CHAPTER 12

 EKIMMU WASN’T IMPULSIVE, but she felt the urge to indulge in an early brunch. Normally not a morning person, she rarely made an appearance before late afternoon or evening. For some reason, though, her stomach was complaining almost to the point of nausea, an unusual sensation. Putting on her sunglasses, she headed to her favorite spot outside of the restaurant.

Elana, her regular waitress, smiled when she saw the blue-eyed, dark-skinned woman. She had just begun her shift and was surprised to see Ekimmu so soon.

“You’re early today, Ms. Elil. What would you like for lunch?”

“Just a bowl of fruit and a small croissant.” Ekimmu returned the smile.

“Not your normal order,” Elana teased, placing a cup of tea on the table. “I was beginning to wonder if you ate anything besides rare steaks and veggies. I’ll be right back with your food.”

Ekimmu chuckled and picked up the tea. She was growing fond of the young woman. Looking around, she saw several familiar faces sitting at the other tables. Distracted, she didn’t notice the tall slender woman walking past her until a slight bump to her left shoulder jarred her. Hot tea spilled from her cup onto her lap, causing her to jump up, instinctively brushing at the stain with her napkin.

“Oh, my!” the blond woman with golden eyes said. “I’m ssoo ssorry.” She grabbed the napkin and dabbed at the dark stain on Ekimmu’s slacks.

“It’s nothing,” Ekimmu replied, watching the frantic actions of her assailant.

“Nothing! Don’t be ssilly. Did the tea burn you? I’ll pay for the cleaning, of coursse,” the woman offered, opening her purse to pull out some money.

“Really, it’s okay. I spilled something on them earlier.”

“It’ss a nicce lie but unneccessary. I feel sso bad about thiss. Can I at leasst buy you another cup?”

“Now that’s an offer I’ll take you up on.” Motioning to the chair across from her, Ekimmu sat back down. “I guess we should introduce ourselves. I’m Ekimmu.”

“Ekimmu, I don’t think I’ve ever heard that name before,” the woman said, extending her right hand. “I am Ssarpe.”

“A rather unusual name in itself, I’d say.”

“I’ve never thought about it. I guesss it might be.”

“If my memory serves me well, it’s an old Rumanian name. I believe it means serpent or snake,” Ekimmu said.

Laughing, Sarpe leaned close and whispered in a conspiratorial manner. “Actually, it’ss a lot older than that. But they do like to take credit for itss origin,” she said jokingly. “You’re right, though. It does mean sserpent. You’re very asstute.”

“Not really, just well traveled. I’d say your folks had a strange sense of humor.”

“And I’d ssay you might be right.”

Sensing Sarpe wasn’t Carpi, Ekimmu was curious about the woman’s origin. Her voice was soft but lacked an accent, her words lingering slightly on words with an S. Short golden hair glimmered while golden brown eyes glinted brightly but blinked rarely, even though the sun’s glare was intense and shown directly in her face. Tanned skin added to her exotic appearance. Ekimmu’s eyes roamed down the slender frame dressed in dark brown slacks and a cream-colored silk blouse before returning to the eyes.

Aware of the inspection, Sarpe sat motionless. When they made eye contact again, she smiled, showing even white teeth with slightly elongated canine teeth. Faint dimples crinkled the cheeks, causing Ekimmu to inhale slowly while licking her lips unconsciously.

Both became aware of a waiter standing silently by the table holding a pitcher of water.

“So, Sarpe, what would you like?”

“Whatever you’re having. I sso rarely indulge in ssuch luxuries.”

“You mean tea, right?”

“But of coursse. What elsse would I mean?” she asked innocently.

“What else indeed.”

Turning to the waiter, Ekimmu ordered two cups of tea and another buttered croissant. Then she focused on the woman sitting across from her. Normally, Ekimmu could guess a person’s nationality. There were subtle cellular differences that gave away many things about an individual’s ethnicity, race, and lineage. Ekimmu’s people had identified those subtleties eons before. Sarpe had none, which made Ekimmu both uneasy and fascinated.

Sarpe leaned back in her chair, silently studying Ekimmu. While in human form, the spirit found the other woman quite pleasing to look at. In the light of day, her brown skin glistened, giving it a healthy glow. It was the eyes, though, that she found the most compelling. Blue, the color of a glacial lake on a cloudy day, made it almost impossible to look away once she made eye contact. Even Sarpe felt their power. Only her own strength allowed her the opportunity to return the gaze unmoved.

“Well,” Ekimmu said, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable. “Where do we go from here?”

Sarpe smiled. “Where would you like to go?” she countered, arching her right eyebrow.

The question caught Ekimmu off-guard. Adjusting her seat slightly to keep the sun’s rays away from her skin, she laughed. Sarpe glanced at the angle of the light, making a mental note of the woman’s action.

“I think this is one of the few times in my life I don’t know what to say,” Ekimmu confessed. “Perhaps if you told me something about yourself, it’d be a start. After all, it was you who assaulted me.”

“Very true. Good manners would require me to sstart, I ssuppose,” Sarpe agreed.

“I didn’t mean it that way.”

Waving her hand nonchalantly, Sarpe chuckled. “Fair is fair. Assk a quesstion and I’ll try to ansswer.”

Shaking her head, Ekimmu relaxed. “Nicely done. Now the ball’s back in my court. Let’s see. How about you tell me a little about where you’re from and what you do?”

“Hmm. If I were to choose my place of origin, I’d have to ssay here and I really don’t do much of anything.”

“Now that’s informative,” Ekimmu teased. “Place of origin is a strange way to describe where you’re from. I’m assuming you mean you were born in Moldova.”

Laughing softly, Sarpe leaned forward slightly and winked. “That would be the asssumption, yess.”

“A woman of mystery, I see. Okay. I’ll let that go for now. It’s obvious you’re not Carpi.”

“Why obviouss?”

“You don’t have the right accent. Nor do you have any of their physical characteristics. At best, you or your family are transplants.”

“I ssee there is a very sharp mind behind those beautiful blue eyes.”

Taken aback by the compliment, Ekimmu felt the blood rush to her face.

“Have I embarrasssed you? I do apologize,” Sarpe said, reaching out and covering the other woman’s hand with her own. “I tend to ssay what is on my mind when I’m around... people.”

Ekimmu noticed the slight hesitation on the last word but was distracted by the cool hand holding her own. Enjoying the contact, Ekimmu turned her palm up and gently clasped the other woman’s hand.

“So I see. I have the feeling you don’t spend much time around people. You seem a little uncomfortable.”

“Am I that obvious?”

Tilting her head to the side, she stared at Ekimmu curiously.

“As a matter of fact, yes, but don’t worry. I’m sure no one notices,” she smirked. “Maybe it would be easier if we started on less personal grounds,” she suggested.

“A good idea. How do you like Teraclia and itss people?”

“I love it here. The climate is wonderful and the people are fascinating.”

“I take it thiss is your first visit then.”

“No, I’ve been here before, a long time ago.”

Breaking eye contact, Ekimmu looked wistfully at their hands still clasped on the table.

“Ssad memories?”

Ekimmu looked into Sarpe’s eyes, momentarily caught off-guard. “No, not really. Actually, they were good times. My parents and I stayed here a few years. That’s how I learned the language. We moved around a lot, though. This is the first time I’ve been able to come back. It’s changed a lot.”

“Time does that. Sstill, you can’t be more than thirty-three. There musst be ssome things that have remained the ssame.”

Ekimmu laughed. “One would think. I guess I’ve just forgotten them.”

The comment required no response, so Sarpe remained silent.

When the waiter arrived with their drinks and pastries, both were relieved at the distraction. Reluctantly, they released each other’s hand and felt an immediate loneliness.

“They make the flakiest pastries here,” Ekimmu said, wanting to change the subject.

“I’ll take your word for it.”

A sudden feeling of being watched made Sarpe uncomfortable. Looking around, she noticed a tall, pale-skinned man standing near a newstand leafing through a magazine. Had it not been for the subtle glances he cast in their direction, she would have completely overlooked him. Sarpe knew he was the source of her uneasiness.

Pushing the untouched food away, she stood. “I’m sso ssorry, Ekimmu, but I didn’t realize how late it is. I need to take care of ssome business while there’s sstill enough daylight.”

Ekimmu rose to her feet automatically. “Certainly! Perhaps another day,” she stammered, clearly dissappointed.

“I would like that. Are you sstaying at the hotel?”

“For a few more days. Then I’ll be moving on.”

“Good. I’ll be in contact. Oh, I’ll need your lasst name when I call.”

“Elil.”

“Well, Ekimmu Elil. I’ve enjoyed our time together. I’ll call.”

Placing her napkin on the table, Sarpe walked away. Ekimmu watched the sway of her hips and how her body flowed easily with each step.

“Damn!” she muttered. “I could definitely get up close and personal with that one.”

After Sarpe disappeared around the corner, Ekimmu realized she hadn’t asked the woman her last name. Sarpe had subtly controlled the conversation. The thought left her feeling extremely vulnerable and restless.

“I need a good walk,” she muttered, remembering the soothing coolness of the nearby forest.

 

*  *  *

Shortly after sunset, Ekimmu decided to return to her hotel room. It was then she heard the wolves’ baying. Recognizing the pain in their cries, she hurried in the direction of the howls.