She wiped angry tears from her eyes, and Beatrice stopped pacing and went to sit in a chair by the small fireplace.
“How did you not realize that Gio was a vampire when you met him?”
Her grandmother frowned. “He’s much better at it than your father was. Other than the pale skin, Giovanni looks just like a normal human. You have no idea, B. Your father…” She paused and shook her head. “He was barely recognizable, even to me. He was gaunt and pale. His skin was cold to the touch. He looked nothing like a normal human. It’s no wonder you found his appearance so frightening as a child.”
Beatrice came to sit next to her grandmother. “How are you feeling now? Are you still feeling dizzy?”
Isadora smiled. “Fine. I’m going to be fine. I feel very lucky. When those men came to the door, I thought I was going to die. I saw their fangs and knew it had something to do with Stephen. What’s going on?”
“The vampire that turned Dad, Lorenzo…” She paused, not wanting to tell her that Lorenzo was Giovanni’s son. “He’s after Gio, too. He’s after-”
“He’s after you, isn’t he? Your father said he was looking for him ten years ago. If this Lorenzo still hasn’t found Stephen, he’ll want you. I’m only surprised he hasn’t come after you before. If he knows your father at all, he knows the man would do anything for you. That’s what this is about, isn’t it?”
She nodded slowly, reminded again not to underestimate her delicate looking abuela.
“Well, what are we going to do about it? Can we run? Would it even make a difference? How about killing him? How hard would that be?”
“You De Novo women,” Giovanni muttered as he entered the room with Caspar. “Terribly vicious, aren’t you? Never underestimate the fury of an angry mother, Caspar. They’re the most vicious creatures in the world.”
Caspar went to take Isadora’s hand. “How are you feeling, darling? You had me terribly frightened.”
“I’ll be fine. I am fine. I’m mostly concerned about Beatrice.”
“We’ll stay here for a few days to make sure you’re recovered, then I’m taking you out of the city,” he said.
“But B-”
“I’ll be taking care of Beatrice,” Giovanni said from the corner of the room.
Isadora’s angry green eyes flared. “I’m supposed to trust you with my granddaughter, Giovanni Vecchio? How do I know you can keep her safe?”
“You don’t, but I’m the best option you have.”
“Isadora,” Caspar murmured, “Giovanni is a good man.”
“If it was your child, would you trust him?”
“My father did.”
Isadora frowned and looked from Caspar to Giovanni, then finally at Beatrice.
“Mariposa, do you want to stay with this vampire? You’re a grown woman, it’s up to you.”
Beatrice looked at Giovanni, then back to her grandmother as she sighed. “I think Gio’s right, Grandma. I don’t really like being bait, but I think he’s probably my best bet at this point.”
Isadora finally nodded, her eyes swinging back to Giovanni as he stood silently by the door. “Fine. Caspar, I’ll go with you, but I want to be kept informed. I’m tired of people keeping me in the dark and thinking I can’t handle things, do you understand?”
Giovanni nodded and withdrew from the room, leaving Isadora to the care of Beatrice and Caspar. Beatrice had no idea when Lucas had left, but she’d heard him say he would be back the next night to check on her grandmother’s recovery.
“B?”
She looked up to see Caspar watching her.
“Hmm?”
“Why don’t I show you to your room? I’ll find some spare clothes for you to sleep in until we can go to your house tomorrow and get some things for you both. I’ve already adjusted your security, but it’s better that we don’t go during the dark.”
“Okay.” A sudden thought occurred to her. “Hey Caspar?”
“Yes?”
“What happened? I mean, where were the guys who’ve been watching the house when they attacked Grandma?”
His expression was grim. “They were the appetizers.”
Three days later, Giovanni and Beatrice stood in the courtyard, waving to Caspar and Isadora as they drove away an hour before dawn. They were headed to a very private home in the hill country somewhere around Kerrville, Texas. A home, Giovanni had explained, that had never carried his name and would be almost impossible to find for anyone other than Caspar or himself.
She waved with a small smile, ignoring the twisted feeling in her stomach, and the little voice that warned this could be the last time she ever saw her grandmother. She walked back to the empty house, feeling Giovanni’s eyes burn her back as she left.
As much as she was grateful that Caspar and Isadora would be safer out of Houston, Beatrice also dreaded the thought of living alone in a house with Giovanni, and no friendly buffer of Carwyn or Caspar to distract her. They had been avoiding each other since the night of her grandmother’s attack, but she felt like he watched her almost constantly; she was more than aware of the building tension, and all that remained unspoken between them.
“Beatrice,” she heard him call as she walked through the kitchen. “Your escort will be here at eight. You will have plenty of time to get to your first class.”
She kept walking toward the living room. “Fine. I’m going to sleep for a few more hours.”
“I’ll see you tonight.”
She walked up the stairs, never turning to look behind her as she went to her borrowed room on the second floor. “Yep, see you tonight.”
“Beatrice.”
She finally paused and turned around. In a flash, he was standing on the step below her, so they were almost eye to eye. His hand lifted to stroke her cheek and the familiar tremor ran through her as she stared into his green eyes. “Caspar will make sure she’s safe. Nothing is going to happen to your grandmother. He’s more dangerous than he looks.”
She wanted to lean against him. She wanted to curl into his strong chest and feel his arms holding her as he chased away the chill of fear that had become her constant companion. She wanted to believe that nothing bad or scary was going to happen again. That her grandmother and Caspar were just going away for a vacation. That the world as she knew it had not ended the minute a beautiful blond vampire walked into the library. That it hadn’t ended years ago when her father escaped a madman.
Most of all, she wanted to believe that Giovanni would keep her safe.
“Nothing bad is going to happen to her?” she whispered. “Promise?”
She saw the flicker of uncertainty in his eyes.
“Yeah, I didn’t think so.”
Chapter Seventeen
Houston, Texas
May 2004
“Only one more final left, right?” Charlotte grinned when Beatrice entered the reading room. “And then that’s it for the graduate!”
Beatrice shrugged and set down her bag by the reference desk. “Until next semester. Then I can freak out about finals at the graduate level. Yay.”
Charlotte chuckled and shook her head. “What is with you lately? Are you getting nervous about moving? I think I’m more excited than you are.” The librarian continued sorting through the photographs on the counter.
“I guess I’m just missing my grandma.” That much was true. Beatrice was starting to feel like graduate school in California, even if there was no fear of strange vampires, wasn’t the best idea, after all. She had never imagined she could miss Isadora so much, though she was happy her grandmother seemed content and safe.
“How is she feeling? Have you talked to her lately?”
“Yeah, I just talked to her last night. She’s feeling great.”
“You know, I had no idea she had breathing problems like that.”