She handed him the book. “Open it,” she said.
A large pentagram took up the whole first page.
“This is the book of elements. It holds some very powerful spells. If Arielle ever decides to use the book she will have to study the contents very carefully as it can bring disastrous results if not used correctly. The pentagram represents the five elements of the spiritual and physical self: Spirit, Water, Earth, Air, and Fire. Magic could be very dangerous, coming into physical contact with spirits. When the spell is cast it will destroy the enemy; in this case, Annabel.” She sat quietly for a short time, letting him absorb her words.
“Make sure that Arielle does not part with this necklace until we have a permanent solution for Annabel. It has to be on her body at all times.” She paused and then added, “One other very important thing is that Arielle must know the truth about you before you give her the necklace, and especially the book. The stone is very powerful and will keep her safe. And the book is priceless.” She paused again and added, “I’ll try to think of some other ways we can help you without having Arielle use the spells in the book, but it will take me some time to think about this.” She didn’t say so, but deep inside she knew just as Sebastian did that the ultimate solution would have to be Annabel’s complete annihilation.
“I wish you had come to me a long time ago, Sebastian. If you had, I know that by now I would have had a good solution to this problem.”
“Mother, I assure you that I would have come to you if I had ever experienced an emotion anything like this before,” he said. “I’ve lived without it for five centuries, so it’s a very extraordinary and special feeling. I feel that it completes my very existence. I love her.”
“So what’s your next step?” Olivia asked.
“Well, I guess first I will have to make sure that Arielle knows the truth about me, and that she still wants to be with me after she knows who I really am. One thing I know for sure is that she loves me, so that gives me hope.”
“I’d love to meet her,” Olivia said with a pleasant smile.
“Oh, I’m counting on that,” he said, smiling back at her.
Olivia had the extraordinary power of looking into the future. As she looked at Sebastian, she debated whether she should bring up what she could clearly see going on in his head. Finally she sighed and grinned. Her face displayed a brilliant smile, and he could see that she was thoroughly enjoying the moment.
“Are you going to actually do what I’m seeing in your head?”
“Well, I figure what’s another year of college? Maybe three? After all, I’ve already waited for hundreds of years.” And they both broke into hearty laughter.
“I think it’s a great idea,” Olivia said. “And since you are going to be in England for the next year or so, I hope you will make yourself more visible in this home. Maybe you can persuade Loren to attend university too. It would give her something to do.”
“There is no question that you will be seeing more of me,” Sebastian said. “I want you to meet Arielle, and I’m going to look for a place to live before long. I feel a lot better now that I know Arielle will be safe, thanks to you. I also know that if I don’t have to worry about Annabel hurting Arielle I can handle anything she throws my way.”
“Make sure you stay very close to Arielle,” Olivia said. “And remember, there are other ways to hurt her besides just physical ones. You will have to protect her in every way you can.” For a short moment she said nothing and Sebastian waited patiently. “I wonder why Annabel wants to hold on to something that has been dead for centuries now,” she mused, adding, “I always thought that your father made a big mistake choosing her for you.”
Sebastian was so overwhelmed with happiness and gratitude that he reached out and embraced his second mother.
“Can you stay for a nice drink of salve?” she asked.
“Yes, of course,” Sebastian replied.
“And now tell me about Arielle,” she urged as she poured their drinks.
“She is one of the loveliest creatures on this earth. She is absolutely the most beautiful girl I have ever laid eyes on, and graceful in everything she does,” he said, smiling happily and sighing.
“Well, she sounds just perfect!” Olivia said, handing him a glass. “You sound so happy, and I can see that you really love her.”
“I don’t think I was really alive in the last five centuries,” he said, chuckling. “I think I was just roaming this earth looking for someone who would make me happy. But I never experienced anything like what I’ve found in Arielle.”
“What will you do if she can’t accept you for who you are?”
Sebastian didn’t answer for a moment. “I don’t think I would be able to find any reason or any purpose to exist,” he finally said. “I feel like I can’t breathe when she is not with me, and it has only been four days since I’ve met her. I don’t feel anything without her. She has given purpose to my life. She is the woman I want to be with for as long as I live.”
“Remember, she is a human,” Olivia said gently. “She will get older. She might get sick, and eventually, she will die.”
“If anything ever happens to Arielle, it will be the end of me. I couldn’t possibly exist without her,” Sebastian said.
“I want you to think hard about what it will be like when she starts having difficulty with you remaining young while she is getting old,” Olivia said thoughtfully. “It will be hard for her to accept, no matter how hard you try to make her understand that you still want to be with her.”
“I know… I have thought about that as well, but I don’t have a solution. And I don’t mind telling you that I am scared when I think about all these things,” he sighed.
“Well, for now try to just be happy and face the issues as they come. It is a lot easier if you don’t have everything mapped out way in advance.”
They sat in the garden for a while longer. It was a perfect day, and Sebastian enjoyed just being there in the calming presence of his mother.
He left the house early in the afternoon feeling much better. He knew he now had something in his possession that would keep Arielle safe from Annabel’s wrath, and that brought him huge relief from the worry he had been suffering. That left only one main concern – that Arielle would feel the same way about him after she found out about his immortality.
He went back to the hotel and got ready for the meeting he had scheduled for that afternoon. There would be another round of meetings tomorrow, and then he would be on his way back to Arielle. He couldn’t wait!
The meetings were important because Sebastian was the owner and CEO for IIRL, the family business that had started centuries ago to acquire land all over the world, but had now evolved into manufacturing new products for various businesses around the globe. They had buildings and laboratories in many countries, and they were quite well known. Sebastian’s business associates didn’t know anything about the immortal friends that he had put in key positions to run the company. All they knew about him was that he was a good businessman and a great boss even though he was very young.
When he had finally finished all he had to do in London, he happily headed back to France. When the plane landed in St. Jean de Luz it was two o’clock in the afternoon. He didn’t want to waste any time: he wanted to get home in time to get ready for Arielle’s party. He could hardly stop smiling as he drove home from the airport, thinking of nothing but her.
He went straight to his room, took a shower, and lay down for a few minutes, wanting to unwind until it was time to go. After his time in London he felt sure that he had found at least a temporary solution for the worst nightmare of his life.
Around seven-thirty he got out of bed and got ready for the party. He was standing in front of the mirror, whistling a joyful tune when Annabel suddenly appeared.
He knew this encounter was not going to be pleasant, but he kept his cool and pretended that her presence didn’t affect him at all. He was frustrated at not b
eing able to prevent her from showing up any time she wanted to and invading his privacy. He considered Annabel’s ability to move effortlessly from one place to another a curse. Unfortunately this is exactly what she chose to do that night. She had been waiting for Sebastian at his house, and chose this moment to confront him.
Annabel was a very striking woman, though her looks held no charm for Sebastian. “Where are you going tonight?” she asked him, sounding arrogant.
“That is absolutely none of your business,” he said in a matter-of-fact tone.
“Oh, but it is,” she said. Her eyes, filled with fury, were scrutinizing him, trying to discover his plans for the night.
A sudden thought made Sebastian quiver. Did she already know about Arielle? And if she did know, what was she prepared to do? He pursed his lips in frustration, but tried to keep his cool.
“Annabel, I am losing patience with you,” he said. “I hate being close to you, and I can’t tolerate the sight of you. Do me a favor and leave me alone. Go and find someone else to be with for the rest of your miserable life. I don’t want you coming into this house anymore.”
“But how can I do that?” she asked in a falsely sweet tone. “Haven’t I promised you a life of misery?” Her cruel, uncompromising promise burned like a fire in her eyes. “I thought your mortal life would be short, but somewhere along the way, someone changed the rules.” She chuckled with a miserable, insinuating laugh, and he understood exactly what she meant. She was the one that had changed the rules to make them suit her. “Now I’ve all of eternity to make you miserable, and that is a very long time,” she said. “There’s no woman that will dare to defy me. I’m sure something is going on with you these last two months, and I’m determined to find out what it is. Remember, Sebastian, I’m not joking.” She glared at him with true loathing.
“You know that you’ll have to get through me first,” he said. “And we both know you are no match for me now. I’m not a mortal any longer and I’m much stronger and faster than you’ll ever be. So watch your step.”
“I’ll follow you anywhere you go, and I’ll make sure your plans are ruined. Just try me,” she replied with a hiss, and walked into the other room.
Sebastian knew that Annabel was going to be a problem. Arielle had no idea who she was, and he couldn’t allow Annabel to create a scene in front of Arielle’s parents. He decided reluctantly that the best thing to do was to stay away from the party and hope that he could explain to Arielle later the reason he hadn’t shown up, and hope that she would forgive him.
Suddenly the terrifying thought that he might not see her again rippled through his soul. He couldn’t stomach the thought of not being close to her.
He decided to call her, and looked for the piece of paper with her phone number on it, but he couldn’t find it anywhere. He began looking frantically, going out of his mind with anxiety. The vision he’d had in London flashed before his eyes. Her beautiful face, her tears, and something that she was trying to tell him. Oh! He felt shattered, helpless! Even though he possessed all the powers in the world, he still couldn’t fix this dreadful moment. He knew Arielle would be hurt and that he would be the cause of it. How could he expect her to forgive him when he couldn’t forgive himself?
He got into his car, knowing that Annabel would follow him, so he drove with no particular destination in mind. How would he ever explain to Arielle his not showing up? He knew it wouldn’t be hard to find her again, but that trying to regain her trust was going to be a challenge. He was falling into deep despair, knowing that he couldn’t keep his promise to her, and that she would be going home in a few short days.
He drove by her house – that was the closest he could get to her tonight. He saw the lights, the happy faces of the people, and heard the wonderful music. “Oh, how I wish that I could see her beautiful face and stand by her side, holding her hand,” he thought. If he could have cried, he would have wept bitterly. But as an immortal, there was no such relief for his pain.
It was morning by the time he drove back home and found Annabel waiting for him, a disgusting smile on the face he detested so much. He knew that he would have to stay away from Arielle to keep her safe as long as Annabel was around even though the pain of staying away from her was unbearable.
Still, he had never been happier in his life, and he knew he couldn’t allow Annabel to create any major issues between Arielle and himself. He just had to somehow find a chance to explain to Arielle about Annabel. He had to!
The next week he had meetings scheduled in Germany and Spain. He hoped that Annabel would leave soon and that the whole thing would blow over. As soon as she was gone, locating Arielle would become his next quest. He was sure about the depth of her feelings for him. What he didn’t know was if she would be able to forgive him.
Chapter 12
AFTER SEBASTIAN LEFT, Arielle stayed home for the next two days. She lay by the pool, read her book, and listened to her music. She didn’t go to the beach; she didn’t want to be there without Sebastian. She knew deep in her soul that she was desperately in love with him even though they had only known each other for four days. She had only one desire, and that was to be in his arms and listen to his magical voice. Sebastian was her Darcy – she felt this and knew this with her whole heart and soul. It was a wonderful feeling.
The day of the party, the whole house was buzzing with caterers, florists, and tons of other people coming in and out of the house, getting everything ready for the party, down to the last detail. Her mother’s best friend, Myranda and her daughter Jane had flown in from London for the party and were going to stay on for a few days afterward before they all flew back home together.
Jane was like a little sister to Arielle, and Arielle was glad she would be there to help keep her busy until Sebastian got back. She was so looking forward to introducing her beautiful and enchanting dream to her family! She wanted everyone to meet the man who had captured her heart forever. She was boiling over with love and she could hardly wait to be in his arms again.
“What do you say we drive to town, do a little shopping?” she asked Jane. Jane was sixteen, a wonderful, beautiful, bubbly girl, and they always had fun together.
Arielle was planning on getting back to the house around five o’clock with plenty of time to get ready for the party. The party didn’t start until eight o’clock, so there would be ample time for Jane and her to shop, walk around, and get back in time to take a shower before it started.
The street cafés were buzzing, and Arielle could hear people’s happy thoughts as they enjoyed the day. She and Jane both got caught up in the wonderful holiday atmosphere, they talked nonstop and laughed about every little thing.
As they turned down a quiet narrow street they noticed a small quaint bookstore. They both loved reading, so they walked inside to take a look and see if there was anything interesting to purchase. As they walked around the bookstore, Arielle’s eye caught the title of a large hardcover book. The first line read “The Gaulle Fortune,” and right below that it said “Sixteenth Century.”
Seeing Sebastian’s last name, she pulled the book from the shelf and ran her fingers over it. She walked up to the woman behind the counter and asked if she could tell her anything about the Gaulle family. The woman looked up from her papers, and seeing the book in Arielle’s hands, she said, “Sure, what is it that you would like to know?”
“Anything at all will be more than I know now,” Arielle replied, chuckling.
“The Gaulle family is one of the oldest and most famous families around here,” the woman said. “Their home, or I should say their castle, is located up the hill behind the thick forest, which starts at the end of town on the west side and extends for quite a while, to the point where the next town begins. The house was built in the middle of the sixteenth century when the first Gaulle gentleman arrived.
“He spent a lot of money in those days: he brought tons and tons of stone from the Abbey and used it to build one of the most
beautiful homes in this part of the world. It is a magnificent site, well worth visiting. The house is fabulous, and it looks quite mysterious and inviting to anyone who is interested in exquisite architecture.”
“Have you seen it?” Arielle asked.
“Everyone who lives here has visited the location at one time or another, but no one has ever been allowed inside. It has a fascination for all who see it, though. Don’t all things as old as that?” she asked with a soft laugh.
“I suppose that’s true,” Arielle replied.
“Imagine: the house was built in the sixteenth century, but the material used in it goes as far back as the eleventh century.”
“Do you think we should see it?” Arielle asked.
“You should most certainly be sure that you both see it.”
Arielle knew that she had to see the house. She thought she would go ahead and ask the next question even though she already knew the answer.
“Does anyone live there?”
“I’m not sure if anyone is there right now. However, I know that there is a young gentleman who lives there a large part of the year. He loves to read and he is here quite often. His name is Sebastian and he’s one of the nicest young men around. He’s unbelievably handsome, to the point that I find it hard to stop staring at him. If I were a little younger…” she sighed and her voice trailed off. She laughed again softly and the girls joined in. Arielle knew exactly what she meant. Sebastian was the most beautiful human being she had ever seen as well.
“I have heard that a young lady has also been seen there at different times through the years,” the bookseller added. At these words, Arielle’s mind jolted to attention.
Arielle Immortal Awakening (The Immortal Rapture Series Book 1) Page 12
