Me Without You by Rona Go

will not, I promise you, Father—"
Gilda said.
    "Send a word to me as soon as you heard
something from the new one," the male voice said.
    "I will, Fr. Ulysses," Gilda
answered.
    Fr. Ulysses? Xavier had just seen the priest awhile ago at the
Church. What's in it for him with the
healers?
    Xavier heard scraping of chairs from
the inside of the room indicating that the people inside were in
the move. So, he tiptoed away from the den. As he rounded a corner
to another room, he heard the man's voice again, saying, "I will be
in touch, Gilda!" And footsteps leading outside echoed through,
until they slowly faded down.
    It was the first time to dawn on Xavier
that the healer stuff was a serious business after all. Everybody
seemed to be trying to find the new greatest healer. And if it
turned out to be Jonah, Xavier was unsure anymore what they would
do to her if they found her. Gilda had once mentioned that healers
think differently, that they can kill for the power bestowed upon
the new one.
    Even Aunt Gilda can do
something drastic … Xavier realized. Jonah is in danger …
    "Xavier, dear boy! Is that you?" Xavier
heard Gilda’s voice calling out from the half-open door of the
den.
    Xavier was shocked that Gilda knew he
was around. He cleared his throat and noisily came out of the room
he was hiding.
    "Yes, it's me, Aunt Gilda!" Xavier
answered.
    "There you are!" Gilda said, peering
with one eye from the door frame of the den. "What are you standing
there for? Come quickly and let me take a look at you."
    Xavier entered the room cautiously
following Gilda and closed the door softly. Gilda sat on her high
chair. Xavier glanced momentarily at his mother who sat opposite
the older woman. He stopped right in front of Gilda and got down on
his knees.
    "My," Gilda uttered. "I have only seen
you a moment ago and you seem to have grown another
inch."
    "You have already blessed me earlier,
Aunt Gilda!" Xavier reminded her.
    "It doesn't mean that you are healed
then the healing must stop. On the contrary, it must continue even
more. You need blessings every waking moment you have. Healing is
eternal, my dear boy Xavier. It does not cease as long as I breathe
life. Otherwise, it will be to your own detriment." Gilda
said.
    Gilda inhaled deeply. She closed her
eyes, placing both her hands a few inches away from his face, both
her thumbs pointing directly towards the bridge on his nose where
his eyebrows almost met.
    Xavier felt like he had his hair back
and was standing on its ends and his eyes were burning hot. Deep
within him, he was feeling feverish. He looked down and saw his
fuzzy reflection through the shiny surface of the tiled floor and
everything looked normal to him.
    Gilda had never failed to scare him
even as a little boy. It wasn’t just the way she looked with her
pure white hair, her light bluish-grey eyes and the web of wrinkles
that seemed to jump right out of her skin. It was her very
presence…her healing touch… that made him fearful. There was
something in Gilda’s character that made him feel uncomfortable.
Only two other people can make him feel that way…and they were
gossiped to be sorceress—Jonah’s mom and aunt.
    "Xavier, dear boy— you have got to keep
what’s inside of this alive, lest you will be weaker by the minute.
The heart is your source," Gilda started slowly, lowering her hands
a few inches away from his chest. She opened her eyes, looking
perplexed. She placed her hands once again, a few inches away from
his chest. Then, she pressed gently right on his chest."What is
wrong, my dear boy, Xavier? Something is different."
    Helen stood up and went to stand behind
Xavier. "Gilda, what do you see?" she asked reaching out for her
son’s hand.
    "The poison in his blood is stuck in
his heart," Gilda blurted out insistently. "But you have been
touched by a healer, my dear boy, Xavier!"
    Helen gasped loudly, squeezing Xavier’s
hand. "The new one?"
    "Maybe," Gilda said. "Why don't you
tell us, my