“So it can’t hurt anything.”
“No, I don’t think it can hurt you. It feels good.”
She practiced every day, once during her training session with Chase and Carl, and once during the afternoon. She was beginning to feel the energy more strongly, a sort of warm tingling in the palms of her hands. And she could usually feel somebody else’s energy field around them, like a spongy resistance, as she pressed her palm closer to them.
Mr. Kwan was impressed with her progress at her next class. “I can tell you’ve been practicing. Chase said you were interested in a healing session for yourself?”
“Well, I thought it would be nice to see what it’s all about, from a patient’s point of view. From someone besides myself, who knows what they’re doing.”
“If you’d like, we can take our next class and use it for your healing session. I can bring a portable table with me and do it right here.”
“Really? Well, what do I need to bring? Do I need to wear anything in particular?”
“No, just something comfortable. I know, the first time makes some people a little nervous. It’s not knowing what to expect.”
“I guess that’s it. I’ve really only recently heard of energy healing, let alone tried it out.”
“Since you’re already sensitive, you will probably feel the flow of energy more than most people. But it should relax you, make you more comfortable.”
Damiano, of course, had been kept informed of her progress. “I knew you would do well, once I had time to think about it. I’m so sorry I’ve been busy the past few weeks. But it really should be over soon. Maybe we could make plans for a getaway soon.”
“Really? When, honey? I can hardly wait to get back up into the snow.”
“Why don’t you come to the office tomorrow, around lunchtime? We’ll figure it out then.”
The next day, she went to work out and then got ready to meet Damiano. His office was downstairs, in a private area behind the gaming rooms. She saw Marco and Paolo talking with him in the doorway.
“And now gentlemen, I have a lunch date with my wife. So, if you will excuse us for a little while, we’ll leave you to hold the office.” He pulled her in close for a kiss, closed his office door and escorted her to the car.
“Where are we going, honey?” she asked him.
“Someplace where we won’t be overheard by anyone who might be eavesdropping.”
“Ahh. I hadn’t thought about that. Are you any closer to figuring out who’s been leaking information on our whereabouts?”
“I am fairly certain, but I need something conclusive before I do anything I can’t undo, if you know what I mean.”
Karianna had a good idea what he meant, but decided not to say anything out loud. Arriving at their destination, they looked over the menu and ordered before getting into any details.
“I’m committed to a couple things this weekend, for business, and you have your healing session later this week. Why don’t we plan to meet right after your last class next week and head to the lodge?”
“That should work out well. Master Kwan wanted to help me some more on self-healing, check on my progress, now that I’ve got the basics down. We could get that finished before our trip, and it would have time to sink in while we’re gone.”
“I knew you would be wonderful, cara. It is how the two halves of the species work together.”
“Don’t you have any healing abilities, Dam?” she asked.
“In leopard form, I do something which accelerates healing, but I can’t bring it across fully to human form somehow.”
“Is it somehow linked to men being able to change, but women not being able?”
“Maybe. I don’t know. Some of the others can heal in this form. Just like a few women can change, usually under extreme circumstances. I never gave it much thought.
“Alright, back to planning. Next week after your class, have Marco take you shopping. I will join you at the shop, and we can travel together to the airstrip. From there, everything should be fine. We can have a nice week in the mountains and come back refreshed.”
“Sounds lovely, lover. I left clothes up there with my gear, so we should be fine. I may pack a small bag and have someone put it in the car ahead of time.”
In the evening, Damiano seemed much more relaxed than he’d been of late. Perhaps it was anticipating their getaway that lightened his spirits. Karianna knew she was excited about it. Dam had been so tense since their anniversary trip, he was almost like a different person. She hoped whatever business problems he had would be over soon. He said it should be just a week or two more, after they returned. She certainly hoped he was right.
Her next class was her healing session with Master Kwan. It was exactly as he’d predicted. While she could feel the slight tingle and warmth of the energy from his hands, it made her calm and relaxed. So relaxed, she fell asleep for most of the time.
“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to go to sleep. I wanted to stay awake and pay attention to what you did,” she apologized afterwards.
“There was no need for you to be awake. This shows you exactly how most sessions go. Later, after you’ve gone back home, you’ll probably feel more perceptive, more energetic than before. If you’d like, you can monitor your health and emotions between now and next time. See what you think.”
“Now, what will we be doing next time?” she asked.
“I think it is about time to take you to the next level. You’ve done enough preliminary work with the energy. It’s time to fine-tune it. We’ll do that next time.”
As they dressed for dinner that evening, Damiano asked how her healing session had been. “Well, I guess it was fine. I slept through most of it.”
“I always do,” he answered. “I’ve never been able to stay awake during energy work.”
“How often do you go in?” she asked.
“Usually only when I go home. Mama insists on it. Other than that, only if I’ve injured myself, or feel like I’m coming down with something. Maybe once a year. I know it should be more often, but, you know how it is.”
She told him what Master Kwan had planned for her next class. “But what does he mean, ‘fine-tune’ my abilities? It’s just energy, isn’t it?”
“I’m not the person to ask,” Dam admitted. “Since it’s not something I do, I’ve never really studied about it. It just is. How to work with it or fine-tune it or anything else is out of my expertise. So you’ll have to tell me all about it.”
The weekend went by quickly, with Damiano out most of one evening with one of his men. “Why can’t you just go leopard, instead of dressing all up in black? Seems to me it would be easier,” she asked.
“Maybe easier, but how many leopards do you typically see roaming the streets at night, cara?”
“I suppose there is that. But don’t you look suspicious anyway?”
“Not so much. People are used to seeing me here in evening clothes. Dressed to hunt, I look like about anyone else on the street.”
“Are you at least finding out what you need to know? I worry about you.”
“We’re very close now. The pieces are nearly in place. I can say no more, cara. Please don’t worry. I’ll be fine. Besides, I’ll soon have a personal healer to fix me up if something goes wrong.”
Karianna was nervous about her next session. She wasn’t sure why. She’d been working with Carl, Chase, and Master Kwan for some time now. With Carl, it had been more than a year.
She was a little early, her excitement overriding her nerves. “Are you ready, Karianna?” Master Kwan asked.
“I suppose, if you think I am.”
“Let me begin by explaining what we are going to do.” He took out drawing paper and a couple pencils for her and then drew what looked like a Chinese or Japanese symbol on one sheet of paper. “It is important for you to learn this symbol. Learning it, and tuning your mind to it, will boost the energy you can use, and tune that energy to a particular vibrational fre
quency for healing.”
“What is it?” she asked, confused.
Master Kwan explained that everything in the universe has a vibrational energy, a particular frequency which is unique. While allowing energy to flow without the symbol worked for healing, tuning the energy would make it more powerful and effective.
“So, is there just this one symbol?” she asked.
“There are others which you can learn later, but this is the most important one to learn first. Once you have some more experience using this one, you can progress further, if you’d like.”
After she learned how to draw the symbol accurately, and learned what it was called, Master Kwan took her through the process to attune her to it. It took only a few minutes and she didn’t really feel any different afterwards.
“Not yet,” Master Kwan told her. “But now, come over here and I’ll show you how to practice with it. You should feel the difference then.”
Before she opened her mind to the flow of energy, he had her hold the symbol firmly in mind while thinking its name. Once she had done that, he told her to go ahead and let the energy flow.
Suddenly, the energy which had always seemed a tame trickle became a rushing stream, the warmth and tingling too strong to be comfortable. Her face must have shown how startled she was as Master Chang and Chase began to laugh.
“Now you understand the difference,” he said, nodding. “Practice your self-healing techniques between now and your next class. We’ll see how you do attuned.”
Chapter 30
Karianna’s class was on Thursday and she and Damiano had made plans to leave Friday morning. Their return was planned for Wednesday morning. She had told nobody they were leaving, except for Carl. Dam had told her to keep Carl informed, since she met with him every day, except Sunday.
She got the few things together which she might need at the lodge, before Damiano got home from his meetings. She tried not to worry, but his world was so different from hers, she couldn’t put her mind to rest. All she could see was his concern and the stress which kept him awake at night.
True, he had been going out several times a week for his reconnaissance with some of the others. What they were trying to find out was not discussed around her.
“It is for your safety, cara,” he told her when she asked. “What you don’t know can’t worry you or anyone else.”
For their last evening out before the trip, she chose a gown in lush black georgette. A floor-length princess-style with a skirt which swirled delightfully, the front had a modest cowl neck, while the back draped gracefully to her waist.
“Cara, you are becoming modest on me,” Damiano commented when he first saw her. As she turned, he changed his mind. “Ah, I see. I knew you could not be bored with me already. You simply could not hide all of you away from me for the entire evening. Though how I can keep my hands to myself, I can’t say.”
“When have you ever kept your hands to yourself, lover?” she asked, amused. “Your hands were all over me the very first time we met.”
“That wasn’t quite the same thing, cara,” he protested.
“Maybe not, but since then, your hands have had a mind of their own, so to speak. And a bit of wanderlust.”
“But exploring is so enticing, amante mia.”
“I doubt there’s once inch of me you haven’t explored already, Damiano Leone,” she stated, as his lips began trailing little kisses across her shoulders. “We’re going to be late, Dam.”
“How can we be late? I decide when and where I’m going to have dinner. So if I wanted to postpone one pleasure for another…”
“You have a one-track mind,” she answered. “Dinner first, then play.”
“You are so mean to me, cara. Tempting me and then making me wait. It is too cruel.”
“I learned from the best, lover. Dinner.”
“Bene. Dinner.”
The evening was relaxing for a change, though it did heat up quickly, cutting their after-dinner tour short. They had to be up early the next day, too, so it was just as well they returned home sooner than usual. With Damiano spending so many evenings away, playtimes had been briefer lately. It seemed he was trying to make up for it all in one evening.
“Are you just relieved at taking a break from business? I’d begun to think you were tired of me already,” she asked as she curled up next to him.
“Dispiace, amante mia. I’ve been neglecting you. It’s this affari dannati—damned business—which keeps me away. I hate to wake you, when I come to bed in the early morning hours. But then I am gone most of the day also.”
“It’s alright, lover. I understand.”
“It is not alright to have a beautiful, attentive wife and leave her alone all day and half the night. Finito! Tomorrow we go on holiday and forget this business of mine for a few days.”
“Go to sleep, honey. Get some rest before we have to be up and on the way.”
Up before daylight, the two of them left separately and met Marco to drive to the airstrip. With little sleep time before the drive, Karianna was asleep soon after takeoff.
“Kari,” she heard, softly spoken in her ear. “Kari, do want some lunch?” Opening her eyes, she looked over at the amused expression on her husband’s face.
“Alright, what’s so funny?”
“You’ve been asleep for hours, cara. You must want something to eat by now. We had only coffee and toast for breakfast.”
“Did you get to take a nap?”
“Si, for a little while.”
As her stomach grumbled loudly, she shook her head. “I think maybe I should have some lunch, if I’m going to make rude noises.”
Lunch was tasty, but light. There was a clear soup, lightly seasoned, followed by a salad with grilled salmon. Dessert was sliced fruit and cheese. And of course there were apples for a snack. Damiano simply couldn’t live without them.
They arrived late in the afternoon, due to their earlier departure. The soft, rosy sunset colors faded into beautiful blues and lavenders, as the sun made its way toward the horizon. Soon after, the stars began to twinkle overhead.
As they pulled into the drive at the lodge, Damiano gave her a big hug. “This time, cara mia, I promise you, we will take one whole evening for stargazing. We’ll take some hot coffee, some brandy maybe, a nice warm blanket to cover us, and we’ll spend as long as you’d like just watching the stars. Maybe we’ll be lucky and see some shooting stars. That would be nice, no?”
“Sounds lovely, lover. But right now, I just want to stretch out.”
“It has been a long flight. Why don’t you stretch out on the sofa while I get a couple glasses of wine. We will relax in front of the fire and forget all about the Stella d’Oro and business of every kind.”
“Don’t be too long. I need my big cat to curl up with.”
Chuckling, Damiano opened a bottle of wine, poured two glasses for them, and brought the bottle back into the living room. “A little wine to help you unwind, amante. Salute.”
As she dozed off, she heard Damiano chuckle softly. Opening her eyes, she looked up into his, asking, “What is so amusing?”
“You are. So very sleepy tonight, after sleeping half the day. Have I worried you so much lately?”
“Maybe. I’m just so comfortable and warm, I feel I could sleep for days.”
“Let’s go to bed then, cara mia. We have nothing to do tomorrow, except what we decide.” He stood up, put her wine glass on the coffee table and helped her to her feet. Pulling her closely to him, he whispered, “Amore mia, I’m so sorry to have troubled you so much. As soon as this is all over, we’ll go away, maybe to Earth itself, and just enjoy each other. If I could make it so, you would never worry again, amante. Never.”
“No really, lover, it’s fine. I understand how things get out of hand sometimes. But it will be over soon and then we can relax again.”
“Okay. To bed with you. Sogni d’oro, amore mia. Sweet dreams.”
Karianna slept d
eeply, so deeply she couldn’t remember dreaming. She woke to the smell of fresh coffee and a kiss.
“Mmmm…Is that coffee I smell?”
“Of course. Would I wake you without a peace offering?” he asked, his dark eyes smiling.
“I’m not that cranky in the morning,” she protested. He was still in his robe, silk pajamas peeking out from underneath as he sat on the edge of the bed. Pulling back the comforter, he raised an eyebrow at the satin and lace she wore.
“Maybe we should wait for coffee. A little pleasure before leisure.” His arms were strong around her, his kiss warm, deep, and richly sensual. It quite took her mind off the coffee.
Sometime later, they both woke again. “Now that is the way to begin a day,” her husband said, tracing her figure with one finger. “But I think we’ll have to make some fresh coffee.”
“I think you’re right. About both. I’ll make the coffee, while you take a shower,” she suggested. After another kiss like the one which started this whole affair, he chuckled at her and headed for the bathroom.
Sitting in front of the fireplace, a lovely fire dancing on the grates, she looked over at Damiano and said, “I think I’m out of the mood for skiing today.”
“Yes. It’s a lazy sort of day. It’s a little cloudy anyway. Not a good day for skiing. Maybe we’ll take a walk later, but for now, I’m not so energetic.”
He found a book to read, but Karianna just stretched out on the sofa, her head on his lap, and dozed off and on throughout the afternoon. At one point she woke and saw that Damiano was sleeping, too, his legs stretched out in front of him, his feet on the coffee table. It was so nice to be together for a change, without all the stress and worry. Turning her head, she snuggled down and went back to sleep.
“Cara, wake up. It’s late,” she heard. A warm hand stroked her arm, and then fingers traced her jawline. “Come on, wake up.”
It was late in the afternoon, the sun about halfway to the horizon. “How long have we been asleep?” she asked.
Gambler's Folly (Bookstrand Publishing Romance) Page 22