Troll was waiting for her at the table in the lavish dining room with the blue and gold wallpaper. He’d actually taken the time to dress as well. His greenish skin was slightly less slimy than usual, the curtain of matted mousy curls pulled back with a black ribbon. The black tuxedo hung off him like a shroud, like it was made for someone with an equally tall but somewhat larger frame. He stood as Mr. Rabbit pulled out the seat for her.
“You look…very nice,” he grumbled. “I knew that dress would be perfect for you.”
Hilary preened in the gold velvet gown with the satin roses and the long bell sleeves. “Thank you. You have good taste, for a troll.”
Puppy served the meal, keeping her eyes on both of them as Mr. Rabbit poured them wine. “Thank you. This is true four-star service. Better than the finest restaurant in New York.”
“You’re welcome, Miss Hilary!” Puppy beamed ear to ear, which seemed odd in her black and white maid’s dress with the lace collar and cap. “That’s so nice of you. We haven’t had anyone here in so long, not since…”
“Puppy!” Troll growled slightly. “Go help Mrs. Fox with the dishes.”
She gulped, her blue eyes wide. “Yes, Master.”
“You could have been nicer to the girl.” Hilary sliced her roasted chicken as Puppy darted off. “She brought us dinner.”
Troll glared. “She was going to…well, say things we’re not permitted to talk about. She’s a child. She’ll learn better.”
“That reminds me.” Hilary calmly sipped her white wine. “I’ve been asking everyone about this curse business. I have yet to get a straight answer. Maybe you can provide one, given you supposedly own this house.”
“Yes,” Troll growled slightly, “the house is mine. I bought it for…well, it doesn’t matter why now. I bought it. It’s mine.”
“How?” Hilary raised an eyebrow. “I can’t exactly see you going to a real estate office and asking for the latest rates.”
He glared at her. “I wasn’t…I just did. I bought it for someone important.”
“You keep saying that.” She broke open a crusty, buttery roll, letting misty steam fog her view of his hideous green face. “Who is so important that you bought a house the size of three movie palaces for them?”
She was surprised at the look of pure anguish in those beautiful almond-shaped chocolate orbs. “I…can’t tell you, Hilary. It…she…well, I can’t. There’s a lot we can’t say.”
“Why?” The roll truly was a marvel, flaky and so warm. “It’s the curse, isn’t it? Who cursed you? I can’t help you if I don’t know.”
“I can’t tell you!” Troll’s voice rose to a near growl. He had to breathe very hard to keep his composure and not repeat the scene from the night before. “I can say this, Hilary. I still want to marry you.” He reached over and took her hand, rubbing it gently. “Will you be my wife?”
She frowned, pulling it away. “Troll…” Her breath caught, but she shook her head. “No. It’s sweet of you to ask after only knowing me for a week, but…no. Not now.”
“I can give you anything you want, you know that.” He rubbed her hand gently, his finger moving around her knuckle in a slow, soft way that was all too familiar despite the clawed, warty digit doing it. “Anything your sisters want.”
Her voice caught. “You don’t need to do that.” She pulled her hand away. “I’ll get back on the boards soon as we figure out what’s going on here. I can provide for my own family.” She could almost feel the electricity when he touched her. “You…” her breath caught. “How did you know…”
“I’m sorry, Miss Booth, if I was too forward.” His breath quickened; his voice got raspy. “I’m only a dumb troll, after all. I didn’t mean to frighten you.”
“You didn’t,” she lied. “And anyway, you’re no fool. None of you are.” She sighed. “Not even that poor Bear Betty’s taken a shine to. He’s…well, he’s not the brightest creature around, but he doesn’t seem to mean any harm.”
Troll closed his eyes. “It’s not his fault he’s the way he is. He wasn’t born that way.” When those oh-so-human almond eyes opened again, they were black…and haunted. “It’s my fault.”
Her dark eyes widened. “Yours? What did you do?”
“He was trying to protect me. They all were. All three of them. She…” His voice caught in his throat. He grabbed at the white wine. “She wanted me. They knew she was involved in things…well, that people in authority wouldn’t approve of. She knew, too. That’s why she wanted me. That’s why…” he nearly choked on his wine; she had to reach over to thump his back, “why Bear did it. It was his idea to trick her, and she…took his mind. Damaged it. He knew too much.” She rubbed his back. “We all did.”
“That…” Hilary rubbed his shoulder. “If it’s any consolation, whoever this is sounds like they should be run out of town in nothing but their skivvies while red ants run up their tantalizingly naked form and leave them nothing but a bag of flesh and bones. Or have I said too much?”
He gave her a small, weary smile. Just that smile almost made her draw back. It was so familiar… “Thank you, Miss Booth.”
“You’re welcome. You’re not an unpleasant…Troll…when you aren’t throwing crockery.”
“And you’re a charming companion, when you’re not name-calling.” He looked up as Mr. Rabbit came in with what looked like slices of chocolate cake with raspberry filling. “Thank you. Mrs. Fox makes an excellent chocolate cake.” His smile was surprisingly warm, for all the sharp fangs it held. “You’ll love it.”
“Thank you.” She gave him a slightly less tooth grin of her own. “I suspect I will. I do rather have a sweet tooth.” She sighed as the twitchy bunny valet served the cake. There was something about this…it was just too familiar. And that curse…she was going to get to the bottom of it. Someone had to be able to say something, somewhere.
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