I will write more when we get back to Brighton.
Arielle chuckled at the thought that she considered this little diary as a secret best friend, a friend that kept every thought and every notion she had right where it belonged, in those pages. She closed the diary and set it down on the bench.
Her eyes swept the garden once again and the tranquility made her heart leap into her mouth. What a picture. She was sure that an artist’s hand couldn’t capture the beauty that her eyes could see, words couldn’t describe it. She chuckled blissfully and reaching over, she picked up her novel.
She was re-reading Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park, and was intrigued by Fanny Price, who was so different from Elizabeth Bennet. Fanny didn’t stand up for herself like Elizabeth did. She fell in love with her cousin, who loved someone else. But she stayed faithful to her love, and in the end she won her cousin’s heart. Showing that the meek do indeed inherit the earth—or at least they do in Mansfield Park, Arielle thought. She was totally engrossed in the story when she felt that someone was watching her. Her body went stiff as a chill ran down her spine. She kept her eyes glued to the pages of the book, but she was sure someone was standing somewhere very close. She reached with her hand and clasped the necklace. A million thoughts raced through her mind, and she tried to grasp the one that would help her fight the urge to scream. Then, gathering all the strength she had in her, she finally looked up.
There stood Annabel, glaring at her with an icy stare. Arielle looked into her eyes and was overwhelmed with a feeling as cold as death. Annabel seemed to have the power of Arielle’s mortality in her hands. Sebastian had told Arielle that Annabel’s wish was to capture and control him forever, to have the ability to destroy him any time she wished. A surge of nausea washed over her and she pressed her lips together. She was consumed by gloominess and darkness as she realized the significance of this moment.
Annabel continued to silently glare at Arielle with intense condemnation. A wild fright came into Arielle’s mind as she became conscious of the fact that she was completely alone with Annabel. She was absolutely beautiful, but there was something nauseating about her. She crossed her hands in front of her chest, clearly enjoying the fear she was creating in Arielle, relishing the quivering of her body. Her eyes pierced Arielle’s, just as they had in her dream, making her shudder again.
“What do you want from me?” Arielle asked in a voice she barely recognized. It was as if a stranger was speaking.
Annabel forced a smile and stood there with fire in her eyes, pressing her hands together and grinding her teeth. Then, she shrieked with unbelievable hatred in her voice, “I told you the last time we met that I would be coming for you. I told you to stay away from Sebastian. He’s not going to be with you or anyone else. He is mine and will be mine for centuries to come.”
Then, she moved so fast that Arielle was startled to see her suddenly standing right in front of her as her arm reached over and grabbed Arielle’s arm, her grip like a steel vise.
Arielle froze. Nausea rolled through her, burning her throat and bringing tears to her eyes as she was pulled off the bench and lifted up high within milliseconds, as if she weighed nothing. Without warning, a bright flash blinded her and she felt herself falling. Her body hit the bench first and bounced off, hitting the ground hard. Excruciating pain shot through every fiber of her body. An ear-piercing shriek made her look up in shock. She saw Annabel flying across the garden, as if someone or something had shoved her with extreme force, and she landed on her back against a huge tree. Arielle heard crashing noises as Annabel’s bones broke and shattered, and she watched as the immortal’s hands ignited with fire. The tree broke away, and the upper trunk and broken branches landed about thirty centimeters away, along with Annabel’s body.
Arielle’s body shook uncontrollably. She almost didn’t believe her eyes. She forgot about her own pain as she watched Annabel try to get up. After what seemed like hours she finally stood up, shaking her head, looking extremely disturbed.
Arielle stayed on the ground, unable to shift her position. She watched every move Annabel made.
“There is something strange about you, human,” Annabel said, spitting out the last word contemptuously. “It looks like I can’t touch you. This is the second time this has happened to me.” Rage filled her eyes, and there was a cold, lethal sound to her voice. “I’ll get to the bottom of this. And I promise you, next time I come for you, I’ll kill you!” she shrieked as she turned and walked away, looking furious.
When she was gone, Arielle remained on the ground. Finally, she drew in a painful breath and tried to pick herself up. She was in terrible pain and she let out a cry of anguish. Her arms and legs were badly bruised, and a couple of deep scrapes were bleeding, saturating the ground beneath her. The stinging brought tears to her eyes, and the realization of how close she had come to death’s door terrified her. She tried to move once again, but a ghastly pain shot through her and she collapsed unconscious on the ground.
Mrs. Wilson and Mr. Struthers, hearing the commotion, came running outside. Squinting into the sunlight, they crossed the terrace, went down the steps, rounded the fountain, and right through the trees to where Arielle had told them she would be sitting reading her book. When they reached the spot they stopped and stared at the terrible damage. A huge tree was cracked in half, and several broken branches were spread across the lawn. They walked around the rubble, and Mrs. Wilson let out a cry as she saw Arielle sprawled on the ground, unconscious.
Mr. Struthers moved quickly, knelt down and, cradling Arielle’s shoulders, let out a sigh of relief when he heard her whimper. What in the world? he thought.
“Is she going to be all right?” Mrs. Wilson asked anxiously.
“Yes, she’s fine. She is badly bruised, though, and the scrapes need to be cleaned up immediately.”
As they tried to pick her up Arielle began to come around. “What happened?” she asked, weak and confused.
“Can you walk, dear?” Mrs. Wilson asked.
Arielle forced a smile as she struggled to stand. “Can you please help me into the house and help me clean up the mess?”
“Of course, dear, that’s why we are here,” Mrs. Wilson said in a kind voice. Mrs. Wilson and Mr. Struthers helped Arielle stand up, supporting her as she unsteadily got to her feet. A look between them confirmed what they were both thinking, that they wanted to take care of her wounds first and ask questions later.
Back in her bedroom, they cleaned the bloody mess and placed a couple of plasters over her scrapes. Then, they helped her into bed. Arielle looked down at herself in dismay.
“I guess there’s nothing I can do about the bruises,” Arielle chuckled. Relieved, they chuckled along with her.
“What happened?” Mr. Struthers asked.
“I’m not sure,” Arielle whispered. “Everything happened so fast. I think I got dizzy, lost my balance, and fell off the bench.” She didn’t want to tell them about Annabel.
Mrs. Wilson and Mr. Struthers looked at each other. They knew that her story didn’t make any sense, but they didn’t want to contradict her.
“Thank you so much for your help,” she added appreciatively. “Mrs. Wilson, do you have anything for pain? I’m pretty sore.”
“Yes, I’ll bring something to help you rest and make the pain go away,” Mrs. Wilson said sympathetically as she smoothed the covers over Arielle. She left the room and was back in no time with a tall glass of water and a small pillbox. She handed her one pill and set the pillbox on the nightstand.
“Take this, dear. It’ll help you feel better. I’ll leave a few more pills right here,” she said. “If you wake up and you’re still in pain you can take one more.”
“Thank you so much,”
“Not at all, dear,” Mrs. Wilson said, patting her on the hand. “Try to get some rest. I’ll be back shortly to check on you.”
Mrs. Wilson walked back into the kitchen and paused at the doorway. Mr. Struthers was fac
ing the huge, dark fireplace, one hand gripping the enormous mantelpiece, the other scratching his head. She could hear his voice, faint but distinct. “What the devil happened out there?”
Mrs. Wilson cleared her throat, and he turned to face her. His expression was puzzled, his lips pressed in a hard line. “Do you have any idea as to what happened out there?” he asked, searching her eyes for some kind of logical answer.
Mrs. Wilson hesitated for a moment. Then, moving into the room she said, keeping her voice steady, “I have no idea, but it was a lot more than what Arielle told us.” A long moment passed as they both looked at each other again. The silence became unnerving.
“How in the world could her falling off the bench cause such chaos in the garden?” Mr. Struthers said, pushing away from the mantel and walking over to the window overlooking the back garden. “Something happened out there,” he said firmly and pointed out the window with his index finger. “I am sure of that. But what?”
Mrs. Wilson averted her gaze out the window and nodded in agreement. “We’ll have to let Sebastian handle this when he gets home,” she said and went on to tend to her duties. She heard Mr. Struthers leaving the room, carrying on a conversation with himself.
It wasn’t long before Arielle started to feel the effects from the pill. As the pain subsided, she became very tired and drifted off to sleep. The next thing she heard was Sebastian’s velvety voice. “Arielle, what happened, baby?”
She opened her eyes and met his warm gaze. Reaching up, she tried to pull him close to her, and as she did, she felt a sharp pain shoot right through her chest. She let out a soft cry and sank back on the mattress. Sebastian climbed up on the bed and knelt next to her. The worried look on his face filled Arielle with anxiety, and tears welled up in her eyes. It was obvious that Mr. Struthers and Mrs. Wilson had informed Sebastian about the situation in the garden, and about Arielle’s injuries.
“Did you talk to Mr. Struthers and Mrs. Wilson?” she whispered.
“Yes, I did, but they are clueless. How did you hurt yourself? And where?”
Sebastian had a strong suspicion that Annabel was somehow involved. There was no other explanation for the vast destruction in the garden. He wanted to hear the details from Arielle.
“I have some scrapes and a few bruises,” she murmured.
“Let me see, baby.”
“It was Annabel,” she whispered.
A deep crease formed on his forehead, and he shook his head angrily. Yes, he knew it. It all made complete sense—the damaged tree, and the wreckage in the garden that Mrs. Wilson and Mr. Struthers hadn’t been able to explain.
“She told me she was going to kill me. She tried,” she said, pointing to her arms and legs. “But the necklace stopped her.” Sebastian looked deeply upset as his eyes took in the bruises and the bloody scrapes on Arielle’s body.
“Tell me exactly what happened, Arielle.”
Arielle drew in a quivering breath, and, in a few words, she explained what had taken place. Sebastian watched her with great concern and, as she spoke, Arielle saw an expression on his face that she had never seen before. His lips were pulled back and his teeth ground together as his face took on a look of outrage and fury.
As she spoke, he got out of bed and began pacing back and forth without saying a word.
“Sebastian, please stop pacing, you are making me dizzy.”
“I hate her. She’s avoiding me, but I’ll hunt her down, that’s a promise. What did she say exactly?”
Jolted by the memory of Annabel’s presence, and the speed with which she had moved toward her, Arielle flinched. Sebastian was by her side before she had a chance to utter a single word. He framed her face with his hands and pressed his lips on hers, gently.
“I am so sorry, Arielle. It’s my fault you are in pain. I should never have left you alone.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, you can’t be with me all the time.” She quivered at the memory of Annabel’s hands against her chest. “Sebastian,” she said with awe, “Annabel lifted me off that bench as if I was made out of paper.” She groaned angrily, pressing her lips tightly together at the memory. She grimaced, but she knew she wouldn’t allow Annabel to destroy her dreams. “I’m sure the necklace shocked her into dropping me just before I saw her fly back. Her hands were on fire!” she said. She paused, replaying the horrible vision in her mind. “It was an amazing sight. I hit the ground hard, that’s how I hurt myself.”
She stopped talking for a moment and gazed into his beautiful eyes, so full of tenderness and concern for her. “I’ll have to face her someday, and I’m willing to do that. Just because I’m human it doesn’t mean I’m completely helpless,” she added, giving him a reproachful look.
He laughed, put his arm around her waist, and pulled her close. “You really are something, you know that?”
Arielle closed her eyes, happy to feel his body against hers. He was warm and soft, and she was glad he was there with her. “Did you have a nice time with everyone?”
“Yes, it was great, but we missed you. Or I should say, I missed you, badly. I don’t do very well when I’m away from you. Eva kept asking to come back sooner, but it wasn’t easy to turn around. I asked her if something was wrong, but she said she couldn’t exactly see anything, she was just worried about you. I should have listened to her and come back earlier. I’ll know better next time.” His face softened, and his lips curved into an amazing smile.
“I love you, Arielle Lloyd,” he whispered. “I want to marry you right here, right now.” Arielle smiled and nestled deeper into his arms and drifted off to sleep.
When she woke up in the middle of the night, the pain in her arm was excruciating, so she took another pain pill. She could feel Sebastian’s warm embrace, and she settled closer, knowing that this was where she wanted to be for eternity. She drifted off to sleep as she felt the effects of the pill take over again.
Chapter 7
IT WAS LATE IN THE MORNING when she woke up again. She actually felt pretty good. Her arm didn’t hurt as much as it had the night before. She got up to take a shower. As she was dressing, Sebastian walked into the room.
“What do you think you are doing?” he asked, a surprised look on his face.
“I’m fine. I’m not going to waste my time in bed when my friends are here.”
“How are you feeling?”
“I feel great.”
“You scared me to death, Arielle. I can’t stand seeing you in pain.”
“I am fine,” she said firmly, smiling brightly at him to prove that she meant it. “I’m okay, really. Don’t worry about me.”
Sebastian watched her carefully. She was so breathtakingly beautiful.
“Do you feel good enough to kiss me?” he said, moving closer and snaking his arms around her, drawing her softly to him.
Arielle’s breath seized and heat surged through her. Rising up on her tippy toes, she positioned her lips a hair’s width from his. “Just a kiss?” she breathed, whispering the question against his mouth.
His sensuous lips curved slightly, and she could smell his amazing immortal scent, a mixture of nectar and sweet-smelling flowers. Closing her eyes, she sighed deeply and her lips pressed against his. Sebastian inhaled sharply and pulled her flush against his muscled body. He inclined his head and crushed her lips beneath his, deepening the kiss. Arielle immediately became lost in the sensation of his lips on hers. He changed position and deepened the kiss further, moaning against her mouth. Her lips parted and his tongue methodically explored the softness of her mouth as he groaned deep in his throat. He tore his mouth from hers and hauled in a deep breath.
“Mmmm, you bewitch me, Lizzy!”
She chuckled blissfully, breathlessly. “So it wasn’t just a simple kiss you wanted. Was it?”
“Nothing is ever simple with you. You’ll be the death of me,” he said.
“Will you ever stop driving me senseless with your touch?” She exhaled deeply.
“I
sure hope not…,” he said.
“Is everyone up? Do they want to do something?”
“They’ve been waiting to see how you’re doing before making any plans.”
“Well, then, let’s go,” Arielle smiled as she grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the door.
“Wait… wait… give me a minute. You don’t want me to be embarrassed in front of our friends.”
Arielle’s eyes dropped down below his waistline and she burst into laughter.
“Oh, so you think it’s funny,” Sebastian said, and pulled her back into his arms.
Arielle pretended to struggle. “If you want to get out of this room, I think you’d better let me go,” she giggled, and he knew she was right. He walked into the bathroom to throw some cold water over his face while Arielle kept enjoying his predicament. Emerging back into the room, he clasped her hand and pulled her toward the door. “You’ll pay for this when we get back,” he chuckled as they went down the stairs to meet their friends.
They didn’t talk much about what had happened the day before. Arielle didn’t want to talk about it, so nobody brought up the subject. One thing Arielle loved about her friends was that they were always instinctively sensitive to her needs and respectful of her desires.
It was another glorious day, and the sun felt hot and welcoming. They spread their beach towels out on the soft sand. The warm water eventually was too tempting to ignore, and they swam for hours. Between swims they lay on the beach and exchanged stories, enjoying the pleasure of the moment, without concern for the future. Arielle was surprised to find, when they all shared their childhood stories and games, that there was little difference between the childhood experiences of herself and her friends, and those of Sebastian and Troy despite the fact that their childhoods had been centuries ago. That “detail” was not something that Eva or Ian knew about, or even imagined at this point.
The jokes they had played on each other were the same as the ones she and her friends had played on each other when they were children.
Arielle Immortal Passion (The Immortal Rapture Series Book 3) Page 8