Gabriel came back to painful consciousness. He was alone in a dark room.

Where was Joan?!

Panic flooded him.

The wounded elf pushed his pain away, and stumbled from the bed, wrenched the door open, and indeed off its hinges, and then lurched down a small hallway. Then he all but toppled down a flight of stairs, his balance thrown off by the bandages that weighed down his wings.

“Gabriel!” He heard Joan cry.

“Ah.” He blinked, clutching his head, and trying to stand, as he was sprawled out on the flagstone floor.

“What are you doing?!” Mrs. Hudson cried. Immediately, both women were there, helping him up. “You’re supposed to be resting!”

“Joan wasn’t there.” The elf gasped, his head throbbing as he felt pain returned to his wings. “A-and my wings hurt.”

“Sit.” Mrs. Hudson ordered, and they deposited him into a chair. Joan knelt by him, and pushed magic into his body, numbing the pain in his back. “You have to learn to let Joan be for a little while! All she was doing was eating, and looking forward to a hot bath, and then you came tumbling down the stairs, and gave her a good shock!”

“Sorry.” Gabriel said quietly. “I was frightened.”

“Your dear Joan is fine, I promise!” Mrs. Hudson patted his shoulder. “I know how to take care of young people. I’ve been taking care of you for these past ten years, haven’t I? And you never even realized that I knew you were an elf either.” She clicked her tongue at him.

Gabriel blinked, “You knew?”

“I’m no fool, Gabriel Locke!” Mrs. Hudson laughed, “And I’ll admit, I was surprised to see your real face, and those great big wings of yours, hurt as they are, as you two stumbled through the door, but I did know. Now, are you hungry?”

“I’m starving.” The elf admitted, reaching out and catching Joan’s hand, and pulling urgently on it.

She stood, “What?”

Gabriel answered by pulling her down into his lap, embracing her. “I…I thought you had…I don’t know. I don’t know what I thought.” He muttered, burying his face into her shoulder.

--

Gabriel was trembling. “Shh. It’s alright.” I murmured, patting his back carefully, lest I happen to touch one of his injuries. “I’m fine.”

“I’m sorry I frightened you both.” He said in a slightly embarrassed sort of tone as he pulled away, and I saw that his high cheekbones were tinged just the slightest shade of pink.

I laughed, “It’s alright, I forgive you. After a day like today, it’s no wonder that you were scared!” Hugging him one last time, I stood, and returned to my own seat, so that I could finish eating.

Gabriel accepted the bowl of stew from Mrs. Hudson. “Thank you, Mrs. Hudson. I don’t know what we would do without you.”

“It’s no problem.” The kind old housekeeper assured him. “You just focus on getting better. Now eat, and don’t speak for at least a minute.”

It fell silent as we ate.

Gabriel finished his food quickly, and asked for more, which of course he was given. The elf seemed famished, and ate three more bowls of soup before pushing his bowl away. I’d watched as he’d eaten, feeling somewhat fascinated. “Where does it all go?” I asked.

“What?”

“How on earth can you possibly eat that much?!”

He shrugged, “I was hungry.”

“I don’t know where it could have gone! “

Gabriel shrugged again. “Elves have fast metabolisms.”

“Apparently! Otherwise you wouldn’t be so fit!” I’d be the first to admit that I’d gotten an eyeful of his powerful form as I’d been tending to his wounds.

To my surprise, the elf grinned at me, and winked. “You don’t know the half of it.”

He still was able to make me blush like a little schoolgirl, and proved it right there and then. Mrs. Hudson was busy in the other room, and so didn’t hear the flirtatious exchange. “Gabriel!” I covered my face, embarrassed.

It baffled me how this was the same man who had been trembling in relief that I was alright not an hour earlier. But his tone was mild when he spoke again, “Someday I’ll show you what I mean, Joan. Someday. Although I’m sure you saw enough when you were tending to this.” He motioned back at his wings.

I could only blush furiously in response, and saved myself from having to reply by taking a drink of my tea. Choking, I coughed a little.

“Are you alright?” his voice was concerned, and his expression now very gentle.

“I’m fine!” I gasped, waving away his concern, still coughing and sputtering a little. “It went down the wrong way.”

“So long as you’re alright.”

“I’m fine.” I assured him.

“Good.” He smiled tentatively, and then looked around the small kitchen that we were in. “This is a cozy little cottage.”

Mrs. Hudson bustled back into the room just at that moment. “It certainly is!”

“I can see why you wanted to live here, away from it all, the woods around you, and no one to bother you.” He sighed wistfully.

“You should move out into the country.” Mrs. Hudson told him.

“Only if Joan would come with me.” was his mild reply as he continued to look around, forever curious.

I felt my face flush a little, but was honored. “I would go where you asked me.”

“Would you?”

“Of course. I’ve been happier in your company than I have ever been before.” I told him.

“And I yours.” Gabriel’s reply was soft.

“Even if you two don’t decide to move out here, you’re welcome to visit whenever you like.” Mrs. Hudson told us. “And while you’re here now, I suggest going hiking in the woods, if you’re ever feeling up to it. There are some lovely waterfalls around here, and there’s a particularly famous one just to the east of here. Rumor has it, if you go on the night of the full moon, you can see a moonbow!”

“A moonbow?”

“Like a rainbow, but with the moon’s light instead of the sun.” She explained.

“That sounds marvelously magical!” I smiled.

“Hardly.” Gabriel snorted, “Such a thing is caused by-”

I cut him off, giggling, “I’m glad to know that you’re feeling more like yourself.” He was still the Gabriel that I’d fallen in love with, after all.

The elf blinked, “Oh…sorry.”

“It’s okay, I wouldn’t have it any other way.” I smiled, shaking my head, then yawning.

“I think you should head to bed, dear doctor. Take a nice hot bath, and then head to bed.”

“I think that’s in order.” I rubbed my eyes, and stood. Gabriel pushed himself up, standing as well, but his balance wavered. I went and steadied him. “I’ll help you upstairs first, though.”

“Thank you, love.” He said quietly.

After my bath, Mrs. Hudson took me to a room right across the hall from Gabriel’s. “It’s lucky we enjoy having company, or we wouldn’t have the room!” She smiled. “Goodnight, Joan.”

“Goodnight, Mrs. Hudson, it’s so, so good to see you again.”

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

I lay down, and sleep immediately overtook me, but my dreams were full of Gabriel.

--

The next day, Gabriel was impatient, and quickly getting bored in the confines of the small cottage. I watched as he paced the living room, his long legs carrying him quickly, though he was still injured. Because of this, he had to stop, rest for a little while before going right back to pacing.

“Gabriel, pacing isn’t going to make Myles answer your message any sooner.” I finally told him, putting down the book that I’d been pretending to read. I’d actually been watching him, feeling concerned that he’d exhaust himself with all the walking he was doing.

The elf had surprised me that morning by writing a message, then going outside, putting his long fingers to his lips, and giving a piercing whistle.

A falcon had suddenly streaked down from the sky, and Gabriel had spoken to it in a quiet voice, carefully tying the message to its leg. Then the bird darted off. Upon my surprised questioning, he’d turned to me and explained that if he asked politely, that animals would do his bidding.

Apparently it was part of being elvish…probably something about the wings.

“I know I just....” he didn’t finish his sentence, but ran his lithe, powerful fingers through his long, beautiful hair.

“You’re bored?”

“Yes!” he moaned, throwing himself into a seat, but was still mindful of his injuries. “I’m bored! And anxious! I know that it is ridiculous of me to wish that I had a case…a nice murder at least, just to give me something to think about…but I do wish it.”

Getting up, I curled up next to him on the couch, then hesitantly reached out and played with a lock of his pristine white hair. “I’m sorry I’m boring, is there anything I can do?”

The elf’s lips parted a little in surprise at the intimate contact, but he didn’t speak for a moment. “I didn’t mean that you were boring, Joan. You are the least boring person on the entire planet, and I think that I would have already died of boredom were it not for you. So please don’t think-”

“I get it, Gabriel, I’m not boring.” I smiled a little.

He blinked. “Sorry…”

“Is there anything I can do to help alleviate your boredom?” I asked again, wanting to be helpful.

Gabriel was thoughtful for a few moments, and then asked suddenly, “Would you like to learn some more magic?”

Suddenly, I was excited. “Oh yes, please! I would very much like that!”

He broke into a beautiful smile. “Excellent. I can teach you a lot, I think.”

We sat there for some time. Much to my surprise, he was an excellent teacher. I had expected him to be impatient, and difficult to understand, but it wasn’t so. Or maybe he was just patient with me because I understood the way that his mind worked a little better than most people.

Under his careful, gentle eye, he taught me how to make fire jump up from my thumb, as I’d seen him do countless times, and then how to focus my energy, and make fire jump up from the log in the fireplace without even touching it. I learned how to make things that had spilled go back into their proper place, which was just a tweak on levitating, something I already knew how to do. Then he taught me how to make my own glamours, but I wasn’t able to keep them up for a long period of time, as he was/ But to be fair, Gabriel was much more powerful than me, after all.

I yawned, exhausted from using so much magic, I noticed that it was dark outside, he’d been teaching me all day!

“I think it’s time that we stop.” Gabriel smiled.

“I agree. I’m tired!”

“Yes.”

“You learned a lot today.”

“That’s why I’m so tired!” I laughed.

Mrs. Hudson came in, she’d been in and out all day, tending to her all but bed-bound sister. “Do you two want dinner?”

“Dinner would be lovely, Mrs. Hudson.” Gabriel nodded.

--

Thunder pulled me from my sleep, and I cried out, sitting up, startled.

The door to my room opened barely a moment later, and I heard Gabriel’s quiet voice. “Joan? Are you alright?”

As I rubbed my eyes with my fists, I felt his weight on the end of my bed, and saw his white hair flashing in the dim light that came in through the window. His eyes reflected the light as well, like a cat’s.

“I-I’m fine. The thunder scared me awake.” I mumbled.

“I see.” was his soft reply. The elf reached out, brushing my hair out of my eyes. “Are you alright?” he repeated.

“I promise I’m fine.”

“Good.” His head bobbed in a nod. It was quiet for a few moments. “While I’m in here, would you mind seeing to my wings?”

“Oh, yes. I should have done that before we went to sleep.” I nodded.

“They didn’t hurt then.” Gabriel told me. “Let’s have a little light.” He clicked his fingers, and the lamps sparked to life, illuminating the room with their yellow light.

“I need to get some bandages and stuff to clean them with. I’ll be right back.” I struggled from beneath my blankets, and left, retrieved freshly laundered bandages, a bowl of hot water, some soap, a washrag, and then I returned to my room. As I entered, I saw that he was gingerly shrugging out of his shirt.

Mrs. Hudson had gotten out some of her brother’s old clothes that they hadn’t had the heart to part with for Gabriel to wear, which he had then altered with magic because they hadn’t quite fit across his broad shoulders. She had some old dresses that she let me borrow as well. This was particularly kind of her, as the pair of us had had basically nothing with us when we’d arrived on her doorstep.

“Careful.” I murmured as I saw him struggling to extract his wings. Going to his side, I sat the things down, and helped him get the shirt all the way off so that I could get at all of his bandaged wounds. Mrs. Hudson had seen to them the night before, as I’d been exhausted. Then I ever-so gently pulled away the old bandages, and inspected his injuries. “They’re looking much better.” I told him, trying to sound positive.

He was quiet for a moment as I started to clean the burns. “I’ll…never be able to fly again.” The elf said softly, his voice subdued.

“Oh don’t say that! You don’t know that you won’t!”

“I saw them yesterday, in the mirror when Mrs. Hudson was tending to them. Elves can heal miraculously, but…but they’re…too badly damaged.” He frowned, but I could see that he was far more upset than he was letting on.

I stopped cleaning his wings, and sat down in front of him, shaking my head a little. “No one will think any less of you, Gabriel.” I said softly, knowing this was true. “I certainly won’t. You got hurt because of me, and I couldn’t ever think anything but the best of you…I wouldn’t have been able to anyways.”

“I’ll miss flying.” He said, then finally burst into tears, covering his face with his hands, his broad shoulders shaking as he cried. “I…I-I’m…not…whole anymore…”

Knowing that I couldn’t do anything more than I was already doing was a horrible feeling. I literally couldn’t help him any more than I was already helping him. “The measure of a man, or in your case, an elf, is not in his stature, or wingspan, Gabriel. You’re more than just that. I’m sorry that you will miss flying…I wish there was more I could do to help…but I’m doing all I can and-”

He interrupted, suddenly sounding a little frantic, “I-I didn’t mean to imply that I was unhappy with your care. You’re doing a wonderful job.”

“I knew you weren’t saying that.” I smiled a little, shaking my head.

“Good…I just…I’ll miss flying.” The elf took a deep breath, and wiped his eyes.

“I would imagine so!” I said, returning to cleaning his wings.

“But…I’ll survive. Other elves have lost their wings before me.”

“You haven’t exactly lost them…”

“They’re as good as lost…maybe I’ll look into having them amputated.”

“What?!” I cried. “Why would you do that?”

“Joan, wings with holes aren’t good for anything.” He explained, his tone gentle, “And many of the feathers won’t come back.”

“O-oh.” I frowned, unable to imagine him without wings, and found that the idea was unsettling to me. Now it felt like it was my turn to cry. “I-I’ll miss them…you had such beautiful wings.”

Gabriel looked back at me, “Oh don’t you cry too!”

“I won’t.” I shook my head, holding back my tears. “It would be stupid for me to cry. They’re not my wings, after all.”

“They’re as good as.” He whispered.

Having finished cleaning his wounds, I started bandaging them, and focused on that, since I wasn’t sure of how to reply. We were quiet until I finished working.

“Done.” I said, stepping back, and washing my hands in the basin.

“Thank you.”

“As if I wouldn’t see to your injuries.” I smiled, glancing back at him as he slipped carefully back into his shirt, but was able to manage it himself this time. I tore my eyes away quickly, hoping that he didn’t notice that I was blushing from having seen his perfect elvish physique.

“Will you numb me?” His voice was hopeful.

“Of course.” I nodded, drying my hands and then reaching out and touching his shoulder, numbing his pain, and then letting them drop.

He stood. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” I smiled up at the towering elf.

To my surprise, his hands slipped around me, and pulled me against his chest in a strong, comfortable embrace. “When this is over, would you want to move into the country with me? Stay around and make sure that I eat? I wouldn’t have you be my maid, but maybe you could be a country doctor, with your own little practice, and I could solve the mystery of who stole Farmer Brown’s pigs. We…could be happy…” his voice was soft.

“I will go wherever you ask me to.” I whispered, curling into him.

His fingers mingled in my hair. “Then as soon as this has blown over, I’ll start looking for a little cottage for us.”

“That sounds lovely.” I smiled into his chest. We stood there for a little while, but I knew that I needed to sleep, as much as I wanted to stay there, in his arms, forever. “We should sleep.”

“About that…”

“What?”

“Should I…find a house with two bedrooms, or one?” His voice was soft.

I blinked, and felt my face flush. “I….I-I think that’s up to you. B-but if we only had one room, and Mrs. Hudson or Myles came to visit, where would they stay?”

Gabriel studied my face for a moment, “Of course. Stupid question.” The tall elf leaned down and our lips brushed for the briefest moment as he kissed me. “Goodnight, Joan.”

“Goodnight.” I whispered, half hoping that he’d pull me to his room with him.

Then he was gone.

--

The elf leaned against the door to his room. It took every bit of willpower that he possessed to not turn and dart back to her room, slip beneath the covers of her bed, pull her small form into his arms, and…

Gabriel closed his eyes, banishing the thought from his mind, knowing that if he thought about it, then it would be even harder for him to resist.

Throwing himself on the bed, he buried his face in the pillow, trying to block out all thoughts of her.

He’d kissed her. It had lasted for barely a second, but he had done it. It had taken all of his courage to. The thought that she would lean away, disgusted with him for attempting to do so, had kept him from kissing her far sooner. But she hadn’t stopped him. Indeed his probably inappropriate question about the room situation had garnered a response that made him incredibly hopeful. Of course, he hadn’t said that he intended to ask her to marry him before he ever actually spirited her away to the countryside.

He wanted nothing more than to marry her, and live a peaceful life…and by peaceful he meant constantly pulling her away from her medical practice to solve the local town’s darkest crimes, which would most likely consist of pig thieves, cow-tippers, and maybe the occasional juicy murder.

As long as he had a case to solve, and Joan by his side, he could be content anywhere.