Shelter (13 page)

On Christmas Eve, I sat alone in my room wrapping presents. I’d bought Kai a set of paints; he’d used up most of the stuff we bought him when he first moved in. I wrapped it very carefully, making sure the edges were perfectly straight. I smoothed out every wrinkle, lovingly pushing my hand across the wrapping. I gently placed a huge red bow on top, and I filled out the tag.

To: Kai

From: Alice

Tears filled my eyes as I trudged downstairs and gently placed his gift under the tree. I had debated on whether or not to even wrap it for days. I was beginning to think I would never see him again. My gifts for Will and my mother had been there since Tuesday, but now, on Friday night, Kai’s gift joined them. I still hoped he’d come home. But after dozens of emails, text messages, and phone calls, I’d heard absolutely nothing from him.

I hadn’t been sleeping for days. Since that night in the garden after Kai left, I hadn’t slept more than two hours per night. I spent my evenings wandering through the garden and shuffling restlessly through the house.

I remembered when I’d been so frustrated with him and his clinginess, and a felt an ache deep within my chest. I’d have given anything to have that back. Just to have Kai’s strong arms around me again, and to tell him how much I truly loved him. He deserved so much better than I had given him.

At around eleven on Christmas Eve, I changed into my nightshirt and climbed into bed. The downy softness of my bed might as well have been bricks, for it did little to comfort me. I felt cold and alone, and I was deeply worried about Kai.

Sometime during the night, exhaustion finally pulled me into sleep. I didn’t awaken until a shaft of sunlight streamed through the crack in my curtains and fell upon my face. It was Christmas morning.

Will and my mother were already downstairs. Our part-time chef was busy in the kitchen cooking Christmas dinner, and Mother and Will were watching television.

“Merry Christmas, darling!” my mother sang when I entered the room.

“Hey,” Will said. “Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas, Mother,” I answered obligingly. “Merry Christmas, Will.”

I plopped down on the sofa beside Mother and sighed. My shoulders slouched, and my head hung limp like a wet dishrag.

“He’ll come home,” my mother said gently, putting her arm around me.

I nodded – but I wasn’t so sure.

“Let’s open gifts,” she suggested.

Mother got Will a new laptop. It was something he’d been needing for ages, and he was thrilled. I got him a new laptop case. His old one was falling apart from years of use. Mother and I had coordinated.

Will and I had gone in together to buy Mother a beautiful necklace. It was a platinum chain with a stunning 3-carat ruby surrounded by a ring of diamonds. She was utterly speechless.

“Oh, my!” she breathed. “It’s gorgeous!”

Mother’s eyes glittered every bit as much as the necklace as she fastened the chain around her neck. The pendant rested on her chest, and she reached up to touch it gently with her fingers. She sighed happily.

Will bought me a pair of black fringed boots I’d been eying at the mall for weeks, even before Kai disappeared. I had been hoping he’d take the hint, and he didn’t disappoint me. I gave him a huge hug and thanked him for being so thoughtful and observant. He truly was a fantastic brother.

Mother got me a digital camera. I’d been wanting one for years, but I’d never gotten around to getting one. It was a terrific gift, and she was pleased that I truly liked it. It made me sad, because Kai was the only person I wanted to be taking pictures of.

All I really wanted was for Christmas was for Kai to come home. I grew more and more worried about him as the days passed, and I feared the worst. He’d been so shockingly flagrant in his killing at the mall, that I was terrified that a hunter had discovered him.

Hunters. I shuddered. Most vampire hunters aren’t exactly human, as many books suggest. The majority of humans would never get close enough to one of us to have a prayer. And they’re not werewolves, either.

Vampire hunters are something else. They have similar DNA, but they aren’t quite human. They’re stronger, faster, and smarter than humans. They have special abilities. And they live for just one purpose – killing vampires.

Fortunately, vampire hunters were few and far between. They typically waited for conspicuous activity before they came to an area. Of course, you couldn’t get much more conspicuous than killing an entire family in a mall parking lot right before Christmas. That had me worried.

You might wonder why I even still had feelings for Kai after seeing that gruesome scene at the mall. Believe me, I asked myself that very same question. I guess I had hope that it wasn’t him, but I also felt a tremendous sense of responsibility for him. Since it seemed no one else had ever really loved him, I felt a keen sense of loyalty that I couldn’t seem to shake. Maybe it was pity, but at the time, I only saw it as love.

Will and Mother could tell I was still unhappy. They tried to cheer me up, but I was inconsolable. Kai had been so vulnerable when I met him, and I had hurt him in a way no one else ever had.

I curled up on one side of the couch and pretended to read the manual that came with my digital camera, but all I could think about was Kai. Absentmindedly, I flipped a page, hoping Will and my mother would think I was absorbed in the manual and leave me alone.

A sharp rap at the door startled me, and I rushed to open it. My face fell as I pulled it open. It was Max. He grinned ear to ear as he saw me, and in his extended hands, I noticed a gift wrapped in red velvety wrapping paper with a shiny silver bow.

“Merry Christmas, Alice!” Max practically sang.

“Max,” I said, trying to hide the disappointment in my voice. “Please, come in.”

I took the gift from his hands and he entered the house. He followed me into the living room, where Will was examining his new laptop and my mother was reading.

“Will… Mother… this is my friend Max,” I introduced. “Max, this is my brother, Will. You met him briefly at the mall. And this is my mother, Rose Wright.”

Max shook hands with my mother. “It’s a pleasure to meet you,” he told her.

“Likewise,” my mother said pleasantly. “Won’t you sit down?”

“I can’t stay,” he declined. “I have to get back to my family. I just wanted to bring Alice her Christmas gift.”

He turned to me and watched hopefully, and I knew he wanted me to open his gift while he was there. I sat down on the sofa and carefully removed the big, silver bow and gingerly opened the wrapping paper.

I lifted the lid off the white box, and inside was a wooden box which looked to be made of cherry. It was a rich red-brown, and was delicately carved with an intricate design featuring angels and ivy. I traced my fingers over the smooth wood.

“It’s beautiful,” I whispered, my fingers tracing the delicate pattern.

“Open it,” Max requested.

I lifted the lid, and the box began to play “Moonlight Sonata.”

“Oh, Max,” I breathed. “How did you know this was one of my favorite songs?”

“Is it?” Max asked, genuinely surprised. “I just thought of you when I heard it. What song is it?”

“It’s Moonlight Sonata,” I answered. “I adore it. It was the first song I learned to play without sheet music.”

Max’s eyes were suddenly drawn to the large grand piano in the back of the room.

“You play the piano?”

I nodded. “I started taking lessons when I was five.”

“I’d love to hear you play it sometime,” Max said. “I wish I could hear it today, but I have to get home.”

I stood up, placing the box gently on the coffee table. “Let me walk you to the door.”

Max turned to me as he stepped out into the chilly December air. His dark eyes smoldered as he stared piercingly into mine. He reached out and placed one hand on my arm and leaned forward.

I thought he might try to kiss me, but he only said softly into my ear, “Merry Christmas, Alice.”

I felt his breath warm against my face. My heart began to beat a little faster, and I noticed how his brown hair fell lightly over his muscular shoulders. He was startlingly attractive – for a human. I felt myself sway a little, swooning.

“Thank you for the box,” I breathed. “It was indescribably beautiful.”

“I hoped you would like it,” he said quietly, his hand still on my arm. “The angels reminded me of you, too. You look like one, you know.”

I must have blushed crimson. I felt my face grow hotter, and I turned my eyes downward in embarrassment.

“I do,” I said. “I really love it.”

“I’m so glad,” he said. “I wish I didn’t have to go.”

“Me, too,” I said truthfully.

Max wrapped his strong arms around me in a hug – surprisingly gentle for his build. I felt warm and protected in his arms, and my hands reached under his black leather jacket to hug him back. The muscles of his back tensed underneath his tight shirt, and I felt them quiver slightly at my touch. As he pulled away from the hug, I noticed him pause briefly as though he were smelling my hair. His eyes were closed. Then he sighed and squared his chin, turning to walk to his car.

Just before he got in, he looked straight at me. “I’ll see you soon?” It sounded like a question rather than a statement.

“I hope so,” I agreed honestly.

Max smiled and nodded, and got into his car and drove away. I stood in the doorway and watched until his car disappeared in the distance. It was several more seconds before I could finally bring myself to close the door.

I pushed the door slowly and gently until it clicked shut, and I let my hand linger there a few seconds, leaning against it with my head hung. Inexplicably, I hadn’t wanted him to leave.

Again, I was startled by a sharp knock at the door. I opened it breathlessly, hoping Max had come back. Instead, I was met by Kai who was glaring at me – his eyes narrow and his hands balled into tight fists by his side.

“Kai!” I gasped, throwing my arms around him despite his vengeful look.

Despite his initial fury, he relaxed almost immediately, wrapping his arms around me and squeezing as though he might never let go.

“Alice…” he whispered softly into my hair.

“Oh, Kai,” I gushed. “I’ve been so worried about you. Where have you been?”

Kai pulled back slightly and took my face in his hands. His pale eyes darted around my face, exploring every detail as though he hadn’t seen me in years. His eyebrows were furrowed, and he looked distressed. I put my hands over his wrists as he held my face, and I searched his eyes, pleading with him to tell me what was wrong.

“Where have you been?” I asked again.

“Let’s not talk about it today,” he said. “It’s Christmas.”

With that, he pulled a tiny package out of the pocket of his black trench coat. It was wrapped in newspaper.

“I had no money, so I couldn’t get proper wrapping paper,” he apologized. “I’m sorry.”

I tore open the paper and found a tiny box inside. I lifted the lid, and inside I found a small seashell. It was perfect – not a blemish on it. The dull ivory shell was covered in small ridges. The spot where it would have attached to the other half of the shell was a pale brown. I turned it over and the inside was a shiny, pale pink. I stroked it gently.

“You’ve been to Tybee?” I asked.

Kai nodded. “I found this where we sat together on the beach the night we met.”

Waves of remorse washed over me as I remembered the scene in the elevator – the look of pain and horror on Kai’s face as the doors slid open and revealed my indiscretion.

“Kai, I…” I started to apologize.

Kai placed his fingertips over my lips.

“Shh,” he said. “Not today.”

I nodded in acknowledgement. He didn’t want to ruin Christmas by bringing it up. I hooked my elbow through his and pulled him inside.

“Dinner is almost ready,” I said, and he managed a tiny smile.

We went into the living room and Will and my mother greeted Kai warmly. They were genuinely happy to see him again.

“Sit down,” I told Kai, pointing to the sofa.

He took a seat beside my mother. I kneeled beside the Christmas tree and carefully lifted Kai’s gift from beneath it. I crossed the room and placed it in his hands, sitting beside him.

He stared at the gift for several minutes before he realized it was really for him. “You got me a gift?”

“Of course,” I said. “Open it.”

Kai opened it slowly. He still seemed unsure, as though the gift couldn’t possibly be for him. He lifted the lid of the box and I noticed his eyes looked glassy, as though he might cry. He took the paint set out of the box and turned it over in his hands.

“I needed this,” he said. “Thank you, Alice.”

He placed the paint set back in the box and hugged me close. I thought I felt his chin quiver on my shoulder. I stroked his smooth burgundy hair gently.

“You’re welcome,” I breathed into his ear.