by Kristie Cook
A light breeze kissed my face, chilling my skin, and I was brought out of the moment. My eyes opened, but I hesitated, and for the first time since arriving, I really looked around. The three story inn with its turrets, many bay windows, and gingerbread trim stood ahead at an angle to the corner, its back to me. To my left and slightly behind me was the row of cottages that provided five of the eighteen guest rooms—well, minus one for me now—and beyond them, near the street going north and south, was a small and noticeably empty parking lot. To my right was the driveway that led to the cottages, each one with its own space behind me. All but mine was also empty. Were all the guests Madame Luiza had to tend to still at dinner? And nobody stayed at the inn to eat? I thought I remembered it having its own dining room, supposedly with rave reviews.
The thoughts about the state of the inn drifted away as my gaze lifted to the mountains beyond the structure, soaring thousands of feet high. In awe, I turned in a slow, complete circle, and they were everywhere, boxing this little town in. I guessed that’s why they called it a box canyon. Up to the tree line, the mountainsides were dark with forest, and the jagged edges of their white peaks seemed to scrape the stars in the sky. And those stars . . .
“Holy. Shit,” I whispered. I’d always half-believed pictures of the night sky with this many stars—and so close!—were fakes. I gasped as I turned in a circle again, now while staring at the sky. “That’s the fucking Milky Way!”
I lifted my arms and waved my fingers in the air as though I could actually touch it.
“It’s so magical.” The words came out softly, barely audible to my own sensitive ears, but they were followed by what sounded like a snort from the direction of the inn’s wraparound porch.
I dropped my head, and my gaze swept across the porch, but I saw nobody there. Chills rose anew over my skin, and I tightened my coat around me as I began to walk again when a scream and a crash came from inside the main house. I immediately bolted to it, across the lawn and at the door in less than a second before remembering myself. Not that any witnesses were around, considering all the empty parking spaces.
“Madame Luiza?” I called as I rushed through one set of French doors and into a parlor room. I heard a whimper and a faint heartbeat a level above me. I hurried through the parlor, past the empty and dark dining room, and into the lobby before turning for the curving staircase, taking two steps at a time. Not until I stopped at the end of the hallway, where Madame Luiza lay, did I realize I’d known exactly where to find her and how to get here.
“I’m . . . okay.” The old woman’s gasp came from the floor, and I dropped to my knees by her side. What appeared to have been a tea set lay in pieces on the floor, the tea mixing with blood gushing out of a gash in her forearm.
“Oh, no. Here.” I peeled off my coat and gloves and lifted my wrist to my mouth to pierce my skin and give her my healing blood, but she gave a minute shake of her head.
“No, no. That . . . won’t work,” she gasped out. “Just . . . get me . . . to bed.” Her voice faded, and her eyelids drooped before closing completely.
I grabbed the tea towel and pressed it to her wound before picking up the little old lady and carrying her into the room that I instinctively knew was hers.
“What happened?” I asked as I lay her down.
Her eyes fluttered open for a moment. “Old . . . lady. Accident.”
She fell silent again as her eyes closed.
“What the hell happened? What did you do to her?” The girl’s voice demanded in that accusatory tone teenagers always seemed to speak in. She pushed past me and dropped to the old woman’s bed, glancing at me long enough to show her disgust before giving Madame Luiza all of her attention.
“What’s going on?” a deep voice asked from the doorway, making the hairs on the back of my neck raise. “Oh, fuck. Is she okay?”
The large body pushed past me as well, nearly knocking me over. He knelt down next to the girl, his broad shoulders blocking me from seeing anything else. I took several steps backward before turning to leave the room. I assumed they were her family and would take care of her, so I stood in the dark hallway, not knowing what to do besides wait. Oh, and clean up the mess. Just as I bent down to start picking up the ceramic pieces, the man’s body filled the doorway again before he strode right on by me, again without a glance.
“I have to find Isabella,” he growled over his shoulder.
“Wait! Don’t leave me with her!” the girl shouted, her voice filled with annoyance.
“She’s your family, Aurelia. Get over yourself.” He disappeared down the stairs then, although I could hear him stomping around the lower level as though looking for something. A moment later, I heard a door open and close.
“Asshole,” the girl huffed as she stomped out of the room, also right past me. “I notice you’re not staying.”
She kept talking, although he was long gone. A moment later, she too left through the same door.
I stood there stupidly for a long moment, until Madame Luiza’s faint voice called out to me.
“What do you need? What can I do?” I asked as I rushed inside and knelt by her bed.
“Arm,” she croaked. I looked down to find the towel, now stained crimson, still pressed against her wound.
“Oh, god, of course! Are you . . . sure?” I held my wrist out.
She gave me a weak smile. “I’m sure, dear. I’m far beyond healing. A bandage will do. Keep me from messing up the bedding any more than I already have.”
“Anything else?” I asked. “Water?”
“That would be good.”
I hurried back down the stairs and to the kitchen. The first aid kit was exactly where I knew it would be and so were the glasses. I tried not to think about that too much, forcing myself to focus on Madame Luiza. She drifted off while I bandaged her arm, and I couldn’t help but notice the odd odor—her blood was not of a healthy human. I tried not to think about that too much either.
When I finished, I lifted her unconscious body into the chaise lounge, the only other piece of furniture in the room besides the bed and a dresser between them. I easily found the closet of linens and changed her bedding, then I studied her, wondering if I should change her, too, or if that would be crossing the line. After all, she was my boss. Undressing her might be going too far.
As I looked more closely at her, I noticed in more detail the lines and curves of her face. I hadn’t noticed so many wrinkles last night. I’d thought her hair was a steel-gray then, but now it seemed lighter, with more white strands than I’d realized. She was even older than I’d first thought. And she was running this place by herself? No wonder she’d been so desperate to hire someone! I wondered if she knew how to spam the internet by herself, or if her grandchildren had helped.
Speaking of whom, what the hell happened to them? Did they really just take off and leave her here with a near stranger? I thought they’d gone to get help, but more than an hour had already passed, and still nobody had come.
“Help me?” The little old lady’s soft voice jerked my attention from the doorway and back to her. “I’d like to change. Purple dress in the closet.”
My eyes squinted as I looked at her. “I don’t think you should go out. You need to rest.”
She let out a long, sad sigh. “Yes, I know, dear.”
“Then wouldn’t you be more comfortable in a nightgown?”
She reached up and patted my hand as she gave me yet another weak smile, this one reaching her eyes with a faint twinkle. “Please, dear. I don’t want to die in my night clothes.”
I returned her smile as I held her hand in mine. “You’re not going to die, Madame Luiza. Not on my watch. It’s just a cut. The bleeding’s already stopped.”
She squeezed my hand weakly. “Oh, no, not from that. Look at me and tell me death’s not coming. Maybe not tonight, but soon. It’s simply my time. I’m the last hold-out. At least you’re here, though, honey. That’s all I wanted. Now help me put o
n my favorite dress, will you?”
I gazed at her for a moment, and she was right. I could practically see her aging in front of me. My heart suddenly felt like it weighed three tons. My emotions confused me. I barely knew this woman, but I couldn’t deny the deep sadness filling me. Swallowing down the lump in my throat, I nodded.
After changing her into the purple gown that looked as though it had been in fashion at the turn of the last century, I helped her lay back down.
“Who can I call?” I asked.
Her eyes fluttered closed. “Nobody, dear.”
“But your family—”
“They won’t come if you call, but Aurelia and Gabe might come on their own. You’re here, honey. That’s enough.”
I won’t let you die alone. She obviously didn’t want that if having me here was enough for her. The poor woman was nearly as bad off as I was in the family department. Although it wasn’t something I’d say aloud, regardless of how well she seemed to be accepting her imminent death.
She fell asleep almost immediately, although it was a fitful sleep. Afraid to leave her side and not knowing what else to do, I sat on the bed, then paced, then sat on the chaise for a while, then paced some more. Hours passed. The earlier sounds of town square had fallen fairly silent. Aurelia never returned. Neither did the guy, who I assumed to be Gabe. So much for going to court and finding Adelaide. They’d have to wait until tomorrow night. Sunrise was only a few hours away. At least the curtains appeared to be blackouts, so I could stay if nobody came. I stood at the window after inspecting them, watching the moon as it began to set behind the mountain. The sound of a door downstairs barely registered in my mind.
“Adelaide’s here for you.” The deep voice once again sent a shiver down my spine.
I turned to meet a very familiar pair of eyes that even in the dim light I knew were gray with green flecks.
Chapter 5
We both stood frozen, staring at each other for seconds that stretched into eons. His face was turned down, causing a lock of his dark hair, combed back from his face, to fall forward by his temple. His narrowed eyes gazed up at me, almost accusingly, through thick, black lashes. His dark brows were pinched together, forming two vertical lines between them and several creases across his forehead. My fingers twitched with the desire to smooth them out, to relieve the pain he was obviously in.
The longer we stared, the more I felt like he was trying to reach into my soul and claim it. Or maybe that he already had. My heart beat erratically, and my mouth and throat went dry. The room suddenly became too small for the both of us. For him. And not just because he was far over six feet tall and built like an Olympian. His very presence filled the room completely . . . started to fill me.
“I’ll, uh, let you—” I stammered at the same time as he said, “You need to go . . .”
His angry tone made me flinch, and he sounded like he wanted to say more, but then looked like he couldn’t be bothered. Another long, awkward moment passed before I could finally will my feet to move. I shuffled forward, and he stepped to the side, and things became even more awkward as we did some strange dance to move around each other in the small space without daring to touch. As though that would scar us for life. Maybe it would.
Somehow I made it out of that room without even brushing against his arm or, you know, accidentally falling on top of his very nicely formed body.
Finally out of the room, I felt like the temperature dropped ten degrees. I had to pause to take a few breaths and settle my speeding heart. Before heading down the hallway to the stairs, I looked over my shoulder to see the god-like figure bending over and planting a kiss on Madame Luiza’s forehead. For a fleeting moment, I felt jealousy for her. Get a grip, Kae. You know nothing about him.
Except, something way in the back, dark corners of my mind niggled at me, saying I did.
Once I finally gathered my wits back about me, I went down the stairs to meet the mysterious Adelaide who supposedly could answer all my questions. Because of the way Madame Luiza had spoken of her, and maybe also because of her name, I expected to find an older woman, smartly dressed and full of wisdom. Even if it was a ridiculous time of night, or early morning, for such a woman to be out making house calls. What I found was a young woman about my age, wearing a dark purple sweater, ripped up jeans, and knee-high boots. Her light brown hair was pulled back into a messy bun, she wore a diamond stone in her nose, and black-framed glasses added a studious touch to her otherwise edgy appearance. Several rings decorated her fingers.
“Michaela!” she gasped as a hand flew to her mouth. She let out another squeal, this one muffled. “I mean, Kaela, right?”
I blinked. That was the second time someone in this town had called me Michaela. What was wrong with them?
“Um, yeah, Kaela. You must be Adelaide?”
Her mouth twitched as though she fought a frown. “Addie. Please.” Her voice dropped and filled with sorrow. “How is Mammie?”
My head cocked to the side.
“Madame Luiza?” she corrected.
I bit my lip. “Not well. I don’t know what happened. I think she collapsed from exhaustion, but she’s fading so quickly . . . Gabe is up there with her.”
Addie’s brows jumped up to her hairline. “Gabe is here? I thought he was at my house. The poor kid. What did he do when he saw you? And what about Aurelia? They’ve been through so much. It’s good that you’re here . . . Hey, what happened to Xandru? I thought he went up there to get you.”
I tried to follow her questions, but they confused me. “Wait. Gabe’s a kid?”
Now it was her turn to cock her head and blink at me. “Uh, yeah, he’s twelve. I thought you said—”
I pressed my fingers to my temples. “I’m sorry. I don’t know anybody here yet. I thought that was Gabe. He was here earlier with Aurelia, but they both took off, looking for an Isabella . . . I’m so confused.”
Addie crossed the room to stand in front of me and placed a hand on my shoulder. “It’s okay, Mich—I mean, Kaela. You’ll get it soon, I’m sure of it.”
“So who’s up there with Madame Luiza now?” A blush crept across my skin just at the thought of him.
One side of her face pulled up in a knowing smirk. “Judging by the look on your face, that was definitely Xandru. Alexandru Roca, but we call him Xandru or Xan. I’m surprised you don’t . . .”
She trailed off, and I waited for her to continue, but she shook her head before gesturing me into the nearby seating area.
“Never mind. Let’s get you all taken care of before the sun rises so you can do what you need to do and not have to worry about those pesky UV rays.”
She produced an old leather satchel I hadn’t noticed before and set it on the floor next to a large cushioned chair that she motioned for me to sit on. I stood in place as she disappeared through a doorway behind the front desk and returned a moment later pushing an office chair on wheels. She sat on it and proceeded to pull what looked like a tattoo kit out of her bag.
“Come on,” she said, once again gesturing at the bigger chair. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of needles.”
“No, and I’m not against tattoos or anything, but, um . . . are you freaking serious? I just got to town, just met you people, and you expect me to sit down and say, ‘Okay, sure, ink me up. I don’t give a shit what you to do my body. That I have to live with for . . . forever. Literally! And let’s do it right now, even though your new boss is upstairs dying, and who knows what will happen to this place if she does, so you might not even stay, so here, this will give you something to remember your very short visit with us.”
“Nobody remembers Havenwood Falls,” she muttered.
“What?” That was her response to my rant?
She blew out a sigh. “Calm down, Kaela. It’s not what you think. You can tell me whatever design you want, where you want it. Anywhere. I’ve done it all. If you feel more comfortable in a private room, we can go upstairs.”
I
let out a humorless laugh and threw up my hands. “Unbelievable! You don’t get it. What in the fuck makes you think I want a damn tattoo?”
She looked up at me and said flatly, “Because it’ll allow you to walk in the daylight.”
I froze and stared at her, my mouth partially open. She gazed back at me with a brow lifted and her arms crossed, as though challenging me. In less than a heartbeat, I stood right in front of her and snarled, fangs out.
“If you know what I am, then you know you shouldn’t fuck with me.”
She stood, her face right in front of mine, and her eyes narrowed as her fingers flicked. I was suddenly on my knees, doubled over in pain as though I’d been stabbed in the gut. Then as quickly as it came, the sensation was gone. I slowly stood up and glared at her.
“Did you do that?” I whispered.
“Yeah, and I’ll do a lot worse if you ever threaten me again. We’re friends, Kaela. I’m on your side.” She sat back down and picked up a bottle of ink. “Now, are we going to do this or not?”
“Not.”
She looked up in surprise. “You don’t want to be able to walk outside in the sun? See the world again in the light of day? Live a little more normally?”
“More than anything,” I admitted. “But not until you explain how.”
“How what?”
“How . . . everything. How you know what I am. How you did that to me. How your tattoo can allow me to walk in the sun. Oh, and maybe how I feel like I know weird, random things about this town.”
She exhaled a long breath. “Fine, I will. As long as you sit down and give me some kind of idea of what you want your tattoo to look like so I can come up with a design.”
When she obviously wouldn’t say anything else yet, my head tilted to the side. “It’ll really allow me to go outside in the day?”