Sips of Blood Part 11

Wil had joined her in the kitchen.

"My grandmother..."

"I thought I'd give the old folks some time alone."

Just what Grandmother wouldn't want.

"You have very pretty eyes, Liliana. And your skin is so translucent." Wil reached out to touch one of her cheeks, and she backed away. "The paleness of your complexion makes you look delightfully delicate. Any man would like to reach out to hold you and protect you. Would you mind if I gave you a hug?"

"Yes, I would."

Liliana attempted to walk by Wil, but he grabbed her left elbow.

"Don't misunderstand me, Liliana. I feel a strong attraction to you, but would never act upon it unless encouraged to do so."

"Have I encouraged, Wil?"

"You've been very polite."

"I hope politeness in your world isn't taken to mean 'easy mark.'"

He smiled. "It's taken as a maybe." He allowed her to walk past.

"Thank G.o.d you're back with some paper towels. We've been swimming here while waiting for you."

Liliana noticed that her grandmother glanced at her briefly, then settled her gaze on Wil. "What were the two of you doing so long in the kitchen? It's sort of like one of those jokes. You know. 'How many people does it take to retrieve a paper towel?'"

Liliana spread the paper towels over the water stain. The white linen tablecloth already had soaked up the water.

"Would you like more water, Mr. Bridgewater?" Liliana asked.

"Another beer would be better."

"I'll get it for him," called Wil on his way back to the kitchen.

"Grandmother, I think I'm coming down with something. It may just be a bad cold, but..."

"I understand if you must go, dear. Perhaps Keith could take you home."

"I'll take her home," said Wil as he put a beer in front of his father.

"It's your father's car, Wil. I should think he'd want to drive," said Grandmother.

"Lately I've been driving the car more than Dad."

"Actually, I drove myself here, and I'm sure I can drive myself back home," Liliana said.

"Not if you're ill," Wil protested.

"Wil, if my granddaughter says she can drive herself, then she can."

"Maybe I ought to follow you a ways. My stomach doesn't feel too good, so I should be leaving also." Keith groaned.

"If Dad's going, then I guess I am."

"Why?" Grandmother's voice sounded too high-pitched.

"Because I drove Dad here, and if he needs to get home..."

"Son, I'm not going to stand around and argue. Before it got settled I probably would have barfed all over this woman's table."

"Your father is so eloquent. However, I would like to speak to you alone, Wil. I can always drive you home later." Grandmother's eyes glittered with hunger.

"I don't feel up to driving," Keith solemnly said.

Liliana noticed the father's color was just a shade lighter than bile green.

"Grandmother, why don't I take Keith home, and Wil can use his own car when he wants to leave."

"Good idea." Keith burped.

In Liliana's Saab, Keith didn't look any better than when he had been seated at the dinner table.

"Your granny is a strange lady."

Liliana remained quiet.

"She's a powerful lady, too. You know, she knocked me down one night because I got in between her and my son."

"I'm sure it was an accident."

"No. But the thing that gets me isn't the fact that she hit me. No. It's the power to her punch. It's not a lady-like punch."

Liliana couldn't keep herself from smiling.

"I'm serious. There's something about her. It's something supernatural."

"Supernatural?"

"Yeah. Not only does she pack a powerful wallop for a woman, she's also mighty strong for a man. And I don't think it's just getting laid that's she's after. Excuse me for talking like this about your granny, but I thought you could give me some insight into where she's coming from."

"The family doesn't know what to expect of her next."

"And the family consists of..."

"Just my uncle, myself, and Grandmother."

"Never met your uncle."

"It's better that way."

"He and your granny are related by blood?"

"Yes and no."

"That's ambiguous."

"Are we almost to your house, Mr. Bridgewater?"

"How come you have no interest in my son? He was certainly trying hard to get into your--impress you."

"All we need are the spotlights, and this would definitely be an interrogation."

"I'm an old man that doesn't have many interests and no friends to speak of. Certainly not your granny." Keith shook his head. "She is a really weird lady. What was her husband like?"

"She hasn't been married for years, Mr. Bridgewater, and I barely remember him."

"You were that young when he died?"

"No. He was that busy."

"So she had to make it on her own most of the time."

"Mr. Bridgewater, were you a psych major in school?"

"Never went to college. Went to work right after high school. Matter of fact, I started my job the day after I graduated. Didn't meet Wil's mother until years later. Played the field for a long time." Keith laughed in remembrance.

"There seems to be a fork in the road. Which way do I go?"

"Go left."

Keith remained silent for a long time, and Liliana left him alone with his memories.

"Make a right here."

"But, Mr. Bridgewater, this is a cemetery."

Liliana turned onto a gravel road. A plain iron gate stood before the car. The doors of the gate seemed to be haphazardly closed.

"I'll open the gate." With effort Keith got out of the car and walked up to the rusted latch on the gate. The latch squeaked as it gave up its security. Keith opened the gates and came back to the car.

"Why are we stopping here, Mr. Bridgewater?"

"I want you to meet Emmeline."

"Your dead wife?"

"She lives here."

And he thinks my grandmother's odd.

She drove slowly into the cemetery. Weeds had started to fill in gaps in the loosely packed gravel. The surrounding trees cut off the view of the public road.

"Just up ahead and to your right."

Liliana followed the instruction. She arrived at a sort of cul-de-sac of tombstones and stopped.

Keith got out of the car, and Liliana wondered whether she should follow or allow him time alone with his wife. Just when she decided to stay in the Saab, Keith beckoned to her. High heels were not the best shoes to wear on gravel, she decided as she limped along.

Keith took off his white s.h.i.+rt and started dusting a tombstone.

"Haven't been here in a while. I like to s.h.i.+ne it up when I visit. Usually I even bring a bottle of spray detergent."

His pot belly hung over the belt of his trousers. Several moles spattered his back. One particularly large mole looked injured, as if it had been scratched or were possibly seething with a disease Keith didn't know about.

"We were together for fifteen years. Did everything together. You know, through that fifteen years we never spent a night apart. I couldn't sleep unless her little round bottom was smack up against my big bottom."

Keith looked around.

"You have anyone buried here?"

"No family. Only a few acquaintances of my uncle."

He nodded.

"She had to have a baby. Wouldn't have felt that she was a woman unless she gave birth. Me, I didn't care. I had nothing special to leave my kin. We spent several weekends f.u.c.king our brains out trying to get her to conceive. Finally, on a rainy afternoon, she got the word from her doctor. She was tickled pink, and I was happy for her. The child wasn't important to me. She was."

"Did you ever love your son?"

"I love my son as a son. I didn't chose to have him come into this world to murder his mother. But I guess the boy didn't chose to commit his sin."

"I don't believe it was a sin. It was unfortunate and hurt him as much as you."

"He never knew her. How can you miss someone you don't know?"

"He knows he doesn't have a mother."

"She started taking up knitting and crocheting. Was really bad at them. She'd lose st.i.tches. Forget an armhole. Emmeline was a pet.i.te woman, must have been no more than four-eleven in bare feet. Slender hips, not meant for birthing."

When he turned to look at Liliana, she saw his eyes s.h.i.+ne under the light of the quarter moon. He used the s.h.i.+rt in his hand to mop his face.

"Why does your granny want my son so bad?"

"My grandmother is friendly."

"No. Not even his body would satisfy her. The woman wants his soul. She wants to reach in and tear it out."