Chapter Thirteen

When he heard the speeding truck coming around the bend, Avenir was standing beside his car. The passenger door was open wide and he was waiting for Sienna to return so they could go back to Oceanview. And then one of his extra senses kicked in, and he knew, instinctively, that she was in trouble. He couldn’t hear her thoughts and he wasn’t prescient enough to see the tractor trailer heading in her direction, but he could feel her panic. He knew that she wanted to run, but that she couldn’t move her legs. The sensation of fear she was experiencing passed through his body in one huge wave.

He knew he had to reach her and that there was only a matter of seconds in which to do it. So he clenched his fists and faced the road. In seconds, he went to the middle of the road where she was standing. He didn’t walk or run. He darted so fast he became invisible, hoping he’d be able to reach her in time.

A few minutes later, Sienna lifted her head and looked around. He was lying on top of her in a ditch by the side of the road. “Are you all right?” he asked. Her body felt fragile and soft. He held her gently to be sure nothing could harm her.

She shook her head and blinked. “The last thing I remember is the truck. It was practically in my face and I couldn’t move.” She rubbed her eyes a few times. “Where are we?” She lifted her head and moved it back and forth.

“We’re in the ditch,” he said. He lifted his head and sighed. “When I heard the truck coming, I ran as fast as I could.”

She squirmed a few times. “There’s something long and sharp poking me. I think there’s a branch under my leg.”

Avenir slowly went up and climbed off her body. He reached for her hand and helped her to her feet. The ground was dry and they weren’t wet, but she had to brush more than a few twigs and leaves off her coat.

“Let’s go back to Oceanview and Mavis will make you some tea,” he said.

But she stopped moving and stared into his eyes. “Wait a minute,” she said. “Something’s not making any sense here. I felt that huge truck pass through my body. It felt as if I’d become invisible.” She thought for a moment, and then asked, “And how could you have reached me that fast? You were standing next to your car. I saw you there.” She stepped back and tipped her head to the side. “And the next minute you were on top of me in a ditch.”

He cleared his throat and ran his fingers through his hair. “All that matters is that you’re fine, and that you didn’t get hurt,” he said. “Let’s go to Oceanview. I’d like to discuss the lost painting.” He wanted to change the subject as fast as he could. He knew Sienna was smart, and what had just happened made no sense at all. She should have been run over, indeed, by the truck. She shouldn’t have survived. His supernatural skills had saved her life, and now she wanted him to explain something he couldn’t.

And she wasn’t going to stop asking. “Oh no you don’t,” she said. “You’re not going to change the subject on me, Avenir. There’s something else going on here, and I want to know what it is.” Her hands were on her hips and one eyebrow was arched high. “You just saved my life, I know that. And I also know I felt that truck pass right through my body. I’m not one of those dumb blonds in a cheesy horror movie that walks into the dark attic all alone looking for trouble. I want to know how you got here so fast, and why that truck didn’t kill both of us.”

Avenir lowered his head. “Would it help if I told you that I’m in love with you and I’d do anything for you?” His voice was soft and low, and he gazed into her eyes as if he were a little boy who had just been caught stealing a candy bar from the pantry. He’d always been able to charm women with his good looks. He knew how to get away with things by flashing his innocent eyes long before he’d become a vampire.

When he mentioned that he loved her, she stopped and thought for a moment. Her face softened, as if she were processing his words for the future. Then she frowned again. “Don’t give me the puppy-dog eyes,” she said. “I want to know who you really are. And I’m not joking.”

“Okay,” he said. “But let’s go back to Oceanview first. I don’t want to talk this way, standing in a ditch by the side of the road.” He figured that if he stalled her for a while he might be able to come up with a logical excuse. He knew that he had to tell her his secret eventually, but he wanted more time to prepare her.

Sienna agreed to go back with him, but she didn’t say a word in the car. She sat in her seat, with her arms folded over her seat belt, and turned her head in the opposite direction. He tried to make small talk. He mentioned the stars in the sky, and how dry it had been for that time of year. And when he asked, “Isn’t there usually more snow this time of year here?” she pressed her lips together and gave him a look.

When they pulled up to the front door at Oceanview, Mavis was waiting for them with the doors wide open. She knew they were coming up the drive not because she was a witch, but because Avenir had just installed a security camera. She reached for Sienna’s hand and said, “I’m so sorry about your grandmother. Avenir told me all about it. It’s hard to lose a loved one so suddenly. You must be devastated.”

Sienna hugged her and said. “Thank you, Mavis. I appreciate it. Other than my brother, she was the only family I had left. I knew her health was failing, but I thought I had at least a few more years with her.” Then she smiled and pretended as if nothing was wrong.

“You’re very brave,” Mavis said. “I admire that.” Then she patted Sienna on the back and hugged her again.

Avenir stood behind the women and watched. You wouldn’t have known that Sienna was angry by the way she was smiling and nodding at Mavis.

Then Mavis looped her arm through Sienna’s and walked her into the drawing room. Avenir followed them, with one hand in his pocket and the other scratching the back of his head. He still wasn’t sure what he was going to tell Sienna. The thing that sickened him the most was the fact that Sienna might think he was a vicious freak and run out the door screaming.

While Mavis was preparing the tea in the kitchen, Sienna sat on the sofa next to the fire. Avenir sat on a chair facing the sofa. She was staring into a blazing fire; she was still ignoring him. So he said, “Are you feeling okay? I hope the fall didn’t hurt you. Maybe I should take you to the emergency room.” The thought of spending the night in an emergency room brought a sharp pain to his forehead, but it was better than telling Sienna the truth. “You never know about these things. Maybe they should take some X- rays to make sure nothing was broken when you landed in the ditch.”

She gave him a dead stare and said, “I’m fine. I’ve never been better.”

Mavis returned with a tea tray and said goodnight. When she offered her condolences to Sienna again, Sienna stood up and hugged her. But when Mavis was gone, Sienna sat on the sofa and folded her arms across her chest. “We’re alone now,” she said. “Let’s talk.” She straightened her back and crossed her legs.

“Don’t you want some tea first?” he asked. “It might make you feel better.”

“I feel fine.” The leg that was crossed was moving back and forth fast.

He knew he had to tell her the truth. There were no plausible excuses for what had happened. He’d lose her for sure if he didn’t. She’d never trust him again. She was the strongest woman he’d ever met, and he knew he couldn’t lie. So he stood up and crossed to the fireplace. He poked the logs a few times, then he said. “What I’m about to tell you might shock you. I’m not who you think I am.”

She shook her head. “So you’ve been lying to me all this time.” Her voice was soft, almost as if she’d given up a long-fought battle. “I should have expected it. I’ve been lied to before, so it’s no surprise.” She stared into the fire and said, “The hard part is that I thought you were different.”

“No,” he said, “I haven’t lied to you about anything. I’ve told you the complete truth, except for a few details that I left out. So, technically it’s not really lying. And the reason I didn’t tell you those details was because most people can’t handle these things.”

She gave an exasperated sigh and said, “Ah well, Avenir. In case you haven’t noticed. I’m not most people. I bake pies that everyone thinks are filled with magic apples, and I’ve been having complete conversations with a kitten. Give me some credit. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not exactly average.”

He laughed. She’d made a good point. He’d put her on top of an invisible pedestal, and that wasn’t fair. “Well, maybe I have underestimated you.” Then he faced her and said, “But this is more serious. Just promise me one thing. That you won’t run out of the house screaming when I tell you, and that you won’t hate me. I couldn’t stand that. It would kill me.”

Sienna stood from the sofa and crossed to the fireplace. She lifted both of his hands and said. “I could never hate you, Avenir. You should know that by now.” Her voice had mellowed, and she didn’t seem angry anymore.

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. This was the first time he’d ever explained himself to a human being. Then he looked into her eyes and said, “I am Avenir LaFramboise, the original Avenir LaFramboise. I am over one hundred years old and I knew this old house when it was brand new. I even knew Ned and Adriana Harrington, your ancestors.”

She let go of his hands and stepped back. “How can you be the original Avenir? That’s not possible. You’re joking with me now.” She was still smiling, but her eyes had narrowed.

He tilted his head and smiled. “But it is possible,” he said. “And that’s because I am a vampire.” Then, in order to prove his point and to save him from further explanation , he smiled and showed her his fangs. They appeared instantly, pointed and sharp and ready to suck blood.

Sienna jumped back and covered her mouth with her hands.

His fangs disappeared and he raised his hands. “Don’t be afraid,” he pleaded. “I’d never hurt you.”

She didn’t run out of the house screaming. Her eyes were wide open, her face went pale with shock, and she couldn’t open her mouth to speak. But she sat down on the sofa and took a few deep breaths. Then her eyes went up to meet his and she said, “I’m not afraid.”

He took a deep breath. “When I heard the truck coming toward you tonight, I knew you were in trouble,” he said. “I could feel your panic, and I couldn’t let you die. So I went to you as fast as I could, and when I wrapped my arms around you, my vampire body protected you from death and injury. The truck really did pass right through us, and the sudden impact caused us to land on the side of the road in a ditch.”

Then Avenir turned away from her and crossed to a window on the other side of the room. He couldn’t stand seeing the stunned, almost horrified expression on her face. But he knew he’d done the right thing by telling her. If there was even a slight chance of them being together, she had to know the truth. And she had to be strong enough to handle the truth.

“You saved my life tonight,” she said. “You put your arms around me and saved me from being crushed by a speeding truck.” She wasn’t looking at him. She was speaking to the soft gold flames in the fireplace.

He looked out into the dark, cold night and said, “I only ask one thing: Please don’t repeat this to anyone. No one must know about me. If you want to leave me and never come back, I won’t stop you. But if anyone finds out about me it would cause nothing but trouble.”

There was a moment of silence, and then he heard Sienna stand up from the sofa. He didn’t want to turn around and watch her leave. The image of her walking out of his life forever made him want to crawl into a coffin and close the lid for another hundred years.

He heard her footsteps, and then he felt her soft arms encircle his torso. She rested her cheek in the middle of his back and sighed. “I’m not leaving you,” she said, holding him as tightly as she could. “I need time to go home and process all this. But I’m not leaving you.” Then she kissed his back and said, “Thank you for saving my life.”