Kire12

Julia smiled back at me. 'You look exceptionally happy," she commented.

"Exceptionally?" I questioned, lifting my left brow.

"Yes." She leaned in closer, her gaze drawn to my lips. "Which doesn't happen nearly enough."

I looked her over, attempting to decipher her suddenly close proximity and the way her tone dropped. "Madame, I do believe this is our honeymoon and we could indeed be exceptionally happy together."

Julia ran her tongue over her lips and offered a seductive smile. "Perhaps I should return home for a bit," she said quietly. "Considering how busy the house seems to be."

"And I should follow?" I asked.

Julia gave a playful shrug of her shoulders. "If you wish, though I doubt I would find much exceptional happiness without you."

She turned, and before I could say another word, Alex and Lisette appeared at the top of the stairs behind her. I would have paid a hundred thousand francs to see her expression.

"Where are you going?" Alex asked, looking suspiciously from Julia to me.

Julia backed up into me and stammered for a suitable explanation. "I wanted to rest for a bit," she finally managed to say.

"But you just woke from a nap," Lisette pointed out.

They were both bright children, dreadfully observant and keenly aware.

"Yes, but…I didn't sleep well here," Julia said.

"You slept in Father's room?" Alex asked, sounding quite surprised.

Julia looked over her shoulder at me and appeared mortified when I shrugged. With Alex, there was never just one question, though there was a possibility he would forget his original inquiry and end with a topic that had no relation to what had been previously stated. With any luck, he would end on the Great Wall of China or ask if Leprechauns really had pots of gold.

"Why is Father going with you?" Alex continued.

"Because there has been a great deal of commotion in this house and we both find it exhausting," I said plainly.

Surprisingly this seemed to sate Alex's need for answers. "And Father you must be very tired as well," he said with a hearty nod. "Uncle Charles said you saved one of the babies."

Now it was my turn to stammer. "Saved is a rather dramatic embellishment," I grumbled. Forced to hold and care for a child not even an hour old was a more fitting description.

"I thought you were only good at composing," Alex said, being a master of unintentional insults.

"Thank you, Alexandre," I said under my breath.

Julia chuckled to herself and ordered Lisette and Alex down the stairs to wash for lunch. They stomped down like cattle, to which I rolled my eyes and told them as much.

"But cows can't walk down stairs," Alex shouted over his shoulder. "Monsieur Leach told me that."

Of course he did, I thought. He probably owned a herd of Leach dairy cows.

"Don't worry, Madame Kire, I will feed them for you," Ruby said from the kitchen.

With a sigh, Julia turned to me. "Are you hungry?" she asked.

"For an hour or two of interrupted time with my wife, yes," I said in my most alluring tone.

Hermine Leach's wailing from the parlor threatened to drown out the sound of my voice. I cringed, but before I could remark, Julia pressed her fingers to my lips.

"Two cottages," she reminded me as she gently dragged the pad of her finger along my lower lip. Her touch made me shiver in a way I'd never felt before. My pulse raced faster, breath hitched as she offered a seductive smile.

I grabbed her wrist and kissed the tip of her finger, then leaned over her. "Madame," I said hoarsely.

"What is it?" she innocently asked.

"You know precisely what you do to me," I replied, keeping my gaze locked on hers.

"Do I?" she playfully asked, her smile widening.

I bent and brushed a kiss along the shell of her ear and heard her inhale sharply. She gripped my arm tightly, bracing herself against me. At last I had evened the score, enticed her the way she so often sent my pulse racing. "And I know what I would like to do with you the moment we are alone," I whispered in her ear.

"And we shall have plenty of time alone," she promised. With her body pinned against the wall, I leaned into her, felt her breath on the side of my face, her hand resting on my hip. "Courtesy of Archie and Hermine," she dreadfully added.

As far as I was concerned, we couldn't leave soon enough. In all honesty, I didn't know why we had to wait until we left for our holiday considering we were upstairs and alone.

Julia, of course, gathered her wits about her much faster than I could and cleared her throat. She mumbled something about the children wandering upstairs once more which officially meant there would be no further stolen kisses or caresses.

"What did she say?" Julia asked once she regained her composure.

"Who?" I asked.

"Amelie Batiste."

I thought for a moment. "She taught tricks to a pet donkey I briefly kept," I answered with a chuckle.

Julia turned her head to the side. "A pet donkey?"

"Yes, a pet, my pet," I said with an edge to my voice.

"I'm happy that this news pleases you, but I have no idea what that means."

"When we traveled together, my uncle and I came upon a donkey I named Moon," I explained, fondly recalling how I would brush her nightly and she would nudge me with her head when she wanted more food.

"We were supposed to take a train toward Paris, so I needed a place for Moon to stay until I could return for her. At the time, there was nothing more important than keeping her safe."

Julia leaned against the hall and smiled. "I suppose I should prepare for you bringing home a donkey after our honeymoon. I'm sure the Leachs could provide one if you asked," she teased.

"Perhaps, but none like Moon," I answered. She had been family to me at a time when I was young and hopeful of finding acceptance.

Julia nodded for me to continue.

"I didn't want her sold to someone who would abuse her," I said, my voice slightly trembling as I recalled my trepidation. "She trusted me, even more than she trusted my uncle. She would try to bite him or wouldn't move when he grabbed her harness, but she followed me without question. My uncle told me she would have to stay behind as the train wouldn't accept her. I didn't want to leave her behind. I would have walked to Paris if I could keep her."

"So you asked Amelie and she agreed to take the donkey?"

"Yes, at the end of the night I introduced her to Moon."

Julia's smile widened. "I honestly cannot imagine you introducing a young girl to your pet donkey."

"I was quite proud," I answered. "And too foolish to know any different. I promised to return in a few months for Moon once I was settled at my cousin's home. My uncle paid them up front for her food and care, which persuaded her brother to allow boarding."

"He didn't want Moon to stay?" Julia asked.

"No." I shook my head, recalling our encounter the morning after the celebration, the malice in his eyes and the cruelty of his words. "He didn't want his sister to speak to me and made that perfectly clear. He most likely hoped I would not return."

Julia stepped closer to me. "But at least you found a good place for her," she said, sounding pleased at the thought.

"I did, but I wasn't sure her brother would keep Moon when the funds ran dry. According to Amelie's letter, he allowed her to care for Moon, at least for a while longer than expected."

"You must be relieved," Julia said.

I shrugged. "What does it matter now?"

In silence she placed her hand over my heart and traced a circle on my chest. "Closure," she answered. "Peace of mind."

My mind had never been at peace. I had always lived by fear, my emotions governed by hate, my heart more cynical as the years passed. I was no longer that same young man who had believed with all of his heart and soul that I could return and find friendship still waiting for me.

Bits and pieces of my optimism had fallen away, chipped off by brutal beatings and harsh words. My uncle had briefly found a worthy boy, but with his passing I had become an untrusting and malevolent young man.

For better or worse, music had kept me alive. I had no doubt Alex had saved me from rotting into nothingness, but before I had him, I had Madeline in my life. She had helped me multiple times and for reasons I couldn't understand.

And then there was my beloved Julia. Her compassion had sustained me for far longer than I ever realized. I should have shown her what she meant to me in the beginning, not five years after I first met her.

"You look different," Julia commented.

I grabbed her by the wrist, concerned by how she suddenly viewed me. "Different how?"

She greeted me with a smile. "Your eyes," she explained. "You look more content."

That word had never been part of my vocabulary, especially when referring to myself. I was always dissatisfied whether with my own music or other aspects of my life. There was certainly no shortage of irritating people and events.

The closest I had ever come to being happy, truly happy, was in my uncle's stead. With him I was fed, cared for, and never in danger of physical harm. Though he sometimes spoke sternly to me, he never struck me or issued threats. In my every deliberation with Alex, I mirrored my actions after him. How odd it seemed that a few short months had shaped me more than I realized.

Once upon a time I had referred to him as The Shadow when truly he was the silhouette I wanted to fit into.

"Have you been worried about Moon's fate all these years?" Julia asked. She looked concerned for me, my doting, loving wife. I hadn't expected anyone to fret over my past. The idea that someone could genuinely care for me and want to share my life still seemed like a foreign concept.

I shook my head. "I couldn't think of her," I answered honestly. After years of being labeled a beast and a lifetime of being beaten physically and emotionally, I didn't want to consider Moon's demise. In the back of my mind, I was certain Amelie's older brother had either slaughtered Moon himself or had taken her off to be butchered.

"Maybe this letter is what you needed," Julia said softly. Part of me still expected ridicule for caring about an animal, but Julia offered a smile of acceptance.

Rather than argue, I nodded and felt a sense of peace.

"What types of tricks did she teach Moon?"

"Apparently she taught Moon how to dance," I answered. The thought of a stubborn creature traipsing through the barn made me chuckle to myself. At one time, I had thought a train had a seat big enough to accommodate a beast of burden. A ridiculous notion made me snort and realize my thoughts as a child were similar to my own son.

"I wonder where she is now," Julia mused.

"Dead, I would assume" I answered.

Julia furrowed her brow and looked momentarily appalled. "Not the donkey, I meant Amelie."

Married, I thought, with a family of her own. I hoped the jewelry I had managed to return aided her family and made her brother understand I was not a monster.

"You should send her something from here," Julia suggested.

Now it was my turn to furrow my brow. "Send her something?" I questioned.

Julia shrugged. "Just like you promised her long ago."

I considered her words and allowed my thoughts to wander. My own reaction to receiving her letter three decades later had been overwhelming and cathartic. Amelie had been accepting and caring; I had no doubt she was still the same kind-hearted person, but I wondered if she would want to hear from me again considering I had not sent words in thirty years.

While I assumed she had stayed relatively the same, I had not. I doubted she would want to see the person I had become—and I feared what she had read regarding the man in a mask that had terrorized an opera house. Naturally I assumed she would think of me first.

"What if she no longer lives there?" I worried.

Julia shrugged. "Then at least you tried."

"At least," I muttered.

The idea somewhat unnerved me as I wanted a guarantee my words or gift would not only be received, but that she would also send a note back. I realized I worried for her, felt uneasy at the thought of her being unwell.

"You need more than a mere attempt, don't you?" Julia asked softly. "She was important to you."

I wanted to deny the truth, but I had grown tired of disregarding how I felt. "When I met her, I was already thirteen years of age," I explained slowly, attempting to keep my tone even. "Until my uncle came for me and I met Amelie, her sister and her mother, I had no one. No kind word. Not a single one."

Julia frowned and placed her palm against my cheek. For a long moment she did nothing more than search my eyes and run her fingers along the right side of my face.

"Have Lissy help you pick out something," Julia said softly. "A scarf, a new hair comb…she adores looking in store windows. She would be more than happy to spend an afternoon browsing."

I inhaled sharply. "I'll consider it," I replied.

"Good," Julia said as she wrapped her arms around my waist and kissed me on the lips. "She would enjoy spending the afternoon with you."

"Would she?" I asked curiously.

"If you tell her you need a gift for an old friend, she will be dragging you down the street to look in every shop throughout the city," she promised. She took a deep breath and patted my arm. "Now, let's see how the twins are doing."