Lycan?
Oliver had tried to hide a book about wolves from her? Why in the world would he hide a fairy tale? Because he didn't want her to know it wasn't his Latin text? Lily turned to the first page.
A folded piece of foolscap fell to the floor. Lily bent and picked it up, unfolding it and pressing the seams flat so she could take a closer look.
A Lycan family tree? Lily scanned through the names. Surely that was the product of someone's overactive imagination. Then she saw Westfield and stopped. Her finger hovered over the three names— Simon… Benjamin… William. Her name was listed along with Simon's, with the date they were married. Lily sat down heavily on the settee. Her finger traced over to Daniel and Emma's names, which also listed the date they were married and the date of their death. Below them, Oliver had been added. Was this Simon's handwriting?
Surely Simon wouldn't have created a family tree, supposedly consisting of werewolf males, as the title suggested. Oliver was a bit too old for fairy tales. And Simon had never struck her as a fanciful sort.
"Finally found it, did you?" Alice asked from the doorway.
Lily jumped and quickly folded the family tree, tucking it back between the pages of the book.
"Found what?" she attempted.
Alice laughed. "You are terrible at evasion, dear girl."
"Alice." Lily stopped and shook her head.
Alice crossed the room to stroke the top of Lily's hair. She picked up the book and pressed it into Lily's hands. "Happy reading."
***
Alice had nearly jumped for joy when she'd seen Lily with one of Jonathan's old books. If it had taken much longer for one of the men to make a mistake and leave one lying about, she would have been forced to plant one in Lily's path. Or to knock her over the head with it, whichever came first.
All the clues were there. Now Lily just needed time to piece them together.
Alice poured a glass of sherry and watched as Lily went out the door that led to the garden. The girl was smart. Give her enough time, and she would figure it out.
Simon interrupted her thoughts. "Have you seen Lily, Mother?"
"Not for quite some time," Alice lied smoothly. "I think she said she was going to the Hawthornes'. I'm not completely sure."
"She didn't mention that she was leaving," Simon said, his eyebrows drawing together in a frown.
"She was in a bit of a foul mood, son. What did you do?"#p#分页标题#e#
"Mother, why must you assume that I did something?"
"Because I know you. And I know you're thinking way too much with your head."
"Mother, I don't have time for riddles," he sighed.
"Then let me spell it out for you, Simon." He cringed as she stepped near. He should cringe. If she followed her instincts, she would do him bodily harm. Luckily, she had some restraint. "She loves you."
"I don't doubt it."
"And you love her," Alice continued.
"Of course I do."
"Prove it, Simon."
Forty-Three
Lily walked slowly down the garden path, the book tucked securely under her arm. It was a bit intimidating, knowing she might hold the key to the door Simon kept closed to her.
She brushed a lock of hair from her face as she opened the book and began to read the inscription again. She traced her finger over the words, wondering who'd scrawled the note.
A Lycan cannot be embraced by another until he embraces the wildness within himself.
What did it mean? The definition of a Lycan slowed her reading.
Lycans are defined by their ability to walk upright as humans. The shift from human to were is decided by the phase of the moon.
The moon?
What did this have to do with Simon? Simon was obviously human. As was Will. And all the other Westfield men.
In adolescence, were children grow at a rapid pace, often surpassing the size, strength, and appetite of their contemporaries.
Oliver? Certainly it was a coincidence that Oliver had undergone so many changes. Wasn't it?
Humans affected by the mark of the beast cannot avoid the call of the moon. They are unable to refuse the change.
What change? Becoming wolf? That was impossible.
Some Lycans experience great anger and melancholy because they lose the ability to choose for themselves. They are prone to fits of temper, during which their superior strength and speed can damage objects in their path.
The desk?
When a Lycan takes his mate, he's forced to take a human, which goes against the very basis of human nature. Humans mating with animals? It shakes humanity to the very core.
She could understand why. But the book still seemed to be more of a fairy tale than anything that could possibly be real. She assumed that anyone reading it could find some trait of a werewolf in almost any person, if they looked deeply enough.