Snow Heart (30 page)

Two protrusions in Alric’s body pressed and ripped until blackened wings stretched out. Each wing had to be at least ten feet in diameter at to what Nieves thought. She’d never seen such wings before. They shimmered in the light of the icy blue flame that licked the fire of a house.

Nieves raced to the door and looked inside. Abandoned she noted, quickly trying to escape its confines. The smell of smoke was too much for her to handle. By the time she made it outside the phoenix was being pinned down by a fox. Its teeth had taken hold of Alric’s wing.

Nieves pressed the heart to her chest. “I have to do this now or never.”

While Alric fought off one silver fox then another, Nieves approached him from the side. She took down a deep breath wrapped an arm around Alric’s long neck. It fought her at first but the next silver fox spirit distracted him. She sat neatly upon the phoenixes back, the heat of the blue fire nipping. Luckily she was only near the fire and not on it.

She took the heart in hand and lowered it down to Alric’s chest. She pressed it there begging for it to go inside. Her bloodied hand could hardly hold on to it any longer. Quickly she wrapped her other arm around and pressed with both hands.

Alric threw off the fox spirit then turned its attention to the girl. He readied to take a bite out of her hand when his chest began to ripple. The dark phoenix took steps back, screaming and examining its chest with uncertainty.

Nieves turned her attention from over her shoulder to the dark phoenix. He was strong at first but the heart was making him weak. His flight became drunken.

“Alric,” Nieves whispered into his ear. “Please do not die. I want you to live more than anything in the world. I finally realize that I care about you this much because… because I love you, Alric.”

The phoenix moaned, his wings gave up and he was plummeting head first towards the earth. They were going to land in the large field that Nieves had laid in her first night on Macter land. The same field Alric had agreed to have a picnic.

She remembered him crawling on top of her in the grass and the way he made her stomach fill with butterflies. She had remembered the racing of her heart and the thoughts of kissing him again. He had felt so tranquil to her as if the world could never touch her.

Nieves blinked and her daydream was gone.

Her arms still burned from the acidic touch of the fox and her lungs ached from the smoke of the Phoenix’s fire.

Alric’s side skidded across the grass. Nieves gave a scream of pain as she felt her right side scrape and rip to shreds. Her eyes slid closed and neither of them moved for what felt like ages.

The blackened phoenix screeched a breath of icy fire that lit the tall grasses ablaze. He widened his wings but was unable to move at all. The phoenix knew the foxes were coming but his energy had been drained by whatever that girl had placed inside of him.

That girl, the phoenix considered. Who was she?

CHAPTER 42

Nieves sat up, blood drizzling from the cuts along her right arm. She’d hit the ground at full speed just like Alric. Alric, her mind suddenly recalled then glanced about for the large black feathered bird but she didn’t see one. “Alric!” she screamed, trying to pull herself up. “Alric…” her voice slowly died with dizziness. The world began to spin but she caught site of something lying in the grass.

The phoenix, she thought but she could never be sure until the world was steady again.

The fires filled the air with strange alien smoke of blue. It smelled of something sweet—the smell she remembered that laced Alric’s skin. She enjoyed the scent very much.

Nieves crawled towards the spinning black object in a drunken dance. Her knees ached with every amount of movement but she could not stop now. “Alric,” Nieves muttered, grabbing hold of what was there. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I’m still here like I promised.”

“Alric!” screamed someone from the other side of the growing flames. “Alric are you alive?”

“Nieves must be in there,” shouted another.

Nieves couldn’t make out the voices but she was sure she knew them. They were calling out to Alric and her but Nieves didn’t have enough voice to call back. She tried but a faint whisper entered the air.

She gave a smile, crawling up to the slowly and steadying shadow. Her arm gave up. It let her drop on top of whatever it was she had seen. Her fingers moved over the fabric, surprised Alric was still dressed. She wondered how the magic worked but her thoughts became slurred in time.

The object she lay on took in a deep breath, lifting its chest. The heart inside shifted multiple times before beating normally. He lifelessly sat up.

The world stopped its spinning long enough for her to make out the features of Alric’s face. His eyes were still empty—filled with a black fiery ring in the center. He slid an arm around her waist and got them both to their feet.

Alric’s mind was sorting out the recent images and memories. He remembered screaming in his prison cell after telling Wilhelm to find Nieves. He remembered his burning body and the feeling of napalm.

He also remembered hearing Nieves’s voice calling out to him in the darkness.

“Nieves,” Alric muttered the name as if programmed.

She looked up at him and leaned her body against his. “I’m here,” she said. “I tried my best… to get the heart inside you. Hopefully, now, the curse is over with.” Nieves gave a weak smile, closing her eyes to find that it eased her throbbing head.

Alric shifted through his thoughts more. He tried to remember what had happened. He wanted to know where he was and who was in his arms. Nothing came to mind until she muttered, “Alric” and fell from his grasp.

“Nieves?” Alric lurched forward and took hold of her. His eyes finally embraced her image. “Nieves? Open your eyes, Nieves!”

She lay there with tranquility. He thought she resembled a deep sleep but as he tried to wake her he thought otherwise. “Nieves, open your eyes this moment! I demand it!”

“Alric!” screamed Wilhelm through the blazes of the fire. “Alric are you and Nieves okay?”

He clenched his teeth. “Please open your eyes!”

Water dripped against the back of his neck. He realized someone had dumped water on the fire behind him. He looked over his shoulder only for a moment. His eyes returned to her, lying still and silently in the grass.

“Please,” he said, lowering his head to rest on her hand. “Please, wake up.”

“Alric!” Mia shouted then ran into his back. She embraced him from behind then crawled around him to see Nieves. “Nie—” Her greeting stopped short. “Wha-what happened? Is she okay?”

Alric couldn’t look up. He couldn’t move. “Nieves… open your eyes.”

Wilhelm kneeled onto the ground on the other side of the girl. “We have to get her inside,” he said, beginning to read her neck for a pulse. His mouth opened but he stopped himself from saying anything further.

Alric slid his eyes closed, pressing them against Nieves’s hand. He hated her. He hated her for leaving him. He hated her for going to the Fox Maiden’s tree to keep him alive. He hated her because he loved her more than he ever loved anyone or anything. Alric wanted her back.

“She can’t be,” said Mia. “She said we were going to go to the city together. She promised we would. She promised she’d be there for me.”

Rusuto stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Mia. “Come inside, dear. We all need to get inside where it’s warm.” Rusuto lifted Mia off the ground and forced her away from Nieves’s body.

“Sir,” Leon said from behind Alric. “Do you need me to carry her in for you?” Leon walked over to the girl, ready to help the Head Macter.

Alric lashed out, his eyes still burning with the phoenix. “Don’t you touch her!”

Leon moved his hand away and bowed his head. “As you wish.” He got up and waited but Alric did not make any effort to move. He rested his head against Nieves’s heart, straining his ears to hear her heartbeat. He yearned for her to make some sudden movement for him.

Leon caught site of Aunty with tears streaming down from behind her sunglasses. She had her hands tucked into her pockets, trying to stay calm and worry free.

Bartolemé was walking off casually, sticking another coffin nail between his lips and lighting it. He knew that Alric would need to be alone after losing someone as close as Nieves. He had nothing further to say or do. He would lock his door and live peacefully after twenty-one years of the curse.

“It’s a shame,” said a sweet voice.

Alric lifted his eyes to view a woman he’d never seen before. Her skin glowed like moonlight, her hair burning bright orange. Alric knew immediately she was the Fox Maiden.

“Bring her back!” roared Alric who got to his feet. “Bring her back to life! She died because of you. You and your worthless revenge.”

The Maiden smiled with mischief. “Come with me Alric. Join me in the spirit world and be my lover. I would most enjoy having you at my side, someone so loyal.”

Alric nearly growled. The Demon inside of him seemed to still have root in his veins. “I’d rather chew off my own arm than be with you!” His eyes darted to Nieves then his face softened. “If you give her life I’ll join you.”

She laughed a sound of wind chimes and laughed some more. “You two are so sacrificial. What? Were you not listening, dearest Alric? I am no death keeper or soul collector. She is dead and to me she is nothing.

“Your devotion to her makes me rather jealous that my own lover had not been so strong. If you join me or not, the girl is dead.” The Maiden turned away from him and walked back through the fire.

Alric screamed dropping down to his knees with pure malice. “Zeit!” he screamed. “Zeit!” He called for the small white bird but it did not come to his side. He screamed for the Grim Reaper to give Nieves’s soul back but no sign or sound of him was near. Had the keeper of death abandoned him as well?

“Alric.” Aunty wavered.

“Shut up!” Alric kneeled down to Nieves and slid his arms beneath her. “She’s not dead. I won’t let her die.” He lifted her from the ground and held her fading warmth against his body. “I refuse to let her go.”

“You can’t…” Leon stopped Aunty from speaking with a hard hand on her shoulder. She turned to Leon then nodded her head. She finally understood that Alric just needed time to deal with the loss.

Alric slowly walked away from them, holding Nieves tightly to his body.

“Princess,” Eliza giggled while dancing between the fading blue fires. “She broke the curse, right?”

Aunty spun around and quickly stopped the girl as quickly as possible. “Of course, she did. She’s just a little… tired right now.” Aunty did not want to see the pain in Eliza’s eyes. She couldn’t bare it at that moment.

Had the curse really ended?

Alric was still alive.

It must mean that something had happened to cause the change. Nieves must have given her own life but Aunty could not understand that at all.

“I decide if Alric has learned to love,” stated Leon, not at all willing to take the blame of anything. “I could only make my final decision on this day. I am terribly sorry for the loss of Nieves for I enjoyed her effect on Alric. Nothing can be done to change what has happened, Aunty. You know that better than anyone.”

“We should tell Nieves’s sister,” Aunty stated dryly. Alric had told her about Erika and the lifeless way she treated Nieves. The empty zombie that sat upon the couch every day. The sister who ignored Nieves for years—even while Boris abused her.

†

Alric laid out her body on the bed and leaned forward. He kissed her forehead, dripping tears along her face. She looked so innocent and peaceful, unharmed by the events that had passed. He tightened his jaw, straining to keep himself from crying further.