Witch Bewitched (New)

Chapter 22

"I don't know what made you so suspicious about me," Misa said to the officer holding her chain. She made sure to stick close to him. Bewitching him was the only chance she'd have to escape. The spell was already coursing through her, urging her to get closer to her captor.

The officer snorted, refusing to look at her. "You can babble about your innocence at the purgehouse. I know how you witches work."

Misa allowed hurt and fear to coat her voice. "But I'm not a witch." She needed him to look at her, to push him just enough for him to see a helpless young woman who got tangled up because she was at the wrong place at the wrong time.

"I swear, I was only curious." Misa glanced back at Bernt, who had two officers keeping watch on him. She had no idea how she'd get both herself and Bernt out of this situation. "I heard he had many riddles, and I wanted to hear one for myself. I'm very interested in wordplay and twisted logic, you see. Surely that's not a crime."

Misa studied the officer, whose scowl deepened at her excuses. He was probably several years older than Torren, with stubble lining his chin and a twisted nose that had once been broken. Her eyes trailed to his shoulders, where she noticed a green mark lining the jacket, strings of gold embroidered around the edges. She smiled wryly.

"I really do mean it, Lieutenant," she said, batting her lashes. "I would never dare to dabble in something as horrific as witchcraft."

Her use of his title had the desired effect. The lieutenant stumbled and looked at her with dark eyes wide in surprise. She let herself smile as her spell took hold, and from the feel of it, she knew she was pouring out almost all of the magic in her reservoir.

"Is something the matter?" one of the officers leading Bernt asked.

The lieutenant shook his head. "No," he replied rather harshly. "Move along."

He waited for the officers to drag Bernt ahead, still keeping his eyes locked on Misa. She gazed back from under her lashes.

"Who are you?" the lieutenant finally asked. He was still struggling against her spell, but Misa could feel her magic ensnaring him, piece by piece.

Misa shrugged. "Just a normal woman visiting the city. How was I supposed to know Bernt was tangled in such a mess?"

"Is that so?" The intensity of his stare softened. He had fallen into the pit of her trap. She swallowed bile when she felt his will seek for her command, a deep spirit within him reaching out for the magic emanating from Misa's body.

"Yes. I wouldn't lie to you." Misa took a step closer. He didn't move from her. She ran her hand along his shoulder, down his chest, until she reached the keys to her shackles that hung from his belt. She had no means to release him from her spell, and her only hope was that it would die away once she was free. Bewitchment was truly a sickening spell. The sooner she got rid of it, the sooner she'd be free from such a wicked chain.

The lieutenant stiffened under her touch. His face paled, eyes glazed. "No, of course not."

Her lips curled into a wicked smile. Misa felt like she had been flung out of her body, forced to watch herself seduce a lieutenant. She wanted so desperately for it to stop. For her to stop dangling the keys in front of the lieutenant, for her to stop asking him to undo her shackles. She had done enough, yet she was asking—demanding—the man to take off the very chains he had clasped around her wrists, like it was petty revenge.

When her wrists were free, Misa fled. She forced her legs to move, to get her as far from the lieutenant as possible. She couldn't stand what she'd done, even if the spell had worked on its own in response to her fear of the chopping block.

It didn't take long for her spell to wear off, and an angry shout from behind her began the pursuit. The effects were too obvious. Subtlety had been traded for strength, and it didn't help that the target of the spell retained his memory.

"Stop, witch!" the lieutenant yelled with such vehemence that Misa's legs trembled. Still, she ran, ran as fast as she could, looking for a place she could hide.

But how could she? This was the lieutenant's city, and she only knew the path from the commander's residence to the shed and the bar.

Footsteps pounded behind her, merging with the sound of her heartbeat, so loud she couldn't tell if the lieutenant had somehow gotten in front of her via a twisted path that would cut her off.

The night deepened, illuminated only by the moonlight. Most of the houses had turned dark, leaving Misa no choice but to slow down just a little to avoid falling flat on her face.

Where could she go? Misa gasped for breath as she turned the corner. She had stuck to the familiar path, though she knew there was no chance she'd be able to go into the commander's home without questions. And if the captain found out about her nightly ordeal...

Well, it was something she didn't want to dwell on when she still had a persistent lawman behind her. She slipped into the alley that led to the abandoned shed. The lieutenant was right around the corner. If she could just make it to the shed...then what? What would she do? She'd be trapped like a rat.

She paused for a breath when she caught sight of the shed. It loomed before her, beckoning her to its cold, dark shadows. Misa had outrun the lieutenant, but it would only be a matter of time before he made it to her. She didn't know where to turn to. There was nothing, no boxes, no crevices in that shed that she could hide in.

But what choice did she have? Clinging on to the faint hope that the lieutenant would ignore the shed, she forced herself forward, pulling one leg in front of the other, dredging through a thick layer of dread. If she got caught again, the lieutenant wouldn't fall for the same trick twice. He'd make sure she couldn't bewitch him. He'd knock her out, tie a sack over her head, or even kill her before he dragged her back to the purgehouse, back to where they disposed of witches and made public examples of them to show that the law was in charge.

Maybe if she'd changed quick enough into her cadet's uniform, the lieutenant won't suspect her. It was her only chance, as farfetched and prone to failure as it was. She pushed through the hessian curtain. A small lit lamp flickered from a corner. Strange. She hadn't remembered leaving a lamp on when she left.

"Where are you hiding, witch?" The lieutenant's voice carried into the shed, even though he was talking to himself. Loose cobblestone crunched under his boots. Whirring clicks indicated he had cöcked his gun.

Misa staggered back, bumping into an old shelf. It came off from loose nails and rusty tools clattered to the floor. Silence stretched, and Misa listened for the lieutenant. She knew he'd heard it—there was no way he didn't.

Soft footsteps confirmed her thoughts. He was going to enter the shed, and Misa wouldn't have anywhere to go. She'd be cornered, helpless as he shackled her and took her to the purgehouse, where they'd flay her, break her, then execute her in a public spectacle. Where she'd be the villain, the monster that they would slay to protect their children. Because to them, all witches were the same.

Misa backed away until she hit the wall. She could see a shadow fall across the old sack curtain, getting larger and larger as he came closer. She needed to hide. Misa's eyes darted around the shed in desperation. To the old table she always tossed the bag full of clothes, to the shelves lining the walls and tools and debris sitting atop them, to scattered pieces of straw that indicated there was once a bale of hay inside. It was all the light could touch. Maybe if she moved to the corner, where the darkness would swallow her from sight, she'd buy more time to make her escape.

She inched away from the lamp, keeping her eyes on the doorway. The curtain folded back, revealing a rugged face peering inside with a lamp of his own in hand. A lamp! There'd be no hiding if he illuminated every part of the shed with that lamp.

Misa was hidden in the darkness when he stepped inside. She continued scraping against the wall, reaching out for the corner all while watching the lieutenant observe the shed.

Then, something grabbed her. Misa opened her mouth to scream, but a hand clapped over her lips, clenching so tightly she thought her jaw would break. Tears pricked at the corner of her eyes, threatening to spill. A strong arm snaked across her waist, caging her, and pulled her back, back into the darkness.

Misa managed a whimper, enough to alert the lieutenant. Between whatever creature had gotten hold of her and the purgehouse, she couldn't decide what fate would be better. Let them battle it out, and she'd go with the winner.

Hot breath fanned across the nape of her neck and whispered into her ear, "Shush. I apologise for this in advance, Miss Carpenter, but do understand you were the one who got yourself into this situation. Stay very quiet, and don't make a sound. Understood?"

Misa didn't know if she should have been terrified or relieved, but she nodded in acquiescence if only to stop the discomfort in her jaw. The captain released his grip on her mouth, and his fingers traveled down her throat until they found the clasp holding her cloak around her shoulders. He let it fall to the floor. The lieutenant stepped towards them, lamp held up. Misa could see his face paling, but his lips thinned in determination, and he took one more step into the dark.

"By the law of the royal council, show yourselves." The man held an impressive amount of strength in his voice, even as his hands shook.

Misa felt her own body quaking against the captain, and she suspected that she wouldn't be standing if it weren't for his support. Was he going to turn her in to his fellow purgehouse officer? Was she stupid for trusting him? What choice did she have anyway? He had her trapped against him, and she was exhausted from using her magic and running from the lieutenant.

"I'm going to fück you so hard you'll be seeing stars for the rest of the week." The captain murmured, loud enough for the lieutenant to stop in his tracks. Heat rushed into Misa's cheeks. The captain had lost his mind!

"I'm going to turn you around," he breathed in her ear.

"Okay," Misa whispered back. She had a vague idea of what the captain was doing, and by the sudden fluster in the lieutenant's expression, she had a feeling it would work. It was her only hope now.

Slowly, the captain's hands found her shoulders, and he whirled her around. Misa's pulse quickened, and she was glad her face would be hidden in the dark. She could feel him, the heat radiating from his body, from the hands that grazed her cheek and threaded her hair.

He spoke to the lieutenant again, posing it as a seductive promise to his 'lover'. "And when I'm finished with you, you'll be begging me to start all over again. It'll be the best fück you'll ever have in your life. Wouldn't you like that, my sweet, to feel like you can never walk again?"

The situation dawned on Misa. The captain—the serious, cold captain who would choose his work over a beautiful whöre during a holiday—was speaking such filthy words in her ear. Despite the danger that stood only a few paces away, despite the fact that the captain would probably send her back home after this was all over, Misa couldn't help but laugh. It was too ridiculous.

"Oh shìt, oh heavens," the lieutenant stammered. Misa heard him take a step. The fading shadows indicated he had stepped towards them. "Erm, you two. I'm sorry to interrupt, but have you seen or heard anyone pass around here."

The captain replied, "The only thing I'll be hearing is a woman screaming my name. Now, are you going to leave us be or will you be giving us an audience?"

Misa coughed. She couldn't imagine how red her face would be now.

"I don't recommend you..." The lieutenant cleared his throat. "It would be best if you leave this place tonight. There's a witch running rampant, and it will do you no good if you cross her path. She came this way, and she might still be hiding in the vicinity."

"Very well, then."

To Misa's surprise, the captain pulled his shirt over his head and threw it at the lieutenant, where the black material draped over the light. One hand settled back onto her cheek, his fingers tickling her neck. The other caught her waist and pulled her towards him until she was flush against the warmth of his bare skin. Misa's hands came up on instinct, and she gasped quietly at the tautness of his chest. Heat rose to her cheeks, flaming, baking. She began to sweat. When had the night gotten so hot?

"If you so desperately wanted to watch, you could come up with a better excuse than a rampant witch. I don't believe any witch would be stupid enough to corner herself at an abandoned shed."

Now that was a jibe on Misa. She glared at him. Was that how he wanted to play?

"He's right," Misa said, pulling his wrist from her face. "No witch here. Just a desperate womaniser and his next conquest. Even though there's no witch, you've awoken me from another kind of danger. Thank you for that."

"Oh, well..." The lieutenant backed away. "I-I'm sorry for ruining your night. I'll get going now. Don't stay out so late."

"Get out!" the captain growled. And it was enough to send the lieutenant scurrying out the shed, taking his light with him.

When his footsteps faded away, Misa distanced herself from the captain.

"You're a foolish, foolish girl."

"Save it," Misa said without her usual bite. She was tired. She was tired of everything. It was to the point where she questioned why she did anything anymore. Why did she bother helping this insufferable man when all she'd get back was a lecture about her stupidity?

For once, the captain listened. He snatched his shirt from the ground and stepped outside to let her change. When Misa stormed to the manor, she was only glad that he had decided to push off her punishment to another day.