Chapter 7Lucian sat with his head in his hands. This time it was not a headache. He felt empty. Arabella was gone and he knew she wasn’t coming back. This time she left a note.Lucian,It was silly of me to think I could bring your memories back to you. There are none to bring back. Whatever happened to you, it took them all. At least now I know why I never heard from you. My heart is broken. At least now I can lay it all to rest. As promised, I will not bother you or your privacy again. You will forever be in my heart even as I am not in yours. I hope your life is good to ;you and brings you all the happiness you want. ArabellaLucian wanted to yell, beat on the walls and throw things. He didn’t, what good would it do. She was gone and he felt a sense of loss. Lucian did not know why he felt this way, he didn’t even know this woman. How could he feel this way about someone he didn’t know? He wondered about love at first sight. Had he been given a second chance again. Was it love at
Chapter 8Arabella lay quietly on her side where she could see the mountains. Looking at them gave her a sense of peace even though they were not her precious Rocky Mountain. She did not hear the geese as they flew across the deep blue sky. Even the little robin on the branch could not penetrate the thick glass with his chirping. All she heard were the monitors beeping to different rhythm behind her.The robins nest full of her babies was close to the window in the vee of a branch. The mother flew away, leaving hungry little chicks crying for their breakfast. She smiled slightly than looked beyond the tree’ sadness filled her heart.The door to the hallway slid quietly open. Arabella still heard the soft footsteps as they approached her bed. She did not need to look over her shoulder to see who it was; there was only one person it could be. She put a false smile on her face as he rounded the end of the bed.“How are you feeling today sweetie? Do you think you would like to go out side
Chapter 9Lucian’s frustration knew no bounds. Although he searched everywhere, he found out little about Arabella. He went to University to see if they knew where he could find her but those records were marked private. He tried the home town new publications; and struck out again. He was able to locate her office in old town Boulder. Talking to her receptionist, the was told that Arabella took an unspecified leave of absence; reason unavailable. He did try to wiggle her address out of them, once again hitting a brick wall. It was just not his day. He would head home soon and didn’t know much more about her then if he would have stayed in New York Then an idea struck him, why he didn’t think of it before he did not know.Swiftly pacing the floor the waiting area, Lucian waited impatiently for the records clerk. He berated himself for not thinking of this before; so much time was wasted. Tomorrow, he would fly home.“Here it is Mister Alexander, all the information you requested is on
Chapter 10Lucian listened to the echo of his footsteps on the granite entryway floor. The chandler glowed to life as he hit the switch on his way to Adrian’s den. It wasn’t the first time Lucian felt the cold emptiness of the house. It had never been a real home. The warm homily feeling of Arabella’s cabin, Lucian finally knew what was missing in his life. He never had the companionship that most kids had with their parents. Adrian was a cold hard man that drove Lucian without mercy.Lucian stepped into Adrian’s study and shook his head. Even here, with the supposedly brown hues and leather furniture, was a feeling of cold ambition. He stood in the middle of the room and looked around himself, not sure where to start. Tier upon tier of books lined the study walls. Paintings done by the Masters hung perfectly as though someone had just straightened them. On the desk, everything was cleared off except for a picture of Lucian, in cap and gown with a far off look on his face. He wondered
Chapter 11Arabella stared at herself in the full length mirror. Her skin was still pale; eyes lacked luster. She sighed in sadness when a knock came at the door.“May I come in, Arabella? I don’t want to disturb you if you are resting.” The sweet, gentle voice spoke softly through the door.Arabella tried to rein the sadness in., “Please, do come in, Jenny.”Evan’s mother, Jenny, stepped into the room, smiling shyly at the young, dark haired girl. Arabella smiled back at her as she turned to face here.“Can we talk for a while?” Jenny shyly asked. For some reason, Arabella kind of scared her. She loved her, so Jenny didn’t understand this underlining feeling.Arabella sat on the bed and patted the space beside her for Jenny to sit. Looking at her face, Arabella could see Jenny had something serious on her mine. She figured it was about Evan one way or another. Evan was Jenny’s only child and she tried to spoil him. That Evan was not an arrogant monster said a lot for his character. Ev
Chapter 12The time Arabella and Lucas spent at the cave helped restore her spirit. She thought about her parents and how Edmond would bring her to this cave. “It’s magical,” Edmond laughed, “Just touch the ground Ari, it will revive you. You can talk to the Gods here.” Arabella would look around the cave in awe. She would dig her hands into the soft sand that filled the cave. She could feel an electric charge go through her fingers until it filled her whole body. Any scraped and bruises would fade away. The cave was truly magical for the little girl.Edmond and Maeve practiced a very old religion, a religion without name. They believed in the restorative energy of the earth. The healing powers of the herbs and oil derived from the herbs. They believed in nature and all of its promises. Arabella took their belief with her as she grew up with Jack and Nancy. They did not understand her ways but did not keep her from from what she learned as a young child.Arabella and Lucas last day an
Chapter 13Arabella sat in the window seat of her bedroom, over looking the forest. All was silent this night, even the house did not moan and groan as it settled for the night. This would have been her wedding night. She mulled it over again in her mind as she thought about Evan. The silence played into her dark thoughts. Arabella was grateful Lucas was at Jack’s. She did not want him to feel her thoughts. Lucas was growing into his own gifts one of them being his ability to feel sadness. She did not know if that was a gift or a curse. Only time would tell. Soon, it would be two O’clock and the world slept.As she thought about Evan, a slight frown marred her brow. All in all, Evan had taken the broken engagement, so close to the wedding day, well. He did not care about the money already spent on Boulder’s most lavish wedding. Evan was not so much as hurt as it was that he half way expected it. He grinned boyishly as he spoke to her.“I get it Ari, that is one of the things I love ab
Chapter 14Lucian sat in his empty apartment, head resting in his hands. The last month or so had been unbelievable to him. Arabella’s appearance in his life, her presence, filled his heart. She changed who he was and challenged what he believed in. She brought him out of his complacency and gave him reason to fight for himself. He looked back on the life he lived these last years and was not happy with what he saw. He was not living’ he was just going through the motions. Not anymore. He did not know how he could have such deep feelings for a woman he hardly knew.He stared at his computer and the online news article. It was the announcement of Arabella’s wedding. Today was her wedding day. Lucian’s heart clinched at the thought of her married to another man. He cursed himself for not going after her. Reading the announcement again, Lucian felt empty, lost. He might not remember the life she said they had together but he remembered the love. He did not know how that was possible, but