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She d only made it halfway to the closet door, however, when she was stopped dead in
her tracks by the sound of a cat meowing on her windowsill.
 Eden, Wren whispered, turning to face the petite black cat who lay sunning
herself on the sill, looking as if she hadn t a care in the world.
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Anna J. Evans
Wren on the other hand felt her stomach fall and her throat clench as a wave of
nausea swept over her with enough force to make her groan. She was going to be sick,
right here in the middle of the room. Dear god, she should have taken Austin s advice
about sustenance more seriously. She didn t know if she could handle her enchanted
talking cat on an empty stomach.
 What do you want? Wren asked cautiously, swallowing hard, forcing down the
acid that had risen in her throat. How could she have forgotten about the damn cat?
She d blame the night of passion, but she knew better. Something told her that
Austin s abandon hadn t been simply a twist of fate. It was too much of a coincidence
that Eden s cryptic proclamation about the curse being breakable and the actual
breaking of the curse had occurred within twenty-four hours of each other. Wren might
be sleep deprived, exhausted, drunk on sexual pleasure and half starved to death, but
she wasn t a complete moron.
I don t want anything, just for you to finally be happy, the cat said, seeming to smile at
her across the room.
 Why don t I believe you? Wren asked, feeling fear grow within her again. Having
Austin return to her this morning had to be some kind of fluke. She wasn t that lucky.
She was a cursed princess and had long ago stopped hoping for her happy ending.
Even though she d been giddy with excitement a few moments before, she knew that a
part of her had been waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Why can t you just be happy? the cat asked, sounding a bit irritated at her pessimism.
You ve finally found true love and broken a three hundred year curse, you d think that you d be
over the moon with joy.
 Well I m sorry if three hundred years of bad experience have taught me to be a bit
suspicious of happiness, Wren said, glaring at the cat.  Besides, why should I trust
you? You re a liar.
I never lied, I
 You lived with me, ate my food, meowed at the door every day like you were
thrilled to see me, but the entire time you were spying on me, reading my mind and
god knows what 
I never read your mind, only your thoughts and
 Same difference. And then, when you finally came clean, you made me feel like
the biggest fool in the world.
There was nothing that I did that
 You could have told me how to end the curse.
I couldn t tell you. It s not that I didn t want to, the cat said softly in her head.
 Why not? Wren asked, crossing her arms defiantly, determined not to play
according to the feline s rules.
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Enchanted
I couldn t tell you. The one who casts the curse cannot be the one to reveal its cure. It is one
of the oldest rules of magic, the cat said cryptically before it began to transform before her
eyes.
Wren sucked in a breath through her ever-tightening chest and backed up quickly,
flattening herself against the wall as the cat s skin began to stretch hideously. She could
safely say that the sound of bones and skin being reformed was something she never
wanted to hear again, and was more grotesquely creepy than anything she could have
imagined. Except, of course, being confronted with the witch who had set her life on its
present cursed course in the first place.
 Melonia, Wren whispered. Every cell in her body was screaming for her to run
like hell, but she was frozen in shock.
Either that or the witch had used her powers to render her motionless. A quick
wiggle of her fingers assured Wren that she could still move, but did nothing to
convince her petrified feet to head towards the door.
 Please, don t be afraid, Melonia said, an almost kindly look in her eyes.  I only
came here to help you end the curse. Now that I have, I ll go. I simply wanted to say
congratulations on your new life and to wish you all the best.
 What? Wren gasped, unable to believe that the witch was sincere. There had to be [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]