Page 32 of The Defiant Curse

Now, he had a problem.

Elizabeth was there, and they’d told her it was calm and that everyone had been laid to rest.

This place awas about to make a liar out of him.

Something was about to happen.

He could feel it in his bones.

Chapter Two

Ravensmire

Evening

The Introductions

As they headed back up the hill and toward the castle, Michael had that uneasy feeling brewing in the pit of his belly. The last thing he wanted was to watch the shit hit the fan, and Elizabeth being stuck in the middle of it.

She’d come here to recoup, not to be scared at the things that had been going bump in the night.

Damn.

This was a predicament.

Deep down, he hoped whatever this was stayed away until she could safely head home in the future.

What were the chances of that?

The only good thing was that the further they moved from the lake, the less twitchy he was feeling. Maybe he was just overreacting.

All he could hope was whatever was stirring it up wouldn’t get the inside of the castle a-rocking too.

As for Elizabeth having a visceral reaction down there, and saying she didn’t like it…that was more puzzling.

Maybe she was just astute, since she chased death on a normal basis. A lot of death had happened here, and a lot of pain had been endured.

Pushing it aside until he could talk to Graham, he continued on with the tour. Mostly to distract her, but also to distract himself too.

“This is the courtyard where I got married,” he said, walking her through the big gate and into the most special of places to him.

The whole time, Elizabeth looked around.

There were rows of boxwood hedges, carved out to be a low maze. She imagined in the summer, it was pretty here with all the flowers.

If she was getting married here, this would be one of the spots she would have chosen too. In fact, she was pretty sure this would be where Ian and Gryphen would tie the knot—weather permitting.

“I recognize it,” she said, turning to look at the castle and the window they’d all seen the ghosts in. Now, instead, it was dark and undisturbed.

Michael touched the hedges.

“I wish you could see it for summer. Hell! I wish I saw it for summer.”

Elizabeth bet it was.

“I think with the upcoming wedding, we can plan for it out here,” she said. “It’s not going to be warm, but a ceremony isn’t that long. Imagine it filled with pumpkins, and all kinds of fall decorations. I think Ian will like it out here.”

He smiled.