Night of the Fae (Ana Martin series)

by Lyneal Jenkins

  ‘She doesn’t want to go,’ I told her. ‘The cool water aggravates her arthritis.’

  ‘She doesn’t know what she wants. Her mind isn’t all there anymore.’

  I took a deep breath to calm my irritation. ‘She was quite clear in what she wanted, and there is no sign of mental impairment in her.’

  Denise flapped her arm in my face. ‘I am beginning to think that the care she is receiving here is substandard.’

  I glanced over to Marina who smiled at me apologetically.

  ‘Why don’t you talk to your mother about it’ I said, trying to keep the anger from my voice. ‘She is quite capable of making the decision for herself.’

  ‘What would you know,’ Denise said curtly. ‘You have no qualifications.’

  I bit back my words about how I had more than she did in this situation and smiled disarmingly.

  ‘Maybe so, but you mother does, it being her life and all.’

  Denise glared at me with her lips pressed so tightly, the flesh around them bulged making her appear like a fish. ‘I expected to receive professionalism here but if you insist on being insolent, I will need to speak to your boss.’

  ‘Feel free,’ I said. ‘His office is down the hall to the left.’

  She glared at me once more, before turning her back to me. I sighed as I watched her storm towards Carl’s office.

  Marina hobbled over to me. ‘Sorry about her,’ she said. ‘She always needs to be in control.’

  ‘Do you want to go back to water aerobics?’ I asked.

  She laughed. ‘Of course not, but it doesn’t matter how many times I tell her, she doesn’t listen. She has too much of her father in her.’

  I glanced over to the door. Would Carl wait until the end of the shift to call me in, or would he do it straight away. Maybe I shouldn’t have been so short with her.

  ‘Don’t worry,’ Marina said. ‘I’ll have a word with him.’

  Another family member caught my attention. I gave Marina a smile before leaving her to talk to them. At least Denise wouldn’t be back for another month. I should see about organising my shifts so I’m not on then.

  The conversations were all the same. ‘I think she would like this.’ And, ‘you should do this with him.’ My job would be so much easier if any of them ever actually listened to their parents. I tried not to get annoyed. It was their way of showing that they really did care, even if it was misguided and the bane of my weekend.

  Barbara’s son, Christian, smiled at me across the room. He sat with his mother as she stared out of the window, not really aware that he was there. Even so, he visited every weekend.

  ‘How has she been?’ he asked when I approached.

  ‘There are good and bad days,’ I said. ‘But she is hanging on.’

  His eyes became downcast as he looked at Barbara. ‘She doesn’t remember me today.’

  ‘She doesn’t remember very much anymore,’ I said. ‘Most of the time she seems to be in her late teens.’

  ‘Do you think she is happy?’

  I gave him a gentle smile. ‘Mostly, even more so when she thinks Carl is your father.’

  ‘That’s good,’ he said. ‘At least she doesn’t get frightened anymore.’

  ‘Alzheimer’s can do that, especially at the beginning.’

  ‘Do you think she will ever come back to me, even for a minute?’

  I shrugged. ‘Sometimes they do.’ I didn’t add that it was unlikely. Another family member stood by, trying to get my attention. I gave Christian a reassuring smile before leaving him with the promise we would catch up before he left.

  It was nearly four hours before it slowed enough for me to grab a quick drink and I made my way to the kitchen. Thankfully the dishwasher had finished its cycle, as there was nothing worse than trying to relax for five minutes with a horrendous rattling ten inches from your ear. Taking a big slurp of my coke, I looked up as Lexi poked her head around the door. We hadn’t had a chance to chat yet, only managing a quick hello when I arrived.

  ‘Are you pregnant?’

  The bubbles came flying out of my nose and mouth simultaneously, causing me to splutter and my eyes to water. Lexi watched as I grabbed some tissue in order to clean the mess off my uniform. Not that I cared, the yellow tunic made everyone look washed out, but I supposed I had to look presentable.

  ‘Where on earth would you get an idea like that?’ I choked, still trying to get the coke that had escaped to my lungs out.

  ‘You haven’t answered the question.’ She stood with her hands on her hips looking down at me.

  ‘Of course I’m not. Why do you ask?’ Bewilderment must have shown on my face. I glanced down at my stomach. I wasn’t looking bloated, thank God.

  Lexi shuffled from foot to foot for a few seconds before answering. ‘Well, you’re kind of glowing.’ My jaw dropped. Damn, in all the drama I had forgotten about that. ‘And you have that distracted look that pregnant women seem to have, like they’re constantly aware of the baby inside of them.’

  Luckily Carl came into the kitchen, causing Lexi to get back to work and saving me from having to try and give an explanation. What on earth would I say? I’m glowing because my mythical boyfriend’s energy is rubbing off on me, oh and that distracted look is because we have this crazy bond that keeps tugging at me, making me want to throw down my tunic and run home.

  I didn’t think so somehow. I wondered if she would buy that I’m glowing with happiness. It wasn’t really a lie, but more of an omission of the details. I briefly questioned whether a lie so big could be kept for long, before I had to rush off to serve dinner to the ten thousand, or so it seemed.

  Ten o’clock came before I knew it and Lexi had forgotten all about our earlier conversation. Years of being completely honest ensured that whatever I said was believed, which caused me to feel somewhat guilty as I finished up with hand over and collected my stuff from the cloak room.

  ‘So when do I get to meet him then?’ she asked, putting on her coat.

  I felt a flare of selfishness as I didn’t really want to share the time I had with him. Keeping the feeling locked tightly inside, I sighed, ‘How about tomorrow for dinner?’ No use acting like a spoilt two year old not willing to share my toys.

  ‘Fab!’ She beamed at me and I nearly blushed with shame. How could I begrudge her a chance to spend some time with Gabriel? What was coming over me?

  We said goodbye in the parking lot, arranging for her to come to mine at seven with a bottle of wine. As I drove home I could feel the pull towards him getting stronger and I even sped a bit in my haste to get back sooner. As soon as I pulled up outside the house I fell out of the car, forgetting to lock it in my haste.

  I ran down the path with no control while my heart pounded like the beat of a drum roll, and I almost hyperventilated with excitement. I was going to fly straight into the door, but couldn’t stop myself.

  The door opened and Gabriel rushed the last few meters towards me, moving in a lot more dignified manner. When I finally reached him I jumped into his arms and I kissed him deeply.

  ‘Missed you,’ I breathed as he carried me into the house.

  ‘I missed you as the birds miss the sun.’ As he kissed me passionately, I couldn’t help but smirk, I was dating someone who actually said corny lines like that, although they sounded less corny and more delightful when he said them.

  As I was about to ask to be taken upstairs he sat me down and turned me to face the table. When I saw what he had done the words were snatched from my mouth leaving me too dumbfounded to speak.

  The table was covered in white lace and topped with several candles surrounding a solitary red rose. The surface was scattered with rose petals, the crimson stark against the contrasting white of the table cloth. The chairs were also covered in the same lace. The two wine glasses look like crystal, definitely not from my collection as I tended to opt for the cheap brands.

  ‘It’s beautiful.’ I had never had anyone romance me before
and I glanced down at my feet, while chewing on my bottom lip. How was I supposed to react in such a situation? Words of thanks seemed too trivial in response.

  ‘There’s more,’ he told me excitedly.

  More? How could there be more than this? I was already awed by the thoughtfulness of what he had done. Gabriel left me and turned off the lights. The scene in front of me became transformed by hundreds, if not thousands, of minuscule lights flickering above as stars, causing the glasses to sparkle as did ripples of a stream when caught by the sunlight.

  ‘Do you like it? I know how much you love the stars, and as it’s too cold to eat outside, I thought I would bring the night in for you.’

  My voice cracked as I tried to answer. Turning to look at him, I tried again, ‘I don’t know what to say.’ I paused and put my hand to his chest. ‘There aren’t words to describe how beautiful it is.’

  ‘And still it pales in comparison to you.’

  I was struck speechless, making it impossible to respond to the obvious lie.

  He allowed to me stand, held in his arms, taking in the picture around me for a few minutes. I could have stood all night drinking in the splendour of it all, but he interrupted my thoughts.

  ‘Take a seat and I’ll get dinner.’

  I scanned the room, feeling slightly disorientated, before sitting down.

  He filled our glasses with wine and retrieved our dinner, before joining me at the table. I had to concentrate to get the food in my mouth as it was impossible to drag my eyes away from the scene around me.

  ‘I’ve never heard you this quiet before,’ he murmured.

  ‘To be honest, I’m astounded.’

  My gaze shifted to his face, and I became entranced by his eyes, which blazed in the candle light. If it wasn’t for the fact that I could never imagine something so wonderful, I would have believed it was all a dream.

  ‘I could stare at them forever.’

  I thought to ask how it was possible he had recreated the night sky in my kitchen, but the words never left my lips. The tiny orbs of light, floating a few feet above us were so fantastic that I didn’t want to know the logical answer, the mystery only added to my awe. Once again, I had to tell myself that Gabriel was actually real, and that he was mine.

  Chapter 8

  Gabriel and I prepared dinner together as he told me about some of the antics the men got up to on the site. Some made me laugh while others caused me to raise my eyes in question.

  As usual the time flew by and after what felt like minutes instead of hours there was a knock at the door, followed by a hesitant, ‘Hello?’ as it opened.

  ‘Hiya Hun, come on in.’ I took the bottle of wine Lexi held out and poured her a drink, knowing she would need it to calm her.

  When nervous, Lexi talked so fast she forgot to breathe and today was no exception. ‘What a journey that was,’ she said dropping her bag in the corner. ‘First I get on the bus and the woman in front of me didn’t have the right money and she just argued with the bus driver. But when I tried to offer her the difference, she refused and started shouting about how the elderly were persecuted in this day and age and that even though she was only fifty nine, she should have free transport because she had been paying taxes all her life. Finally he just let her on, most likely to have some peace, but at the next stop some drunk guy decided to sit next to me and of all the things he could do, he fell asleep on my shoulder and when I tried to push him away he just cuddled up to me, it was disgusting.’

  Finally she took a deep breath. ‘Anyway, hi, I’m Lexi.’

  She held out her hand to Gabriel, whose lips were pressed together in a bid to hide his amusement.

  ‘I’m pleased to finally meet you,’ he said, taking her hand in his. ‘I have heard so many good things.’ I could feel that Gabriel already liked her, but how could he not? She was like a breath of fresh air and you could feel your spirits lift just by being in her presence. Not that mine weren’t already as high as they could get.

  The evening went fantastically well. I couldn’t have planned it better if I’d tried. Lexi even calmed down enough to breath between sentences, which was a very good sign that she liked Gabriel, unless he had been messing with her emotions.

  It was usual for me to give her a lift home as she had to catch the bus everywhere, which meant that she quite often stayed over, so much so, that she even kept a toothbrush at mine. As we were drinking, we settled in for the long haul, laughing about the things we had got up to over the years.

  At midnight, Gabriel retired to bed to give us time alone.

  ‘Well?’ I could tell she liked him, but I still had to ask.

  ‘He’s lovely,’ she said. ‘But…’ She frowned. ‘I’m just a little concerned with how you are with each other.’

  I took a sip of my wine and focused on the table. As far as I was aware we hadn’t done anything untoward throughout the evening.

  ‘Don’t take offense,’ she continued, not needing a response from me. ‘There’s nothing wrong with it, it’s just strange how you act.’

  ‘What do you mean? We weren’t clingy with each other were we?’

  ‘Not at all, it’s just…how can I explain this?’ Her face creased up with frustration.

  I sat patiently waiting for her to find the right words.

  ‘When Richie had drugs in the house, he was always calm and even happy,’ she said. ‘But when he ran out, he used to become agitated and confused, as if he had lost something important. You remind me of him.’

  ‘I love him.’ It was the only explanation I could give without revealing the secret of Gabriel’s origins.

  ‘I know you do,’ she sighed. ‘And I can tell he feels the same about you.’ Even though I already had this knowledge, I felt a rush of pleasure. ‘But be careful please, if he breaks your heart for whatever reason, I’m not sure you will recover this time.’

  I diverted the conversation onto lighter things as we polished off the bottle of wine, though her words stayed forefront on my mind as I struggled against the urge to run up the stairs into Gabriel’s arms.

  Once the car was parked on the side of the road in front of the flat, I sat with the engine running as Lexi grabbed her bag off the back seat.

  ‘Aren’t you coming in for a drink?’ she asked.

  I smiled at her apologetically.

  ‘Of course you aren’t,’ she said with a sigh. She opened the door and put one leg out before turning to me. ‘Just do me a favour Ana, just be careful that you remember to have a life away from him and lets not leave it so long next time.’

  God, was I really that bad?

  ‘Lexi,’ I said as she got out of the car. ‘They say the hot weather is going to last all week. Do you fancy coming for a barbeque in a couple of days?’ She gave me such a genuine happy smile that her face lit up, and I had a flash of guilt for my recent actions, or rather, lack of them.

  She grinned. ‘Am already looking forward to it.’

  I watched as she made her way to the flat door, wondering how I was going to maintain some sort of balance when every cell in my body was crying out to be alone with Gabriel. As I started the short drive home, already anticipating being in his arms, I had to acknowledge that Lexi had been right the night before. I was an addict, and Gabriel was my drug of choice.

  Once I arrived back, I went straight upstairs to find him sat up in bed. ‘Do you want a brew?’ I asked.

  I gasped as he dragged me into his arms. ‘Right now I want you,’ he murmured, pulling me under the covers.

  We stayed in bed until after sunset, spending the time talking and making love. To my dismay it was him who instigated getting up, only managing to pacify me with the thought of a warm dinner as I felt hungry for more than just snacks.

  We were sat on the sofa when he brought up the topic of the slight hue to my skin. ‘I believe I have come up with a solution, however, it will involve some concentration on your part.’

  I groaned. Although I had the abil
ity to focus well, the capacity to maintain it was sporadic.

  ‘Can’t you just draw it out of me?’ It came to mind that if he could do this I might well lose the ability to sense him, a feeling I had learnt to love and would yearn for a little if it was gone.

  ‘Unfortunately I cannot,’ he sighed with some regret. ‘I am unable to influence particles of a similar genetic makeup. Could you imagine if a child from our kind was able to manipulate the shape of its mother or teacher? It would cause chaos.’

  Stifling a giggle at the image of turning the teacher into a rabbit, I couldn’t help but imagine what it would be like if we had a child together.

  Somehow, he picked up on this stray thought and took my hand in his. ‘You know I can never give you a child. I’m sorry, but it would not be possible.’

  I had guessed as much, but even though I had never wanted children before, having it stated openly, caused a feeling of disappointment and some regret. The feeling settled heavily in the pit of my stomach.

  ‘Why on earth would I want my own children?’ I said as brightly as possible. ‘I get the best of both worlds with my nieces, all the fun bits, without any of the hassle being a parent entails.’

  I smiled in the hope of convincing him that I had spoken the truth, but he wasn’t persuaded. It wasn’t like talking about it could change anything, so before he could pursue the conversation, I brought him back on track.

  ‘But this light has come from you. Shouldn’t you be able to draw it back in to yourself?’

  ‘Even though they originally came from me, the particles have evolved, making it impossible.’

  ‘How is that possible?’

  ‘It’s not.’ His features darkened, indicating that he was starting to brood again.

  I tried to stretch myself along the sofa to kiss him, but my knee slipped off the edge and I promptly fell onto the floor. There was a moment of silence, in which I had time to contemplate what an idiot I was, before Gabriel roared with laughter. Shamefaced, I returned to the sofa, glad that his black mood had evaporated, but wishing I could have found a less painful way for this to occur.