Tears began to stream down Merlin’s cheeks for how hard he had been laughing. “Ah, dear brother, I was only jesting.” He inhaled deeply to catch his breath, and then his face took on a sad look. “The truth is someone else helped me with the spell. It was a spell of two. An enchantress I knew very well was my partner in the incantation. Her name was Floral.”

He walked over to the window and stared out. He looked like he was a million miles away. Sighing, he continued gazing out at the countryside. “Something went wrong with our plan back then. Something happened to Floral. I saw it happening, and yet I couldn’t stop it. I was too far away from her when the attack came. But even though I was too far to help her, I wasn’t too far to see it all happen, every damn second of it. She suffered so much...I never had a chance to tell her the truth before...” His low voice trailed off, and there was silence.