Arrow's Wind (The Healing Touch): The Elemental Realms

by Gina Manis

  I look down in disappointment and sigh.

  He raises his hand and lifts my face to meet his gaze. “You really want to go, don’t you?”

  I nod to him. He looks off for a moment and then back at me. “You can go, but you are to stay with me at all times. If I tell you to stay put, you do and don’t move.”

  I smile big at him and throw my arms around him. I hug his middle, so happy that he is going to take me. It is not the village so much I want to see, but rather this need to not be away from him.

  “Okay,” he says, hugging me back before pulling me away. “We leave first thing in the morning. A day there, and we will stay one night and then come home.”

  I shake my head in agreement.

  “While we are there, we should look into getting you a real coat. It's going to get cold soon, and you are going to need some warmer clothing.” I nod, knowing he most likely is right. “Once we get back, we will take a day and go see my parents again. It has been a full moon since we have seen them last.”

  I nod again as we then turn and start walking. I don’t know how many times he has taken me to their home. I remember some details of an older woman talking to me. Not much else.

  Katy, I see more often, and I realize now it wasn’t my sister I heard before. Katy likes to sing, and every time she comes, or we go there, she is. She has a beautiful voice, like Beth does, and she reminds me of my sister. I hum with her sometimes when I know the song.

  Charles and Simon are nice men, also. They don’t dare touch me and keep a distance, but they always say hi and wave at me. I don’t feel threatened by them when I see Katy and the baby in their arms. It is like I know they won’t hurt me because of their love for her.

  We check the rest of his traps, and once we are back at the house, I help him skin the animals. Arrow hangs the skins and then the meat in a little smokehouse he built. I go into the house and stroke the fire in the stove, to heat the pot of soup we have for dinner. We should finish it off tonight, and if not, I will throw the remainder out before we leave tomorrow.

  Arrow comes in as I sit some bowls out on the table and go to the sink to wash up. He put in the indoor pump for me, but I don’t know when. I remember discovering it as I looked around my tiny home one day.

  I had come into the house and saw a new bed on the back wall where the bookshelf had been. I found the shelf in the tight corner, closer to the table. I looked around the room to see what else was different and saw the pump coming in through a hole in the wall and went over to it. I touched the pump and pressed down, and the water shot out of the faucet, making me smile.

  I glanced back at the bed afterward and noticed how much smaller it was than mine. It didn’t seem right that Arrow, being so large, had to sleep on it. I went about changing his pillow and blankets to my bed and made mine on the little one. I laid down on it once I was done and found it comfortable and fell asleep on it. Arrow came in later, waking me.

  “What are you doing on my bed, woman?” he said, smiling at me. I shook my head from sleep and pointed to the bigger one. It was then he noticed I had changed our covers around. “Jenna, you didn’t have to do that.”

  I just laid there, making it known I had no intention of getting up. He sighed and walked over to the larger one, and plopped down. “Well, okay then. I guess I will take the larger one. If you get cold over there, you are more than welcome to crawl into bed with me.”

  I blush at the thought now as he sits down across from me. He looks at me and asks. “You feeling okay, Jenna? You look a little flushed.”

  I shake my head, knowing I had to be getting redder by the second. “Well, good then. I don’t need you getting sick on our journey tomorrow.”

  He digs into his stew, not giving it much more thought, and I join him. All the while, I am thinking of what he would do if I did climb in bed with him. Would he kiss me? Would he run his hands over my body? I have been thinking about it a lot lately, but I remember my dream and him pulling away.

  After I clean the dishes and run my hand over the pump once more, it is still on my mind. It is crazy how something so ordinary reminds me of that night.

  “I’m going to buy another one and fix it above the tub. You will have to heat your water still, but at least you won’t have to carry all those buckets.” I turn around and look at him sitting on his bed and pulling off his boots as he continues to talk. “Next spring, I will start another room on the side here. You can have your own room then instead of that tiny bed.”

  He looks at me, and I get a sense of dread from his expression, “I’m not leaving, Jenna.”

  I don’t want him to leave, but I can’t help but feel a loss that he talks to me like we will never be together. He wants to build me a separate room away from him. The pain is too much, and I head for the door, needing to get away for a moment.

  “Jenna!” he shouts, stepping to the door before I can open it. I blanch at his speed as he moves in a flash. He holds up his hands and back away, whispering. “I will not touch you, I swear.”

  Of course, he doesn’t want to touch me. He is always moving away from me when I touch him. I’m nothing but a freak to him now—some pitiful woman who can’t even talk. He doesn’t want to be here with me. I am just some weight on his shoulders.

  I don’t know why, but I hit him in the chest. I step back and gasp as I cover my mouth from doing so. I look him in the eye, and all I can see is the pity for me in them. It makes me so angry, and I hit him again. I hate that look in his eyes and can’t control myself anymore and pound at his chest.

  I loathe myself for becoming this again. This shell of a person, only now, in a different way. Why can’t I be normal? What is wrong with me?

  I cry into him as he wraps his arms around me. I feel him picking me up, and the next thing I know, I am in his bed cradled in his arms.

  This isn’t how I wanted to end up in his bed! Some crying fool, and I push myself up and jump out of bed and round on him, “No!”

  He looks up at me in surprise, maybe even more so than me. I spoke! Arrow is out of the bed and standing in front of me so fast, I step back from the shock.

  “Jenna, you spoke,” he says breathlessly but doesn’t touch me. He steps closer and says, “Say something again. Please.”

  I look down, trying to, but I can’t. How did I do that? It's like my throat is closed off again.

  “Please say something.” He begs again as he touches my arm. I look up at him, so desperate to fulfill his request, but I can’t. I can’t even repeat no.

  “Do I scare you?” he asks me softly, and I shake my head.

  “Are you mad at me?” he asks, and I nod to him.

  “Tell me why,” he demands, but I still can’t. I’m so ashamed that I can’t tell him how I feel or even express it to him. I want to… I want to do something… drastic! I want to fling myself in his arms and have him make love to me, but don’t want it out of pity.

  I back up a step, not trusting myself, and turn to my bed. I reach down, unbuttoning my shirt, and slide it off my shoulders. I hear Arrow’s intake of breath as I do so, baring my back to him. I look over my shoulder and don’t see him turn away as he usually does every night for me to undress and climb into bed.

  It makes me feel daring, and I reach up, removing my breast wrap too. I don’t face him but close my eyes as I reach for the buttons on my pants and slide them down, standing with just my underthings on. Reaching for my nightshirt, I shimmy into it, letting it drop around me.

  I glance behind me again and see that he is watching me. He looks away quickly towards his bed. “I’m not leaving, Jenna, if that is why you're mad at me. You are going to have to tell me in your own words if you do.”

  It isn’t why I am angry at him. It is a pity I feel from him that I hate—the rest of him I love.

  I climb into bed and face the wall, letting silent tears fall. Arrow says nothing more as he douses the light, and I listen to him climb in
to his bed.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Arrow

  Jenna is angry at me, and I do not understand why. Everything was going well with us until last night. I thought it was when I told her I wasn’t leaving, but I know now that can’t be it. I know she wants me here, and she trusts me.

  I thought I pushed her too far again when I stepped to her at the door. The way she stepped back, I had to let her know quickly that I would not touch her. That only seemed to set her off more, and she hit me. I let her, knowing how frustrated she has to be. Hell, I am feeling on edge sometimes. But when she broke down and cried in my arms, I didn’t want to let her go.

  I carried her to my bed, wanting to soothe and comfort her until her tears stopped. She would have none of that, and jumping from the bed, yelled at me. It was just one word—no—but I had hoped desperately she would say something else.

  I believe she wants to talk to me, but she can’t. She is back to her old self now, but still, there are times I see the torture she lives within in her eyes. The past wraps around her so tightly I wonder if she will ever find her way out.

  When she turned away from me to undress for bed, I didn’t turn away, but she didn’t look at me and ask me to do so with her eyes. Instead, she slid her shirt off and gave me a glance that almost seemed inviting. I couldn’t be right and was about to turn around when she slipped her finger into her breast wrap, bringing it over her head, her hair rising with it, and I could see the contours of her back and waist as she tossed it to the floor. She glided her pants over her hips; my mouth watered and her plump little ass called to my gaze. There wasn’t much to the underthings that covered her, and they rode low on her hips. I licked my lips and forced myself to swallow. I almost groaned as she bent over slightly. I didn’t even realize she was putting on her nightshirt until it concealed her from my view.

  I glanced up and saw her looking at me and looked away. I am ashamed that I watched her and remember she was mad at me just a moment ago. Why would she tempt me so? It makes me somewhat angry that she would undress in front of me when she has to know how much I want her. That she does so even when she is mad at me. If she wanted me to leave, she was going to have to say so. Even then, I am not sure if I could.

  Today, I woke her early, and she prepared breakfast as usual as I gathered the eggs and milked the cow, feeding the livestock before we left. They should have plenty until we return tomorrow night.

  We are quiet as we make our way down. I bring only one sled because it should be enough, and I don’t want to put too much on Jenna. We need to be back by tomorrow night because of the livestock, and I don’t want her to have the same problems she did last time getting it back up the mountain.

  We make good time going down, and are at the village a few hours before the markets close. I take Jenna’s hand as we enter because she is looking around kind of uncomfortably. I don’t want to lose her in the evening crowd and keep her close.

  I park our sled at the depot and sign it in, paying the man who watches them. Taking Jenna’s hand, we go across the way to the key supply chain, and I load us up on our necessary supplies. Jenna follows me around as I collect them, then I pay, signing my ticket and the number of our stall. A man from here will take them over in a cart and load them for us. It is customary with the bags of flour, sugar, salt, rice, beans, and even grains. Anything else, we will have to carry back ourselves.

  Leaving the store, we walk deeper into the markets. Jenna stays close to my side as we find a clothing booth for her, and I help her pick out several pairs of warmer pants and shirts. I like that she isn’t wearing dresses anymore, like when we were back at Star Kingdom. Many women here wear pants, and I am glad she picked up on the habit.

  We move further down as I look for a vendor with some fur coats. I need one also, but I want to make sure Jenna’s is nice and warm. This will be her first winter up here and compared to the hot climate of Star Kingdom, I have a feeling she is going to feel the difference in extreme temperatures.

  Finally, we find one, and I take her to the lady’s side first. I am flipping through them and locate a nice tan one and hold it out to her. “Try this one on,” I tell her, holding it open for her. She turns and slips her arms in as she admires it. “What do you think of it?”

  She turns to me, pulling at the front. The buttons are big on it, like on most furs, and I reach for the top and button it close for her. “Is it soft on the inside? It looks warm, but if it isn’t soft, then we should find another.”

  She nods at me, and I know she is pleased with it. “Well, okay then. Let’s see about finding me one.”

  I lead her over to the men’s section, and she helps look through them and holds one up for me, but I shake my head, “No, that won’t do. It is deer, which is good for the fall and springtime but not dead of winter. Keep with the furs.”

  She looks again and finally comes across one that is almost the same color as the one we picked out for her and I say, “This one looks good.”

  She holds it out for me, and I turn around, stoop down, pulling it on. I turn to her, testing it out, and she reaches for my buttons this time. I stop and watch as she takes her time with them, watching the soft glow in her eyes. She looks up at me and gives a thumbs up.

  “You like this one?” I ask her, not able to hide the smile. I am delighted that she is with me and that the tension of last night is gone. I wasn’t sure about bringing her with me, but now I know it was the right move.

  I pay the man for them both, and we head on down, picking me out a few more winter clothes. With our arms full, we head back to the sled to drop them off.

  “The markets will close in an hour, so why don’t we finish looking around, and then we will see about grabbing a bite to eat.” She nods at me as she takes my hand. I like that she is more able to touch me now, but at times it becomes too much for me. Now is not one of them, though, and we take off back into the market.

  Jenna sees a booth with some beads, and I end up buying her an entire bag of them along with the string and stuff to make some jewelry to wear for herself this winter. We check out another booth, and I buy some cards and a board for us to play some chess. I have some pieces back home, but I think a few may be missing. I will work on carving a new set for us, and if Jenna doesn’t know how to play, I will teach her.

  We come to a place with some books, and Jenna seems curious about them, so we stop and look. I have books at home, but they might not be to her liking. I want to see what she picks out. “Take what you like, but not too many. Our sled will be getting full soon. I want to see about buying some more tools also.”

  She picks five books, two with poetry and two classic love stories. I smile at her selection, curious as to her reason for the love stories. I wonder if she knows one of them is kind of erotic, but by the innocent look on her face, she doesn’t.

  The last book she chose was a book on talking with sign. I am at a loss on what to think of it. In some ways, I think it may be good for us to learn so we can better talk, but in another, I hate the idea of never hearing her voice again. I say nothing and pay for them all.

  We move on down to the tools, and I hand over all our items so far to Jenna as I pick up several heavy tools to purchase. I like that plow, and it is at a reasonable price, but we are already full, and I won’t need one until next spring.

  We take our stuff back and drop it off. “I think that is just about it. How about we grab a bite now?”

  She nods her head, and we head out of the market now and down the main street. The café is open, and we sit down to order. Jenna points out to me what she wants, and not too long later; we have two huge steaks in front of us with pasta and bread rolls and with some corn and potatoes. It is good, and we eat mostly in silence alongside the other chatting diners

  I am stuffed by the time we finish, but Jenna is insistent on a pie. I end up buying us one, but we take it with us for later. It is some kind of chocolate pie that I am not
crazy about, but Jenna sure seems to like it. We move down the street to the hotel, entering the double door where we stayed last time. I order a room with two beds, and the clerk looks at me strangely.

  He gives us the room, though, and we head upstairs to it. I open the door, and Jenna enters first, dropping her bag on the chair by the door and placing her pie on the table.

  “At least this time, we don’t have to share the honeymoon suite,” I chuckle as I drop my bag, too.

  Jenna arches a brow at me in annoyance, but I walk over to one bed and plop down, relaxing for a few. Jenna walks around the room and eyes the tub by the window. “Would you like a bath? There is no privacy here, but I can step out for thirty minutes or so.”

  She nods her head, and I sigh, sitting up again. “All right. I just remembered something I wanted to pick up anyway. The hardware should still be open.”

  I get up and head for the door and tell her, “Lock the door and don’t open it until I get back.”

  She follows me to the door, and I listen on the other side as I hear it click. I take my time going downstairs and out the front to the little hardware to pick up a new hand pump for the bathtub at home.

  On my way back, I pass a jewelry store, and a silver bracelet in the window catches my attention. Jenna isn’t big on jewelry but, it looks to match the ring I have for her, almost perfect. Without giving it a second thought, I go into purchasing the thing, hoping she will like it.

  I can imagine it on her pretty wrist with my ring. I haven’t found the right time to ask her yet, but I am sure that I will be placing it on her finger one day. The bracelet will be a lovely addition to it.

  Slipping the long box in my back pocket, I head back to the hotel. Jenna should be finished by now. We will turn in early so we can rise at dawn to make our way home.

  I knock on the door and call her, “Jenna, it is me.”

  She opens the door, and I am shocked to see her there in a pretty blue dress. Her hair is still wet but brushed and hanging down her back.