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“We have that in common.”
The witch regarded her for a moment in silence. “I know you’ve been in Assjacket for several days. Are you looking for something in particular here?”
Alicia shrugged. “Only the opportunity to inject some meaning into my increasingly dull immortal life.”
The witch raised an eyebrow. “I see. And did you find that meaning?”
“Getting there.”
“That’s good to know.” The Baba Yaga scanned the otherwise empty diner. “May I ask when you’ll be moving on? It seems the presence of an unknown vampire has made other residents a bit shy.”
“If that’s the case, know I meant no harm,” Alicia replied. Then she smiled and stood up from the table. “My departure is imminent, but I really do love this town. It’s so quaint and beautiful, and everyone who hasn’t been too shy around me is so friendly. Honestly? I feel like here in Assjacket, I could become anything I want to be. So thank you for that.”
She extended her arms to the Baba Yaga, who, after a moment, allowed Alicia to embrace her.
“My pleasure, of course,” she said tightly, awkwardly patting Alicia on her back, before stepping out of her hug-range.
I glanced at Thierry to see his reaction. Me? I was kind of loving being only a spectator of all of this awkwardness rather than having the starring role.
He was frowning slightly but otherwise remained unfazed.
“Now, back to business,” the Baba Yaga said. “Thierry, I would like to ask for two, perhaps three hours of your time. It is rare that such an important and renowned representative of vampirekind visits this town. I would like to take you on a tour while we discuss matters related to the ongoing peace between your vampire Ring and the witch’s council.”
“Of course,” Thierry said without missing a beat. “It would be my honor.”
The man really should have been a politician. I mean, I’m glad he wasn’t, but he totally could be.
“Excellent. Whenever you’re ready, we’ll begin.” The Baba Yaga gave him a big smile and moved aside to speak with her silent, robed compatriots.
“Sarah, may I speak to you privately for a moment?” Thierry asked evenly.
“Of course.” I followed him to the far corner of the diner while Alicia watched us curiously. “What is it? I mean, other than you basically getting ready to leave me for this super sexy other woman.”
He shot me a look, and his lips quirked. “I will do my best to resist the Baba Yaga’s many charms.”
“Literally,” I said. “I’m sure she has more up her sleeve than sparkling magic smoke. Based on her outfit, she might have a shiny Walkman and possibly the ability to moonwalk.”
“I’ll certainly be on my guard,” he agreed wryly. “While I’m gone, I must ask you for a favor.”
“Sure, anything.”
His expression grew grim again. “It’s about Alicia.”
His shift in moods unsettled me. “What about her?”
“Her husband believes that there is more to her recent, erratic behavior than what she claims. He thinks she is seeing someone, a new lover; one who has deeply nefarious intentions toward the Ring and vampires worldwide.”
I blinked as I took this in. “Nefarious intentions.”
“Deeply.”
“I can’t help but notice you haven’t mentioned this piece of important information about this assignment until now.”
“I wanted to gauge her reaction in person before I burdened you with any extraneous details.”
A potential direct threat toward vampires didn’t seem that extraneous to me. I crossed my arms over my chest. “So you lied to me about your ex.”
“It wasn’t a lie. It was an omission. And saying she’s my ex is quite an exaggeration. We were together for only a single weekend.”
