An unhappy shape shifter can be a dangerous companion....
It's Frisky Friday, and for A Writer's Naughty Thoughts, Fridays are also anything can happen days.
My excerpt for this week is from my 2nd book, Deadly Enchantment. A shapeshifting wizard romance set in Victorian England published by New Concepts Publishing,
In this snippet, which occurs at the beginning of the third chapter, Dominic Westcroft has reason to suspect Serena Blanford, one of the guests his sister has invited for him to consider as a potential bride, possesses magical abilities she's trying to keep hidden. Believing she may actually be a plant placed in his home by his treacherous brother, he decides to give her a purity validation test.
Serena has no idea what this "test" actually entails, but given the reaction of the other women who went through it, she knew it wasn't anything she wanted to experience. Up until this point, she has successfully managed to keep both her and her cousin safe from having to undergo the ordeal, but now Westcroft is adamant they both submit to the procedure.
Serena has no idea what this "test" actually entails, but given the reaction of the other women who went through it, she knew it wasn't anything she wanted to experience. Up until this point, she has successfully managed to keep both her and her cousin safe from having to undergo the ordeal, but now Westcroft is adamant they both submit to the procedure.
"How can you insist upon
putting innocent women through a trial that causes them to suffer so?”
“What is it
you think transpires?”
She
hesitated again. “I’m not sure exactly,”
she admitted truthfully, “but no woman who submitted to it appeared better off
for the experience.”
“They
weren’t harmed,” he insisted.
“Maybe not,
but they certainly weren’t enhanced by the ordeal
either. So why are you insisting upon
it?”
“It is a
requirement that must be met if I’m to marry.”
“I don’t
understand.”
“The woman
I marry must be pure in both spirit and body.
She may not have known, in the biblical sense, any man before me.”
“I hesitate
to ask, but what would happen if you married only to discover your wife did not
meet those qualifications?”
“It would
mean a forfeiture of my powers, among other things.”
“You would
no longer be a wizard, or sorcerer, or whatever it is that you are?”
“I would
still be what I am, but my capacity would be greatly diminished. However, if my wife had powers of her own,
her abilities would augment my own, assuming she met all the necessary
qualifications.”
Serena
shook her head. “I fear I must
decline. There is no point.”
Dominic
held still for a moment, and then gave a single nod. “I regret you feel that way, but I understand
and appreciate your position.”
Serena was
surprised and pleased that he did not try to give her an argument. He merely walked her to the door and called a
servant over. “Henry, please assist Miss
Blanford to pack. She will be leaving
this morning.”
Dominic Westcroft is determined to uncover his young guest's secrets even if it means "testing" her himself.
M/F, Shape shifting wizards in Victorian England.
Read the first three chapters at: Deadly Enchantment
Available at NCP, Amazon, Barnes & Noble or ARe
Thanks for visiting. I hope you enjoyed this brief excerpt and wish you and yours a very Frisky Friday.
This is so subtle, but it's clear to the reader that he can't let it drop -- wouldn't be much of a story (or it would be pretty darn short!). But she comes across as rather naive, even innocent. I like the way you drew these characters, Kathryn.
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