Ravishing Rapunzel (Passion-Filled Fairy Tales, #6)(14)

Rapunzel bit back the nagging feeling that they didn’t, that her mother’s view of the world was just plain wrong. Her mother loved her, otherwise she wouldn’t have taken her in. She had to be right about the world. Otherwise, all of this, all of this was just cruel. And she would not believe her mother was simply cruel.

“Don’t look so down, Rapunzel,” she said. “It’s your birthday. Let’s have a wonderful celebration.”

Rapunzel nodded. She would try.





Chapter 7 – Waiting


Bradyn stayed awhile longer, but neither the old lady nor Rapunzel came out of the tower. He headed back to town and found his room at the inn empty. Johan wasn’t back from his carousing, and probably wouldn’t return until late. It was just as well. If Johan returned a bit addled, he wouldn’t argue when Bradyn told him to ride on to the castle without him and tell the princess he had taken ill and would not be coming.

He was going to go back to the tower at dawn, and he would watch until the old woman left. Then he would see Rapunzel again.



*

His plan was going as expected. Johan left to deliver the message to the kingdom Bradyn was supposed to visit. When his footman finished, he would return to the inn and wait for Bradyn. His parents wouldn’t expect him back for several days, which meant Bradyn could spend that entire time with Rapunzel, assuming the mother left the tower. He was certain the mother had spirited Rapunzel away after learning of their meeting. He didn’t want to take that chance again. He would watch the tower, wait for the mother to leave, and then go up and see her.

Now, he lay in the forest that edged the clearing, watching the little tower for movement. It was boring, and part of him wondered if he should simply have made Johan wait instead. He shook his head. No, that would have been a mistake. If he’d involved Johan in watching, the mother might have returned while Johan fetched him. No, this was a one-man task. He needed to get into the tower while he was sure the mother was gone. Then, hidden under the red cloak he’d purchased, he could call to Rapunzel, and she would let him up. Hopefully, she wouldn’t be angry when he arrived in place of her mother.

No, he told himself. She wouldn’t be.

He ate a bag of nuts and seeds and sipped from his water flask to kill the time. He’d just taken a piss in a bush a little ways away from his resting spot when he heard commotion. It was well after midday, and he saw the mother climb down the long blonde braid. She was agile for an older woman, he had to admit. He kept his head low and his body still as he watched.

“I’ll be back in two days,” the older woman called up, once she reached the ground. “Be safe, dearest.”

Two days. That was perfect. He would have two days to talk to her. He watched as the old woman scampered off in the opposite direction, toward the kingdom he should have been headed to. He waited a half an hour, pacing the woods at the edge of the clearing, watching to see if the older woman returned. Then, he pulled on the cloak he’d brought with him. It was red and hooded, and looked similar to the one the woman had worn. He walked over to the bottom of the tower, and then he called up in his best imitation of the old woman’s voice, “Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair.”

A minute later, the long braid slipped down the edge of the tower, Bradyn took hold of it and began to climb.





Chapter 8 – An Unexpected Visit


Rapunzel wondered what her mother had forgotten. Or perhaps this was a second birthday surprise. Make a big deal about coming back in two days, and then return shortly with a heavy gift. Her mother was definitely carrying something heavy. She had been much lighter going down thirty minutes ago than she was coming up.

Much of her mother’s weight was supported by the iron loop, but Rapunzel could still get a general feel for the heaviness of the object. Whatever her mother was carrying had to be quite heavy.

Rapunzel sighed, looking down at the floor as she decided how to greet her mother. Their evening after opening presents had been stilted, even though Rapunzel had tried to repress her irritation at being trapped so long. She had tried to stuff down the hostility she felt that Mother Gothel refused to even try to assist her with the prospect of going out safely. This morning had also felt tense, but still Gothel was her mother, and she should be kind to her. Mother Gothel had taken her in after her parents abandoned her. That had to count for something.

Rapunzel took in a deep breath as she heard her mother reach the window sill. Rapunzel could feel Mother Gothel shift her weight from the braid to the window frame. Rapunzel loosened her support grip on the braid, and looked up to see what her mother had brought. Then she screamed, realizing that wasn’t Mother Gothel.

“No, please,” the man was saying, putting a finger to his lips. “Shhhh. Please, no, Rapunzel, I won’t hurt you.”

She took several steps back, but then was halted by her hair. Her braid was tangled in the iron loop, preventing her from getting more distance between her and the intruder.

The man standing before her was not her mother, even though he was dressed in a red cloak. He must have been watching them and waiting for her mother to leave.

Rapunzel didn’t want to admit it to herself, but dread welled in her gut as she realized her mother had been right. The world was full of wicked people, and now one was close enough to terrorize her in what should have been her safe haven.