Page 10 of Big Enough to Bite (Harmony Glen #3)

Chapter Ten

Mari

T he Sasquatch police officer and the Harmony Glen chief of police are standing in Sam’s kitchen, listening carefully to everything each of us has said. They have read the text messages and scolded Sam for responding.

I explained my complicated past with Pierre Brochet and offered to leave town at least three times. Each time, they’ve suggested that Harmony Glen is the safest place for me.

I don’t see how that’s possible. “You realize my being here puts everyone in town in danger?”

Chief Martinez has kind eyes. “You are a part of this town, Mari. If you want to leave, we can’t and won’t stop you, but I advise you to be careful and stay.

This is your home. If you run, you’ll always be running.

I realize that’s what you’re used to, but I think you came here to find a different kind of life. Am I wrong?”

Damn. “Just because I may want something…” My gaze automatically shifts to Sam. “That doesn’t mean it’s possible to have it.”

Officer Gant’s voice is deep. His hair is thick and covers much of the visible parts of his body, including his lower face. “More things are possible for our kind in Harmony Glen than in other places, Miss Shepherd.” He looks at Sam. “Don’t do anything stupid, Sam. Call and I’ll come.”

“Max, I wish I could promise you that, but I’ll do whatever it takes to keep Mari safe. The best I can do is promise to call if it’s possible.” Sam shakes hands with both of them and sees them to the door.

I call out, “Thank you,” to them as they wave and head for their patrol cars.

Once we’re alone again, I head for the bedroom.

Sam follows.

I should go back to my house and let whatever is going to happen only affect me. Except, I can’t bear the idea of leaving my giant. “Now what? Do we just sit around and wait for an ancient vampire to swoop in and try to kill you?”

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but while burning up in sunlight is a myth, asking permission to enter another person’s house is required, is it not? That’s why you wanted the wall, to delineate where your home started.” He pulls me into his arms and holds me. His heartbeat is strong and loud in my ears.

“One must be invited. How did you know that?’

It’s incredible how gentle he is, cradling my head with his huge hands. The idea of leaving him breaks my heart, but it will be worse when Pierre takes him away from me. “I told you. I knew a vampire in Belgium long ago. He was old, older than the Frenchman.”

I push back to crane my neck and look him in the eyes. “Who was this vampire?”

“Ion Radu.” The name seems to vibrate on the air.

My heart is pounding. “You know Ion Radu?” It seems impossible.

Legends say that witches created the first vampires as a curse.

They lived high in the Carpathian Mountains, and many stories were written, most of which were fiction with a hint of truth.

Ion Radu led the origin-vampires for hundreds of years.

They say he disappeared in the fourteenth century, and it was believed there had been an uprising and his own people killed him.

He was said to be kind, and his mere presence created order among the bloodthirsty vampires. Once he was gone, the origin-vampires split up and made families of their own.

I know my mouth is agape, but I’m flabbergasted. “When was this? Why was he in Belgium? How did you meet? Where is he now?”

Sitting on the edge of the bed, Sam pulls me into his lap.

“I first met Ion sixty years ago outside of Bruges. He lived a quiet life in a cottage, and I tended his farm. He was good to me. I couldn’t say what brought him to the area, but he didn’t draw attention to himself and led a quiet life.

I farmed at night and stayed away during the day.

It went on like that for about ten years.

In his last letter to me, he was in the Himalayas. I assume he’s still there.”

It takes an act of will to force my mouth shut. Ion Radu is alive. “Does he have a family?”

Sorrow fills Sam’s eyes as he shakes his head. “He doesn’t make vampires. Though we are friends, so perhaps I am his family.”

I’ll admit, it takes a lot to impress me, and at the moment I’m feeling very starstruck. “Ion Radu.”

“Perhaps we should talk about the present problem we face and discuss Ion another time. I’ll let you read his letters if you wish.” Sam holds me tighter, as if his arms can protect me from Pierre.

I settle against him and sigh, knowing nothing can. Running and staying under Pierre’s radar was my only hope.

“I wonder how Pierre found me. How did he get your number? I don’t even have a phone, just for this reason. It always seemed one less way for him to track me.” Clearly, there are other ways.

“The woman, I assume. She was probably the one who got my number from Gabe at the hardware store last month. Maybe Pierre had her check all the towns that are heavy with monsters since the Great Revelation.” Sam’s lips draw into a flat line.

“Her name is Tilda Shwan. She waited a month before she contacted him, and she warned me that she couldn’t wait any longer.” A shiver runs up my spine.

With a shrug, he says, “I wonder how he keeps her. Why doesn’t she run?”

I think about exactly what she said and how she touched her neck. “He can’t put a vampire in thrall. She hardly seemed loyal to him, only terrified. Maybe he has a link to her phone?”

“Hmm… I forgot about thrall. I suppose that’s possible, though why not dump the phone in a town like this and make a run for it?”

A horrible thought occurs to me. “Maybe he had a locater put inside her body.”

“That’s not possible. Is it?” Sam’s voice rises.

“Dogs and cats are tagged. I promise you that Pierre considers her a pet, much as he thinks of me.” I draw a breath that shudders. “We should try to help Tilda.”

“When he shows up tomorrow or the next day, we’ll try to ferret it all out. Maybe we can find a way to get her away from him. For now, let’s go to bed.” He sets me on the mattress and drags his shirt over his head.

Unabashedly, I watch him strip out of his clothes. I’ll never get tired of my giant.

He stands at the side of the bed, naked and beautiful, as if waiting for permission to get on his own mattress.

I drag my pink shirt over my head, kick off my shoes, and strip out of my jeans before lying back. “Come, Sam.”

He leans over me, keeping his weight on his forearms on either side of my head. “Thank you for not running.”

“I love you. There’s no other creature on earth I would have stayed for.” I mean every word, and the look in his eye tells me all I need to know. He would have followed. There’s no doubt in my mind.

There is little worse than waiting for a terrible moment to come. I can’t stop it. I can’t control it. For almost a hundred years, I have controlled my destiny. Admittedly, my life has been empty, but I’ve been free to make my own choices. This waiting for all of that to be ripped away is torture.

I trust Sam, but the fear of my past is paralyzing.

Meanwhile, Sam spends the next day in my backyard while I teach piano lessons to two humans, both in their seventies and both retired.

Mildred took lessons when she was a child.

She’s got some skills and seems to enjoy the learning process.

Morris is a retired schoolteacher, and I get the impression that he’s looking for ways to spend his time.

When Morris leaves after I give him advice on an inexpensive keyboard for practicing at home, Sam slides the back door open.

His smile is brighter than a man about to face certain doom at the hands of a bloodthirsty vampire bent on stealing me away. “Want to go shopping with me?”

“For what?” I pull my shawl and hat from the hooks near the door since the sun is still up.

“I need some furniture.” He runs a finger down my arm as I step onto the porch. “My girl is not really big enough for some of my chairs, and I’d like to get her some size-appropriate ones for our home.”

Wisdom says not to bother. I’ll probably be dragged back to France, where I’ll live under Pierre's thumb for the rest of my life. While I’m here, though, I don’t want to make my wonderful giant unhappy.

“That’s very sweet.” I lock up and meet him at the truck without voicing my thoughts. He can sell the furniture when I’m gone, and I’ll keep every memory of him as a treasure.

“I was thinking we should make a phone call on our way.” Sam puts his phone in my lap.

Holding the device, I look across at him. “Who am I calling? The police already came by the house this morning, and Officer Williamson said she’d check back before her shift ended. Who else is there?”

He gives me the code to unlock the phone, and I do as he asks. I’ve hardly ever used a smartphone. When they came out and it was clear the devices were traceable, I wanted no part of them.

Turning onto the highway, he says, “Go to contacts and scroll to Ion. Dial the number.”

“You have Ion Radu’s phone number?” It comes out screechy. “Sorry, of course, you do. You said you were friends.” I scroll the contacts and find one that says Ion and hold my finger over the call button.

“Go ahead, Mari.” He chuckles.

“Isn’t it the middle of the night where he is?” My heart pounds three times, as it should for a vampire who’s about to meet a legend.

“He’s a vampire.” Sam laughs. “He’ll be awake.”

Okay, that was silly, but this is a legendary monster.

You just don’t call him on a random Wednesday.

I take a deep breath and push the call button.

There’s a second or two where nothing happens, and I have the urge to hang up quickly so as not to disturb an icon.

It starts to ring and I put it on speaker.

“Alloo, Samy.” He speaks with a refined but distinct accent, while the salutation is sunny.

“How are you, Ion, my friend?” Sam’s accent thickens with a Belgian lilt.

“I am well. You have someone with you. I hear a vampire’s heart.”

I draw a sharp breath. “My name is Mari Shepherd, though I was born Maria Ciobanu, Mr. Radu.”

“The opera singer. Yes. Nice to meet you. Why is your heart beating so much, my dear?” Ion doesn’t miss anything, even from the other side of the world, through a phone.

“It’s been a trying night, sir.” I attempt, and fail, to calm my pulse.

There’s a long pause. When Ion speaks, there’s a sure calm that is like a balm. “How can I help?”

Sam smiles. “Do you know a vampire named Pierre Brochet?”

“Miss Shepherd’s sire, if my memory serves. If you don’t mind my saying, he’s had some unfortunate behaviors over the centuries.” I can hear him tapping his finger on something wooden.

“I don’t have any ties to Pierre, other than that he made me, sir.”

“You should call me Ion, Mari. In a way, we are family. I suppose I am your six times great-grand sire.” He chuckles. “Now tell me what’s happening.”

Sam takes over the conversation and tells Ion everything that happened last night, while I consider that Ion Radu considers me family and knows exactly who I am. When the full story is told, Sam says, “Do you have any suggestions on how to deal with him?”

“That depends on the outcome you want. We both know that if you wished to remove Pierre from the world, Samy, you are capable of such things. I’m guessing that you’re calling me because that’s not your preference.”

The sigh that escapes Sam is long and filled with a lifetime of regrets. “Not if I don’t have to. I’m not like the old giants who stomped out entire villages for the fun of it.”

“I know who you are, my dear Samy…” The sentence hangs as if Ion were going to say more. “You know I will help you.”

“Thank you, oud vriend. Ik ben dankbaar .” He slips into Dutch easily.

“ Alsjeblieft . I’ll be in touch.” He hangs up.

I close the phone app. “What just happened? How is he going to help me?”

With an easy shrug, Sam says, “I have no idea, but if Ion says he’ll help, he will.”