The Crown's Obsession (WN)
chapter-329

He walked through the forest, no clothes on his body as they had been torn when his body had increased in size. He looked around to see if there was someone who could help him, but the forest was deserted. The rays of sunlight continued to touch the land of Devon.

James huffed for air, his body hurting as if his bones had been broken and rejoined again, which in truth did happen as he had turned from his werewolf form back to his human self. By the time he turned human he was far away from the castle, roaming amid the forest trying to find his way out.

The last thing he remembered was being dragged into another cage in the forest cave, but after that he had lost consciousness, and soon it felt like something feral had taken over his body. There were scratches and bruises on his skin. His eyes took in his surroundings before he finally made his way to the road that connected the villages and towns. When a carriage appeared, that was going to pass from there, James raised his hand, and the coachman, for a moment, decided to ignore the naked man who didn't have the decency of wearing clothes, how shameful! thought the coachman.

But the person who owned the carriage caught sight of James and got his coachman to stop the carriage.

"Kind Sir! Are you alright??" asked the gentleman who owned the carriage.

James was utterly embarrassed standing here like this, but after spending some days in the cell room of the dungeon and then in the cave, things like these mattered less to him. Not to forget, there were some traces of his memory where he remembered seeing Madeline and the flesh in his hands and on the ground.

"May I ask for a ride in your carriage, Sir?" asked James, "And also clothes if you can offer. I will return it to you!" James bowed his head at the gentleman.

"Of course, um, will the coat do for now? We can stop by the village to get you something better," offered the kind man, a human, and James was grateful at the man and bowed his head. He was offered the man's coat so that he wouldn't freeze and also to cover his modesty.

Hopping in the carriage, James noticed the disapproving look he received from the coachman, unlike his master. "I am Moses Montague," introduced the gentleman.

"James Heathcliff," James introduced himself, and the man raised his eyebrows.

"Are you the man who was accused for the murder of Miss Layla?" asked the gentleman, named Moses. James looked like he was ready to dive out of the carriage, and Moses said, "I heard it was a false accusation, and the murderer was executed yesterday."

James had been literally living under the rock to know what had taken place. The only company he had was the older woman, who was supposed to be Madeline's grandmother and the dull realization finally hit him. The blood on his hands was of that woman.

"I didn't know that," James responded and his eyebrows furrowed. Was Catherine dead then? He remembered the King who had mentioned that it was her, who had killed Miss Layla, "It happened yesterday?" he asked in confirmation.

"Well, yes. It happened in the presence of the King, public, and the other royal family. I heard it was a sight to see as it is not every day you get to see royal family members being beheaded," on hearing Moses' words, James frowned. There was more than one execution? "Here, take this," Moses offered him his handkerchief, "You look beaten up. It must have been really hard for you to be called as a murderer."

The man had no idea, thought James to himself. He had not only been accused, but he had also turned to a werewolf. James tried to keep a distance from the man so that if he would turn back to his werewolf form, he would be able to escape from here. The King had kept him in the cage because of what he had turned to, and James didn't know how to fix it.

He was angry, so angry like he had never been before. His blood started to boil at the fact that something like this had happened to him. He was a human! He was supposed to be a human! They stopped by a village to get a trouser and a shirt for James before he was dropped in front of his shop. James thanked the man before heading inside his shop.

His assistants were happy to see him.

"Mr. Heathcliff! Are you alright?!"

"We tried looking for you, but there was no news!"

"Did you hear that your name has been cleared and you are under no charges?!" came the collective voices around him.

James was glad to see that there were still some people here who believed in him. He was too tired right now, and he wanted to rest. At the same time, he felt restless. It was like there was something inside him that was pacing back and forth, looking for blood which scared and worried him.

"I didn't hear about it. How has everyone been?" asked James, thankful that they hadn't closed the shop and had continued to work.

"We are doing fine! We got the gowns and other dresses delivered to the people. We even sent Lady Madeline's wedding gown to the castle," they let him know.

"I am sure Miss Barnes will be thrilled to see that you have returned. With just the three days remaining for the wedding," stated the female assistant which brought a grim expression on his face.

He was now confused about who was executed, and he asked, "Do you know who was executed yesterday?"

"It was Sir Markus Wilmot, the King's cousin," came the reply and James nodded his head.

"I will be going home to have some rest. Thank you for working hard in my absence," and James collected the spare key of his home and left his shop. He pulled up the collar of the coat enough to cover the lower half of his face to avoid people's attention.

When James opened the door of his house, he was greeted with nothing but loneliness. No one had visited the place except for the officials, and they had locked the house after their investigation. The windows were closed, and silence surrounded him. The one person, who was his family had died, and there was no one whom he could call as family. If the circumstances were different, maybe James would have agreed to marry Catherine Barnes, but he blamed her for not being able to serve his father before his death.

Unable to control his anger, he picked up the chair from the room and threw it against the wall. His eyes turned to gold and yellow again as he gasped for air.

Seeing his reflection in the mirror, James staggered back looking at eyes that didn't belong to him. He realized his life would no more be the same. He was a werewolf now. After spending some more time until his eyes turned normal, James left his home to knock on the door that belonged to Catherine Barnes.

"Mr. Heathcliff!" greeted the butler, surprise on his face, "Miss Catherine has been waiting for your arrival. Please come in," he said, pulling the door so that James could step inside.