“But you’re so young.” She frowned. “It’s strange… Cain looks your age.”
“He’s not.”
Still frowning, she tilted her head and studied him. “How old are you?”
“Cain is thirty-seven and my eldest daughter will be fifty this winter.”
Her eyes grew big. “You’re fooling with me.”
“Would you like to know how old I am?”
She studied him, likely taking in the glossy sheen of his black hair and the smooth texture of his skin. “I won’t believe you’re a day over forty, and even then, I’m being generous.”
“I can help you, Clara.”
He sensed her disbelief as her lips firmed. “They warn us about people like you.”
“They?”
“The speakers at the community center. They tell us how to spot frauds, people who solicit the elderly to take advantage of situations when our options run out. Well, I can promise you, Mister Jonas, you won’t get a cent out of me. I don’t know what game you’re playing, but I don’t want your help. I think it’s time for you to leave.”
“There is no game.”
“Then what? Why are you here?” She pushed up from the table and collected the rifle, angling it in his direction. “It’s time for you to go.”
He stared down the barrel of the gun. “Death would be a welcomed mercy at this point.”
“Well, I don’t need any extra housework, so why don’t you do the polite thing and see your way out of my home.”
Dawn shined through the window, illuminating the many bottles of pills. He needed to seek shelter. “Imagine an eternity to protect your grandchildren and never fear death again.”
“Even if that were possible, which it’s not, could you offer my grandchildren the same? I’ve seen enough loved ones die. I don’t want to see anymore. Now, get out.”
“I could take the pain away.”
She cocked the rifle. “You’re wearing my patience thin, Mister Jonas.”
He could sense her exhaustion more than anything. Where she had held the rifle steady before, she now trembled under its weight. He didn’t believe she had the strength to pull the trigger and stay standing through the reverberation of a shot. But he admired her vigor and didn’t want to see her weakness exposed.
He stood and stepped toward the door. Looking back at the darkened doorway leading to the rest of the house, certain his son listened to their conversation, he said, “Cain will watch over you. If you need anything, he will see to it.”
He wasn’t sure how his son had maneuvered his way into her trust, but he was grateful he had since Jonas had failed. Useless during the daylight hours, he fully intended to return and try again tonight. No matter what his mind or heart wanted, his soul insisted he stay by his mate.
“Lock your doors,” he warned as he left. The greatest danger to Clara at the moment was him, and he had no idea what condition he’d be in when he returned.
Chapter 32
Larissa washed her face at the ewer, taking her time while Eleazar was gone. He’d left early that morning to speak to her family and to find Cain. She didn’t expect to hear from her brother any time soon, and Eleazar was needed back in front of The Council today, so when someone knocked at the front door, she panicked.
Eleazar rarely used that entrance and she’d only ever seen him come in through the adjoining office door, so she knew right away it wasn’t him entering the house.
Creeping down the steps, she pressed her back to the plaster wall and slowly peeked behind the front window’s curtain. Adriel Schrock stood on the porch, shoulders back and chin lifted in its usual proud manner.
Larissa wasn’t sure what to do. She hardly knew the elder woman, and no one was supposed to know she was there.
“Larissa? It’s Adriel Schrock. Eleazar sent me.”
Startled that the woman knew of her presence, she questioned the sincerity of her words. Very few immortals referred to Eleazar by name. Was this woman his friend? She recognized her scent from his office.
“I know all about your situation—and your need for secrecy. You can trust me.”
Biting her lip, she debated what to do.
Adriel sighed. “The longer you leave me standing here, the more suspicious it looks to anyone passing by.”
Hiding behind the wood, Larissa opened the door and the female stepped inside. Her sharp green eyes sliced through the shadows. “Thank you. I brought you a bonnet and some other things Eleazar thought you might need.”
When Larissa didn’t take the stack of clothing, the woman huffed and set it on the chair against the wall. “You’re as skittish as—"
A little mouse.
Adriel chuckled. “Is that what he calls you? I’d sock a male for such a belittling endearment.”
Larissa hadn’t even felt the female in her mind.
“He’ll learn, dear. There’s nothing mousey about you. You’re still young and discovering your strength.”