It was only seconds before my head cleared and I could move once more. Gabriel took my hand to help me sit up and I took in the large crowd that had formed a circle around us. Most of them were frowning or wide eyed with concern, though some had an almost gleeful look that lit up their faces. Some people were such vultures.
‘She’s fine,’ Gabriel told them all as he yanked me to my feet. Even though the pain was no longer present, a deep ache made my muscles quiver and I groaned. ‘Let’s go,’ he ordered.
The young woman stood several feet from me, gripping the pushchair with one hand while hugging the young boy to her chest. Her face was awash with tears and she shook so violently that her hair vibrated in response. I gave her a small smile before Gabriel pulled on my arm.
‘She should wait for the ambulance,’ a woman called as Gabriel dragged me away. He ignored her, and gripped my wrist harder, pulling me along so fast I stumbled to keep up.
‘Where’s the car?’ he asked stiltedly once we were away from the crowd. I silently indicated to the end of the street and he hauled me toward it.
He remained silent as he opened the passenger door and pushed me in, before making his way around to the driver side. Once inside, he sat for a moment, with his teeth clenched so tightly the muscles on his face bulged. He hit the steering wheel hard enough to make the car shake and turned to face me.
‘What if I hadn’t got their in time? I can’t bring you back from death.’
‘I’m sorry.’ I leant back towards the window, watching him warily as his face convulsed. I hadn’t even known he could heal me, though it probably wasn’t the time to mention that.
He glowered at me, before turning the key so far that the engine squealed in protest.
The drive home was shorter than usual as Gabriel floored the accelerator the whole way, only relaxing when the house came into sight. I sat quietly throughout, allowing the quiet tones of the radio, barely discernible over the sound of the rattling engine, to soothe me.
Once he had parked the car he leant back in his seat and rubbed a hand across his face. ‘I apologise, I didn’t intend to shout.’ His kind tone caused my eyes to water and I pressed my lips together in order to still my trembling chin.
‘It’s okay,’ I said meekly as I got out of the car.
He supported my elbow as we travelled the short path to the door. Once inside, I dropped into the kitchen chair, trying to still the thoughts that raced through my mind. I watched him in silence as he made us both a tea, trying to put everything that had happened into some semblance of order.
‘You’ve done that before, haven’t you?’ I asked when he sat down opposite me. ‘After the junkie attacked me at work.’
His eyes widened with surprise. ‘It never occurred to me that you would have remembered that. That must have been so confusing for you.’
So much for my romantic story of a rainy night, though I supposed I had to give him credit for saving my life.
‘Just a little bit.’ I smiled, flexing my hands in order to try and halt the slight trembling that was still present. ‘It caused many sleepless nights, so many in fact, I had to ban myself from thinking about it. Not an easy task I can tell you.’
Gabriel shook his head slightly. ‘I never even heard you speak to anyone about it. If you had, I would have approached you earlier.’
I stiffened and raised my eyebrows. ‘I’m going to ignore the fact that you have just confessed to listening in on my conversations.’ He grinned sheepishly. ‘Instead, can you explain something to me? Lexi said the person who brought me in looked in his fifties, which you don’t.’
He smiled lightly. ‘I can do more than change into another species. I can also be perceived to age, or change how I look at any time.’ He paused to scrutinise my face. ‘Would you like to see?’
I nodded, while trying to digest the information he had just given me.
Before my eyes his whole body shimmered, and in his place sat someone with silver hair and deep wrinkles on the face and neck, his sparkling blue eyes being the only resemblance to the man I loved.
‘Eek!’ I shot up, knocking the chair down, and promptly fell backwards over it.
When I opened my eyes, he stood above me, my Gabriel, with his own face.
‘Please forgive me,’ he said. ‘I didn’t mean to frighten you.’
‘No, it was my fault,’ I tried to reassure him, though my voice was a little shaky. ‘I am glad you showed me, it just took me by surprise that’s all.’
He helped me to my feet and picked the chair back up. We both sat back down, me trying to gain a little of my dignity back and him still frowning with worry.
‘So…how does it happen? Do you just wake up one day, look in the mirror, decide you’re old enough for wrinkles, and poof, you make it happen?’
‘Something like that,’ he replied with a small smile.
Suddenly, it all seemed ludicrously funny. I had heard of designer babies and now I had my own designer man. I started laughing so hard tears rolled down my face. I must have become a little hysterical because at some point during my fit I started genuinely crying instead.
He leant towards me and snaked his arm around my shoulders, holding me tight. He kissed my face, saying over and over, ‘I’m sorry, oh sweetheart, I love you, do not cry.’ This started me laughing again. So much for not letting him see my worst side.
‘I’m so sorry Gabriel.’ I rubbed my cheeks with my sleeve; might as well let him see all my bad habits now that he had witnessed me losing it. Luckily, he got me a napkin to blow my nose, which unfortunately, was no quiet task.
‘It’s my fault; I should not have shown you.’ He tried to hold me in his arms, which was fairly impossible with me sat on the chair. In the end he settled for kneeling on the floor, with his hands on my legs, waiting to hold my hands which were still busy wiping the remains of the hysteria from my face.
‘Please don’t say that,’ I said. ‘I really do want to know. It’s just…’ I wasn’t sure how to explain my screwy brain to him. ‘I’ve just been so happy and excited and have found out so many marvellous things in the last few weeks. I just hit a point that I needed to wipe the emotional slate clean and unfortunately you got to witness it.’ I paused. ‘On the plus side I feel a lot better now, so bring it on.’
I grinned to show him I really was okay and clapped while doing a little hop in my seat. I couldn’t help myself. The undercurrents of energy were running around my body and I laughed in response. The sense of being in complete tune with the universe came upon me and I grabbed his arms and kissed him noisily, only to spring up giggling. A big smile crossed his face as he stood, though the furrow on his brow diminished the affect somewhat.
‘What’s wrong?’ I tried to look concerned, though didn’t manage it very well. My thoughts were too scattered, erratically bouncing around like ping pong balls in a washing machine, making them impossible to catch or follow.
‘I have to ask,’ he said. ‘How you cope with this sudden change in mood?’ He started fidgeting, as would a child while waiting to get the attention of their parent, shifting from one foot to another. ‘You energy is so erratic, it’s as if I’m being attacked by it.’
I snorted with laughter. ‘You get used to it. Can you not shield yourself from me?’
He started peeling some potatoes for dinner as we had missed our reservation at the restaurant, though I sensed that it was an excuse to put a little distance between us.
‘I am able to shield myself. It’s just that I have never been in such close proximity to you whilst you experience this.’
I did feel sorry for him. I knew the affect the force of my high could have on a regular human person. It must be quite overwhelming to someone with heightened senses such as he had. I wondered if his abilities would be able to influence my emotions and asked as much.
‘Emotions are tricky,’ he sighed. ‘Manipulating them can cause a cascade effect, unbalancing your whole chemistry, though it is possib
le to edge your body in the direction it is already headed, or tone down the reaction to a hormone released.’
‘Could you take the bipolar away for good?’ I began flicking my nails together. I really couldn’t stay still.
‘No, that would not be possible.’
I gave a small sigh of relief. Although my condition had hindered me at times, it had been an integral part of who I was for a long time now. It allowed me to experience life in a unique way and from many different perspectives, and without it I would lose my personal identity.
On that note the conversation came to an end. As we prepared dinner together, we talked about work that day. I thought to ask why he, an immortal being, worked in construction and he replied that he like to work with his hands. Throughout the evening he recounted tales of the people he had met during his life, causing me to laugh and feel in awe simultaneously.
That night he held me after we had made love and told me how beautiful I was. I wanted to accept that this was how he truly saw me, but even with a high upon me, I couldn’t help but feel uneasy. I tried to take it with good grace though, and even wanted to believe, which was a start.
I wanted to tell him I loved him, but did not, not on this night.
Chapter 5
I entered the large kitchen. The steel work surfaces glinted as if they were catching invisible rays of sunlight and the fridge hummed the sound of a thousand bees, busy at work. I went straight to the radio to flick it on and clapped my hands in excitement when my favourite tune blared out. I made my way to the kettle, swinging my hips in time with the music and started making a cup of tea.
Lexi came in and grinned. ‘Thought I might risk having a drink with you,’ she said. ‘Carl’s in a meeting.’
‘Dance with me,’ I said, grabbing her arm.
I spun her around for a moment before she begged to be released.
‘Do you want a lift home today?’ I asked. The kettle began boiling and I threw tea bags into our cups.
She laughed. ‘Am I safe?’ She reached into my cup and took the teabag out before replacing it with a decaffeinated one.
‘I only drove over a roundabout once.’
‘Are you forgetting all the garden fences you’ve hit in this mood?’
‘They were rickety anyway,’ I said, taking my tea off her. ‘And really low to the ground. How is anyone meant to see them?’ I blew the liquid and took a sip, only to grimace. Decaff just didn’t taste as good.
‘Yet they survived until you got near them,’ she muttered before giving me a grin. ‘I will get a ride on one condition. You can’t have the stereo on.’
I groaned. ‘Why not?’
‘Because you take your hands off the steering wheel to dance.’
‘Okay, good point, no stereo. And I promise to drive slowly.’ I gave her a wide eyed stare and burst into laughter. Lexi shook her head and rolled her eyes before grinning at me.
Carl came into the kitchen and glared at us. The meeting must have come to an early end. ‘Why am I not surprised to see you too in here? The rules are quite clear, only one person at a time taking a break.’
‘All the jobs are done,’ I said. ‘And it’s too early to start lunch.’
‘If you have nothing to do, the skirting boards need a wash.’
Lexi rolled her eyes at me from behind his back.
‘Fine,’ I said. ‘I’ll get on it now.’ I grinned, causing him to scowl.
‘Make sure you get it done,’ he said as he left the kitchen. I couldn’t resist sticking my tongue out after him.
‘Anyone would think that he owned the place,’ Lexi said sitting down with her tea.
I leant back against the side with my cup in my hands. Carl wouldn’t come and check for at least ten minutes.
‘Do you know he gave Chloe a written warning for being late,’ she continued.
‘It was the sixth time in a row,’ I said. ‘And you have to admit, the place is a lot better since he came here.’
‘Anyone would think that you like him.’
I shrugged. ‘Not really, but I have to respect him as a manager.’
‘Even though he doesn’t have a clue how to act with the residents?’
I laughed. ‘Okay, not that bit. Do you know, he came in the other day while I was washing Barbara and told me I shouldn’t spend time chatting because it took too long. When I tried to explain that it was an intimate task and that I needed to put her at ease, he just looked at me blankly.’
‘My point exactly, she said.
I shrugged. ‘As long as he sticks to the books and leaves the caring to us, he doesn’t really bother me.’
‘Or the residents,’ she said with a grin.
I laughed. ‘Especially the residents.’
The rest of the shift passed in a blur of happiness. I managed to stay out of too much trouble and only broke two glasses. Once I dropped Lexi at home, I forced myself to concentrate on the journey back. Still, there were times I found myself staring longingly at the stereo, wanting to fill my mind with a tune that made my body move in time.
To my disappointment, Gabriel manipulated the chemicals in my brain and calmed the erratic bounce in my step somewhat, though it did mean that I was able to sit still long enough to watch a film. It was one of the older ones, starring Clark Gable and Audrey Hepburn, not really my cup of tea as I had developed a new interest in science fiction. The world was no longer as I had perceived it and I wanted to see the other theories out there. Unfortunately, Gabriel scoffed throughout those, which could be quite annoying at times.
When I cuddled in his arms it was as if we were a normal couple. It was impossible to forget that we weren’t, especially when reminded on a regular basis in the bedroom. But I got used to it, still marvelled at it, but it didn’t distract me as much as it used to.
‘So, can you change solid items?’ I asked during dinner one night. ‘Like that colander?’
I gestured to where it hung on the wall. He retrieved it from the hook and laid it on the table in between us. He held his hand out, and I became transfixed by what was happening before me. The colander shimmered and hummed, almost like it was going out of faze. It appeared to fold in on itself and within seconds a beautiful shiny swan sat in its place, small enough to fit in the palm of my hand. Gabriel watched with amusement as I gently picked it up, terrified it would crumble with my touch. I lightly stroked along the cool metal side, able to feel the solid curves of each individual feather. The detail was exquisite, and I could almost believe that it would come to life in my hands.
I stole a look at the man I loved and the splendour of his smile captivated me, pushing all thoughts of the swan from my mind. I became acutely aware that I did not deserve this wonderful creature sat before me.
The pain that I would most likely lose him one day spread through my body, almost crippling me. Tears pricked at my eyes and I turned my gaze back to the swan, in the hope of hiding them. Obviously there was no such hope of that, and in one fluid movement he was around the table beside me.
Gripping my chin with his long cool fingers, he brought it up so that he could look into my eyes. ‘What is it?’
To my horror I started blubbering in the most unattractive way.
‘I love you so much.’ As I said the words the pain worsened, and my heart ached terribly. For better or worse, I was committed now, more so than I had previously been.
Gabriel kissed my lips and face, trying to caress away my distress. I don’t know what he thought of my behaviour, he didn’t ask and I was glad. He just held me tight, kissing me and repeatedly telling me he loved me until long after the tears had stemmed and calmness descended on me once again.
That night we didn’t make love, enjoying instead the closeness of lying in each other’s arms. He allowed his light to shine out, bathing my skin, and through this I could feel the depth of his feelings for me. It was not the time for words, just a quiet acknowledgement that something fundamental had changed. His pulse quickened unt
il it matched mine, our hearts beating as one, the echo vibrating between us. I could feel his weariness; born from the eons he had walked upon the earth. He could feel the anguish I kept hidden deep within. We were two, but also one, forever to be connected in a way that could never be broken.
I was sat on the sofa, with several Uni books surrounding me, when the phone starting ringing. I considered ignoring it, but the shrill tone had already disrupted my flow, so with a sigh of mild regret, I reached across to the cordless handset and answered.
A chirpy voice greeted me. ‘Hel-lo, it’s me.’
A smile found my lips at the sound of my sister’s happy, yet strained voice and I made my way to the kettle, expecting the conversation to be a usual a lengthy one.
‘Are you free for a brew?’ she said to my surprise. ‘I’m going to kill the little sods.’
The background noise was horrendous, filled with the many beeps and tunes from the numerous toys, only slightly quieter than the raised voices from the children. No wonder her patience was at an end.
‘Come on round,’ I said, straining to be heard.
A high pitched scream echoed down the phone line and I pulled the handset away from my ear. Ava was obviously struggling with her autism today. We all prayed that the older she got, the more she would be able to cope with the differences that often left her unable to communicate properly. But it had been eight years now and there was very little improvement.
‘Chance to back out is now.’
‘I’ll pop the kettle on,’ I said.
After saying goodbye, I pulled out the box of toys I kept under the stairs for such occasions and flicked on the cartoon channel. Figuring she would need a little boost, I was in the process of making a coffee when the car pulled up.
The door flew open and in fell the three kids making the noise of ten. Neave, with her bobbed brown hair and big hazel eyes reached me first and jumped up into my arms, with a force that nearly knocked me off balance.
Night of the Fae (Ana Martin series) Page 5
