Tales of the Djinn: The Guardian Read Online Free Page B

you and
Arcadius join me at my table.”
    “You honor us,” Joseph said gravely.
    Elyse felt a blush creep into her cheeks.
“Well, I’m not a gourmet or anything. Come back in half an hour if
your . . . if Arcadius is agreeable.”
    That won’t do , she thought as Joseph
bowed to her and left. She’d nearly called Arcadius his master
too.
    ~
    When Joseph returned to the cellar, Arcadius
was studying the microwave’s cryptic buttons, trying to pluck their
meaning from the ethers. A gust of cold accompanied the loyal man
through the door, and Joseph shut it again quickly. Arcadius saw he
looked excited. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes were
bright.
    “I have inveigled an invitation,” he
announced, “for both of us.”
    “An invitation?”
    “To Elyse’s table for dinner. I played lost
lamb. She is a widow. And she can cook.”
    These facts seemed to delight Joseph equally.
Caught off balance, Arcadius rubbed his chin. “A widow?” A twinge
of sympathy touched him. Though he’d never taken a wife, he
imagined losing a spouse would be painful.
    “Yes.” Joseph rubbed his palms together. “She
seemed sad about the loss. I sensed no other inhabitants in her
home, no aunts or sisters. I’m sure she is lonely and
vulnerable.”
    This was convenient, considering.
Arcadius tried not to feel uneasy.
    “Her home is nice,” Joseph added. “Not like
this bloodless place. I suspect her late husband wasn’t compatible
with her.”
    The logical trail he’d followed to this
conclusion was unclear, but Arcadius let that pass. Joseph was
probably right. The manservant was a good judge of character.
    “Do you suppose the husband died violently?”
he asked. “Could his death be the one whose energy you drew
on?”
    Joseph’s triumphant grin faltered. “Perhaps
it was. Forgive me, master. I should have thought of that
myself.”
    “You can’t think of everything, or what would
I use my brain for?”
    “Seducing her?” Joseph suggested more bawdily
than he would have a week before. Arcadius’s character wasn’t the
only one in danger of changing under their new conditions. He
didn’t scold the servant. They’d known each other too long and had
no one else to count on their exile.
    “I shall close my eyes and think of England,”
he promised.
    “She isn’t that bad,” Joseph said fairly.
    Elyse’s soft pink mouth rose into his mind.
No, she wasn’t that bad. In truth, a tiny part of him was looking
forward to wooing her.
    ~
    Given that she’d told her guests to return in
half an hour, Elyse had to make a choice. She could do something
with her face and hair, or she could set the table. For various
reasons, the table won. If her guests were gay, fussing with her
appearance might make them nervous they’d have to set her straight.
If they weren’t, well, she wasn’t ready for a new man—assuming she
had the wherewithal to catch one.
    No one could compare to David anyway. He’d
been one in a million.
    Pushing her familiar sadness down, she
settled for smoothing back the crazier wisps of hair that had
sprung up while she was at the stove. Her place smelled good at
least. The wine was breathing and she’d tossed a nice salad. She’d
gotten the impression her guests didn’t cook at all. She might not
possess her father’s bonhomie, but she wasn’t the worst hostess
either. Her as-good-as-it-gets hospitality was probably good
enough.
    The knock that straightened her from the
finished table wasn’t Joseph’s. This solid rap was noticeably
bolder.
    Arcadius , she thought, going to answer
it.
    To her dismay, her palm was tingling as she
turned the old glass doorknob.
    The taller of her two renters stood right in
front of her. His sheer size caught her unprepared. This close, she
could tell he topped six feet by a couple inches—and that he
radiated authority. She barely noticed his friend behind him.
Arcadius’s presence was too intense, his chiseled face too
dramatic. His fine-edged mouth could