Page 3 of Bound to the Dragon
I was warmed by her eager welcome, and a little overwhelmed, too. As Mayor of a tiny town, I still figured she had more important things to do than visit me out here, but she was this stick of dynamite, full of eager energy. I liked her.
She’d introduced herself as Mayor Pecks, but she insisted I just call her Granny Liz. I had never had grandparents before in my life. It felt strange, and even a bit disrespectful, to just call her that. “Now, are you sure you don’t want me to round up some lads from around town to help you out when the movers get here?”
I shook my head and smiled, pressing a hand to the small of her back to get her to step off the makeshift repaired section of the porch. “Certain ma’am,” I said, “I can handle it. Besides, I already called the plumber. He should be here to help me turn on the water again.”
Her kind gray eyes narrowed, laugh wrinkles smoothing out around the corners. “Turn on the water? You mean the well has run dry? Surely not?” Well? What well? I looked around the empty, dusty front yard in surprise. Was there a water well I should be drawing my water from? I imagined pulling buckets out of a wishing well to get water and winced. I really hoped not!
At the confused expression on my face, she kindly drew me with her around the corner of the house. On the other side of the partially covered vegetable garden was indeed a stone well, a lid solidly on top of it. To my relief, there were also pipes leading from said well to the house. “Oh, well, the plumber can help with that too, can he?” I asked cautiously.
Granny Liz smiled. “If you called for Ted, you’ll be just fine, sweetheart.” She patted my hand when I quickly nodded. There was only one plumber in town; Ted had been my only choice unless I’d wanted to pay a premium to get someone from the nearest city to make the drive. When I’d called him yesterday, I’d decided I’d patronize the local options first.
“Now then, you just wait for Ted to help you out. Make sure to tell him I said to give you a discount!” She headed for her car with a quick, jaunty stride, still smiling at me when I waved her goodbye. Then she paused and tilted her chin up, her eyes growing wider as she tilted her head left and right.
A few seconds later, I heard the sound of a car engine, a deep, smooth rumble that was coming up my dirt road. Granny Liz didn’t get into her car but straightened to glare down my drive in such a fierce manner. I was shocked her kind, grandmotherly features could even pull off such a glare. It was an extremely impressive look.
The car that turned into my drive was a black Lexus, the luxury sedan entirely out of place on a dirt road. Already, its pristine coat of shiny paint was covered in a fine layer of dust. The person who got out of the car looked just as out of place. A woman with a sharp face and thin lips, she was dressed impeccably in a two-piece suit with a narrow skirt. She looked like my former boss from back in New York.
The sight of her sent a shiver of dread up my spine and the silly urge struck me to kick off my work boots and dig my toes into the farm ground beneath my feet. Since when did it make sense to meet a shark barefoot? A little baffled by my impulse, I walked across the yard to meet my latest guest.
I didn’t really want to because this lady seemed like bad news, so I was relieved when Granny Liz just fell into place at my elbow. It looked like the Mayor wasn’t about to leave me alone. The woman had risen to her full height, nylon stocking-clad feet tucked into stiletto heels that made walking across my out-of-shape yard impossible. Not that she didn’t make it look absolutely effortless; definitely a shark.
“Good morning,” the woman said, her haughty expression shifting to something warmer and more welcoming. The look was ruined when her eyes darted from my face to my dusty and torn jeans to the old, paint-splattered t-shirt I wore. She wasn’t impressed, but she still offered a hand to shake and continued with false friendliness. “Are you Miss Foster?”
I eyed the pale hand as I took it to shake, her flesh icy cold to the touch, but the gold rings on her fingers quickly warmed against my skin. “Yeah, that’s me. Who’s asking?” The lady had her blonde hair piled on her head in this neat chignon, not a strand out of place. Still, she shook out her fingers and then carefully pretended to slide a lock of hair behind her ear. Likeshe had disliked my touch, and it had unsettled her, the bitch. Was it because I was too black for her fancy pale ass?
“This is Miss Elie,” Granny Liz said by way of introduction. Her voice was razor sharp as she cut into the conversation. “Miss Elie represents the Sunworld Corporation.” My eyebrows shot up. So she was some fancy lawyer, was she? Why would one of those drive out here to visit me? I’d only been here a day; that couldn’t be a coincidence. Word really did spread fast.
“Yes,” the woman drawled, “Mayor Pecks is correct. I’m here to offer you a deal for the mineral rights on your land.” She speared me with diamond shards of blue, her eyes cutting me like a laser. “This is the offer,” and she held out a stack of papers. In bold letters right in the center, probably purposely there to catch my eye, a monetary offer that was extremely generous.
At my elbow, tiny Granny Liz hissed under her breath. “Trying to steal more land, destroy more of our beautiful town! You snake!” Louder, she demanded, “You should just leave, Miss Elie. Rosemary isn’t interested in what you’re selling!”
The tiny old lady stepped around me to push the papers away, but the shark wasn’t having it. She raised them and then stretched out her arm, pressing them against my chest. “Take them, Miss Foster. Read the papers. My number is on there. Give me a call when you’ve made a decision. There is room for bargaining here.”
I accepted the papers, my fingers tingling from where I’d touched her hand. Two spots glowed hot against my fingers where her rings had heated against my skin. I didn’t like her. I didn’t want to sell this land to her, or even just give them mineral rights, whatever that meant. The offer was very generous, though. It wasn’t as much money as I’d get if I stayed here a fullyear, but it would mean being free to leave instead of living in a firetrap.
As the shark, Miss Elie, got into her Lexus and drove off, I clutched the papers and stared. My thoughts whirled with all the options; with what this could mean for me. Granny Liz didn’t turn back to look at me until the car had completely faded from sight and even the smooth rumble of the engine was gone from my hearing.
“Well then. Now you’ve met the town’s troublemaker.”
Chapter 4
Rosemary
My head was all over the place after both my visitors had left. Luckily, I didn’t have very long to think about things; I had just enough time to toss the papers in my backpack. Then I had my hands full with the movers and the plumber showing up at nearly the same time.
All day, I was running all over, trying to get everyone to do their job right. At least the movers didn’t have to unload all that much, and I insisted on carrying the more fragile of my plants myself, carefully arranging them on an old but sturdy table in the dining room. When they left, I spent the rest of the day making friends with Ted. The older man promised to explain what he did every step of the way so I could fix it myself next time.
By the time I had running water, my meager furniture and things unpacked, and my plants watered and cared for, I was a sweaty and exhausted mess. This time, at least, I could take an actual shower in the master bedroom, the water running cold, but fresh and clean.
After I’d dined on gifted casserole, I curled up on my mattress, in my fresh sheets, sighing with happiness that I didn’t have to sleep another night on the hard floor. The paperwork lay all but forgotten in my backpack next to the bed. I sank into dreams very quickly, my body growing warm and heavy to the sound of rain clattering on the roof above me. I spared only a single thought about how well the old roof would hold up against such a torrential downpour.
I wondered if I’d dream of that strangely alluring voice again. Would I dream of a phantom man who lured me outside in the dark? Phantom touches that heated my flesh. I almost hoped that I would.
I didn’t count on the sound of banging on the front door to shake me from my sleep. Instantly awake, I shot upright in my bed with my heart pounding in my throat. The rain was still pouring, clattering on the roof tiles loud enough to drown out most noises, but not the insistent, frantic banging on the door.
My eyes darted to the two-by-four I had left on the nightstand next to the bed. I didn’t have a handy baseball bat or a shotgun, so I’d taken that from the barn in case I needed protection. My fingers felt sweaty as I curled them around the square piece of wood and tiptoed down the stairs.
This house was in the middle of nowhere, just far enough from town to make walking here extremely unappealing. Maybe it was someone with a car that had broken down? But my road only led to one place, the farmhouse. Why would anyone be on it?