Guardian of the Fountain Read Online Free PDF Page A

have put them in danger too, and how do you expect to tell them
about being the Guardian? You did what you thought was best at the moment.”
    “María,
I’m so glad to have you here with me. I know you’ll make everything better.”
    “That’s
what mamacitas are for.” She patted his hand, and her face brightened. “I have
so much to do!” She clapped her hands gleefully. “Mija is coming home.”

 
 
    Chapter
4

 
 
 
    This night will be different ,
Chrissie told herself as she slipped her thin frame between the cool sheets on
her bed. She began dreaming almost immediately. A blurred face handed her a
beautiful rose made of crystal. The rose slipped through her fingers like
water. Her heart sank with the feeling that something vital had been ripped
from her being. She sobbed uncontrollably, not waking until her pillow was damp.
The actual nightmare wasn’t all that scary, so why would it bother her so much?
    Chrissie
had grown up in her parents’ cozy Texas home until she had gone away to
college, and living in the same room with her ballerina wall paper she’d had as
a child made her feel adolescent. She wasn’t well enough to return to her own
apartment, even though it was only ten minutes away. The doctor said she had to
gain back fifteen pounds and not have a headache for two days straight before
he would release her to live on her own again.
    She
had lost twenty-five pounds since becoming seriously ill with a mysterious
illness in Venezuela.
    She
couldn’t remember a large chunk of time from her year-long humanitarian trip to
Venezuela. In fact, she could only remember the first six months of the
experience and the carnival in the streets of San Cristobal, and then waking up
in a Dallas hospital.
    Getting
out of bed, she stood to close the bedroom window. The white curtains billowed
out from the breeze. The cool air chilled her through her sweat-soaked
nightgown.  
    Ah,
man. Another fever?
    Being
ninety-five pounds didn’t afford her much insulation against the cool night
air. The beads of perspiration made her blonde hair stick to her face. While
she closed the window, she saw a shadow scurry out of the moonlight on the
roofline, causing her to take a second look. It looked like a gargoyle perched
on her roof. Nobody was there, from what she could see. The creepy feeling of
being watched sent chills up her spine.
    She
brushed off her trepidation and turned to get back into bed.
    Chrissie
heard a tapping sound. She slowly turned toward the sound to find Arturo
standing at her window. Her head began to spin.
    He
should be at the mercado in Venezuela, at the base of the mountain selling his
produce. My dear friend—why is he
here?
      Chrissie tried to open the window, but
she was too weak to lift it. The old man helped her lift it the rest of the way
and clambered in.
    “Are
you okay?” His thick Spanish accent sang the words. “Come home. You will be
better there.”
    “I am home.” She felt utterly confused, to
say the least. “How did you get here?” It seemed like an eternity since the
last time she’d seen him.
    “He
sent me to check on you. I see you sick. I bring you home. You get better
there.” Arturo led her toward the window.
    “No, Arturo.
We have a front door.” Chrissie pulled her hand back. Her head started to pound,
and the room spun. She sat down on the edge of her bed and rested her head in
her hands. “I can’t come with you.”
    “Come,
por favor. You will die if you stay here,” Arturo pled.
    “Chrissie?
Are you okay?” Chrissie’s mother called from down the hall as the sound her
footsteps drew closer.
    “Yes,
Mom. Will you come here please?” Chrissie tried to keep her voice calm to
prevent panic from filling her words.
    There
was nothing Chrissie would love more than to go back, but she physically couldn’t,
and she shouldn’t be leaving out the window. This moment was so strange. She couldn’t
seem to make it right in her