“It isn’t funny, Nell,” snapped Millicent.
Her eyes narrowed as she nodded. “No, my gel, it ain’t. And I’ll spend some thought on how to help ye out of this, to be sure. Seein’ as it’s my fault and all.”
“It’s not your fault.”
“Ye wouldn’t have done it if Ghoulston hadn’t used me against ye.”
Millicent shook her head, damp strands of hair brushing her shoulders. “It doesn’t matter, now. What’s done is done.”
Nell nodded and straightened her shoulders. “Well, at least ye look and talk like a lady now.” She turned to Gareth. “Now then, lad. While we consider a way out of this mess, I’m not opposed to a bit of comfort meself, and I seem to remember ye mentionin’ that word. Do what ye will, Millicent, but I don’t like livin’ rough.”
The knight gave her an elegant bow. “It’s humble, Lady Nell, but I will be happy to take you there.” He strode forward and swept her up in his arms as if she weighed nothing more than a stone. The old woman wrapped her arms securely about his neck and gave Millicent a wink over his shoulder as he carried her away.
“Drat it, Nell,” Millicent muttered as she followed them. Her sweaty skirts tripped her up and she cursed the duke and his fancy clothing and shifted to panther, her fur not much cooler, but at least she could move with ease.
When they reached the cave, Nell crowed over her soft bed, which looked to be made of shredded plant fibers, and settled back with a sigh. She looked so much more at ease in the cooler, dryer air that Millicent didn’t have the heart to protest about their new lodgings. But she didn’t have to eat the food he provided.
She spun and slunk back into the forest, looking for the hard-shelled creatures he’d cooked for Nell. Millicent caught several of them, breaking them open with her strong jaws, worrying out the meat inside. But her prey had arms that ended in strong, jagged claws, and after being pinched on the lip more than once, she decided her belly was full enough.
And she didn’t trust the knight to protect Nell as well as she could.
So she returned to the cave and ducked inside to check on her friend. Gareth sat on one of his stools, twisting together tough strands of thin, long leaves to form a sort of net. Several empty shells sat on the table in front of him, and Nell snored loud enough to make them tremble.
“There’s spears, of a sort, back in the corner,” he said with a glance up at her. “Jab the creatures in the soft part between the shell to capture them. I haven’t seen any cool springs to net fish, but when I return, I shall look. In the meantime, you can use this to bag your prey.” He held up the sturdy-looking net.
Millicent flicked her tail and gave him a look.
“Your lip is bleeding,” he said. “And so are several other places on your paws. I just thought it might be easier to hunt in human form. With a spear, you don’t get close enough for them to pinch you with their claws.”
He made a good point. She turned in a circle until she found a comfortable position and sat, licking the wound on her right paw. Those claws bit deep.
When she looked up again, he had disappeared.
Millicent should have realized that the relic would take him soon. The work he’d done to make the cave a home must have taken many hours.
“So the magic man is gone, eh?”
Millicent shifted to human and turned. “Magic man?”
Nell sat up and nodded her head. “In more ways ’n one, I suspect.” She sniffed and then grimaced. “I stink.”
Millicent’s lip quirked. Leave it to Nell to get to the important things first. “There’s a pool not too far from here where the water is but warm.”
“As opposed to boiling our skin off, I suppose.” Nell rose and hobbled over to the entrance of the cave. “Although that might not be so bad. Ye know, the bastard never gave me enough water to bathe. That was worse’n the food he gave me.”
A haze of red covered Millicent’s eyes and she tamped down the fury of her cat. It took her a few moments to speak again. “Can you walk, Nell? It isn’t far.”
“Course I can. Blast, I ain’t no hothouse flower. Whichaway?”
Millicent led her down the path and through the trees to the spot she’d found when hunting. A large pool spread out and disappeared beneath an overhang of rock, only a few lazy wisps of vapor rising from the surface of the water. She helped Nell up the pitted rock sides that surrounded it, and they both slid in with all their clothes on.
They soaked for a time, just enjoying the feel of the warm water. The flowers Gareth had picked for their table grew around the pool, their pearly light dampening some of the colorful emerald glow of the surrounding forest. Unlike Gareth, Nell didn’t look one whit attractive with green-hued skin, and that red hair had combined with the emerald to make a muddy shade of yellow.
They helped each other undress and then washed their clothes as best they could, pounding and ringing the dirt from the fabric. Millicent slammed the creaky corset the duke had given her especially hard against the rocks, unconcerned about the silken sheen, only determined to make it a bit more flexible.
She envied Nell’s timeworn corset. There was an advantage to wearing cast-off clothing.
“How long we got until they find us?” asked Nell as they spread their clothing along the rock to dry as best as it could in the humid air.
“Maybe never. We’re deep into the wilds of the Underground.”
“Ach, my gel. Ghoulston won’t stop looking as long as ye wear that.”
Millicent scowled at the bracelet on her wrist. The moonstone imbedded in it winked mockingly back at her. “I should have at least a few days to figure a way to get it off.”
Nell shrugged, a myriad of wrinkles appearing with the movement. “The knight ain’t so bad, though. I could think of worse fates than bedding such a looker.”
“Not me.”
Those violet eyes studied her with unblinking intensity. “Ye won’t wind up like yer mum, Millie.”
“Hmph. You can’t know that. Once I’ve crossed that line, there’s no going back.”
“Giving up yer virginity don’t make ye a whore.”
“Are you suggesting—”
“I ain’t doing no such thing. I jest see the way ye look at him, and I don’t want ye blaming yerself if ye can’t resist him.”
Millicent climbed out of the pool. “Which would make me no better than my mother.” She swished the water off her skin with the palms of her hands. The forest didn’t seem as hot now, after her soak, but she eyed her clothes with a frown. She couldn’t put all that back on, especially if she wanted to hunt in human form.
Nell struggled into her corset, turning her back so Millicent could help her tighten the laces.
“I knew ye wouldn’t listen,” she grunted as Millicent yanked the ties. “But I think he’s a nice lad, cursed or not. Ye could do worse in a mate.”
Millicent stifled her frustration. “So let’s say I can’t resist his charms. Poof! He goes back into the relic and I never see him again. Enough, Nell. I’ll handle it my way.”
While her friend put on a thin, worn petticoat and her loose cotton dress, Millicent eyed her clothing with a scowl. She picked up a petticoat that could have served as a skirt with the quality of the fabric and began to tear out the horsehair lining that stiffened the hem. With just her chemise, corset, the petticoat, and corset cover, she’d be garbed well enough, by Underground standards.
They made their way back to the cave through glowing colors. After being in this place, the Underground would appear even more dank and gray.