"Where are you going?"
"Into town to settle our bills. I want to get away as soon as possible."
Karyn stood in the center of the room feeling stunned as Roy slammed out of the house. She had handled it badly, but there was no justification for Roy's sudden anger. She had not expected him to instantly accept the idea, but she had counted on being able to discuss it with him. The thought of running back to Los Angeles now seemed wrong. It left an unpaid debt to Neal Edwards and Pam Sealander. And to nameless others who would follow.
Feeling numb and defeated, Karyn left the house and walked slowly across the small clearing to where Inez waited standing beside the car.
"I guess it didn't go too well," said Inez.
"It went badly," Karyn said.
"He didn't believe you?"
"He wouldn't even listen to me. He thinks I'm hallucinating. Could he be right, Inez? Is it possible there is something wrong with my mind?"
"There's nothing wrong with you, Karyn. If you're crazy, so am I."
"Roy might agree with that too."
"Very possibly. He didn't even look at me when he stormed out of the house. Where was he going, anyway?"
"Into town to pay our bills. We're going back to Los Angeles tomorrow."
"Oh?"
"I feel that I'm running out on you."
"Don't be silly. It might be the best thing for you."
For a moment the two women faced each other, then Inez put her arms around Karyn. They clung together like sisters.
"Take care of yourself," Inez said.
"You too."
A little self-consciously they moved apart. Inez put her hand on the car door handle.
"Well… goodbye," said Inez.
"Goodbye. We'll be in touch, won't we?"
"Of course."
Even as they spoke, Karyn could see in the other woman's eyes that neither of them believed it. After Drago they would never again see each other.
Inez got into her car and drove off down the road without looking back. Karyn went into the house and sat down to wait for Roy. Suddenly she was very tired.
Chapter Eighteen
When he was a hundred yards down the grassy road toward the village, Roy Beatty slowed down. His anger had melted away, and he was ashamed of the way he had spoken to Karyn. He reminded himself what she had been through, and that the only reason they came to this isolated valley was to help her. The last thing in the world he should be doing now was losing his temper and storming out of the house like some sulky adolescent.
But a werewolf! It had to be, Roy decided, Inez Polk who was putting such ideas into Karyn's head. He wished now that he had gone over to the car when he came out of the house and had it out with the woman. But at the time he had been too angry. All he wanted to do was get away.
Well, no, that was not quite right. His real reason for going to the village, he had to admit, was to see Marcia Lura one more time. He would have to tell Marcia he was leaving. It would not be easy, but it was impossible to simply go without seeing her again. His emotional bond to the green-eyed woman was too strong to allow that. Roy could not put a name to the emotion between him and Marcia. Not love, certainly, not in the sense that he loved Karyn. Lust was more accurate. Sheer physical attraction. Chemistry. And yet there was more to it than that. Marcia Lura had introduced him to sensual delights that were beyond anything he had experienced. Beyond anything he had imagined. No, it would not be easy to leave what he had found here.
Roy came to the main road that led into the village. As he turned and walked toward the gift shop he tried and rejected a number of opening remarks for what he must say to Marcia. There was no way to soften it.
In a way, he told himself, it was good that this business with Karyn had come up now. Eventually he would have had to break off with Marcia, and the longer he put it off, the more difficult it would be. Her hold on him would grow with every meeting. It was like a strange sweet sickness.
The village of Drago was bright and empty. Eddies of dust curled along the main street in the light breeze. The shadows of afternoon had barely begun to darken the valley. Roy turned at Marcia Lura's gift shop and pushed in through the door.
The bell over the door tinkled, an incongruously merry sound that did not match his mood. He peered around in the perpetually dim light of the shop.
Marcia came in through the curtains in the rear that separated the shop from her living quarters. She wore tight-fitting pants that hugged her thighs and belled out at the ankles. A striped blouse was open several buttons down, revealing an amulet on a gold chain that hung in the crevice between her breasts.
"Hello, Roy," she said. "I wasn't expecting you until later."
For a moment he stood looking at her without speaking. Her pale-green eyes were softly luminous in the dusk. The black hair had an animal sheen to it that reflected blue highlights. She was so beautiful it brought a lump to his throat.
"I have to talk to you, Marcia," he said finally.
"All right. Come in the back." She reached out a slim arm to part the curtains.
For a moment Roy hesitated. Somewhere deep in his subconsciousness a warning sounded, but the nearness of the woman, the heat of her body, the scent of her, overpowered his doubts. He walked through the curtain into her rooms.
"I was having some tea," she said. "Let me make you a cup."
Without waiting for him to answer, Marcia went to her small gas range and turned up the flame under a copper teakettle. From a canister she spooned crumbled leaves into a cup, then added a few drops of thick liquid from an opaque bottle. Roy watched, fascinated by the grace of even her smallest movements.
When the water was boiling Marcia poured it into the cup and stirred the mixture. She carried the cup across the room and set it on a low table before the sofa.
"Let the tea steep for a minute before you drink it," she said. She sat down on the sofa, patting the cushion next to her.
Roy sat down beside her, but was careful not to let their bodies touch. To keep from looking into her eyes, he busied himself stirring the tea. Its aroma was a mixture of spices with a hint of something bitter.
"You wanted to talk to me," Marcia said.
"Yes."
"About us?"
"In a way. And about Karyn. She isn't getting any better."
"I'm sorry."
"So am I. I'm going to have to take her away from here."
"You're leaving Drago?"
"I have to."
For the briefest fraction of a second Marcia's body stiffened. The pale-green eyes narrowed, and Roy saw a flash there of something dark and dangerous. Then it was gone. Marcia was poised again, cool and lovely, and Roy thought he must have imagined the moment.
"How soon must you go?" Her throaty voice was without emotion.
"Tomorrow."
"I see. Your tea should be ready to drink now."
Roy looked down at the cup as though wondering where it had come from. He lifted it to his lips and sipped the dark brew. It had a sweet, wild taste.
"Do you like it?" she asked. "It's a very old recipe."
"It's fine," he said quickly. "Marcia, I don't want to talk about the tea."
"About what, then?"
"I hate to leave you. Do you know that?"
"I know," she said. "But we never pretended it was forever, did we?"
"No, but I want you to know that it wasn't just a… a fling for me. You've been something very special in my life. You've given me something I've never known. I'll never forget you, Marcia."
Marcia leaned toward him. Again he had the delicious sensation of being drawn into those deep green eyes. Into them and down to unknown depths.
"No," she said softly. "You never will forget me. Drink your tea, darling."
He raised the cup and drank. The pungent steam brought tears to his eyes. When he put the cup back down in the saucer he was surprised to see that his hand was shaking.