by Ana Calin
A hand started toward me, looking like he wanted to introduce himself. But part of me feared that he would instead go for my throat. I stumbled backward placing distance between us.
His feet moved slowly, following me. My pulse increased and my rational mind shut down. I turned on my heels and ran, slapping heavy rugs out of my way, lamps shattering as they caught on my hair and fell.
My body moved without thought, and I bumped carelessly into things and people until at last I emerged back into a crowd. I was sure that man had drawn me to him, the boisterous family had set me up and drifted me along to that lonely corner of the bazaar.
Officer Sorescu would be completely useless against the giant freak, that much was clear. Which meant Leona was no safer than I was. Just as I identified Leona’s yellow umbrella in the crowd something hard wrapped around my waist. Someone lifted me from the ground as if I were a feather. I wanted to scream, but a large hand covered the lower half of my face. Panic struck. The giant had found me. He spun me round and crammed me between two booths.
Then I looked up into crystal-green eyes under dark eyebrows, and recognized the finely chiseled face of Damian Novac.
Chapter Nine
I stared at him with an open mouth. The beauty of his face struck me as if I were seeing him for the first time. He may have been big like the Giant and just as intimidating, but he made my heart race and my face burn.
“What were you thinking?” Damian hissed through his teeth.
I managed to find my voice. “I wasn’t thinking anything. What are you doing here, Damian? Or should I call you Executioner?”
“Either will do. But you haven’t answered my question. Why the hell are you here alone?”
I stuck my chin higher up and gave him the most capable of scowls. It didn’t seem to impress him, but I was proud of it anyway.
“If anyone is owed an explanation here, it’s me.” Before I knew it, my index finger poked until it hurt against his stony chest clad in just a white V-neck and a thin leather jacket. “I’m looking for a way to contact my dad, who was allegedly extracted by the R.I.S. after the little talk he had with you.”
Damian’s jaw tightened, his face taking on the hardness of honey-glazed granite. He caught my wrist in an iron grip.
“How much of our talk did you hear, girl?”
“Girl?”
“Eavesdropping is dangerous, Alice.”
“Oh good, you remember my name. I heard quite a bit, but there’s not much you can do about it now, is there? But rest assured – the more I find out, the more questions I have. Too few answers.”
He threw a scowl in the direction where I’d come from. “And who exactly have you been speaking to up until now?”
“Why should I tell you? Let’s get one thing straight, Damian, Executioner, or whatever they call you: I. Don’t. Trust. You.”
Damian raised his chin, looking imposing. His hair spilled in raven waves to his shoulders, his mouth sculpted and his eyes sharp crystal. A beautiful devil. I swallowed and sank my head, praying he hadn’t seen the way my eyes had widened at him and exposed me for a treacherous second.
“Good,” he said.
My head snapped up. “Good? That’s all you have to say? Damian, you have a world of explaining to do.”
His fingers wound around my arm, sinking into my flesh.
“You want explanations? I’ll give you some,” he said, and pulled me after him.
I clasped his forearm with my free hand and felt something edgy strapped to it. Something metallic. Though I couldn’t be sure, the first thing that jumped to mind were the blades that assassins carried under their sleeves.
Damian patted Sorescu’s shoulder.
As soon as the plump man turned around, his jaw dropped. Damian was most definitely a striking sight, and I couldn’t blame him. Leona’s eyes darted from mine to Damian’s in surprise, but she didn’t make a sound.
“Not a good evening for outdoor shopping, is it?” Damian said with a grin.
After a quick set of blinking, Sorescu came to himself. “Do I know you, Mr. . . .”
The metal under his sleeve jumped to mind again. I shuddered and swallowed the knot in my throat.
“Novac,” Damian replied.
“I see,” Sorescu said, sinking his hands in his pockets and pushing his chest forward. “Well, Mr. Novac, how may I help you?”
“I’m one of the survivors from the mountain incident, your colleagues have me under surveillance. Which is how I know who you are, Officer, and why I was disturbed to find Alice wandering aimlessly around Marvimex. It’s dark, and dangerous people lurk around.”
Sorescu cleared his throat but remained silent.
“I must express my concerns with regards to your competence,” Damian said with a headshake, like a reprimanding teacher.
He let go of my arm, his hand moving to the small of my back and covering it almost entirely. An electric sensation coursed through my body as the memory of our first night at the cottage lit in my head.
Leona broke the silence between the two men, who glared at each other like fighters in a ring. “Forgive me, Damian, but I . . .”
“I’m sure you must’ve noticed Alice was missing, didn’t you, Leona? As her best friend and aware of the danger she was in, I mean,” Damian interrupted her without taking his eyes off Sorescu. “Why didn’t you look for her or draw the Officer’s attention?”
Leona shifted from one leg to the other.
“I’m sure Miss Preda hasn’t been away for that long, maybe a few minutes,” Sorescu retorted, his tone conciliatory all of a sudden. “And Miss Ignat already has what she came here for, so we’ll be heading back now anyway.”
As Sorescu reached out, inviting me to cross to his and Leona’s side, Damian held tight to my waist. I felt his muscled thigh against my hip, and my cheeks prickled.
“Minutes can be lethal, Officer. The fact that you take this so lightly is reason enough for me escort Alice home myself.”
“I’m afraid that won’t be possible. She came here with us, and she’s going back with us.”
“I think not.”
Sorescu laughed quietly, hands up as if surrendering in front of a gun. “Tell you what, mate – why don’t we drive back together? That way you’ll be sure she made it home safely.”
“That would at least allow my supervisors a dinner break,” Damian said with a smug grin, as if he’d obtained the very result he aimed for.
We followed Sorescu out of the bazaar, leaving behind the heady smells of homemade sweets. This time Leona walked alone under her umbrella, and Damian shielded me under one he bought at the nearest booth. Wet gravel crunched under our boots, my arm hooked around Damian’s. We separated when I climbed into the back with Leona. Damian took the passenger seat.
Leona kept her head down during the entire ride, while Damian kept Sorescu under tight scrutiny, the tension only masked by dull radio chatter. I patted Leona’s leg to let her know that we were all good.
Finally, we pulled up in front of the house. The shadows seemed to be dancing across it. It was the branches of our tree, bending and bowing to the wind.
“Where can I take you,” Officer Sorescu addressed Damian, “now that the girls have been delivered safely?”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Damian replied, turning to me. “Alice invited me in, didn’t you Alice?”
Cold sweat covered my palms in an instant, and a lump formed in my throat. I swallowed audibly.
“I could use a cup of hot tea, the rain has permeated my bones,” Damian said with a sly grin.
Officer Sorescu looked defeated behind the wheel. He flicked the heat on, his gaze darting from Damian to me.
Dark windows greeted us as we approached the front door, with the exception of a faint flickering that seemed to be emanating from the living room.
Damian hovered on the doorstep waiting for me to take the lead, I assumed. I stared at him, unsure of what to do next. The door opened
, bathing Damian’s face in light.
“Oh, there you are,” Mom greeted us with a large smile. She kissed Leona and me, then her eyes rested on Damian. She welcomed him so warmly, my skin creased. I was sure my mom would be able to sniff out the fact that he had a weapon beneath his sleeve. But no.
“Please, have a seat,” she said, motioning to the old fluffy sofa as she took us to the living room. That she was ecstatic about Damian’s visiting and that she still believed he harbored tender feelings for me was obvious as it was alarming.
Damian spent a few moments looking at the sofa as if it were a museum piece, then slowly he lowered himself down onto it. It warped and squeaked under his weight but held together. My mother frowned and gave me an odd look. I just shrugged—maybe he thought the old couch wouldn’t hold him. He was a big guy, after all.
“Power’s out,” Mom said with an apologetic shrug and headed for the kitchen. “Thank God the stove’s on gas. I’ll just grab some tea and cookies.”
Leona and I stood next to one another nervously glancing about the room.
“Oh, Leona dear, George was asking after you,” Mom called from the kitchen.
Leona took off in a second. With a flick of Damian’s eyes he hinted at me to sit next to him.
I took the bait and sat down, my arm rubbing up next to his.
“Does my being in your home make you nervous, Alice?” he whispered, his breath tickling my cheek, and his fingers stroking the base of my neck. My pulse thumped in my ears.
“A little.” My voice came out gruff and crackly.
“I’m not here to harm you,” he continued just as hushed, his fingers now wrapping around my hand and taking it to his left arm. “I’m here to give you what you want. Answers.”
The blade was hard under his jacket. I couldn’t help stroking along its length over the leather arm of his jacket like I would his manhood. I kept doing it mindlessly, slowly. His lashes hooded his eyes, in a way that made me think maybe he enjoyed it.
His voice rippled, deep and velvety. “Number one – the police can’t protect you from BioDhrome. Number two – your father is safe, but trying to find him puts you in great danger.”
His words slapped me back to myself. My hand stopped moving. I threw my head back, staring him in the face.
“Number three,” he continued, beastly eyes drilling into mine, “BioDhrome sent an agent for you, Alice. That’s not the best news.” He retreated, his breathing a bit heavy. “I believe you met him tonight. You need to keep a low profile, because he’s a very dangerous man.”
My tongue froze.
Before I got to say anything Mom appeared with a tray of cookies and mugs of tea. She seemed a warm headmaster dressed in her light blue two-piece suit, her hair up in an elegant bun.
“So, where did you grow up, Damian?” she asked, carefully placing the tray on the side table, before settling back into Dad’s armchair with her red tea mug.
“A village in the Danube Delta, not far from the Ukrainian border.” Damian reached for a mug and handed it to me, then he picked up his own. The heavy ceramic mug felt hot in my hands, and the heat began to spread all over my body. “They call it the End of the World.”
Mom gave a sad, melancholic smile. “Tiberius took me to the Danube Delta once,” she said, looking into the candle flames. The scent of wax mingled with that of Damian’s leather jacket, giving me a feeling of memory and mystery, too. “Paradise on Earth, wild and free.”
A small ripple went through Damian’s jaw, as if his own memories of the Delta weren’t quite as pleasant.
“Wild, yes,” he said, leaning forward with elbows on his knees, the mug disappearing between his enormous hands. “But also dangerous. Life is hard where I come from.”
“Well, it’s the hard life that taught you survival and, thanks to your skills, Alice is safe right now. I understand the . . . train, CPR. Had it not been for you –” Mom shook her head like she didn’t want to imagine. “I wish I could express how grateful I am.”
“Thank you, but I’m not really a hero,” Damian said, his voice a deep rumble. “However, according to Alice, you are.”
Mom raised her eyebrows. “Me? A hero?”
“You did save Leona Ignat and her sister from underage marriage and illiteracy, didn’t you? And later you engaged fully as a social worker for the Roma minority. How did you manage to get them interested in education, by the way? It proved an impossible task for others.”
“They like stories, the Roma.” A soft smile curled Mom’s lips. “I simply tapped into their traditions. For hundreds of years, their entertainment has been dancing and story-telling around campfires. I used the story-telling, and took it from there.”
As Mom spoke, I fidgeted waiting for the chance to be alone with Damian again. Of course, it was all in vain. As soon as his tea mug was empty, he stood up, thanked Mom for sharing her fascinating story, and bid us a nice evening.
“Thank you again for seeing Alice and Leona home safely,” Mom said, smiling.
“Officer Sorescu had that under control. It was a whim of fate that we bumped into each other, really.”
With a hand on the door handle he looked at me, the candle flames playing their game on his deceitful grin.
“I’ll accompany you to the gate,” I said.
“Not necessary,” he blocked.
“Oh, but it is.” With a fake smile I walked passed him and led the way out.
I could feel his eyes on my back as we strolled down the stone path to the gate. I stopped and turned slowly, not sure I wanted to catch the expression on his face. Apparently he didn’t want it caught either. When my eyes rested on his he looked to the side.
“Who is that giant guy, Damian?”
“That’s a good name. Giant. Just call him that.”
“I’m not in the mood for jokes.”
“Neither am I. The information I already gave you is all the information you need. The less you know, the safer you are.”
“Safer? Giant got to me at the bazaar, and you entered my home with blades under your sleeves, so it’s pretty clear my protection is useless. I seriously doubt knowledge will make matters worse.”
“You are protected. I’m constantly watching over you, Alice, I owe it to your father. No one will lay a finger on you as long as I breathe.”
My heart jumped into my mouth. I could barely find my words again. “You were at Marvimex tonight because you followed me?”
Damian took a few steps towards me, his stare steady on my face. “Let’s get one thing straight, okay, Alice?”
Opening my arms in a Halleluiah-gesture, “I’m willing to get everything straight, Damian.”
“I owe your father a lot. It’s because of him that I can live among people again. He’s been extracted to safety, but you are in the open. You, his daughter, the apple of his eye. If you heard the entire talk we had at the hospital, then you know how I offered to protect you. I’m your best chance at survival. Your surveillance officers are useless. And I will protect you, for Tiberius’s sake, even if it makes him mad. But that doesn’t make me your friend, Alice, you understand? Your father would disapprove, and he’d be right to do so.”
“Are you saying you can do what the police and even the R.I.S. can’t? That you can protect someone where they can’t?”
“I used to be a BioDhrome agent, Alice. I can do many things the police and the R.I.S. can’t.”
BAM! There it was, the guilty plea loud and clear, knocking me back.
“We discovered that BioDhrome led the operation in the mountains with the purpose of getting you,” he continued, “and thereby taking revenge on Tiberius for working with their antagonists – the organization both he and I are with. Tiberius’s science brought our organization results that seriously damaged BioDhrome’s business, and BioDhrome wanted to make a point.”
I shook my head, my chin trembling to keep back tears. Damian came closer.
“He did infiltrate me on campus to
watch over you when BioDhrome’s threat became too great, but he didn’t expect what actually happened. He thought BioDhrome would try something here, in Constanța, but nothing of this magnitude.”
He cupped my face with both of his big hands. “Alice, I orchestrated your father’s extraction because I had to keep him away from Constanța, since he wouldn’t have sat still and let me do my job – protect you. He would’ve put you in more danger. I acted against his wish, but nevertheless in his best interest, because I have special respect for him. I owe him, and I’ll keep you safe, but you should never take me for a friend, Alice. At the core I am a villain. It’s in my blood and, no matter how much time I spend in the world of normal men, I’ll never be one again. BioDhrome made that impossible, but for this very reason your only safe shelter is with me as long as you’re a BioDhrome target. You have to do exactly what I tell you, when I tell you, you understand?”
Tears broke down my face, an uncontrollable salty flow.
“Two of Dad’s colleagues were murdered,” I cried, clinging to his jacket in a surge of despair. Letting it stream out of me felt liberating. “Then a doctor from Bulgaria was taken in by the police, and then he died too. And you want me to believe my father is safe? I’m so terribly afraid he’s already dead!”
“None of those doctors are dead, and Dr. Lazar Dobrev is not in police custody. Those are lies. They have all been extracted by our organization. Their families, too.”
I stared at him, trying to process what he’d just said. With a gentle finger Damian stroked a wet tendril off my cheek, making my scalp prickle. Unable to resist, I pressed myself harder against his leather-clad body, fingers clawing in his jacket.
“Where is he, Damian? Where is Dad?”
He looked in the distance, above my head.
“Please,” I insisted.
“The less you know, the safer you are.”
With that he set me out of his way and dashed out the gate. A few moments later, soaked to the bone and snuffling, I leaned over the fence, peering down a dimly lit street blurred by rain.
Chapter Ten