Beauty's Cursed Beast Page 23

  Remus was silent for a few beats, and then let out a gust of relief when light shot out of Adam’s body like a beam of hope. The inches of fur that made Adam look like the beast he’d feared he would become dropped from his skin completely, whipping away, due to the kindness of the tornado.

  Remus’ voice was tense, but relieved. “That was brilliant, Miss Belle. You did it.”

  Belle shook her head, confused at the storm that was brewing in her belly as the carbonation in her chest moved downward. A fierce battle waged inside of her, begging to be unleashed. “There’s something more!” she told Remus, not holding back the uncertainty and fear in her voice.

  Remus paused, but then moved his hand to her abdomen, palming her stomach as if to feel for the source of her magical dilemma. “Let it out,” he urged her, pressing into her stomach to encourage the last vestiges of the spell to birth from her – creating what textbooks had never captured. It was the next evolution of magic, and Remus was prudent enough to see the miracle for what it was. “Open your mouth and unleash it all!”

  Belle didn’t have time to give in to her fright, but listened to the words of her impromptu professor. The voice that erupted from her didn’t sound like her own, but carried with it a baritone quality that almost made her shut her mouth. She closed her eyes and trusted her instinct that the universe wanted good things for the magic that danced about in the world. She trusted her intuition, though she had no explanation for the hunch.

  Finally, she trusted in the love she had for Adam – that it was stronger than any curse Malaura could’ve dreamed up. Belle’s head tilted back, and to the sky she shouted, “Et cum hoc mundo liberari a malo!”

  A gust of something pure and new erupted from Belle’s lips and shot out into the air toward Adam, leaving her limp in Remus’ arms.

  The lavender glittering cloud that emanated from her seemed to operate outside of nature, ignoring the tornado as if it was a hyperactive puppy that could be brushed aside. The whirlwind slowly died down, lowering Adam to the stone balcony like a lover carrying its weary mate to bed. The wind returned to a slight winter’s breeze, giving the lavender cloud space to dissipate and spread out into the world, infiltrating the air with something entirely other.

  A smattering of the lavender puff remained, hovering over Adam’s flaccid, supine body like a blanket. After a few beats, the glittery cloud sank into Adam’s skin, mending abrasions and setting his crooked legs straight again – only this time, without the agony of rebreaking his bones.

  Remus hadn’t seen Adam’s true face without the fur and slight mutations in a decade, but suddenly there he was – the boy who’d come over to play with Rory and Henry, aged passed the young man who’d lost his way when his parents died without nature’s permission.

  Remus hoisted Belle up in his arms like a bride and carried her over the rubble, making sure the glass had been blown away by the tornado before he laid her body next to Adam’s. He leaned over and tested Adam’s heartrate, pressed his ear to Adam’s stomach, and then listened to Belle’s, taking mental notes to explain the uncharted magic, and predict any possible ramifications.

  Belle remained still, too stunned to speak. She was the perfect patient while Remus poked and prodded them both, jotting things down on the paper that Henry brought him upon request.

  Prince Henry knelt at Adam’s side, willing his oldest friend to open his eyes. Adam’s heart was beating, but he was locked in a deep sleep.

  “It’s the same as Rory.” Henry swallowed hard as the memory played clearly in his haunted gaze. “I tried to wake her. I do love her, but I’ve never been in love with her, so my kiss did nothing.” His eyes moved to Belle, whose body felt like jelly after the new magic had birthed from her. “It’s you. You’re the cure.” Then Henry moved over to Belle’s side and helped her to sit up, allowing her to lean back against his chest while she fought to steady herself. “Only Cordray could wake Rory, because he’s her true love.”

  Remus nodded. “That’s exactly right. When I got here and saw the chaos, I wasn’t sure Adam’s body would be okay. My contribution tonight was the same thing I did for Rory – putting her in a deep sleep until true love’s kiss could wake her.” He pried open one of Adam’s eyes to check his pupils. “But it doesn’t seem like that was necessary. You did it all far beyond what I thought possible. He’s… I only thought you might be able to stop the mutations, but he’s actually restored as if it never happened!” He slapped Adam’s cleanshaven cheek, but the patient didn’t stir. “Miss Belle, this is incredible.” His eyes drifted from Adam back to her, taking in her heavy breathing and languid demeanor as she rested against Henry. “I should like to work with you. I’ve been Rory’s tutor since she was a small girl, and I work with other exceptional students on occasion. I think Rory might enjoy having you sit in on her lessons.”

  Belle’s mouth fell open. “Remus Johnstone? You want to tutor me? You’re like, way up here.” She tried to motion with her hand a level above her head, but her palm flopped back onto her knee. “And I’m way down there.”

  Remus smiled, his eyes locking on hers with a promise. “You didn’t just stop Malaura’s curse, you reversed it. Even I couldn’t do that.”

  “Sure you did, saving Rory like that.”

  “Adam’s curse was far more complicated. Death is one action, but a mutation is a series of steps that are far more complex. Never in my wildest… Say you’ll let me tutor you.”

  Belle stammered through her response, but eventually landed on a humble, “I’d be honored.”

  Henry squeezed her biceps and shoulders, rubbing sensation back into her body so she could sit up on her own. “Expect an obnoxiously large gift from me, once I process all I just saw.”

  Belle laughed through her nose. “He really won’t wake up unless I…” She didn’t want to say the words out loud in front of the Great Remus Johnstone, but in that moment, there was nothing she wanted to do more.

  Henry started making kissing noises. “Would you like me to sing a love song to set the mood?” Then before Belle could answer, he belted out a few lines of the sappiest song to hit the top of the charts that year.

  Belle clamped her hand over the prince’s mouth and giggled, wondering when it was that she’d become comfortable enough around the prince of Avondale to pal around with him as if he was a ridiculous brother. “Give me some space for this. We’ve never… This would be only our second time… Just turn around or something. I can’t do this with an audience.”

  Henry scoffed, affronted. “I can’t believe you don’t want me here to sing for you. What a grand story that would make for your grandkids. ‘The Prince of Avondale sang while I kissed grandpa back to life.’ The press release practically writes itself.”

  “Come on, you.” Remus hefted Henry up, and the two stepped over the broken doorframe to give Belle her moment.

  When she was finally alone with Adam, Belle’s eyes fixed on him. He’d been in agony a handful of minutes ago, but now he looked peaceful, if not totally foreign to her. “I’ve never seen you without your fur in person.” Though she knew he couldn’t see her, she took her time drinking in his features, weighing how strange it would be to kiss a face she wasn’t totally familiar with.

  She pushed the strands of hair that had come loose from her bun behind her ear. Though Adam was unconscious, she was suddenly nervous. He was far more handsome than the pictures of him she’d seen in the papers. Of course, he’d been only twenty back then. In slumber, the childishness seemed groomed out of him, replaced with a maturity she couldn’t tear her eyes from.

  In a word, Adam was beautiful. Still, she wondered if she would one day eventually prefer this vast improvement to the fur-lined face she’d grown to love.

  She knew she should complete the breaking of the curse and kiss him, but she was transfixed, inching closer so she could study the crevices and angles of his features that had been previously concealed. He had a strong jaw, with a slight dimple in the center
of his chin, though it wasn’t overly pronounced, like Gabe’s had been. Before she could stop herself, she reached out and traced the hard line of his jaw, acquainting herself with the feel of his skin. It was smooth and untarnished by life, and a little foreign.

  There were slight crinkles on the outsides of his eyes, making her desperately wish she could see him smile. She’d only ever seen his mouth covered with his thick beard. Belle studied his lips, running her finger over the plump bottom to test its silkiness.

  That was all the hesitance her body allowed her. Belle curled her forearm under his head, lifting him slightly so she could cradle him as if he was her most precious thing. Belle could have stared at his handsome face forever, but the urge to see him open his eyes again drove her to lower her lips to his, and placed upon them the first kiss of the rest of their lives.

  37

  A Miracle

  Though she’d been hoping for it to happen, when Adam’s eyes fluttered open, Belle got spooked and nearly dropped his head. She scrambled to lower him gently, peppering his face with small kisses as she stroked his cheek.

  The moment Adam’s arms realized their strength, the only thing they wanted to do was wrap around the woman who’d brought him back to life. His lashes swept shut again as his knee lifted. He tugged Belle closer, holding her face as if he was afraid to let go. Over and over they kissed, sealing the demise of Malaura’s curse as Belle lifted him to sit up, so they could better hold each other.

  The kiss broke only when Adam tasted her tears and realized she was shivering. “Inside,” he ruled, running his hands over her arms. “I promised you’d never be cold while I’m around. I’m here now.”

  Henry and Remus helped the two up, and the men each draped one of Adam’s arms around their shoulders. Adam stumbled over broken glass and felled chairs on his way to the settee on the other side of the room. The men lowered Adam to the cushion and patted his shoulders as Belle took the seat beside him, still gaping at his transformation.

  “How did…” Adam began, but his question caught in his throat. “Lucien!”

  Belle’s eyes tore from his face and looked to where he was pointing. The motionless candelabra shook as sparks began to fly from the brass. Adam cried out, but Belle merely gasped when the candelabra she adored stretched rapidly to the height of a man, the thin poles of brass expanding and shifting until, in the next breath, a man in his early forties stood in the center of the room.

  Henry swore, his hands scrubbing his eyes to make sure they weren’t playing tricks on him. “I don’t… Lucien? How did… It’s…” He turned to Adam in shock. “You weren’t seeing things?”

  Adam threw his hands up, finally vindicated. “I tried to make you understand in the beginning, but after a while it was easier to just let you all assume I was delusional.” Adam leaned on Belle, who helped him stand to greet his butler. “Lucien, old friend.” He didn’t bother with a handshake, but rather hugged the man who’d been even more trapped than Adam by the curse.

  The look of rapture on Lucien’s surprised face brought tears to everyone’s eyes. “Master, it’s a miracle!”

  Remus shouted when Audra, Bosworth, Thomas, Sultan the dog, and Vivienne were no longer inanimate objects, but were transformed into whole people. They each stood trembling in the study with expressions that ranged from flabbergast to out-and-out weeping.

  Adam stumbled to each of them with the glow of a new man who’d been given a chance at redemption. He scooped each of them in a hug, welcoming Simone and Chef Bouche into the fold with a hearty kiss to both their cheeks.

  Belle’s love had filled the entire castle, redeeming things that were broken, and breathing life into mere objects, making them purely human again.

  Agent McNally had a hard time keeping up when he had to step over the pile of dead bodies to reach the scene of the many crimes and miracles. After taking everyone’s statements, the agents still couldn’t explain everything they’d written in their reports when the sun finally rose.

  Belle’s father had been promptly released. The moment he had shoes on his feet, drove to the castle and scooped his daughter in a hug. His love broke the brave face she was trying to put on for everyone. Belle sobbed on her father’s shoulder, confessing how scared she’d been when Gabe had thrown him in the drunk tank. She told Fabrice the entire story that had kept her from coming to him, and how devastated she’d been when she’d thought Adam gone forever.

  “There, there. It’s nothing a good pot of tea can’t fix.” His cheek brushed against hers as he held tight to his only daughter. “I’m so proud of you. I knew you could solve it all. You’re the smartest person I know.”

  She chuckled through her tears. “I love you, Papa. I was so scared when I found out Gabe had taken you.”

  “Now, now. I’m alright, aren’t I? I feel most sorry for those poor Lupine. Foulest meal they’ve ever had, I’m sure.”

  It was a grim joke, but Henry loved it, and clapped Belle’s father on the shoulder with a tired laugh. Of course, he was loopy from not having slept, but he was in high spirits. Everyone had a reason to celebrate, including Rory, who couldn’t stop apologizing from the moment she received the call. It was a stream of debasement every time she was near Adam from that day forward, humbling herself for not believing him about the staff all these years.

  “Story, it’s okay,” Cordray finally said to his wife. “It was uncharted magic. Adam forgives you, I’m sure,” he said with a hint of a threat at the former beast.

  Adam had been attached to Belle all through the morning, but now that she was in her father’s arms, he permitted Rory the hug she’d been craving. His dainty friend who’d stuck by him through too many dark days shook in his arms as all the pent-up grief over his curse finally crested. “It’s alright, Rory.”

  “I just… I haven’t seen your face in years!”

  Prince Henry encircled the two of them in his arms. “And it’s such a letdown that you’re weeping? Poor girl. Adam, Adam, frightening the sensitive ones, as always.”

  Adam’s chest vibrated as he removed one of his arms from Rory to shove Henry. “I’m back, Rory. I’m back, and I’m me again.”

  “How I’ve missed you,” she whispered, and then planted a kiss to his soft cheek, marveling at the smoothness of his skin as she touched his face with her delicate fingers.

  After a tearful goodbye and a promise to visit the next day when Adam and the staff had been permitted some time to settle down after all the changes, Cordray escorted his wife out of the castle.

  Audra and Bosworth were talking to Adam, overjoyed at being able to move about freely and speak to whomever they wished. But Adam had eyes only for Belle, who was still confiding her fears to her father. He was anxious without her, though he knew he was being silly. She was in the same room, only a few feet away. Still, he longed to be nearer. All the uncertainty, the pain of his long-time isolation, and the confusion of the night melted away the moment she touched him. Without her by his side, he felt restless and on the edge of agitation.

  “Of course, Audra, take whatever room you like. You won’t exactly be sleeping in the cupboard anymore,” Adam answered while still gazing at Belle.

  Bosworth rubbed his round belly and adjusted his spectacles. “I was thinking I would set up in my old bedroom, but Lucien and Vivienne are coupling so loudly in the next room that I think I might prefer something down the hall.”

  Adam finally tore his eyes from the back of Belle’s head to look at the two. “I’m glad you’re all going to stay on. I can’t imagine this place without you.”

  Audra smooched Adam’s cheek, the same way she’d done when he’d been young. “I could never leave you, my beautiful boy.”

  Adam chuckled and scrubbed at his cheek, looking every bit the child she’d helped raise into adulthood. It was nearly noon, and the agents, coroners and crime scene specialists were finally starting to clear out. With the officials and dead bodies gone, it was easier to imagine what the next
chapter of his life might look like. He couldn’t stomach the idea of his home without Audra to keep him in line, Bosworth to organize the household, Lucien to see to the details, Chef Bouche to keep him away from dog food, Thomas to greet his guests and see to the upkeep of his cars, Simone to make sure he got dressed every morning, and Vivienne to keep the place clean.

  Adam had big plans to relieve Belle of her housekeeping and nursing duties the moment the dust settled.

  It was the longest Belle had been out of Adam’s reach in hours. The moment her father released her from their embrace, she returned like a magnet to Adam’s outstretched arms. He’d clung to her as if he’d been waiting to pull in a full breath, but couldn’t unless she was by his side. His eyes closed contentedly as he rested his chin atop her head. “That’s better.”

  Audra kissed Belle’s cheek, and pinched it just to seal her role as the matronly figure in the home. “Let me draw you a bath, sweetheart. It looks like the two of you could use a nap after you wash up.”

  Belle nodded into Adam’s chest, which for months had been one of her favorite places to rest her head. She worried it might feel different without the soft fur, but it turns out it was the solid nature of who he was to her that made his chest her home. “That sounds nice.”

  Remus put his coat on, a yawn doing nothing to hide the sleepiness in his eyes. He ran his hand over his shirt a few times, changing the buttons from white to blue, and then to yellow, almost as if he performed rudimentary magic subconsciously. “Miss Belle, I look forward to starting our lessons. I’ll give you a week to let things settle around here, and then you can expect my call.”

  “Yes, Mr. Johnstone. Thank you.” Belle didn’t have any tears left in her, but if she did, she would have shed a few in gratitude for all Remus had done to see them through the trauma of the night. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if you hadn’t…”