My Once Handsome Husband - Chapter 299

Delaney told Bernard and Duncan her decision.  She couldn’t quite tell if they agreed with her but she didn’t care.  A messenger had taken her note to the castle so while they waited they all dressed and servants flew around packing their things.

Moving as if in a fog, Delaney waved away Ms. Bird from doing her hair so the maid could hurry and pack her things.  It was late and it was going to be a long trip through the night so she simply braided her locks into a long braid over her shoulder and considered it done.

Walking slowly down the stairs, Delaney found Duncan and Bernard standing there waiting for her.  They both looked worried when they saw how tired and broken she looked.

“There’s food in the dining room,” Bernard said gently, “You should eat something.”

“I don’t want to eat anything.”

“You may not want to,” Duncan said, “But you need to.  For your baby if not for yourself.”

Delaney was already getting tired of people being able to get her to do things by involving her baby in the request.  She frowned at the men and turned to the dining room.  She didn’t bother even sitting down, picking at a few things and putting them in her mouth.  They tasted like sawdust on her tongue.

Thunder rumbled in the distance and the lightning strikes were growing brighter as the storm grew closer.

“Are you sure we shouldn’t wait until morning?” Bernard asked cautiously, “There’s a storm and…”

“I want to get home to my husband,” she stated simply before walking away, leaving him no chance to argue.

She wandered aimlessly through the city house while she waited for the horses to arrive from the castle.

This house.  How she hated this house.

It may be a beautiful and cozy place but only terrible things happened here.  But it wasn’t just the house she supposed.  It was this whole awful city.

It had been in this city that her husband had been training when he was sent off to fight in the dragon war for a King who also lived here.  It had been here that Miles had taken her and she had first seen Vincent after he had been injured.  It was here that he had nearly died more than once since then and where Ian had nearly died as well.

Then she had come here and learned the witch might be able to save her husband and for a moment it was as if the city had given her a bit of good luck.  Then it had proven how horrible it was again though by letting her build her hopes up and smashing them the very next day.

Delaney vowed to herself she would never come back here.  Not ever again.  If she couldn’t save her husband and he died it would be because of this place and she would never step foot in it again.

Fighting back tears, she walked into the grand foyer to look out and see if the horses had arrived yet.  It was too dark to see much so she opened the doors and walked outside to stand and watch for them.

The smell of rain was strong in the damp air and it was quiet, most creatures sensing the coming storm and retreating to the safety of their homes.  A breeze blew, pulling a few pieces of hair free from Delaney’s braid which she pushed from her face.  The good thing about traveling at night is the heat wouldn’t make them miserable.  The air was cool now.

The door opened behind her and she glanced over her shoulder to see Duncan and Bernard coming to stand beside her.  Duncan crossed his long legs at the ankles and leaned back against the wall to watch her.  Bernard stood still with his arms crossed, the one missing the hand tucked away behind the other.

“You don’t need to stand out here with me,” she said quietly, “I’ll be fine.”

“We know you’ll be fine,”  Bernard said gently, “But we both know if our wives were here they would be with you so we figured we would take their places.”

“Besides if they ever heard we didn’t I’m sure there would be hell to pay,” Duncan said with a teasing smile.

Delaney glanced at him feeling her own smile tug at her lips.  She was thankful they were there because she would have hated to have had to go through all this alone.  She was not brave like her husband was.

Turning to look at Bernard she gave him a teasing smile.

“You’d better be careful what you say, calling Constance your wife.  You’re not married yet.”

He chuckled and his cheeks turned a bit rosy.

“I figure if I start referring to her as my wife now then she won’t have the heart to turn me down if she finds a better man before our wedding day.  There’s no contract involved in this marriage so no reason she needs to stay.”

“She loves you, you fool,” Delaney laughed, “There’s no man better for her.  The two of you don’t need a contract.”

Bernard smiled at her, looking truly relieved by her words.  Delaney felt relieved to have a moment of laughing and a break from dwelling on what was happening to her husband.

At that moment a sound came from the street and they all looked up to see a team of golden-colored horses coming to a stop in front of the house pulling a fast-looking royal carriage.  Delaney frowned in confusion.

“A carriage?  Why would they send a carriage?  I only asked for the horses.”

Before she could say anything else, the door to the royal carriage opened and they were all shocked when the King himself stepped out.

“Good evening,” Daniel flashed a pearly smile identical to Mason’s, “I hope you don’t mind me arriving unannounced but I got your message saying you were leaving.  After I pressured your messenger, he told me you had gotten word from Miles that Vince is getting worse.  Is this right?”

“Y-Yes,” Delaney stammered, still not able to understand why the King himself was at her home this late at night.

“Alright,” he nodded, “Well in that case I’ve gotten you more than just our fastest horses.  This is our fastest carriage.  I want you to take it so you can get to Vince as quickly as you can.”

“Th-Thank you,” Delaney said quietly, “But-But why did you come yourself to tell us?  You could have sent a messenger.”

Daniel gave her a mischievous smile, “Because I have something else for you as well.”

He turned then and held out a hand before the open door of the carriage.  To Delaney’s surprise, the King himself helped Helena down from the carriage.  She wore a smile almost as big as his when she pulled out a familiar box and held it up for Delaney to see.

“Helena,” Delaney whispered, hurrying forward now, “Did you… Did you…”

“I did,” the witch smiled, “I’ve discovered the magic that will save your husband.”

With trembling hands, Delaney reached out and took the box from her.  She looked down at it in awe before looking back up at the woman who’d given it to her.

“How.. How can I ever thank you?” she whispered as the breeze picked up, blowing her hair and skirts.

Worry flickered over the witch’s face.

“There’s no need to thank me Delaney but there’s something else I need to tell you.  That’s another reason the King wanted to be here himself when I gave you this.”

“W-What is it?” she asked with concern, looking between Helena and Daniel.

“My dear you know magic always has a price,” Helena said evenly, “And this magic is no different.”

“Yes,” Delaney nodded, a confused frown forming on her face.

“Delaney,” Daniel said looking at her seriously, “Helena made this magic for you very quickly and there’s no real way to test it.  So you see there is no way she can tell you with certainty what that price will be.”

“It won’t be death,” Helena added, “You aren’t creating a life so the price will not be a death.  But your husband is very ill and dying so the price will be high to pull him back from that.”

Delaney dropped her gaze down to the box in her hands.  Above her head, thunder rumbled and the sky lit up for a moment as lightning flashed nearby.

“So that’s why I’ve come,” Daniel went on, “After what Sophia and I have gone through with our babies we… well we wanted to make sure you understood what you were getting into with this magic.”

She stood quietly for a moment and let their words sink in.  She could save her husband but she had no idea what the price would be.  She only knew that it wouldn’t be death.

“Will my baby be alright?” she asked Helena seriously.

“Yes,” the witch nodded, “The magic won’t harm your baby.  The price will be yours to pay.”

Delaney nodded, “Then I will pay it.”

“Are you sure?” Daniel asked, “I know you love Vince but there’s no way to know what will happen.”

“I love my husband,” Delaney answered him, “And I will pay whatever price I have to in order to save him.”