The Unknown Thief

Part 30

Chapter 30

He curled his hand around hers, making sure that she knew he was there for her.  Nathaniel hated to admit it, but he was a little confused.  Alin had been a good friend to Aubrey, and done everything he could to help her in her goal.  So, why was the man turning on her now?  Why was he sending Aubrey into a trap?

“I expected you to be…older,” Aubrey said with a small shrug.

Nathaniel looked at the woman.  Her long blonde hair went past her waist in curls.  Her bright blue eyes shinned with something other than life, and the white gown that clung to her body let him know exactly what her body looked like.  This was exactly how he had imagined her.  Why would she be old when she had so much harnessed power and decided to use it for evil? 

The woman ran her eyes up and down Aubrey’s frame, and by the way that Aubrey froze, Nathaniel knew that she was bothered by the perusal.  “I had thought that you would come in your true form.  It seems that we both had expectations that will not come true, that is unless you wish to show your true self.”

Aubrey shook her head.  “I like the way I am now.”

“So plain?” the woman asked, true confusion in her voice.

Nathaniel glanced at Aubrey.  If the woman thought Aubrey was plain, she must not have seen the true Aubrey.  To him, she shone a little too bright on the edges, her hair was in different directions, and her eyes flashed with her emotions.  She was perfect, the most beautiful woman he had ever known.

“Cal,” the woman mumbled, “you can call me Cal.”

“I didn’t ask,” Aubrey whispered, her eyes narrowed at the witch.

Cal shrugged, genuine sadness flowing into her eyes.  “You thought it, just as you partner was thinking about you moments earlier.  How can he not see my true beauty?  He believes that you are the most wonderful sight to behold, and you are mortal.  Tell me, how are you able to make him love you?”

Hearing the hitch in Aubrey’s breath, Nathaniel froze, hoping that Aubrey would not let this woman slit them apart.  It was what the witch wanted, for them to be divided.  Why else would she bring up a subject that Aubrey was guaranteed to cringe at?

“That is your problem,” Nathaniel told Cal with a smile.  “You cannot make someone love you.  I love Aubrey on my own.  I control my feelings, not her.”

“Nathaniel,” Aubrey mumbled, tightening her grip on his hand, “you don’t have to answer her.”

“Hush,” Cal said, raising her hand and closing it into a fist. 

Beside him, Aubrey’s mouth slammed shut.  She yelled, but no noise echoed from her closed mouth.  Whatever Cal had done, it had effectively quieted Aubrey, something he was sure the woman would not like as soon as she was free.  “Let her speak.”

Cal shook her head, an intrigued expression on her face.  “Not yet.  Tell me, Nathaniel, even though you know who she is, you know what she had done in her life, and you know that she belongs to another, you still love her?”

“She never belonged to another,” he told her with complete certainty.  “She was mine from the start and will be mine until the end of my days.”

“Interesting,” Cal mumbled, her eyebrows drawn down in concentration.  “Was there others, before her?”

“Many,” he admitted, “but none intrigued me as she did, none made me want to inquire more about them.  If I had been honest with myself from the moment I met her, I would have known that Aubrey was my soul mate.”

A sudden smile crossed Cal’s face.  “Soul mate.  I had not heard that term in quite some time.  Did you know that there is a test?”

“A test?”

“Yes,” she said, turning back towards Aubrey.  “There is a test to see if you are soul mates.  If you are, you live to see another day.  If one or the other partner does not feel a special bond, they die.  I would like to see if you are true soul mates.”

Nathaniel was shaking his head before she could complete her request.  He was not going to put Aubrey’s life on the line any more than it was already.  “I told you I love her.  What makes you think I would risk her life when I feel such a way?”

“You are a proud man, Nathaniel.  Will you be able to live knowing that you were her second choice; that she only settled with you?”

Aubrey shook her head, but not a single word escaped her mouth.  Whatever it was that Aubrey wanted, it was going to wait. He wanted this business with Cal done before any more complications rose.  Still, he would not put Aubrey’s life on danger.  He knew that he loved her, would love her for the rest of his life, but he did not think she loved him.  Could, if forced, she pass the test of a madwoman?  Could she admit that she had feelings for him, or would she hide from them as she always did?

“I will not chance it.”

“So be it,” Cal said, her hand waving in the air.

Aubrey gasped, her eyes widening.  When Nathaniel tried to grab her, a sharp pain burst in his chest.  Falling to the ground, he heard Aubrey body hit the ground at the same time.  Her hand still curled around his, she gave it a squeeze and smiled, but when he tried to squeeze it back, she pulled back.  Grabbing his palm, she began writing something with her finger even as her eyes clouded with pain.  I love you.

He blinked, not sure if he put the letters together correctly.  The woman couldn’t possibly love him; she couldn’t want to be with him when she was with someone like her first husband.  “You love me?”

She nodded, her eyes filling with tears before spilling down her cheeks.  Leaning towards him, she pressed a small kiss to his mouth.  Just as he began to return it, her body relaxed, her eyes closed.  Panic burst in his chest as he grabbed her and pulled her towards him.  Looking at the woman through their cage, he growled.  “What did you do to her?”

Cal shook her head, sadness in her eyes.  “What she needed.”

Nathaniel tried to push from the ground, tried to move, but the more he did, the worse he felt.  He couldn’t do it; he couldn’t hang on any longer.  His eyelids began dropping, closing off Cal’s image.  Right before he closed his eyes though, he heard the gasp echoing through the room, saw the sword go through her heart, saw the complete devastation on her face, and that was when he let the darkness take over.