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Soul of a Phoenix
Brothers of Scrim Hall
Book Six
Andie Fenichel
Copyright © 2023 by Andie Fenichel
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or
mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without
written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a
book review.
This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, is
purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination.
Locales are fictitious, and/or, are used fictitiously.
AI RESTRICTION: The author expressly prohibits any entity from using any part of
this publication, including text and graphics, for purposes of training artificial
intelligence (AI) technologies to generate text or graphics, including without
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The author reserves all rights to license uses of this work for generative AI training
and development of machine learning language models.
EXCLUSIVITY: This ebook is available only on Amazon and in Kindle Unlimited. If
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author is not receiving compensation.
Edited by OopsieDaisyEdits.com
Cover design by LoveTheCover.com
Contents
Soul of a Phoenix
Brothers of Scrim Hall
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Epilogue
If you had seen how eager those state institutions and foster homes
were to be rid of those little boys, you’d have done the same thing.
Maybe I kept them too safe, too separate. It’s time I flew the nest
so they can do the same.
You should know there are Vampires, Reapers, Demons, and people
who shift from humans to wolves, phoenixes, and dragons. They’re
not like other men, because they are only partially human. You can
call them monsters, but they are my children, and they are ready for
the world to see the brothers of Scrim Hall.
~ Wentworth Pettigrew
Chapter One
Noah
I blink and shade my eyes against the bright light above my head.
“She’s human,” a female voice says.
Squinting, I fight the light and the cold metal table I’m lying
on. A woman with dark skin in a doctor’s coat stands over me. Her
hair is cropped short to her head.
Another female voice says, “We’ll use her to attract the monsters.
Put her with the one she came in with for now.”
I’m lifted from the table roughly, carried a few minutes, and after
some unlocking and opening of several doors, dropped on a
mattress.
“Don’t move, monster. The people in charge have given you a toy
to play with. Be grateful and have your way with her. If you make a
move on me, I’ll shoot you up with a tranquilizer and take her to
another monster’s room. He’s a bit hungry and might think she’s a
tasty morsel.”
Still groggy and my sight blurred as if I’ve been drinking, I turn
my head. Noah is crouched in the corner. He’s naked but doesn’t
look injured.
Someone laughs as the door closes.
Holding the side of my head, I sit up.
“Slowly, Nina.” Noah’s voice is deep and calm. It speaks to
something inside me.
I tug on the sheet and wrap it around myself. “I guess they
figure if we’re naked we’re vulnerable.”
“These people believe I’m a monster, and while they’re not
wrong, I’d never assault anyone. I’m also not keen on sex with an
audience.” He points to the large mirror on the far wall.
It’s definitely a one-way window. “Creepy. Who are they?”
“Research for the Betterment of Humanity. They want to
experiment on monsters to find a way to extract whatever it is that
makes us live longer.” He sighs. “I’m sorry.”
“How is any of this your fault?” I tighten the sheet around myself.
He stands and walks over to sit next to me on the mattress.
It’s not easy to avoid ogling his body. Nothing about Noah Russo
is small. He’s tall and muscular and looks delicious.
“I’m vulnerable when I first regenerate, they took advantage. I
put you in danger.” His voice is low.
I whisper, “You didn’t invite me to that pond. I should have
minded my own business.”
His smile is warm, and he runs his thumb along my cheekbone.
“I’m sorry we’re missing the wedding.”
“How long do you think we’ve been here?” Britta has been my
best friend since college. I hate that I’m missing her big day, and I’m
sure Noah is equally sad to miss his brother’s wedding.
“At least a day. Maybe more.”
It’s too much to comprehend. I’m groggy and angry. I lean in to
his ear. “Do you think it would matter if they knew my father is
Benjamin Dunkirk?”
He shrugs. “It might get you out of here, but I don’t think these
people are above killing you and framing monsters for the deed.”
I back away. My pulse pounds. “Fuck.”
He shrugs. “It’s probably best not to give them any information.”
My head spins, and I lie back on the lumpy mattress. “Whatever
they shot me with, I can hardly stay upright. What are we supposed
to do, wait to be saved?”
“Our captors would like nothing more than for us to have sex so
they can watch and then test you for some kind of bacteria or virus.”
He lies beside me and pushes my hair out of my face, then lightly
massages my temples.
His touch is perfect, soothing, and warm. “Do you have a virus?”
“No. They’re assholes.” He chuckles. “When I make love to you, it
won’t be with onlookers or for experimentation.”
My eyes are heavy. “What will it be for?”
“Pleasure, Nina.”
T he door slams against the wall, startling me from my sleep.
“You’re fucking useless, bird boy.”
Someone grabs my arm. I’m yanked out of the bed where
Noah held me and made this all seem less horrible.
A man at the door holds an automatic weapon trained on Noah’s
head. “If you move, I’ll shoot you. If you won’t play the game, we’ll
find someone who will, then dissect you.”
The man holding my arm digs his fingers into my skin as he
drags me across the cell to the door. “You’re going to have much
more fun in the next room, Barbie.”
Lashing out, I dig my nails into the side of his face and scratch.
He yells and releases me.
As I scramble away, I lose my balance and hit the floor hard.
“You bitch.” He raises his hand but freezes.
Noah stalks to the doorway, growing larger and shifting into the
ferocious phoenix that lives inside him. “Touch her again and no
door will hold me. I will burn this place to the ground.”
The man with the weapon tightens his finger on the trigger.
“Leave her alone, Mac. If I have to kill this thing, it will be both our
heads.”
Another door opens and a woman walks in. “That’s right, Larry.
Lower the weapon.” She’s at least six feet tall with brown hair pulled
back into a tight bun. She’s in a lab coat, with white sneakers and
black pants. If she didn’t look so angry, she might be attractive.
“Return to the cell, Mr. Russo, or we’ll kill the woman. You are too
valuable to destroy.”
Larry points his weapon at me.
It’s hard to breathe with my life hanging in the balance, but I’m
relieved they won’t kill Noah. My knees still sting from falling. “I’m
fine, Noah.”
Stepping back, he narrows his gaze toward the woman. “I meant
what I said.”
“Understood.” Her alto voice shows no signs of fear. She exudes
confidence. She pulls the door closed with Noah inside and me in the
small antechamber. “Now, take her to the beast and stop fucking
up.” She strides out the door.
Larry points the gun and Mac grips my arm as we walk down a
white hallway past two doors.
We stop at the third door and watch the woman stride farther
down the hall. Once she turns down another hallway, Mac grips me
tighter. The scratches on his face have turned red and swollen. “Now
let’s see how you scream, freak-lover.”
Larry opens the door, and we walk into another antechamber of
gray unpainted cinder block. Once the first door is closed, Larry
trains the gun on the second, and Mac opens it. “We brought you a
snack, beast.”
He pushes me inside a room exactly like the one that I left Noah
in.
To one side of the eight-by-eight room is a bed with no sheets
and standing in the center is the biggest man I’ve ever seen in
person. Though to look at his face, it’s hard to call him a man. His
jaw is broad, his eyes stark blue, there’s a fullness to his cheeks and
the elongation of his nose that can only be described as lion-like.
Fur-covered arms cross over his chest, a low growl echoing against
the concrete walls. In fact, fur covers most of him and since he’s
naked, I see all of him. Only a few select, um parts, are not furry.
Keeping my gaze on his face, I back up, but come up hard
against the closed metal door. With only the sheet I took from the
other room, I’m feeling exposed. “I hope you’re not as vicious as you
look.”
The growl stops. His voice is low and pained, but there’s an
intelligence to him. “Did you do that to Mac’s face, little kitten?”
“Um, yes. He’s a jerk.”
He steps closer. “They want me to mate you. That’s all they ever
want. If I don’t, they’ll shoot me up with drugs that make me lose
my control.”
“Oh, dear.” It’s getting hard to breathe. “Why don’t they realize
that sex with a human doesn’t transfer any monster traits to the
human? You’d think they’d know that by now. It’s a flawed theory.”
Closer still, he towers over me. “Indeed, but they don’t care.
They have many theories and the funding they get is dependent on
the idea that they can use me to extend human lifespans.”
The growl begins again and there’s no doubt he’s turned on. His
cock is too big to be ignored. Leaning down, he sniffs my neck.
Backing up, he stares at me. “Noah?”
Too shocked to speak, I gape at the beast.
“You’ve been in proximity with Noah Russo?” His speech slows
and lowers dangerously.
I’m already pressed against a metal door. There’s nowhere else
to go. “He…He’s down the hall.”
“Are you mated?” He lifts his hand and long brown claws push
out like a cat’s.
I brace for having my throat cut, then the bottom of my sheet is
sliced off and the beast wraps it around his lower half. Letting out
the breath I’m holding, I finally find my voice.
“Who are you?” I ask.
He sits on the edge of the bed and offers me the space next to
him.
At least his junk is covered. I sit.
“I am Noah’s father.” His frown is ferocious and I have no idea
what it means. “How did he end up here?”
“You’re Wentworth Pettigrew?” I stare into his eyes as if I’ll
discover some truth there.
“Noah has spoken of me? At least I’m not forgotten.” He sighs.
“Noah and I barely know each other. I know about you because
my best friend is about to marry Oliver Becket.” My chest tightens.
“Well, they may already be married. I don’t even know how long I’ve
been here.”
He smiles and his eyes sparkle like diamonds. “Oliver is to marry.
Is it the news reporter?”
“What the hell? How do you know Britta?” This guy is all anyone
in Havendoor, New York talks about. Well, if they’re a woman over
forty.
“I put a note about my sons in an envelope and sent it to her. I
sensed she was Oliver’s mate. I had hoped to find the mates of all
my sons, but I let down my guard and was captured. I’ve been here
ever since.” He touches my cheek. “You say you don’t know Noah
well?”
I shake my head. “I met him a couple of times over the summer.
I was drawn to him, then he went to do what a phoenix does. I
followed, and as soon as he was whole again, there were these
creeps with guns and bad attitudes.” I’m not a crier, but tears pop
into my eyes just the same. This entire thing sucks.
“I’m sorry. What is your name?” It’s amazing that in the span of a
few minutes, he’s gone from a beast to fatherly.
“Nina.” I dash away the tears before they can fall.
A squeal of a microphone hurts my ears. The voice of the woman
follows. “Beast, if you don’t engage in intercourse of free will, I will
have you injected.”
“What’s she talking about?” Fear pulses through me.
“They’ve managed to come up with a drug that causes pain if
pleasure centers of the brain are not engaged.” He calls out, “Vanna,
you can give it a try, but I’ll not have sex with this woman. She is
mated.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake. Just do it or I’ll finally kill you.” The venom
in Vanna’s voice is out of proportion.
Wentworth laughs. “Give her back to the one she came in with.”
A frustrated scream is cut off by the mic being turned off.
He smiles at me. “She’ll take you back to Noah. Or she’ll kill me.
I guess we’ll see which one.”
“Do you want me to give Noah a message from you?” At least I
hope that’s the option that’s about to happen.
“He’ll smell me.” He gives a short laugh.
I lean in. “We’re all getting out of here, Mr. Pettigrew.”
He leans back on the wall and crosses his arms over his chest.
“My son is lucky to have found you, Nina.”
They push some nasty protein drinks through the hatch at the
bottom of the door. Wentworth and I drink them and wait for
whatever is next. It seems logical that since they fed him, they’re
not going to kill him.
It’s not enough to allow me to relax, but it’s something. It’s over
an hour before they come for me and spending that time talking to
Noah’s father, I now know where he gets his thoughtfulness from.
There’s a bit of Wentworth in each of the brothers of Scrim Hall.
Chapter Three
Noah
I ’m pacing the room when they shove Nina back through the
door and close it.
The lock clicks into place. Pain licks at my muscles.
She runs to me and touches my cheek. Her fingers are cool and
soft, while I’m burning up. “What did they do to you?”
Her touch is both wonderful and disastrous. I want her. All of her.
I grab her and she screams. Immediately releasing her, I back away.
“I’m sorry. Fuck. I need. I. You have to get out of here.”
Instead of protecting herself, she closes the distance between us.
“It’s okay, Noah. I understand.”
She’s covered in a familiar scent that’s not her own. I push aside
the fog of lust caused by whatever was in the dart Mac shot at me.
Shaking my head, I try to make sense out of what I smell. Not yet
back to my full strength from regeneration, it’s harder to figure this
out. “You’ve been with my father?”
Somehow that seems traitorous.
She cups my face with her hands. “I’ve seen him. Wentworth is
being held in a cell down the hall.”
All I can see is her. I need her. Leaning in, I whisper, “I didn’t
want it to be like this.” I press my lips gently to hers. The pain
eases. “I wanted to be at my full strength and court you.”
The way she smiles makes my cock ache. “Who says court?” She
threads her fingers through my hair. “I know they drugged you. I
know you need sex. It’s okay.”
In my foggy brain, I try to process that she’s giving me
permission to claim her. My reflection in the one-way mirror gives me
pause. I look like a madman. Sweat drips down my body and my
eyes are wild. “I can fight this.” My muscles tighten as pain lances
through me.
She caresses my shoulders. “How long does it usually take for
you to get to full strength after you rise?”
Her touch is soothing. Having her hands on me is pure pleasure.
I lower my head and kiss her.
Her lips move under mine and she continues to run her hands
over my skin. “I don’t want this with them watching,” I say against
her warm cheek. I kiss a path to her shoulder. “I’ve only burned
once before and it took about three days.” I fight the need to bury
my cock deep inside her perfect body.
“We must be close to that. Did they feed you? They gave your
father and me some kind of protein drinks.”
I need food, but I need her more. “No. Water is all I’ve had.” Pain
sears inside my skull.
Pressing kisses to my chest, she rubs her sheet-covered body
against me. “What can you do when you’re at full strength?”
Just that thin scrap of material separates me from everything I
want and need. I shake my head and focus on her question. “I
might be able to break the glass, but I’m not leaving here without
my father.” It comes out more intense than I intend, but every time
we focus on something other than pleasure, the pain is unbearable.
She steps back and talks loudly. “He needs food. You can’t expect
an animal to put breeding ahead of sustenance.”
Vanna’s voice comes over a speaker. “I will agree to half a portion
if you agree to mate with it.”
“And then what, you’ll cut me open in the name of science?”
The giant and powerful bird inside me lets out a fierce sound that
ricochets off the walls.
Nina holds her ears.
Vanna’s voice is full of venom. “You won’t be killed. We only want
to extend human life. These freaks live hundreds of years. You’d
think they’d be willing to give humanity what they’ve got. But they
are like leeches, using our world and giving nothing back.”
I can smell the rage from Nina. “Give him food, or you get
nothing. Without consent, he’d die in pain before he’d comply with
your demands.”
“What are you doing, Nina?” My skull feels as if it’s about to
explode. Monsters don’t get sick. I was injured when I was in the
military, but that pain was nothing and healed before anyone in my
unit knew I’d been shot. Whatever they injected me with is horrific
and I’m not strong enough for my body to expel it.
“I’m getting you some sustenance.” She steps close and presses
her sweet lips to my ear. “You need food. You need to get to full
strength. I don’t think they know how strong you really are. If they
did, they wouldn’t have taken you. They think a bird is the weaker
monster.”
At the bottom of the door, a small hatch opens and a plastic cup
is pushed through.
Nina picks it up, comes back to me, and says, “Drink.”
The smell is awful and the protein taste is barely masked by
vanilla flavoring. It’s disgusting, but I down it in one long chug. I
immediately feel better, but the need to mate is even stronger. I
back away from Nina and pain sends my muscles into spasm. My
knees hit the concrete floor.
I’m clutching my head when Nina’s caress on my back eases my
pain. Her touch is wonderful. Easing out of my huddle, I reach for
her. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s alright, Noah.” The way she smiles reaches inside me and
fills me up. “I had hoped you and I would get to know each other
better, but at least it’s you and not some creature I’m afraid of.”
Inside, my monster wants action. “You should be afraid of me.”
She untucks the sheet from above her tits. Perfection doesn’t
begin to describe how stunning she is. Soft in all the right places.
I cup one tit, lower my head, and suck her tight nipple into my
mouth.
She throws her head back and makes the most wonderful noise.
Still holding the sheet in both widespread hands, I realize she’s
created a curtain to block us from the window.
Moving my legs so she can straddle me, I pull her down on top of
me. The sheet covers enough of us that I’m sure our voyeuristic
captors are frustrated. Between the horrible drink and the
abatement of pain, I’m feeling better. My cock is pressed between
our bodies and longs for all of her, but I don’t think I’m in danger of
losing my control. “I think this might be enough to keep the pain
away, sweet Nina. You’re amazing. No other woman would be so
kind to keep me from suffering by offering her body.”
Under the cocoon of the sheet, she blushes. “I’m not entirely
without motives, Noah. Besides getting out of here, there’s
something else I want.” She presses her hips up and forward
creating maddening friction.
“What could a woman like you want with a retired soldier?” I may
have misread the situation, but all the blood has pooled in my cock,
so I’m cutting myself a break.
“Your father believes we’re meant to be. He thinks I’m your
mate.” She rolls her hips again.
“Can we not talk about him just now?” I wrap my hand around
her head and pull her lips to mine. Soft and strong, she tastes like
forever. The phoenix preens inside me. The healing inherent to my
nature strengthens and pushes aside the drugs in my blood. Every
moment brings me to full strength.
Still, I caress her mouth and sweep my tongue inside her
warmth.
Tiny moans that only I can hear rumble in her throat. Her pussy
slips wet against my cock as she rides the ridge.
It takes all my willpower to end the kiss. Catching my breath, I
meet her gaze.
She cocks her head. “What’s wrong?”
Keeping my voice low enough that the microphones in the cell
won’t pick up what I say, I wrap my arms around her. This may be
the only time that I’m intimate with the woman of my dreams and I
want to relish every moment, even if she’s only doing this to save
our lives and relieve my pain. “I think the food and you have made
going through with this unnecessary.” It hurts to say it. Deep in my
soul, it aches.
“You don’t want to have sex with me?” She presses her hands
against my chest.
I keep her tight to me. My cock jerks in protest to her words.
“Nina, I’ve never wanted anyone more. You must believe me. What
I’m saying is, my monster is recovered enough to get us out of
here.”
Her bright blue eyes widen. “Oh. Well.” She’s bright red. “What
about your father?”
“I’m nearly at full strength, I don’t think these doors will be an
issue. Do you know which room he’s in?” The thought of letting her
go is nearly unbearable.
She nods.
I could look at her all day long, but it will have to wait. “Stand
back and then stay behind me.”
For a moment as she stands, I have a full and glorious view of
her naked body. This will likely be the last time I see her in such a
state. The memory will have to hold me for a lifetime.
As soon as she’s up and wrapped in the sheet, I roll to my feet
and let the phoenix inside me push the remaining drugs out of my
system. He revels in the freedom and lets out a call that bounces off
the concrete cell. Before my hands shift into wings, I grip the door
handle and tear the door, frame and all, out of the concrete wall.
Bits of cement fly in every direction and dust dances in the air. I give
the second door in the antechamber the same treatment.
Hoping my monster hasn’t terrified her, I check back and Nina
grins at me. “That was awesome. Wentworth’s cell is the third door.”
There are no windows and the hall only has doors on one side.
It’s likely the wall to the right is an exterior wall.
Still only half man, half bird, I tear the door out of the cell she
indicated and the inside door as well.
Yelling in the hallway forces me back to Nina. I push her behind
me while Mac and Larry point their weapons at me.
Behind the gunmen, Vanna says with perfect calm, “Very
impressive, but there’s no way out of here, Mr. Russo. We’ll let the
girl live if you come quietly.”
I look at the wall now on my left.
My father stands in the hole I made in his cell. “You could break
it, son.” He nods at the wall.
It’s good to see him. I study the terrain as if this were a war
zone. The door I ripped out of the wall is on the floor between us
and our attackers. Nina is safely behind me. I don’t know how
strong or weak Father is, but he looks well enough, not to mention,
just as naked as me.
As if answering my question, he lifts the interior door and gives
me a nod.
I kick the door on the floor hard, sliding it down the hall and
forcing our enemies to skitter out of the way.
Fully transforming into a phoenix takes only a moment and I
smash the wall with my beak. The concrete shatters, leaving a
gaping hole leading to the outside. It’s dark, which is an advantage.
Automatic-weapon fire and yelling fill the hall. I wrap my wings
around Nina and dive through the hole.
Bullets bounce off metal as Father uses the door as a shield.
As soon as we’re clear of the building, I lower my back.
Father tosses Nina up and she clutches my neck.
Bullets fly.
The scent of Father’s blood fills the air.
Flapping my wings, I take off, grabbing him with my claws as I
fly higher. I pass over the single-story building where we were
imprisoned. It sits in the middle of a large forest. The scent of the
sea is to the east. I head in that direction but know I need to stop
somewhere and tend to Father.
Once I’m out of sight of the “research” facility, I lower my
altitude and skim the tops of the trees, looking for a place where a
very large bird can land without jostling my father.
I spot a clearing and figure it will take at least twenty minutes for
them to locate us, probably more. Laying Father on the grass, I pray
it’s not too late.
Nina slides from my back to the ground. “Oh, god.” She kneels
beside him and presses her hand to the bleeding wound on his
sternum. “He’s alive, but we need a hospital.”
Crouching close, I conjure the tears of the phoenix, nudge Nina
away, and let my tears fall on the wound.
Chapter Four
Nina
A n hour after Nina went upstairs, she still hasn’t returned. I fix
her a plate with steak, potato, and salad, and carry it up to
the second floor.
I knock.
After a moment, worry sets in. I push the door open. The lamp
on the nightstand is on. Fast asleep, Nina lies with her legs hanging
over the side of the bed. She’s a vision in little black shorts. The shirt
leaves a band of skin at her middle exposed. I’ve seen her naked,
but because that wasn’t done willingly, I prefer this moment.
I put the plate on the dresser. It might be wiser to just leave her
as she is, but I can’t do it. I lift her legs and turn her to lay her
damp hair on the pillow. The scent of roses and Nina is as fresh as
an early summer breeze.
She moans. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, baby. You can sleep. I brought you a plate of food.” I
have good intentions and pull the covers over her. I’ll just tuck her in
and leave.
Wrapping one slim arm around my neck, she says, “Don’t go.”
Her eyelids flutter open.
I kiss her forehead and breathe her in. “Nina. I’m trying to be a
gentleman. I’ve already caused you too much trauma.”
She smiles. “Would making love with you be traumatic? I mean,
from what I’ve seen, you’ve got all the same parts.” She blushes. “If
a bit bigger than the average man.”
My cock leaps in the borrowed pants I’m wearing. “I don’t want
you to do anything you’ll regret. You’ve been through a lot.”
Pushing up, she threads her fingers through the back of my hair.
“I was interested in you before this weekend and the craziness that
followed. What makes you think I’d regret us making love?”
I sit on the mattress and hold her hands in mine. “I want to be
really clear about this. I want you. I’ve never wanted anything or
anyone as much as I long for you. Do you understand the thing my
father said about us?”
“That I’m your mate.” She cocks her pretty head. “I think so.
Britta explained some of it to me. She said once she found Oliver,
she couldn’t do without him. The idea of not having him was
painful.”
It’s a good description, though a little benign. “Well, I’m pretty
sure he’s right. If we make love, I don’t think I could give you up. If
you decide you don’t want me or a life with a monster, I’d
understand. It would be difficult to watch you walk away, but I can
do it.” The idea of it creates an ache in the center of my chest.
“You think that I don’t want you because you’re a phoenix?” An
adorable little crease forms between her eyebrows.
I long to smooth that worry line. “I think you’ve lived a life that is
very privileged, and there’s nothing wrong with that. I’m just a pilot,
a retired soldier, and then there’s the monster that is a part of me.”
She swings her legs over the side of the bed and pads over to
the dresser for the dinner plate. There’s a chair near the window and
she sits. Unrolling the fork and knife from the napkin, she watches
me. Daintily, she cuts a piece of steak and eats it. “You’re very
judgmental considering you barely know me or my life.”
It’s not that she’s wrong, but I can make some conjectures. “You
live in a million-dollar apartment in New York City, you wear designer
clothes, and you don’t work a paying job, so I have some basis for
my assumptions. How do you think you’d like living in Havendoor or
some other small hamlet, Nina? I know that living full time in New
York would be very uncomfortable for me. There’s not enough night
in the city. I can only spread my wings at night. The only day flights
are when I go out to the badlands or some other remote place.”
She continues to eat her steak. “What did you and Rylon Knight
talk about?”
I don’t blame her for changing the subject. Our relationship is
doomed to fail and it’s depressing. “He had a lot of questions about
my phoenix, so I shifted for him. He asked Wentworth dozens of
questions. I actually learned some things about my father that I
never knew.”
“What things?” She stabs the salad and manages to make the
entire eating process looks both sweet and refined.
“He lived in Paris for many years and moved around through
tunnels under the city. He did the same thing in Edinburgh. Of
course, this was over a hundred years ago.” I was amazed my
brothers and I never asked too many questions about our father’s
youth. Rylon has known him for a little over an hour and had so
many.
“Fascinating.” She leaves the potato, but finishes the salad and
steak. “If you don’t want to make love, I’m certainly not going to try
to seduce you. It was very kind of you to bring me food. Thank you.”
Standing with the plate in hand, she heads toward the door. “I’m
going to bring these things to the kitchen.”
“Nina, you’re wrong. I do want to make love to you.” My heart is
about to pound out of my chest.
She stops at the door and looks at me. “I don’t have a normal
job. That’s true. I come from a disgustingly rich family, and I have a
trust fund big enough to live several lives on. I give heavily to
several charities that I believe in, and I work for those charities
without pay. The donation of my time and talent has left you feeling
like I’m not useful, but I wonder how long you would have remained
in that prison if I hadn’t helped you overcome the pain of those
drugs and bullied them into giving you food.
“I’m smart and clever and more than a little wise. You know
nothing about what I want to don’t want, Mr. Russo, because you
didn’t bother to find out. You made an assumption that I was a
pretty little rich girl out for a good time at a wedding. It’s not
possible you didn’t know I was interested because I’m rarely subtle.
“I have a degree in business and a masters in philanthropic
studies. Wherever I decide to settle down, I’d have to travel some,
but most of the time I work from my $1.6 million dollar apartment.”
She takes a deep breath and sighs it out. Closing her eyes, she
swallows.
Every move, sound, and message she’s sending, I’m receiving.
I’ve been a total ass, and I have no idea how to fix this.
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combattre, parvient à triompher de l'un et de l'autre, en tombant à demi mort sur le
cadavre du dernier. Mais il doutait du jugement de Ney, il ne lui pardonnait pas sa
précipitation, et il voyait l'armée prussienne sortir tout entière de cet abîme béant
qui vomissait sans cesse de nouveaux ennemis. Il voulut donc arrêter les
Prussiens par un engagement à fond avec eux, avant d'aller essayer de gagner au
centre une bataille douteuse, tandis qu'à sa droite il en laisserait une qui serait
probablement perdue et mortelle. Toutefois après un moment d'irritation, reprenant
son empire sur lui-même, il envoya à Ney une réponse moins dure et moins
désolante que celle qu'il avait d'abord faite au colonel Heymès. Il chargea ce
dernier de dire au maréchal que si la situation était difficile sur le plateau de Mont-
Saint-Jean, elle ne l'était pas moins sur les bords du ruisseau de Lasne; qu'il avait
sur les bras la totalité de l'armée prussienne, que lorsqu'il serait parvenu à la
repousser, ou du moins à la contenir, il irait avec la garde achever, par un effort
désespéré, la victoire à demi remportée sur les Anglais; que jusque-là il fallait
rester à tout prix sur ce plateau, puisque Ney s'était tant pressé d'y monter, et que
pourvu qu'il s'y maintînt une heure, il serait prochainement et vigoureusement
secouru.
En effet, pendant que le colonel Heymès allait porter à Ney cette réponse si
différente de celle que le maréchal attendait, le combat avec les Prussiens était
devenu aussi terrible qu'avec les Anglais. Blucher rendu de sa
Arrivée de Blucher
sur les lieux; il personne sur les lieux, c'est-à-dire sur les hauteurs qui
ordonne à Bulow bordent le ruisseau de Lasne, voyait distinctement ce qui se
d'enlever à tout prix passait sur le plateau de Mont-Saint-Jean, et bien qu'il ne fût
le poste auquel pas fâché de laisser les Anglais dans les angoisses, de les
s'appuyait la droite punir ainsi du secours, tardif selon lui, qu'il en avait reçu à
de l'armée Ligny, il ne voulait pas compromettre la cause commune par
française.
de mesquins ressentiments. En apercevant de loin les assauts
formidables de nos cuirassiers, il avait ordonné à Bulow d'enfoncer la droite des
Français, il avait prescrit à Pirch qui amenait quinze mille hommes, de seconder
Bulow de tous ses moyens, à Ziethen qui en amenait à peu près autant, d'aller
soutenir la gauche des Anglais par le chemin d'Ohain, et aux uns comme aux
autres, de hâter le pas, et de se comporter de manière à terminer la guerre dans
cette journée mémorable.
L'ardeur de Blucher avait pénétré toutes les âmes, et les Prussiens excités par le
patriotisme et par la haine, faisaient des efforts inouïs pour s'établir sur cette
espèce de promontoire qui s'avance entre le ruisseau de Smohain et le ruisseau de
Lasne. Tandis que la division de Losthin tâchait d'emporter le château de
Frichermont, et celle de Hiller la ferme de Hanotelet, elles avaient laissé entre elles
un intervalle que Bulow avait rempli avec la cavalerie du prince Guillaume. Le
brave comte de Lobau à cheval au milieu de ses soldats, dont
Héroïque
résistance du il dominait les rangs de sa haute stature, montrait un
comte de Lobau. imperturbable sang-froid, se retirait lentement comme sur un
champ de manœuvre, tantôt lançant la cavalerie de Subervic
et de Domon sur les escadrons du prince Guillaume, tantôt arrêtant par des
charges à la baïonnette, l'infanterie de Losthin à sa gauche, celle de Hiller à sa
droite. Il était six heures, et sur 7,500 baïonnettes il en avait perdu environ 2,500,
ce qui le réduisait à cinq mille fantassins en présence de trente mille hommes. Son
danger le plus grand était d'être débordé par sa droite, les Prussiens faisant
d'immenses efforts pour nous tourner. En effet, en remontant
Bulow essaye de
tourner les Français le ruisseau de Lasne jusqu'à sa naissance, on arrivait au
en pénétrant dans village de Planchenois (voir la carte no 66), situé en arrière de
le village de la Belle-Alliance, c'est-à-dire sur notre droite et nos derrières.
Planchenois. Si donc l'ennemi en suivant le ravin, pénétrait dans ce village
bâti au fond même du ravin, nous étions tournés
définitivement, et la chaussée de Charleroy, notre seule ligne de retraite, était
perdue. Aussi Bulow faisant appuyer la division Hiller par la division Ryssel, les
avait-il poussées dans le ravin de Lasne jusqu'à Planchenois, tandis que vers
Frichermont il faisait appuyer la division Losthin par la division Haaken. C'est en
vue de ce grave danger que Napoléon, qui s'était personnellement transporté vers
cet endroit, avait envoyé au comte de Lobau tous les secours dont il avait pu
disposer. À gauche il avait détaché la division Durutte du corps de d'Erlon, et l'avait
portée vers les fermes de la Haye et de Papelotte (voir la carte no 66), pour établir
un pivot solide au sommet de l'angle formé par notre ligne de bataille. À droite, il
avait envoyé à Planchenois le général Duhesme avec la jeune garde, et 24
bouches à feu de la réserve, pour y défendre un poste qu'on pouvait appeler
justement les Thermopyles de la France. En ce moment le
Belle défense de
Planchenois par la général Duhesme, officier consommé, disposant de huit
jeune garde. bataillons de jeune garde, forts d'à peu près quatre mille
hommes, avait rempli de défenseurs les deux côtés du ravin à
l'extrémité duquel était construit le village de Planchenois. Tandis qu'il faisait
pleuvoir les boulets et la mitraille sur les Prussiens, ses jeunes fantassins, les uns
établis dans les arbres et les buissons, les autres logés dans les maisons du
village, se défendaient par un feu meurtrier de mousqueterie, et ne paraissaient
pas près de se laisser arracher leur position, quoique assaillis par plus de vingt
mille hommes.
Vers six heures et demie, Blucher ayant donné l'ordre d'enlever Planchenois,
Hiller forme six bataillons en colonne, et après avoir criblé le village de boulets et
d'obus, essaye d'y pénétrer baïonnette baissée. Nos soldats postés aux fenêtres
des maisons font d'abord un feu terrible, puis Duhesme lançant lui-même un de
ses bataillons, refoule les Prussiens à la baïonnette, et les rejette dans le ravin, où
notre artillerie les couvre de mitraille. Ils se replient en désordre, horriblement
maltraités à la suite de cette inutile tentative. Blucher alors réitère à ses lieutenants
l'ordre absolu d'enlever Planchenois, et Hiller, sous les yeux mêmes de son chef,
rallie ses bataillons après les avoir laissés respirer un instant, leur en adjoint huit
autres, et avec quatorze revient à la charge, bien résolu d'emporter cette fois le
poste si violemment disputé. Ces quatorze bataillons s'enfoncent dans le ravin
bordé de chaque côté par nos soldats, et s'avancent au milieu d'un véritable
gouffre de feux. Quoique tombant par centaines, ils serrent
Malgré la bravoure
de la jeune garde, leurs rangs en marchant sur les cadavres de leurs
les Prussiens compagnons, se poussent les uns les autres, et finissent par
emportent pénétrer dans ce malheureux village de Planchenois, par
Planchenois. s'élever même jusqu'à la naissance du ravin. Ils n'ont plus
qu'un pas à faire pour déboucher sur la chaussée de
Charleroy. Nos jeunes soldats de la garde se replient, tout émus d'avoir subi cette
espèce de violence. Mais Napoléon est auprès d'eux! c'est à la vieille garde à tout
réparer. Cette troupe invincible ne peut se laisser arracher notre ligne de retraite,
salut de l'armée. Napoléon appelle le général Morand, lui donne un bataillon du 2e
de grenadiers, un du 2e de chasseurs, et lui prescrit de repousser cette tentative si
alarmante pour nos derrières. Il passe à cheval devant ces bataillons.—Mes amis,
leur dit-il, nous voici arrivés au moment suprême: il ne s'agit pas de tirer, il faut
joindre l'ennemi corps à corps, et avec la pointe de vos baïonnettes le précipiter
dans ce ravin d'où il est sorti, et d'où il menace l'armée, l'Empire et la France!—
Vive l'Empereur! est la seule réponse de cette troupe
Reprise de
Planchenois par la héroïque. Les deux bataillons désignés rompent le carré, se
vieille garde. forment en colonnes, et l'un à gauche, l'autre à droite, se
portent au bord du ravin d'où les Prussiens débouchaient déjà
en grand nombre. Ils abordent les assaillants d'un pas si ferme, d'un bras si
vigoureux, que tout cède à leur approche. Furieux contre
Horrible déroute
des Prussiens. l'ennemi qui voulait nous tourner, ils renversent ou égorgent
tout ce qui résiste, et convertissent en un torrent de fuyards
les bataillons de Hiller qui venaient de vaincre la jeune garde. Tantôt se servant de
la baïonnette, tantôt de la crosse de leurs fusils, ils percent ou frappent, et telle est
l'ardeur qui règne parmi eux que le tambour-major de l'un des bataillons assomme
avec la pomme de sa canne les fuyards qu'il peut joindre. Entraînés eux-mêmes
par le torrent qu'ils ont produit, les deux bataillons de vieille garde se précipitent
dans le fond du ravin, et remontent à la suite des Prussiens la berge opposée,
jusqu'auprès du village de Maransart, situé en face de Planchenois. Là cependant
on les arrête avec la mitraille, et ils sont obligés de se replier. Mais ils restent
maîtres de Planchenois et de la chaussée de Charleroy, et pour cette vengeance
de la jeune garde par la vieille, deux bataillons avaient suffi! On pouvait évaluer à
deux mille les victimes qu'ils avaient faites dans cette charge épouvantable.
Tandis que Ney et Friant s'apprêtent à charger avec leur infanterie, le duc de
Wellington à la vue des bonnets à poil de la garde, sent bien que l'heure suprême a
sonné, et que la grandeur de sa patrie, la sienne, vont être le prix d'un dernier
effort. Il a vu de loin s'approcher de nouvelles colonnes prussiennes, et, dans
l'espérance d'être secouru, il est résolu à tenir jusqu'à la dernière extrémité, bien
que derrière lui des masses de fuyards couvrent déjà la route de Bruxelles. Il tâche
de communiquer à ses compagnons d'armes la force de son âme. Kempt qui a
remplacé dans le commandement de l'aile gauche Picton tué tout à l'heure, lui fait
demander des renforts, car il n'a plus que deux à trois milliers d'hommes.— Qu'ils
meurent tous, répond-il, je n'ai pas de renforts à leur envoyer.
Résolution
désespérée du duc —Le général Hill, commandant en second de l'armée, lui dit:
de Wellington. Vous pouvez être tué ici, quels ordres me laissez-vous?—
Celui de mourir jusqu'au dernier, s'il le faut, pour donner aux
Prussiens le temps de venir.—Ces nobles paroles prononcées, le duc de
Wellington serre sa ligne, la courbe légèrement comme un arc, de manière à placer
les nouveaux assaillants au milieu de feux concentriques, puis fait coucher à terre
les gardes de Maitland, et attend immobile l'apparition de la garde impériale.
À Genappe Napoléon quitta le carré de la garde dans lequel il avait trouvé asile.
Les autres carrés, encombrés par les blessés et les fuyards, avaient fini par se
dissoudre. À partir de Genappe, chacun se retira comme il put. Les soldats de
l'artillerie, ne pouvant conserver leurs pièces qui du reste importaient moins que les
chevaux, coupèrent les traits et sauvèrent les attelages. On laissa ainsi dans les
mains de l'ennemi près de 200 bouches à feu, dont aucune ne nous avait été
enlevée en bataille. Chose remarquable, nous n'avions perdu qu'un drapeau, car le
sous-officier de lanciers Urban avait reconquis celui du 45e, l'un des deux pris au
corps de d'Erlon. L'ennemi ne nous avait fait d'autres prisonniers que les blessés.
Cette fatale journée nous coûtait vingt et quelques mille
Pertes matérielles
de la bataille de hommes, y compris les cinq à six mille blessés demeurés au
Waterloo. pouvoir des Anglais. Environ vingt généraux avaient été
frappés plus ou moins gravement. Les pertes des Anglais
égalaient à peu près les nôtres. Celles des Prussiens étaient de huit à dix mille
hommes. La journée avait donc coûté plus de trente mille hommes aux alliés, mais
ne leur avait pas, comme à nous, coûté la victoire. Le duc de Wellington et le
maréchal Blucher se rencontrèrent entre la Belle-Alliance et Planchenois, et
s'embrassèrent en se félicitant de l'immense succès qu'ils venaient d'obtenir. Ils en
avaient le droit, car l'un par sa fermeté indomptable, l'autre par son ardeur à
recommencer la lutte, avaient assuré le triomphe de l'Europe sur la France, et
grandement réparé la faute de livrer bataille en avant de la forêt de Soignes. Après
les épanchements d'une joie bien naturelle, Blucher, dont l'armée n'avait pas autant
souffert que l'armée anglaise, dont la cavalerie d'ailleurs était intacte, se chargea
de la poursuite, qui convenait fort à la fureur des Prussiens contre nous. Ils
commirent dans cette nuit des horreurs indignes de leur nation, et assassinèrent, si
on en croit la tradition locale, le général Duhesme, tombé blessé dans leurs mains.
Il faut sans doute se défier de l'entraînement du soldat, et, comme l'a dit
Napoléon, la soldatesque quand on l'a écoutée, a fait commettre autant de fautes
aux généraux, que la multitude aux gouvernements, ce qui veut dire qu'il faut se
défendre de tous les genres d'entraînements. Mais ici la raison était d'accord avec
l'instinct des masses. Il était onze heures et demie; en partant
Facilité d'exécuter
ce que proposait le à midi au plus tard, on avait, comme notre douloureux récit l'a
général Gérard. fait voir, bien des heures pour être utile. Le corps de
Vandamme, le plus avancé, était à Nil-Saint-Vincent, à une
très-petite lieue au delà de Sart-à-Valhain, où était parvenu le corps de Gérard. Les
dragons d'Exelmans avaient atteint la Dyle. De Nil-Saint-Vincent on pouvait se
porter au pont de Moustier (voir la carte no 65), que par une imprévoyance
heureuse pour nous, l'ennemi n'avait point gardé, ce qui était naturel, car se voyant
suivi sur Wavre, il n'avait cru devoir occuper que les ponts les plus rapprochés de
Wavre même. En passant par ce pont de Moustier, et en obéissant à la seule
indication du canon, on serait arrivé à Maransart, situé vis-à-vis de Planchenois,
sur le bord même du ravin où coulait le ruisseau de Lasne, et où Lobau était aux
prises avec Bulow. On se fût trouvé ainsi sur les derrières des Prussiens, et on les
eût infailliblement précipités dans le ravin, et détruits, car pour en sortir il leur aurait
fallu repasser les bois à travers lesquels ils avaient eu tant de peine à pénétrer. Or
de Nil-Saint-Vincent à Maransart, il y a tout au plus cinq lieues
Distances
véritables, et temps métriques, c'est-à-dire quatre lieues moyennes. Des soldats
qu'il fallait pour les dévorés d'ardeur n'auraient certainement pas mis plus de
franchir. quatre à cinq heures à opérer ce trajet, et la preuve c'est que
de Gembloux à la Baraque (distance à peu près pareille à
celle de Nil-Saint-Vincent à Maransart) le corps de Vandamme, parti à huit heures
du matin, était arrivé à deux heures de l'après-midi, après des haltes nombreuses,
et une notamment fort longue à Nil-Saint-Vincent, lesquelles prirent beaucoup plus
d'une heure, c'est-à-dire qu'il exécuta le trajet en moins de cinq heures. Il faut
ajouter que les routes de Gembloux à la Baraque étant celles qu'avait parcourues
l'armée prussienne, étaient défoncées, et que les routes transversales qu'il fallait
suivre pour se rendre à Maransart, n'avaient pas été fatiguées, et étaient des
chemins vicinaux larges et bien entretenus. Les gens du pays parlaient de trois
heures et demie, de quatre au plus pour opérer ce trajet. En admettant cinq
heures, ce qui était beaucoup pour des troupes animées du plus grand zèle, on
accordait l'extrême limite de temps, et le départ ayant lieu à midi on serait arrivé à
cinq heures. Le corps de Gérard aurait pu arriver une heure après, c'est-à-dire à
six, mais l'effet eût été produit dès l'apparition de Vandamme, et Gérard n'aurait eu
qu'à le compléter. Or à cinq heures Bulow, comme on l'a vu, n'avait encore
échangé que des coups de sabre avec la cavalerie de Domon et de Subervic. Il ne
fut sérieusement engagé contre Lobau qu'à cinq heures et demie. À six heures il
était aux prises avec la jeune garde, à sept avec la vieille. À
Effet qu'eût produit
le maréchal sept heures et demie, rien n'était décidé. On avait donc six
Grouchy à quelque heures, sept heures pour arriver utilement. On peut même
heure qu'il arrivât. ajouter qu'en paraissant à six heures sur le lieu de l'action,
l'effet eût été plus grand qu'à cinq, puisqu'on eût trouvé Bulow
engagé, et qu'on l'eût détruit en le précipitant dans le gouffre du ruisseau de Lasne.
Se figure-t-on quel effet eût produit sur nos soldats un tel spectacle, quel effet il eût
produit sur les Anglais, et quelle force on aurait trouvée dans les vingt-trois
bataillons de la garde, dès lors devenus disponibles, et jetés tous ensemble sur
l'armée britannique épuisée?
À la vérité le maréchal Grouchy ne pouvait pas deviner tous les services qu'il
était appelé à rendre en cette occasion, car il avait trop mal surveillé les Prussiens
pour être au fait de leurs desseins; mais le dilemme du général Gérard subsistait
toujours: ou les Prussiens se portaient vers Napoléon, et alors en venant se ranger
à sa droite on exécutait ses instructions, qui recommandaient de suivre les
Prussiens à la piste, et de se tenir toujours en communication avec lui; ou ils
gagnaient Bruxelles, et alors peu importait de les négliger, car on atteignait le vrai
but qui était d'anéantir complétement l'armée britannique.