He stood, shifting as he did so, and just like that, he was gone.
The Dolomite Mountains were certainly a different place to travel in now, considering how wild the area had been with so few human inhabitants in comparison to the many who traveled there now. Skiing, hiking, cycling, all of it was advertised to bring in tourists in all seasons to share the beauty of the mountains.
Sandu and Adalasia with the four guardians flew into one of the airports close to Trentino and then rented a private car to drive to Val di Non, where they hoped to start their journey into the mountains. They were feeling their way. Everything was very different, and with so many hotels and people, they had to be very careful to blend in.
The brotherhood of the monastery had put out a call to Tiberiu Bercovitz to meet them in Val di Non if possible. Sandu had thought long and hard before he sent the invitation to the Carpathian, but he knew, had any of his brethren heard possible news of Liona and not told him, he would have challenged them to a fight to the death. Tiberiu deserved to hear what they had learned, and it was up to him whether or not he believed them, or thought it could be his little sister, long lost to the Carpathians.
If Bercovitz wasn’t in Val di Non, they wouldn’t wait for him. Anxiety was beginning to press on Adalasia. She wasn’t saying anything. She hadn’t once complained, but he knew she was concerned that somehow she would fail in her responsibility to hold the gate closed. Sandu still was uncertain what they were supposed to do when they reached their destination. He didn’t think Adalasia knew either, which added to her anxiety.
Even softening their images, they still drew attention when they reached the farmhouse where they had booked reservations and had hoped to meet up with Tiberiu. The farmhouse had only a few rooms. They managed to rent them all, including one for Tiberiu. They had explained he might not make it, but they would pay for the room just in case. Adalasia was the only woman, and Aria—running the bed-and-breakfast with her husband, Amato Sartori—naturally gravitated toward her.
“Mrs. Berdardi, how lovely to meet you, dear.” She looked at the men traveling with her. “You have quite the escort.”
“My husband, Sandu, and his brothers, Nicu, Siv, Benedek and Petru. Please call me Adalasia.”
Although the brethren were never happy to be in civilized company for long, they could be very charming, and they abided Sandu’s silent warning not to let Adalasia down. They gave their hostess their best smiles and even bowed slightly in their old-world way, causing her to blush.
“Please call me Aria. Amato is out with the animals at the moment.” She frowned, started to say something and then stopped herself.
Instantly, Sandu felt a shadowing grip him. He glanced uneasily at his brethren. They were every bit as concerned as he was. The owner of the farm was deeply worried, and they were used to seeing, hearing and feeling that particular note. Evil had crept into this couple’s world in some manner.
“I’ll take you on a quick tour of your rooms and the kitchen area. The farm is, of course, open to you. That’s half the fun,” Aria added. “Seeing our way of life and the animals. I have breakfast ready early, but it stays in warmers until nine.”
“We will be leaving very early,” Adalasia said. “We won’t be needing breakfast, Aria, so please don’t go to the trouble. We tend to travel at night, when we don’t run into as many people. Traffic is terrible in the cities during the day, so when we wanted to make good time, we started traveling at night and just got used to it.”
Aria frowned, pausing at the door of one of the rooms. “That’s not a good idea here, dear. I know you said you were going backpacking and hiking in the mountains. It can be wild country. There are unexplained things here. I don’t want to scare you, but it just isn’t a good idea to go at night.”
Adalasia gestured toward the tall men crowding into the hallway. “I think there’s enough of them to handle anything that comes along.”
Aria crossed herself as she opened the door and indicated the room. “This is for you and your husband.”
“It’s lovely,” Adalasia said. “I love the quilt. I’ve always wanted to learn to make them.” She rushed over to the bed and ran her hand over the top of the quilt. It clearly was handmade—a work of art.
Aria looked pleased. “I learned from my grandmother.”
Sandu took advantage of Adalasia and Aria conversing about quilts and learning to make them. He scanned the woman’s memories, looking for anything that would indicate the undead had been near the farmhouse.