Erin returned the next night and the next to see Lark. She waited until she thought Horton was asleep and then left the house. She sat on the swing that had since been completed. Lark left the cover of the field and stood on the opposite side of the tree so she could not see him. He was at least close enough that she did not have to shout.
They spoke like they had before he had been cursed and they both felt the love they had for one another, as strong as ever.
Lark persisted in asking Erin to kiss him but she resisted. She wasn’t sure it would work. She was afraid too that another enchantment would be passed to her if she kissed him.
“If you do not try you will never know. Your father told me that the only way the curse can be broken is if you kiss me. Why would he have the witch place another enchantment on that? When your father told me, he was certain you would never kiss me…”
“Erin?”
Horton’s voice startled Erin.
“Ssh!” she hissed quickly and Lark stopped talking. He had heard Horton as well. He was not concealed very well behind the tree and he hoped that Horton would not venture to look around the tree.
“Yes, my love?” Erin said hopping from the swing. She had fallen into the habit of faking her love and respect for Horton. It was simply easier that way. She turned and approached him as he walked towards the swing.
“What are you doing out here in the dark?” he asked curiously.
“I always come out and ride on the swing when I cannot sleep,” Erin replied. “There is nothing to worry about.”
“Nothing to worry about?” Horton asked. “It can’t be nothing if it keeps my wife from sleep at night.”
“I have always struggled to sleep in the evenings, my love,” Erin lied. “Even before I married you sleep came to me with difficulty. But living in the castle, alone in my chambers made it easier to hide it from mother and father.”
“What is it that troubles you so?” Horton asked.
“Nothing troubles me,” Erin lied. “I simply have difficulty sleeping. I do not feel tired and there is nothing I can do about it.”
“There is something I can do about it,” Horton replied. “Come inside.”
He led Erin inside and bolted the door behind them. He led her upstairs where he undressed her and made love to her selfishly while she lay unmoving below him.
In the darkness outside, Lark crept back into the field and returned to the forest.
Horton woke. He rolled over, reaching for Erin. The bed was empty. He opened his eyes and looked around. She wasn’t in the room.
He got up and opened the bedroom door. He looked out the window in the upstairs passage and saw Erin on the swing under the tree. He felt that there was more to her nightly visits to the swing under the tree. He did not trust Erin entirely and decided that he would sneak up on her and not announce himself this time.
Horton headed downstairs slowly and exited the house from the front. He circled to the back of the house using the barn as cover. He crept closer sticking to the shadows. He heard Erin’s voice but he could not hear what she was saying. He thought he heard another voice but he couldn’t be sure.
The manner in which she spoke, was as if she were having a conversation with someone. She seemed to stop talking regularly as if she was having a conversation with someone and giving them a chance to speak as well.
Horton felt like confronting Erin but he did not know who the visitor was that she was talking to and he wanted to know who they were. On his own, it might not be possible. He needed more men to help him. He watched a while longer and then retreated to the house and entered through the front door. He went upstairs and watched from the shadows in the upstairs hallway.
When Erin was finished at last, she returned to the house. As she approached the house, he saw the shadow of a man leave the shade of the tree and head into the long grass of the field beyond the yard. He returned to bed and pretended to be asleep by the time Erin arrived upstairs and climbed into bed.
Horton rose early the next day and began packing.
Erin woke and watched him sleepily. “What are you doing?” she asked.
“I have to go to the village. I have some business that I need to take care of. I’ll be back in a few days.”
“A few days?” Erin asked. “Why a few days? The town is but a few hours’ ride from here. Surely you can make it back in the same day?”
“I can’t. It’s not just this village. There are other villages where I have to go as well. I can’t do all my business in one village,” Horton lied. He simply wanted to buy time for a few days so he could gather some men who could lie in wait for the man Erin was visiting under the tree. He would show her and her visitor what he did to men that did not respect him.
Erin was suspicious but also hopeful for she knew it would give her the chance to have more time with Lark.
“You never said anything before,” Erin remarked. “Why so suddenly?”
“I’ve just decided that the sooner I go and get the business done the better,” he said. He smiled and crossed to where she lay on the bed. He sat down and stroked her hair as he smiled down at her.
“Everything’s fine. It’s just some business,” he assured her.
“Okay,” Erin said looking up at him. She searched his face for something. She sensed there was something he was not telling her. Perhaps he had a mistress in the village or a few villages away. That would explain the sudden journey. But maybe it was just business and she was overthinking things because she felt guilty.
Erin got up and helped Horton pack. They had breakfast together and then he set off for the village.
Erin spent the day baking and wondered if Lark watched the house during the day. If he did he would realize Horton was gone and might come to the house sooner which meant that they could spend more time together. Erin spent some time on the swing in the afternoon hoping that Lark would see her but as the day wore on, Erin became more and more disappointed. Lark had not come any sooner and at last, she decided to take a nap in the afternoon to catch up on the sleep she had been losing in the evenings from Lark’s visits.
If she had not taken a nap she might have seen the suspicious movements in the grass when she looked for Lark. But she didn’t see the suspicious movements and had no sense of foreboding when she woke up just after sunset. She cooked dinner and sat down to wait for the hour when she always went out to sit on the swing and speak with Lark.