Christmas Healing Read online

  “Your language has improved greatly,” his brother said, by way of compliment. “Are you starting to feel less overwhelmed by the world?”

  “The world has changed very much, and not all for the better,” Arthur replied, and Gregory couldn’t necessarily disagree with that. “But Annalise shows me the things that are good.”

  He probably didn’t mean it as sweet and kind as it came out, but his brother smiled anyways, going back to driving, and occasionally glancing in the mirror. For the first time since Arthur’s awakening, he saw him focused on something other than his pain, his depression. He saw a flicker of the old Arthur, his regent and right hand man, forgetting his troubles to focus on Annalise’s comfort. Perhaps this girl was good for him in more ways than they had counted on.

  What pained him, though, was that knowing Annalise wouldn’t last forever. One way or another, the girl was mortal and would meet her fate soon enough. She had made her wishes clear should she suddenly expire, and he wondered if Arthur knew that.

  Being an immortal and age old vampire, death was just a part of living, and yet, it always hit harder than it should. Even Rosa, who made her wishes of vampirism clear, would be a different person when she was turned, and the human he knew would be dead. It was never an easy transition, whether they lost their mortality to this curse or to a grave.

  He just hoped, when the time came, that Annalise’s death didn’t undo all the good that she had done his brother.

  Gregory pulled up in the driveway and didn’t attempt to help Arthur with her. Arthur was fully focused on her comfort and concerns, and she barely stirred as he carried her into the house. Gregory watched, with a twinge of pain, as he took her upstairs.

  Since the love of his life, his human life, had perished over a millennium ago, he had never been able to bring his heart to care for a woman as strongly. He cared deeply about Rosa, but it wasn’t love, not the way he used to have it. He had a flicker of hope for Arthur though, that maybe there was something there with this girl, and maybe she could mend his broken heart before the end.

  “Arthur,” he said, trying to break the horrible mood. “I asked you to do the dishes at home. Why weren’t they done?”

  Arthur looked confused.

  “Don’t we have servants to do that?”

  Gregory raised an eyebrow and Annalise shifted.

  “No more slaves, Arthur, remember?”

  “Yes, but servants?” he looked down at her, and she glanced at Gregory, smiling a bit.

  “When have you seen servants in this day and age?”

  “When we went to the market,” he replied. “They were helping us, and folding clothes.”

  Annalise exploded into laughter, burying her face in his shoulder. Even Gregory had to smirk at that. She looked up at the oldest brother.

  “Help.”

  He shook his head.

  “That’s on you, Annalise.”

  Arthur looked between the two of them confused.

  “What?”

  “We’ll do a lesson on retail clerks later,” Annalise replied, snuggling deeper in his arm, her heart bursting with affection. “You’re adorable.”

  When Tuesday came around, Annalise awoke to chaos in the house. She was feeling much better, and her eyes opened before her alarm clock went off. Of course, that could have been due to the thumps and thuds that were coming from downstairs, followed by quick conversation.

  Dressing quickly, she ran a brush through her hair, and wandered down the stairs, leaving the door to her room open. Once she would have locked it, fearful for her life and her possessions. Not that a lock would have done anything against age old vampires, but it was a start, and peace of mind. Now, however, she had no qualms leaving it open.

  The giant staircase that she descended down led to an even bigger lobby, a wide open space only populated with furniture on its outskirts. Gregory had mentioned that they had used it for balls and dances in the past, and it appeared that’s what it was being used for now. Or at least, a single dance.

  Rosa, clad in tiny shorts and a tube top, exposing more skin than most lingerie models, had her ballet shoes laced up her legs, her hair pulled up in a bun. Gregory, his suit jacket off for once, stood on one side of her while Knox stood on the other. Annalise watched while the ballerina leapt and spun and even, to her great surprise, back flipped, everything leading her into landing en Pointe. Both brothers caught her periodically, firm hands on her waist, and Knox even lifted her to assist in a leap.

  “What’s going on?” she asked Brock who was sitting on the steps watching. The youngest brother was about to answer when Gregory protested.

  “Rosa, darling, it looks fine, it really does.”

  “No, there’s something wrong with it, and I’m doing to make a fool of myself on stage tonight,” Rosa moaned. Again.”

  “Precious,” Knox was trying to be kind, but Annalise felt like he wanted to rip Rosa’s head off. Or at least her ballet shoes. “We’ve been at this for hours.”

  “And we will be at this all day if I don’t get it right. Again.”

  Annalise raised an eyebrow, realizing the power this woman had, the two of them wrapped around her little finger. She would never dare speak to the Initials like that, but Rosa had no fear.

  “Where’s Arthur?” she asked Brock, who shrugged.

  “He came down for about 3 seconds, and then was scandalized by Rosa. He doesn’t take for granted that staring at scantily-clad women is part of modern day.”

  “Uh huh,” Annalise turned back up the stairs, not particularly wanting to watch either, especially with Brock’s gaping. Rosa’s long lean body made her feel insecure in her own. Annalise had never felt beautiful, or ugly, or anything really. She just looked in the mirror and saw herself. The fact that she had once been popular and fawned over was as much a shock to her as it was anyone else. But now, when your body attacked itself daily, beauty wasn’t really something one thought about. Unless a perfect specimen of a woman forced you to focus on your own flaws.

  Arthur’s door was closed and she knocked, leaning against the wall.

  “Arthur? I don’t want to watch Rosa either.”

  There was a moment of silence and then Arthur opened the door. He was dressed casually in tan slacks and a half open dress shirt, his hair slicked back so it fell at the nape of his neck. Annalise tried to keep her composure, but it was a bit difficult. Casual, not focused or stressed, his chiseled features looked stunning in the morning light. For the first time, she saw that he really was handsome. She had been so focused on trying to help him and get out of here that she hadn’t properly looked at him until now.

  “Are they still?” he asked, clearly a bit put out. He and Annalise had a brief lesson on the changing fashions, and Arthur had expressed his embarrassment and dislike of the shortening hemlines and plunging neck lines as the years went on. A true gentleman, he never looked anywhere but the girls’ faces.

  She had never seen his room before, but it didn’t surprise her to see that it was perfectly clean. He always took care to put their worksheets and books back exactly where they were supposed to be, and now always helped clear the dishes after dinner. Cleaning up was something familiar that transcended the ages and didn’t require modern knowledge to do so, really. There was a huge bay window and a canopy bed fit for a king with a few books and paintings. Obviously, he didn’t have a lot of items that he had carried with him through the centuries.

  “They are,” she replied. “I think it looks fine. Do you think she’ll be wearing more clothes on stage tonight?”

  “Hopefully,” Arthur held the door open wider. “Would you like to hide here?”

  She snorted at that, grinning broadly. It was the first time he had used real sarcasm or made a joke, and it made her brim with pride.

  “Sure,” she said, slipping in. Out of decency, he didn’t close the door, leaving it open to ensure there was no questionable behaviors. She settled at the foot of the bed and he strolled ov
er to take a seat on the windowsill. “So, what do you want to do today?”

  Arthur glanced out the window for a moment and then turned back to her.

  “I want to see the Waterfalls.”

  “The Waterfalls,” she had heard about the natural beauty less than half an hour walk from their property. “Those are old.”

  “So am I,” he replied, pressing his face against the glass. “They are there, through that path.”

  “Arthur,” she got off the bed to try and see if she could see them, and he scooted over to allow room for her to sit. “I’m sure that’s a good idea … but your brother is going to kill me if we go and waste time looking at something that isn’t … educational.”

  “I want to see something familiar.”

  “I know,” she replied, her heart racing in its sadness. “But you have to understand, I’m not here of my own volition. I have to do what Gregory wants if I want to go home.”

  He turned his face towards her, as if realizing this for the first time, although he must have known.

  “What you’re teaching me now is that no one cares about Waterfalls anymore.”

  She made a face.

  “That’s not … entirely inaccurate. And it’s sad commentary on humans these days.”

  “Annalise,” his hand slipped a bit on the window and fell on top of hers. “Is this not what you wish?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Being here, doing this. If you wish it, I can send you away. I am Gregory’s regent, not his slave. If you want to go home … to be away from here …”

  She met his eyes desperately. Such a short time ago, she would have said yes to that, would have begged to be sent home. But now, in the quiet with Arthur, their faces inches apart, everything was different. The rules of the world didn’t seem to matter with him this close to her.

  Before she knew what was happening, their lips met. It was a soft kiss, gentle, barely touching each other, and it was quick. Before she fully enjoyed it, they were separated, pulled apart, their eyes frantic as they searched each other for meaning.

  They both jumped up at the same time, not wanting to be too close, not sure what it meant.

  “I want to go to the Waterfalls,” he said, stumbling over the words.

  “Well, you can ask your brother, maybe,” she said, and Arthur shook his head, heading for the door.

  “I’m not going to ask Gregory anything. I’m going to tell him.”

  She could hear him thudding down the stairs, and she sank onto the windowsill again, trying to catch her breath. Oh my God, Oh my God, she thought, her chest heaving. She had kissed him, kissed an Initial, the Initial she was supposed to be teaching.

  What if he demanded more and she wasn’t ready and this ended badly? That certainly wasn’t the way she wanted to go out.

  And what about Tony, back home? Although he was married, and although they weren’t together, there was always something unspoken between the two of them, certainly strong enough that she shouldn’t be running around kissing other boys.

  She buried her head in her hands, slowing her breath down until her head stopped spinning.

  It was nothing, it meant nothing. A moment, swept up in the beautiful sight from the window, in the romance of a waterfall, and being united by not wanting to be downstairs. It didn’t matter. Arthur was a prince, after all, and he could have anything he wanted. She couldn’t see herself fitting into that equation at any point.

  But after that day, something changed. They didn’t kiss again, but their physical intimacy grew. Watching movies were snuggle fests, her head on his shoulder and his arm around her. When they were walking somewhere alone, their hands were clasped together, swinging between them. And whenever somebody came into the room, they pulled apart, acting as if nothing happened. They never spoke of it, never discussed what was happening, it was just something natural that happened.

  All through Rosa’s show, the Nutcracker, their hands brushed, playing games with their fingers. And the next day, watching the Nutcracker movie so that Annalise could take him through it plot point by plot, they were practically on top of each other.

  Gregory, who never missed a beat, no matter how careful they were, brought it up to Rosa one night while they were getting ready for bed.

  “Do you think that it’s dangerous, what’s happening?”

  She raised an eyebrow at him, pulling her long hair up into a bun.

  “What do you mean? That Arthur’s going to suddenly snap her neck?”

  “That after she dies, all the good she’s done will be undone. I’ve been thinking about this for awhile.”

  “I don’t know,” she sat on the bed, fluffing the pillows. “Do you think they are fools and believe in epic love?”

  “I think something is happening,” Gregory said. “What they think it is, or what it is, doesn’t really matter. But Annalise’s time is drawing close.”

  “How can you tell? She looks fine.”

  “She’s … flickering,” Gregory said and Rosa cocked her head. “It’s a vampire term that only we can see.”

  “When I’m not around,” she interjected.

  “When you’re not around. We see differently than humans, of course, and it’s like she flickers from this life to the next on occasion. She’ll be sleeping on the couch, or closing her eyes for a moment, taking a break, and her life force just stops, just for a moment.”

  “Huh,” Rosa considered this. “Have you told her doctor?”

  “He knows. We’ve made the agreement already. She’ll probably last through Christmas and the New Year and maybe until mid February, but that’s all. But I’m also not impressed with the relationship that is developing between Arthur and her. She’s liable to send him into another depression when she perishes, no matter what good she is doing now. The sooner we separate them, the better.” He felt pain in his heart for saying that, but it was only slight. Gregory had been heartbroken as a human, and he never wanted anyone to deal with it again. If he had to pull Arthur apart and have him suffer initial separation, then so be it.

  Rosa understood this, although they never spoke of it. This was not a love affair they were having. Words of love or jealously never passed between their lips. When they were together, they were together, and apart, they existed separately, coming and going as they pleased.

  “Mortals,” Rosa shook her head. “She’s making stupid choices.”

  “Regardless, her wishes are clear.”

  “Well,” Rosa slid her long legs under the bed. “I guess there’s nothing you can do but wait and see what happens.”

  Gregory winced.

  “Wait and see are not terms you are used to when you are a king, nor terms you like to hear.”

  Rosa smirked.

  “Take yourself down a notch and come to bed, Gregory. Stop thinking about the world.”

  He sighed.

  “You were radiant on stage tonight, my dear. A ray of energy in a dark world.”

  “So come to bed and I'll show you some of the moves.” She wiggled her eyebrows and he laughed at last, sliding under the covers. What he did or didn`t feel for Rosa didn`t matter. At the moment, he was infinitely glad that he would have an immortal eternity with her to dwell on it.

  Chapter 5

  Peace. A cure. Quiet.

  “Um …” Annalise was curled up on the couch a week later, a blanket over her legs and wearing two layers of warm clothing. She was freezing and exhausted today, but she knew nothing was an excuse to stop with lessons.

  “Arthur …”

  It was an extremely childish activity, but they were writing Christmas lists. She had explained yesterday about the legend of Santa and he had seen firsthand how commercialized Christmas had become. Today, for something that didn’t require much brain power, she thought she’d explain about Christmas lists and their cultural meaning. However, Arthur’s list, in badly written scrawl, was not exactly the way a Christmas list was supposed to be written.


  “Think of things that can be wrapped and put under a tree,” she said, her voice hoarse. “A big jolly man in a red suit can’t wrap any of those things. And neither can your brothers.”

  “What did you write?” he asked, confused.

  Armani sweater, blue. Amazon gift certificate. Hollister coat.

  She read them off to him, stopping for an explanation every time. He looked at his own list.

  “But Knox could give me one day of not talking to me if he knew that’s what I wanted.”

  Arthur’s language had improved in leaps and bounds recently. The only time he had trouble was when he was flustered, thinking faster than his brain could process. So far, none of that was a problem. Annalise hardly ever had to scramble for the dictionary anymore, although his accent could use some work.

  “Yes,” this bringing humor to her tired eyes. “But he can’t wrap that.”

  “But that’s what I wish.”

  “My, you’re difficult today,” she teased him, trying to distract from a wave of pain that went through her body. She couldn’t stop shivering, and she knew that she had broken out into a cold sweat. It was probably just a side effect of the medication. The drugs she was on were strong. She had called Dr. Hever a few times, but he told her it was normal, and she said nothing more about it. “What we need is for your brothers to write lists too, so we can shop for them. Then, you can understand the real meaning of shoving people out of the way to get the last mass produced wallet the store has.”

  Arthur’s face was a mask of confusion.

  “Why would anyone want to do that?”

  “Yeah, exactly,” Annalise said. He wasn’t the only one learning in these sessions. When he asked questions like that, it made her stop and question society itself, and what it had become. She realized that a lot of things that people did made no sense.

  Another wave of pain hit her and she thought perhaps if she went to get a drink of water, she would feel a bit better.

  “Just finished writing, okay? I’ll be right back.”

  She struggled up, her arms shaking at the effort, and then started to make her way towards the kitchen. However, a wave of dizziness hit her just then, and spots formed in front of her eyes.