Steal Me From Heaven

by Crawford, Toni

  “Lie still,” I hear him say. I look up behind my head and see him sitting on the grass with his feet folded underneath him. His hands are out to the side of my face and my head is between them. The light is coming from his palms.

  “What are you doing?” I ask.

  “Trying to heal you. Your body is healed from the lack of blood. You’ll still need to drink of me later, but your mind is not letting me in. Try to relax.” He closes his eyes and concentrates. Several moments later, I see his features harden and a darkness wash over his face. “Did you remember anything?”

  “No,” I say. I find the whole thing a little strange.

  “I know why Jacob cannot tell you anything about your past. The memory is too painful for you. I was occupied fighting the battle with your Demon. I did not get to you in time to help when Arthur’s men took you. Maybe I am not the best protector for you.”

  “You have to tell me. You can’t just say something like that and expect me to let it go.”

  “I will try to help you remember, but I will not speak of it again.”

  I get up off the grass and storm over to my clothes. “I am tired of everyone deciding things for me.” I get dressed in my limited wardrobe. “Are we ready to go? I think we are done here.” Standing up, he goes and retrieves his pants. He opens his wings and checks one out and then the other.

  “They are dry enough to fly. Let’s go.”

  “What about my drink?” I ask.

  “I told you that I have healed your body. You are thirsty because your Vampire mind tells you that you should drink after someone drinks from you. Besides, I need your blood in me a little while longer before you reclaim it.”

  “Why?”

  “To help you let him go. My body will purify your blood.”

  I noticed when I woke up that Jacob is no longer able to send thoughts my way. “I hope you are happy. I can no longer hear him.” I didn’t want to reveal that to him. He smiles, but that only makes me angry. “Just because you filter him out of my mind and body does not mean you can rid me of him.”

  He comes and stands closely before me. I feel the heat off his body. He is holding his pants in his hands since he has yet to put them on. “As long as I can have your heart and soul, he can have the rest.” Leaping with his legs, he takes to flight. He does not wait or even slow down. I do not have time to steam or pout. I transform and yell as my wings pop out, and I ascend after him.

  When I catch up, he is clothed. I come up beside him when I hear him talking to me over the currents. “We really need to work on you transforming silently. You made a flock of birds up roost with all your screaming. How will you sneak up on your enemies when you are shrieking at the top of your lungs?”

  “Shut up,” I yell. “You didn’t have a problem with me shouting your name.”

  “I can make you cry out my name anytime you wish.”

  “Obviously not, since I am still sexually frustrated. Maybe you can’t perform.”

  He gets angry. “I will not satisfy you while you pretend it is not my touch that makes you groan in pleasure or wet with desire. I deserve all of you, and I will wait until you offer me that.” He is tired of talking and flies away from me, creating enough distance where he does not hear me apologize.

  Two hours later, we are circling above a small farm with a cottage surrounded by trees on top of the hill. The ocean is to the right of the house, which sits on a cliff. The house is small but adequate. One more circle and then he descends. I land about fifteen feet behind him. We make the usual changes to our appearance and then walk up the steps to the front entrance. The door opens easily. It is not locked.

  “You need better security,” I say.

  “It is well secured. No one knows where I live except for Adam and a few close friends. They will not betray their people, not even a Fallen. No one can enter unless they are led in by me.” I remember hearing that no one can touch an Angel’s property. He takes my hand and pulls me through the door. I feel like I just walked through very thick air.

  “What is that?” I ask.

  “An energy field. I’m sorry the house is so small. Angels are not materialistic like Demons and Vampires.”

  “How do you pay for things?” I wonder.

  “I just ask for what I need. I will teach you to do it, but first you must be able to call forth your inner light.”

  “You mean that I will glow like you do? How is that possible if I cannot recharge from the sun?”

  “But I believe that you can,” he says.

  I remember feeling the sun burn the flesh from my foot and now he wants me to walk out into the burning light on purpose. “You can’t stop it from hurting if it doesn’t work.”

  “No, I’m sorry. I cannot. You are Angel, not Fallen. Your powers and gifts may be limitless. We will have to figure out what you can and cannot do.” He leads me into a small bedroom. “Daylight will be here soon. If you would like, I have a shirt that you can sleep in. I will wash your clothes for you and tomorrow, we can go to town and get some more things for you to wear. Now I have to prepare this room for you before the sun comes up.” He turns to leave but stops.

  “I will have blood ordered for two days a week so you don’t have to drink from me each day. If I keep it in the underground tunnel, it should hold. I do not have electricity up here on this mountain top. There is a spring house for water and then you saw the ocean off to the side of the cabin. I prefer you to stay indoors unless I accompany you. Make yourself comfortable. This is your home now.”

  He leaves, and I begin to look around. The house is simple, not fully decorated, with shades of white and blue. Red and black are not among his color choices. There are no blinds or curtains on the windows. I know he enjoys looking at the sea and watching the sun rise and set. His furnishings are sparse but will do. The walls are made of logs and they remind me of my first home with Jacob years earlier. This home needs a woman’s touch.

  I hear banging on the outside wall and a shadow covers the floor. He is nailing the shutters shut over the windows. I leave the bedroom and walk into the kitchen. I open the cupboards. There are only two sets of everything—cups, plates, bowls, and silverware. The rest is bare. I think he must not have much company, and I think about what a lonely existence he must lead. He could not even speak to me until I became a Vampire. I do not know how often he converses with humans.

  The living space does not have a television but has a large collection of books. I run my fingers across the binders and read the titles. A lot of them are non-fiction books about God, philosophy, history, and science. Although knowing the depth of his knowledge, he may call them works of fiction. When I am not learning the ways of the Angels, I may spend some of my time reading; that is, if I am not coupling all the time. So far, much of my existence as a Vampire has been in bed. I should seek celibacy, but I know that I cannot live without it.

  Malachi stops pounding on the walls and comes inside. Holding a hammer and box of nails in his hand, he opens a trunk and pulls out several heavy quilts. He motions for me to follow him into the bedroom and hands a blanket to me. “Hold it up in front of the window so I can nail it up.” I do as instructed.

  “Why are you putting these up if you already boarded up the windows?” I ask.

  “Someone can take those down from the outside. This is just a precaution.”

  When we are finished, he gets out a cotton shirt for me. It is a white undershirt that looks like it will barely cover my butt. I almost ask for something different, but the bed looks very soft and comfortable. I will be under the covers anyway and alone. He leaves the room for me to change. I fold my dirty clothes up and lay them in a chair, then crawl underneath the blankets. The linens feel so good against my skin. After having to sleep in a cave and then on the ground, I am happy to have a bed. He knocks on the door and comes in.

  “Do you need anything?” he asks.

  “Are you ever going to feed me?” I ask.

  “No, not yet
. You will not starve,” he tells me. How does he know? He does not feel the ache in my stomach. I make a muffled noise and sink down into the bed. I do not like not getting what I want. He says sweet dreams and that he will see me later. I fall asleep shortly after he leaves the room. As the day moves into the afternoon, I feel my body warming. The house is not unbearable in the heat, but with no air conditioner, I kick off my covers. The trees outside help to shade the home well and the ocean breeze helps to cool it. I only wish I could open the windows here in the bedroom. I feel more comfortable and fall back into my deep sleep.

  I feel something moving on my body. I move my legs and wiggle on the bed. I feel that it is close to dusk. My body is not as tired; it feels good. I wake up more clearly and open my eyes. Malachi is between my thighs repeating what he did last night. The bottom of my shirt is resting on my stomach. Jacob woke me up touching me once on the second step of my transformation. I close my mind off to all thoughts. My body responds to what it is feeling. I lift my pelvis for him. He brings me to the edge again and again but never pushes me over. I want him more and more. I fear that his plan is working. When he leaves me hot and bothered for the last time, he pulls my shirt back down and covers me up. He lies down beside me and holds me. I see my clothes are stacked neatly on the small dresser.

  “Are we going to town tonight?” I ask, hoping to get out of the house and see other buildings, landscapes, people, or anything.

  “Yes, a car will be here soon. It’s time to feed you.” I look at his neck and feel my teeth elongate.

  “No,” he says, “I will pour my blood out in a cup for you.” I huff and pull out of his arms. He does not like me being a Vampire, or he is trying to make me into an Angel. I stand and walk over to the dresser. I know he is facing me but I do not care. I open a drawer and pick a dark blue button-up shirt. I pull it up in the back and tie it so it fits me better. I roll up the sleeves one by one. He gets up out of bed. He is already fully dressed. I think he must have done that on purpose so he wouldn’t be tempted to have sex with me. As I watch him walk towards me, he opens another drawer and pulls out a small box.

  “I want to give you something. I have collected pieces over the years that reminded me of you.” He holds the box out to me and opens the flip-top lid. Inside is the most beautiful bluish-white piece of jewelry I have ever seen. I almost think it looks like it is glowing. “This is a rare blue pearl. I have had it for many years. It reminds me of you.” He asks me to turn around so that he can put it on my neck.

  “Thank you. I will cherish it always,” I tell him. He kisses the back of my neck and squeezes my shoulders. Then he makes his way into the kitchen. I follow him. He takes out a cup and sets it on the counter. Next he runs his wrist across his sharp fang and draws forth his red warm liquid. I lick my lips as I watch it pour into the cup. After he has filled it to the rim, he hands it to me. I try not to grab it too quickly from his hands. I raise the glass and sip in my dinner. His taste is as pure as when I first drank from him. Jacob is no longer in his blood. We hear a horn honking outside. I turn my cup all the way up and drink it down fast. I wish that I had time to savor the flavor. Seeing a picture of water, I rinse out the cup and sit it in the wash basin. I am going shopping.

  The car pulls up to a sidewalk in town. Shops are lining the street. The street lights give off an amber glow. Malachi gets out and comes around and opens my door. He helps me get out of the car. I am not used to riding in one of these, but the journey is faster and less jarring than on horseback. The car drives off and is supposed to pick us up back here in two hours. I enter the first store and see shelves lined with clothes and purses. Grabbing some things that I like, I meet Malachi at the dressing room. He has an armful of items also. I see that most of them are white in color. I smile. He wants me to try on a white skimpy-looking dress first. The neck line plunges in the front. Guessing that this has something to do with the male mind, I do not understand his thinking. One wrong move and I would topple out of it. I come out to show him.

  “Quit staring at me. Why would you pick this? You said that we couldn’t get a whole lot of things. I would at least prefer to be comfortable.”

  He smiles and lets out a soft laugh. “Come back in here,” he says as he heads into the dressing room stall. He reaches down and slips the dress off my shoulders. Turning it around in his hands, he holds it out for me to step back into it. I hold onto his shoulders and slide my body back into the fabric. I had it on backwards.

  “I feel like a fool,” I say.

  “You can wear it any way you wish, but my idea was that since the back was open…” He stops talking so no one can overhear us. “You know how sexy I think your shoulder blades are. I can have them add a strip of fabric to the top across the back of your neck. It should stay on nicely.”

  “But it is a dress,” I remark.

  “I know. I like dresses. We can shorten a few in the other colors to make tops for you. This white one, I will not alter.” I look in the mirror. The blue pearl necklace looks exquisite against my skin and the white cloth. He bends his head to the dress and bites off the tag. “Will you continue to wear this for the evening?” I nod.

  I sigh. Turning around, I pick up a pair of jeans and slide them on. He knows my size perfectly. I look at the rest of the clothes that he picked out. I know that they will fit. Picking out my favorite pieces, I let him choose the ones to buy. I want to try on my choices. He leaves me alone, and I settle on a few more items to add to our purchase. Leaving the dressing room, I look at the purses. I do not need one so I move on to the shoes. I pick out a sexy high heel pair that goes with the dress and put them on for the night. I need running shoes, boots, and a comfortable slip-on pair to wear around the house. I come up to the counter. He does not comment on how much it costs. I think that he is just going to ask if we can have it. I do not know how this works. Instead, he pulls out cash and pays the total. He tells the clerk that we will pick up our bags in about an hour. We leave through the front doors.

  “I thought we were going to get that for free.”

  “When I need it, I can ask for it. Since I had money, I did not need it.”

  “Where did you get money?” I ask.

  “I do jobs here and there to get some cash. I got paid well the other night.”

  I think back to the night in question, and I remember that Jacob paid him for his blood. He must have given him extra when he figured out his importance. “What will we do now?” I ask.

  “We have enough time to go into a few more shops. I want to take you in this one up here,” he tells me as we turn up the sidewalk. He takes my hand to hold. I feel like we are on a date. When I look into the storefront windows, I blush. He has taken me to a lingerie store. He opens the door for me, and I hesitate. He stands there and waits until I am ready to enter.

  “I am not trying these things on in this store for you.”

  “No, you are not. I will see them later at home.”

  I finally come inside when I see that they have bras and panties. All the hot sexy stuff is out front. I head to the back. He says that he is going to look around and leaves me alone to explore. I run my fingers over the satin and lace. Instinct draws me to the black ones. I choose one anyway even though that is the favorite color of many Vampires, Jacob included. Next, I get a couple of different white sets. I get a few strapless bras; maybe they will make it easier to transform. I get two bags of socks and a couple of pairs of panty hose in white and nude. Finally, I get the courage to look at lingerie. I look to see if I spot Malachi, but I do not. I grab one that catches my eye, and then I see something that Malachi will like. I pick it up and put it under the pile in my arms. He doesn’t need to see it now. I approach the counter and see that he already has a bag in his hands. He must have picked out something he wants to see me wearing. I can only imagine. He sighs when he sees that my arms are full.

  “Too much. I can put some things back.”

  “No, it’s all right.”

>   “Can I just have some money and get this without you standing here? I would be uncomfortable with you watching her ring it all up.” He looks at me and then hands me his wallet.

  “Take what you need.” He turns around. “I will be outside.”

  I thank the saleswoman and carry my purchases out to the curb. Malachi is standing there with my clothes from the first store. The car pulls up and the trunk opens. The driver leaves, and Malachi places our bags inside. We get in the front seats so Malachi can drive.

  “Are we going home?” I ask.

  “Yes,” he says.

  “Why won’t you make love to me?” I ask.

  “Do you want me to?” He looks at me.

  “Yes. You have wanted me for a very long time and now that I am here for your taking, you still haven’t made a move to have sex with me or satisfy your need. Do you want me?”

  “Always,” he says. He takes my hand and holds it while he drives back away from the city and towards our home. The drive home from the shops is long, including a half hour driving up the mountain. I have tried pleasing him before, but he has always stopped me. Looking down at his pants, I think about undoing them. I do. He leans back away from the steering wheel to give me more room to work. Taking the length of him in my hands, I make him moan with need. The act takes longer than I expect. I did not think this through very well. This is only making my loins ache. I want him. He does not stop me like usual. Taking him into my mouth, I complete what I started. He leaves his pants undone as we are now making our way up the winding mountainous road. At least he finally got something out of this exchange. We ride in silence the rest of the way.

  The car stops, and he fixes his pants. After carrying in all the bags and putting them in dresser drawers, he tells me to change into my running shoes. “Should I change my clothes?” I ask. He tells me to keep on the dress. He wants to see how it wears during flight. I look silly. He removes his shirt.

  “Come on,” he tells me. “You have much still to learn. I am going to work on your stamina before teaching you the sword.” We go out onto the porch. He stretches his neck muscles side to side and rotates his shoulders. I stand there watching his body move. “I will give you a slight head start before I chase you. If I catch you, then I win a prize. If you win, then you get to choose what you want.”