Cursed to be Loved

Shelby Spaulding I rolled my eyes as my daughter had drilled me for the last hour. I had this conversation so many times over the years, it began to feel like a broken record. "It doesn't seem fair. I have never done anything, so why must I be cursed too?" Elaine mumbled. Instead of humoring her, I continued with my work. After a few minutes of not getting a response from me, she stood up and began to arrange the furniture in the store. I was so glad not to have this conversation with her again. I was glad that she decided to let it go. I looked up as my husband walked into the door. He had a big smile on his face, that had to mean that things went well. He picked me up and spun me around. "We are going to be the proud owners of a second location in a couple of weeks," Thomas said. He turned around and looked at our daughter, who was preoccupied. I do not think that she heard what was said. "Elaine, did you hear what I said? After all our hard work, we will finally open another store. Aren't you excited about that?" Thomas asked. "Yes dad, I am happy." She said, sounding sad and distracted. She did not seem happy at all. "Come here Elaine, why don't you tell me what is wrong?" He told her. I gave him a look that said," You don't want to know." . He continued anyway. "You know you can talk to me about anything. You are our baby and we want you to be happy," he said. I watched her stop what she was doing. She turned around to face him, her eyes shooting daggers at him. She looked like she was about to say something, then she paused. She turned back around and continued working with the furniture. He looked at me with concern in his eyes. It was unlike Elaine to become quiet like this. Of all of our children, she was the one that spoke her mind. She never held anything in. I walked over to her and gently turned her to face me. "Listen to me. We do care what you are feeling. You are our baby-" I tried to say. That is when she spoke to me in a way that she had never spoken to me before. "That's it mom, I am not a baby! I am a woman, yet you refuse to see that. At this time in my life, I should be looking forward to meeting my mate. The one man chosen for me, yet that won't happen because of a curse that you refuse to tell me about!" She shouted. I was taken aback. I knew that she was a woman, but I did not realize how important that this mate thing was to her. "Honey, look at your father and me. We are not mates, but we love each other and have created a great life for ourselves and our children." I told her. She looked at me and sighed. "That is great, you and father love one another, but maybe I want more. Have you ever thought of that? Yet, you won't even tell me about this curse. There is a way of breaking every curse. Maybe if you told me about it, I could find out how to break it." Elaine said hopefully. I wished that my daughter would let this go. If there was a way to break the curse, someone would have done it a long time ago. I am certain that if there was a way to break it, it would be very difficult. It was so difficult that not one person in all the generations since then was able to do it. Although I did not want to say this to my daughter. What would happen if she were able to break the curse? What would happen to couples like me and my husband that loved each other dearly? Would we always have to worry that our mate would show up and steal our spouse away? That would lead to many broken homes and broken hearts. I hoped that no one broke that curse. It could destroy too many lives. Thomas I did not like to see our daughter like this. I knew a great deal about the curse. She was right, she had the right to know. I took her by the hand and had her to sit on one of the chairs. I sat down opposite to her, "I will tell you whatever you need to know about the curse. " He said. I saw my wife watching me. I know that she did not want Elaine to know about the curse of our family. Yet, she had the right to know. "The incident happened many generations ago when a young couple from the Spaulding and Tate family became mates. Instead of that bond being used as it should, they found a way to use that bond to terrorize the supernatural world." I told her. She had slid to the edge of the seat, waiting for me to continue. "They used a powerful witch and stole, killed and robbed others. They were nearly invincible. It took many from the supernatural world to capture them.When they were caught, they were beheaded at the next full moon." I explained to her. "Once they were dead, the Wolf's Council wanted to make sure that nothing like it ever happened again. Fairies and witches all over the territory came together to do the curse. The curse was the most powerful one known. Over the years, many have tried to break it," I said. My daughter was deep in thought. I was waiting for her to ask the question that was on her mind. "Do you have any idea why they could not break the curse?" She asked. "Nobody knows how. The details were sealed by the council long ago. Nobody has had access to it in a very long time. It has been said that it has not been viewed since the day it was sealed at the council." I told her. It did not surprise me to see another question in her mind. "There must be a way to get access to the records without involving the council. Am I right?" She asked me. I took a breath and sighed. I would not lie to her, she had a right to know. "There are rumors that have been passed down. There is no proof, but it is said that details of everything are located somewhere nearby. I do not know how close, but it is said that it is within a hundred miles," I said. She immediately asked the question that I knew that she would, "Has anyone tried to find it?" She said. I looked at her straight in her eyes with my next comment, "I am sure that many have looked, but the rumor is that it is in the possession of one of the witches that helped make the original curse. She is the most powerful one. If you were to find out who she was, chances are that she would be more likely to harm you than give you any information." I told her. I hoped that this would dissuade her and she would finally leave it alone.. I saw her face light up. She actually looked hopeful at that moment," OK father, thank you for telling me." She said with a huge smile.