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I wasn’t ready to say goodbye.
“Sorrel,” he moaned against my lips. “We need to stop before we do something amazingly wrong.”
“Amazingly wrong?”
“I have no doubt making love to you would be amazing, but it would be wrong.”
I let out a deep breath of agreement.
He kissed my forehead and lingered. “I love you.”
“I love you too.” And with that we parted and took our seats.
I hesitated to start the RV. Eric gave me an encouraging smile, all while holding his thermos and his book. I hated them both. I swore I would save him if I could. Maybe I had enough inside of me to heal him, to overcome the curse’s power. Maybe I wouldn’t have to today. Still, today would become someday, and someday the curse would end and my heart would be broken.
While I drove, my body shook, and my eyes darted every which way on the lookout for Eric’s family. I was more afraid of them than the curse. Not only because I had seen what they were capable of but because Eric would die to stop them. I didn’t think I could bear it. I kept hearing my father’s voice telling me to be brave and my own five-year-old self reminding me of my promise. I remembered when my father had told me I was cursed. Not for a second did it scare me. There was no question I would break this curse. As I’d aged, that courage waned. Yet it wasn’t until Eric came into my life that I became afraid I would break it and remain alive.
Before we drove to my old home, Eric made us wait for hours at a rest stop while his poison steeped. We did nothing but sit on the couch and hold on to each other in silence. My mind raced with how to save him and us, but I was at a loss. And I had a feeling I would lose it all today.
When Eric said it was time to go, I drove slowly, ever so slowly, hanging on to every minute we had together. And I was nervous to see my old home. I wasn’t sure what we would find. The book had demanded we leave so quickly when I was a child that my mother had been forced to sell it remotely. Did the new owners care for our vineyard the loving way my father had? It had been twenty-one years since I had been back. The landscape had changed a lot because of new developments and homes in the area. I wouldn’t have even been able to find it if it weren’t for Eric’s investigative skills—he could find almost any record on the internet.
It wasn’t a good sign when we turned on to the road that headed toward the vineyard and found that the once pristine and beloved place was now in serious disrepair. The potholes were more like craters, and the lines on the road were so faded it looked more like a one-lane street. When we arrived at the long drive that led to our old property, there was a “No Trespassing” sign on the old rusted gate mostly hidden by weeds.
I stopped the RV in front of the gate and looked at Eric for his take on things. “I’m not sure anyone lives here anymore.”
“There’s one way to find out.” He unbuckled his seat belt.
“Where are you going?”
“Relax. I’m just going to see if I can open the gate.”
I wasn’t sure I would ever fully relax again. “Are you sure your family isn’t here?”
“I think you might be better able to judge that. Do you feel as if you’re being watched?”
“Not right now.”
Eric opened the door and got out, leaving his book on the seat but taking his thermos. I didn’t think he trusted me not to dump it out. That was smart of him. Eric approached the gate. I watched his every move, unclicking my own seat belt in case I needed to rescue him. Not really sure how I would do that, but I hoped the light in me was based on my fight-or-flight response and would kick in when needed.
Eric had to clear away some of the overgrown weeds before he could get to the latch on the gate. With some effort he was able to push it open enough for me to drive the RV past. Once I was through, he closed the gate and hopped back in the vehicle.
The once vibrant and beautiful property was giving me the creeps. Half of the trees that lined the gravel road leading to the house and vineyard were dead and rotting. There were weeds as tall as me everywhere and even some old abandoned cars and mounds of junk. I was irritated at whoever had let the place fall into such disarray.
