Guardian of the Fountain (6 page)

Chapter
9

“María!”
Arturo shouted from the door. “Where’s my comida, mujer?” He laughed as he
yelled out the last part like a kid who was about to be scolded. Banging in the
kitchen commenced, with a few Spanish expletives coming from María.

Chrissie
walked into the kitchen. In its own right, this room was impressive, with its
current commercial-style kitchen and granite countertops, with copper pots
hanging from the ceiling. Arturo plopped himself on a kitchen chair and propped
his boots on the wooden table. Burdened down with a large tray of food, María came
in, set it down on the table, and whipped a wooden spoon out of her apron
pocket to smack Arturo’s legs. Chrissie’s eyes widened at the exchange.
 
Arturo only laughed and rubbed his sore
leg.

She
had never seen such carrying on shared between a married couple. Her parents’
relationship was always pleasant—at least when they were around her. Even
in her relationship with Trey, he never teased or played. He was always on his
phone texting or talking about himself. She remembered before she got sick
Arturo and María frequently bantering with each other. María was always so bossy,
and Arturo did things just to tease her and get under her skin. But they
obviously loved each other, by the way they looked at each other and by the way
Arturo held María’s hand on their way out for the night.

“He
does this every noche.” María humphed. She set out three plates—one each for
her, Arturo, and Chrissie, leaving one plate on the large tray. “This is for
the Guardian. He said he would be having dinner in his room.”

“Fine.
Leave us. At least we can eat in peace.” Arturo teased and slapped María’s
rump. María bumped the back of his head with her elbow on her way out of the
room with the master’s tray. “Yes, but I’ll be back.”

“Let’s
eat!” Arturo dug into his pulled pork and sauce over rice, pushing it up onto
his fork with chunks of fresh-baked pan.

      
Chrissie
looked at her plate like a dog would when it spotted a fresh bone.

I am starving.

She
began to eat with just as much gusto as Arturo. Before María made it back, both
Arturo and Chrissie had licked their plates clean, literally.

      
Arturo pushed
his chair away from the table and leaned back. “And that is how it is done.” With
his tummy bulging slightly over his belt, he looked a little overstuffed, but
satisfied nonetheless.

      
Chrissie
continued on to the fruit salad and another slice of bread, stuffing her face because
her appetite hadn’t been satisfied. Arturo cocked an eyebrow at the sight.
“Hungry?”

“Starving,
actually. This is so good. I haven’t been able to eat this much in my entire
life! I think I’m making up for lost time. What’s in that bath water, anyway?
It’s amazing! Except for that little dizzy spell, I feel almost completely
cured,” she rattled on at a rapid pace her cheeks stuffed with food like a
chipmunk.

      
“Slow down.
You’ll choke for sure and I’ll have to tell María it was her cooking that
killed you.” Arturo set his chair back down and looked Chrissie in the eye, “I
don’t think you are healed yet. In fact, far from it. I think the bath will
only act like a Band-Aid. It will buy us some time to find out what exactly is
wrong and how to solve it. I have a good idea what it is, but I don’t know the
antidote yet.”

      
“Antidote?”
Chrissie added another question to her growing stack. “Have I been poisoned?”

      
“Sí, I
think so. I don’t know by who or what. So it is importante that you stay so we
can bathe you in the healing waters until we can find you a cure.” Arturo stood
up and stretched. “Buenas noches, Chrissie.”

      
“Good night,
Arturo.” Chrissie pushed her plate away, deciding it would be better to stop
now than to have dinner make a reappearance if she ate too much. She cleared
the table and took all the dishes to the sink to soak in the soapy water alongside
María’s cooking pans.

Curiosity
burned in her as she wandered the halls of the mansion. She found a library
just off the main plaza but every door on the south wing on the second floor
was locked, the same side where she had briefly seen the man out of the corner
of her eye. Just more mysteries piled up.

On
the way back from dinner, a soft light glowed from the door of her room at the
northwest corner of the mansion. A white cotton nightgown lay smoothed out on
top of her bed, with a single candle flickering on the dresser. She walked to
the room with the large pool in it and found that it was ready for her. All of María’s
personal touches of rose petals, oils, soaps, and a large terry cloth robe
awaited her there. After a long, healing soak, she went to her room and dressed
in her nightgown. The clean sheets felt nice and cool as she slipped in between
them and settled into the comfortable bed. She pulled out the laptop her mother
had packed for her. She knew her mother must be going crazy with worry. She
began tapping out a short email.

Mom,

I arrived safely. They wasted no time
getting to work. I’m staying in the most beautiful mansion. You should see
their swimming pool that they use for a bathtub! It was the most amazing soak
I’ve ever had.

I felt so much better today that Arturo
took me into the village for a visit. Isn’t that fantastic? Something must be
working. I even have an appetite.

How are things going at home?

Love you.

Chrissie

      
She left
out the part that she danced with a good-looking guy. Her mom didn’t need to
know
all
the details. Chrissie pushed
send and put her laptop back on the nightstand. Heavy sleep fell over her body
like a thick quilt, and she dozed before she even knew what happened.

The nightmare
didn’t haunt her tonight. Instead, she dreamed the most wonderful dream ever.
She was in a beautiful garden with large, colorful blossoms of every color.
Exotic birds called to their mates from the branches. Heavy floral fragrances
mingled with fresh clean air. The sound of water running off in the distance
sang to her, but she didn’t know which of the many paths led to it. Though the
water wasn’t what she was really trying to find, someone was waiting for her at
its edge. A large orange blossom with five points like a star twirled in her
hand. Not knowing which path to take, she continued to follow the trail she was
on and wandered into a dark and damp cave.

      
She walked
toward a light that glowed like a beacon and which lead her out into the
streets of a village that made her feel very melancholy.

More
than anything, Chrissie wanted romance to fill her life. After her last dismal
breakup, she had decided that being in love wasn’t in her near future. She was
just going to enjoy her last six months in Venezuela working in the clinic and
enjoying the friends she had made here.

      
“Earth to
Chrissie.” Marla snapped her fingers in front of Chrissie’s nose.

      
Suddenly,
Chrissie found herself sitting at her desk in the clinic. Papers piled around
her, her hand falling asleep from leaning on it.

      
“Oh, sorry.
I was just thinking about Trey.”

      
“That good-for-nothing
son of a …” Marla began to swear under her breath.

      
“Hey, I’m
over it,” Chrissie lied, even though the pain was still raw.

The painful
truth he had left her for a Dallas socialite. Trey and his new girlfriend were
going to be married tomorrow. Chrissie’s mom called a few weeks ago with the
news that she had just gotten a wedding announcement in the mail. Why would you
send your ex-girlfriend a wedding announcement? Especially, when you’re
marrying the tramp you cheated on her with.

      
“Whatever.”
Marla obviously didn’t believe Chrissie for a second. The New Yorker was feisty
and known to be tough as nails when it came to dealing with unruly patients,
and as a bonus, she had a built-in lie detector. Marla and Chrissie were
complete opposites who, like magnets, were inseparable.

      
Marla’s
dark Italian features helped her blend into the ethnic crowd dancing in the
streets. Chrissie stuck out like a sore thumb, with her straight blonde hair
and fair skin color. In contrast to her light-blue eyes, her tanned skin from
her outdoor adventures was her one feature that helped her look like she
belonged so close to the Equator.

      
Marla and
Chrissie walked outside down the cobblestone street, enjoying the live band and
merchant booths selling their goods. Chrissie felt like someone had been
following them. She tried to shake off the shivers.

      
She glanced
back and made eye contact with her stalker. He quickly diverted his eyes, trying
to look busy perusing a table of knickknacks. He was super attractive, in his
faded blue jeans and a white button-up shirt that fit perfectly across his broad
chest. His neat haircut and freshly shaven face made her believe that he was a
guy who put effort into himself, but was confident enough in his style that he
didn’t tuck in his shirt. He walked casually with his hands in his pockets to
the other side of the street.

      
Chrissie
nudged Marla. “Did you get a look at him?” She pointed to the handsome
stranger. “I have a feeling that he’s been following us.”

      
“Yeah, I
saw the creep two blocks away.” Marla shrugged her shoulders. “He is hot,
though.”

      
The music
started to liven up, and everyone accumulated in the middle of the street under
the strands of lights that hung above them and began dancing. Chrissie danced
and twirled around Marla, trying to get her to dance.

      
“I don’t
dance. I look silly.” Marla stood with her arms across her chest while tapping
her foot.

      
“Aw, come
on! Loosen up! We only have six more months left before we have to go back to
the States. Let’s make the best of it!” Chrissie grabbed Marla’s hands and
pulled her deeper into the crowd, where Marla finally loosened up.

      
“I think I
need a few shots of tequila.”

The
music slowed down to a slow dance, and the people dispersed or coupled up to
continue to dance. Marla disappeared.

      
“Where did
she go?” Chrissie turned around in circles, trying to catch a glimpse of her
friend.

      
“Who?” said
a deep masculine voice so close to her ear that it caused the hairs on the back
of her neck to stand up.

      
She turned
around and looked into the very deep blue eyes of the handsome stranger who’d
followed her.

      
“My friend
Marla.”

      
“I saw her go
over there to the sangría stand.” He pointed to Marla, who waved back, smiling.

      
“The little
stink. What good is she? Leaving me hanging like that.”

      
A chuckle
rose from the stranger’s chest. “I think she left at just the right time. Would
you like to dance?” He held out his hand for her.

      
Chrissie
eyed him warily. “You’re not some sort of weirdo, are you?”

      
“Not unless
you consider a comic book collection weird.”

      
“Do you
live in your mom’s basement?”

      
“Nope, I
own my own house.”

      
“Trey lived
in his parents’ basement … hmm. You’re already beating Trey by a landslide.”
She cocked her head to the side. “You’re safe.” Chrissie smiled and let him
lead her out to the middle of the street. “What song is this?”

      
“
Adoro
.”

      
“I like
it.”

      
“It talks
about how this man loves every part of his love, and she is the whole reason
for his existence.”

      
Wouldn’t it be lovely to be cared for like
that? I wonder what that would be like.

      
“Wow, but
that happens every day,” Chrissie said sarcastically.

      
“You sound
cynical.”

      
“Experience
has taught me to be cynical.” Chrissie smiled brightly. “But you are a stranger
who doesn’t need to hear my sad sob story. Are we dancing the tango?”

      
“Yes.” The
stranger dipped Chrissie back. “And you are dancing it very well.”

      
“I took
ballroom dancing for a semester in college. I wish I knew it better, but we
only covered it for two weeks.”