Chapter 249 - Down the Rabbit Hole

Palace, Zakynthos Island 1826

Cam's eyes flickered open. The elegant canopy of the royal suite was the first her blurry eyes could focus on. {Ales...} She turned her head and tried to lift it from the pillow. "Ugg..." She murmured as pain shot through her head.

Ales quickly turned away from the desk he'd been working at. Seeing Cam's hands move to her head, he pushed himself up from the chair and made his way over to the bed. He lifted a damp cloth from a bowl and placed it against her brow. "You're awake... How are you feeling?" He asked in a low soothing voice.

Cam peeked out from around the cloth. "Ales? What happened?"

He frowned. "Do you not remember drinking the poisoned drink?" He perched himself on the edge of the bed as he smoothed away a few loose curls from around her temples.

Cam bunched her brows together as she tried to think past the heavy fog of her mind. Memories of Ales and the poison came rushing back causing her breath to catch and her eyes to widen. "Ales! Are you alright?" She asked as she fought back the pain sitting up was causing her.

"Shhh." He whispered as he pressed her back to the mattress. "You need to rest now. You've been asleep nearly two days and still have a fever."

She furrowed her brows in concern. "Fern?!"

"Shhh." He whispered. He searched her face as he brushed his hands over her damp forehead and hair. "I can't lose you... I'm sorry things have been so strained between us... but I can't... I can't..."

She smiled up at him, bringing a hand up to stroke his cheek. "I'm not going anywhere."

A heavy frown spread across his handsome face. "The things you said about Fern... do you have any proof... anything at all?"

Cam nodded, uncertainty rapidly replacing her smile. She pushed weakly up from the bed. "Ugg..." She sighed as she pressed her palm against her temple. "I know where he's making that." She said pointing to the decanter still sitting on his desk. Her eyes moved over to him. "Please tell me you've not drank anymore of that horrid stuff."

His frown deepened. "Cam, Fern has the exact same thing in his room... He's drinking it as well..." He looked toward the decanter as he shook his head. "He said it was a simple sleeping tonic. He even showed me the vile."

Cam's eyes widened in shock. Everything she had gone through and was still enduring was for nothing if he didn't believe her on this if he wasn't willing to let her prove what she'd found. She grabbed and held his arm as tightly as she could. "Ales, I swear to you, that is not a normal sleep tonic! Look what it did to you, what it did to me! If he's taking it then it's in a lot lower dosage." The memories of the night he'd come into Ales's room flashed back. "The night he was in here, he even said he'd been adjusting the concentrations!"

Ales's turbulent eyes moved away from the decanter back to Cam's worried eyes. "I want to believe you..." He pulled her into his arms and rested his head against her shoulder. "Make me believe you... Show me what you know."

Cam wrapped her arms tightly around him. Tears streamed from her eyes as she nodded her head. "Thank you." She whispered against his shoulder. She forced herself to push him away. She refused to waste a second if he was willing to hear her out on this. She gingerly scooted her weak body to the edge of the bed and pulled her gown over her head.

Ales's eyes went wide. "Wait, what are you doing!"

She sent him a 'are you kidding' glare. "I can barely stand as I am." She forced her body to shift as he watched, quickly moving from one form to the other. She looked around the room. Seeing her robe hanging at the end of the bed, she retrieved it and slid it over her n.a.k.e.d body. When she turned back to face Ales, he was still staring at her in wide-eyed fascination and another more primal emotion. She arched a brow. "What?"

He tried to pull his eyes away from her as the hunger grew in the pit of his stomach but couldn't. "I... it's just... I didn't expect you to do that..."

Her brow rose higher, "Ales, we're married. You'll have to see me n.a.k.e.d at some point." She looked away as she tied a knot in the robe. "I had hoped for more than just brief nudity upon entering this room the other night..." She mumbled as she walked across the room. She turned toward him as she pulled the door open. "I'll be ready in a few minutes. I'll meet you back in here."

True to her word, ten short minutes later, Cam tapped lightly on the door before pulling it open and walking inside. Her eyes followed the movements of his nimble fingers as he buttoned up a plain linen shirt. She pushed down her own nervousness and walked over to him. Brushing away his hands, she awkwardly finished buttoning his shirt. "By the gods, I am your wife now... and at one point that knowledge would have brought you joy instead of the indecision and disdain I see written all over your face more often than not nowadays."

He let out a heavy sigh as he cupped her face between his palms gently. He searched her pale, troubled eyes. "It's not disdain... I could never feel such a way for you... I want to believe you, to side with you... but it's hard... it's my brother, my flesh and blood." He shrugged not taking his hands or eyes off her. "I love him. He's my only family I have left."

She covered his hands with hers and squeezed tightly. "No, you're wrong there. I am now your family too, and together we will build our own family!"

He gave her a weak smile as he nodded. "You're right..." He lowered and gave her a tender kiss. He let out a long m.o.a.n as he stepped closer and pulled her tighter into his arms. "It's been too long since I've last held you in my arms."

Cam pushed lightly against his c.h.e.s.t. "Though I agree and would love nothing more than to remain in your arms the rest of the night and every night from here on, there is something I must show you!" She took his hand leading him toward the main entrance to the bedroom and out into the hall. Her eyes caught on deep claw marks running down the hall and quickly moved her gaze back up to him in question.

He followed the deep gashes down the hallway, embarrassment coloring his words. "I may have gone on a bit of a rampage when you collapsed on me..."

An amused smile curved her lips. "You don't say..." She shook her head as she continued leading him through the palace until they reached her old room. She paused outside the door and pulled a key from her pocket. Her eyes moved back to him as the door opened. "Remember all those nights when I used to come to your room convinced something had been watching me or moving around in my room... well, I don't think any of it was dreams or the imagination of a young girl." She waited until he was inside before locking the door behind them. She walked directly over to the dresser and scooted it out. She held his confused eyes as she pressed her hand against a panel and it popped open. "I'm convinced someone was coming into my room while I slept."

Ales walked over cautiously. He bent and looked into the dark hole, and true to her words, there was a passage running along the wall. He lowered to the ground and pushed inside the narrow space for a better look. "It would be an incredibly tight fit... but someone could fit through easily enough..."

Cam frowned as she settled to the ground beside him. "That's not all. I became curious when I discovered it and decided to see where they lead. Ales, they lead all through the palace! They are much wider in most places; full-grown men could easily move around within the main passages."

He sat back on his heels moving his stunned eyes back and forth between the passage and Cam. "Can... can you show me?"

Cam nodded. She quickly stood and pulled her gown over her head, revealing a pair of his old slacks and a thin dressing shirt. She smiled down at his wide-eyed expression. "I'd hoped you would ask me to do as much." She frowned as she lowered back to the ground and moved toward the hole. As she struggled to squeeze fully inside, she turned and eyed him up and down. Frowning, she added, "You may want to take the wolf form, otherwise it's going to be snug with the both of us inside at the same time."

Ales nodded and turned away from her as he began stripping off his clothes and shifting. Cam watched with fascination as he did so. Once the wolf turned to face her, she swallowed hard and moved to the side to make room for it. "This way," she whispered. She led them through the narrow passage until they reached an intersection. Pointing down, she said. "I'm not sure if you'll have to shift to do this, but this ladder leads to the bottom floor and the main passage system." When the wolf nodded, she swallowed hard and turned to start her climb. She watched as the wolf's back legs struggled to find the narrow steps, before finally disappearing back into the above passages. "Ales?"

Anxiety built until he finally called down, "I'm not going to be able to make it down that in the wolf form... turn away and I'll climb down." He called.

"Oh... ok..." Cam called back up to him. He glanced into the hole to see if she had turned. When their eyes met, Cam swallowed hard and began to spin around stopping when a perfectly sculpted leg stepped over the side. Her eyes widened as two well-rounded buns came into view. Her lip ached when she bit into it to stifle a m.o.a.n as she watched him make his way down.

Ales stepped off the ladder and met the heated gaze of the eyes that he'd been able to feel burn into his back. He wanted to reprimand her for not doing what he'd asked, but the way her eyes moved wantonly over the length of his body he couldn't bring himself to say a single word. He could feel a slight blush creep up his cheeks and the twitch of something else as her gaze froze on his growing erection. He cleared his throat and forced his body to shift back into the wolf form. He nodded for her to follow him as he looked around the wide passageway they had entered. His eyes caught on a door under what should be the main staircase.

Cam shook away the images of his perfect body as she followed the wolf's gaze. She nodded to him as she made her way quickly over and pulled it open. She looked from the spiral staircase over to the wolf. "More steps... Will you be able to go down them in that form... or... or..." She could feel the burn of her cheeks as she thought of seeing his perfect body once again. When the wolf nudged her toward the stairs, she whispered. "Alright, I'm going... I was just wondering."

Though the wolf struggled a bit, they made it to the bottom within a few minutes. "This way." She whispered in a lower voice as she led him down a narrow path away from another door and the other wider pathways. She bent by a box and pushed it aside. There was a small hole in the wall. Once it was moved faint voices could be heard and a faint light flickered through slats of wood. Cam pressed her index finger against her lips as she crawled through the hole and waited for him to follow. She pointed toward the largest of the cracks of the slats.

Ales's eyes scanned over the contents of the room. There were several tables scattered about and each had full chemistry stations set up. His eyes widened when they landed on one of the tables. There were at least thirty veils filled with the same white powder as the one in Fern's office. He moved around inside the narrow space as he tried to study the other tables and the men inside.

They were just about to leave the hole when the sound of a door opening, and another familiar voice called out. "I've another for you to test it on Sire."

"Good, good..." Fern's distracted words sounded off to the side directly above their hiding place. "I'm nearly finished..." Several long minutes passed in silence until movement overhead could be heard and Fern's legs began to move into view. "What do we know about this one?"

One of the men answered. "He's a wolf, Sire. Picked up a few times for petty thievery. The papers said he lives alone, no living relatives or family to speak of..."

Cam and Ales watched as Fern nodded and stepped closer, lifting the man's chin and studying his features. "I would have preferred one younger and in better health... but I suppose he'll do. Open and drink." He ordered the bruise-covered man who was still being held by the two men. No sooner had the man swallowed the liquid did he start choking and spitting up foam. Fern took a few steps to the side as he studied the man. P.l.e.a.s.u.r.e and satisfaction could be heard in his voice. "Perfect! This should do nicely." His hand lowered by his side as the man was dropped onto the floor as his body burst into a fit of convulsions. The amber liquid inside the decanter sloshed slightly as Fern stepped over the man's body as it went rigid then still. "Dispose of that before you head back to your posts." Fern called as he made his way out of the room still carrying the decanter.

The wolf's wide eyes met Cam's worried ones. Ales stepped protectively in front of Cam as she moved toward the hole. When her confused eyes met his, he shook his head nodding toward the men still moving around inside the room. Understanding dawned and Cam nodded her head. Cam wrapped her arms around the wolf's thick neck as they waited in silence, forced to watch the guards dispose of the now-dead man. Once the men were gone and both the room and the passageway were completely silent, Ales stepped out from the hole surveying their surroundings as he went.

When they made it to the ladder he shifted into human form. This time instead of asking her to look away, he pulled her into his arms. "I'm sorry I doubted you... all this time..." He shook his head as he squeezed her tighter. "I just couldn't believe my own brother would do such a thing... and what's more... if this is true then... the possibilities of the other things..." He met her unsteady gaze; pain and torment radiated through his beautiful cyan eyes. "My own brother could have... have killed our parents..."