All Hallow's Eve Read Online Free Page A

way as often as possible and speak to her as honestly and openly as is permissible within polite society. ” He hesitated for a moment as a wistful expression overtook his features. “ I will enjoy every minute I am with her and hope I will be successful. ”
    “ You will be, son. Of that we have no doubt , ” his mother responded sweetly.
    “ Father, how do I defend her from these wicked ones? What methods of defence will work best against them? ”
    “ D o not expect that they will follow the rules of society , or even the law , as would be you r wont . You may need to work outside the rules of combat to defeat them. ” Mr. Darcy offered . “ You must send word to Pemberley immediately and have someone trustworthy bring the S word that you have always admired . Do you r emember when you were a little boy, I had explained that we were holding it for another? Throughout the ages, t h at S word has been passed down to the Soul Mate of each High Priestess . Whenever a Soul Mate of the High Priestess dies, the head of o ur family acts as the Keeper of the S word until the next Soul Mate is discovered . Before your mother and I passed on, we had no idea that the successor was to be you !
    “ The High Priestess is well - trained in the art of the legionary , currently known as swordsmanship . Call on your cousins Reginald and Richard for assistance. T ribal legionnaires work best in groups of five ; your friend Bingley will be contacted tonight as well.
    “ You all can learn much from Mr. Bennet . When I taught you and your cousins, it was as an Immu n —a weapons instructor for the T ribes—but in his role as the Lead Immun , Mr. Bennet will train you in the ancient ways much better than I ever could . H e will fight by your side when the time comes . ”
    William had been surprised to hear Mr. Bennet was an expert weapons instructor, let alone that Elizabeth was well - trained in what he had always thought was a gentle m a n’s sport, but then he realized not much around him was as it had always seemed to be! “ Why had you not told me about this while I was growing up? I had no idea… ” he trailed off.
    “ I must apologize, son ,” Mr. Darcy answered. “ Those who are Destined Ones must be told earlier so they may be trained, but since the time of Great Evil several generations past , it has been common practice to wait until a child is of age to explain . We had taught you some of the ancient ways , such as longsword fighting , but a s you know, by the time you neared th e age, your mother was gone , and I had already had an apoplexy and was unable to speak clearly enough to explain it to you. Believe me when I say as I lay there ill in bed, not a day went by that I did not censure myself for not having told you when you were younger!
    “ As we are the end of the Darcy line, t he task of explaining it all to you should have fallen to your Uncle Fitzwilliam, but he did not wish to follow the ancient teachings . When he came of age , he chose a different path , abandoning the old ways . As many others have done before him , he felt they ha d no place in the modern world. Your Aunt Catherine did not wish you to know for very different reasons . ” His father paused and exchanged a knowing glance with his mother before continuing, “ Since crossing over into the Otherworld, we ha ve considered having others contact you . B ut you had so many other responsibilities thrust upon you at such a young age, we did not think you needed to know just then. S ince we then knew you to be the Soul Mate of the High Priestess , we also understood that you would find out through Miss Elizabeth eventually. There was no way of our predicting that this would come. ”
    William nodded, looked thoughtful for a minute , and then his brow furrowed. “ Mother, y ou say there is a second part of the ritual. I saw Elizabeth collapse after the first part and her grandmother caught her . W ill that happen again? ”
    The Darcys looked