Page 14 of Valley of the Shadow
Giovanni was endlessly patient. When Beatrice became overwhelmed, frustrated, or worried, he was a well of calm. He never called Sadia by anything but her name. There were no nicknames like the teasing “princesa” that Isadora and Beatrice used for the little girl when she was being obstinate. Giovanni called their daughter Sadia, and in his mouth their child’s name sounded like a blessing.
Four horses from the ranch drew close, and Beatrice saw who rode them. Carwyn was at the front, his red hair flying up in the wind. He wore a colorful wrap around his shoulders and a grin on his face. When he reached the party, he went directly to Natalie.
“There you are.” He reached across and enveloped her in a wild embrace. “I’m so glad you came to us.” He sat back and put his hand on her cheek. “What a clever woman you are.”
Jake was sitting upright, blinking his eyes. “Mom?”
“Jakey, this is our friend Carwyn. This house belongs to his family.”
The boy took a deep breath and yawned. “V-vampire?”
“Indeed I am.” Carwyn stuck his hand out to Baojia. “Good to see you, my friend. It has been too long.”
“Thank you,” Baojia said solemnly. “I will never be able to repay you for welcoming us like this.”
“These aren’t debts we keep track of, are they?” Carwyn’s smile never wavered. “Not between friends.”
As they drew closer to the ranch, Gus began barking orders to the others on horseback, directing them to the packhorses and those carrying luggage. The party rode past the first set of corrals filled with cattle that had been penned for the night, and within a few minutes, all the children and humans were wide awake as they rode into the compound. Dogs barked, horses stamped, and cattle lowed in the background.
“Dad!” Jake sat up and pointed. “Look at all the dogs!”
“I see them.” Baojia muttered something under his breath.
Sarah sat up and looked around. “What’s that smell?”
“Cows,” Carwyn said. “Do you like hamburger?”
“Oh.” Sarah’s eyes went wide. “Are these hamburger cows?”
Some of the adults laughed, but Jake looked at his sister disdainfully. “All cows are hamburger cows.”
“No, they’re not!” Sarah looked indignant. “Henrietta is a milk cow.”
“An excellent point, Miss Sarah. We have milk cows here as well,” Carwyn said. “I’m not sure if any of them are named Henrietta.”
Beatrice recognized the name of a familiar children’s storybook cow and hoped that Sarah’s bovine love wouldn’t be too sorely tested by spending a year on a working cattle ranch.
Carina pointed. “Mom! Mom, they have little goats. Look!”
“I see that.”
Sadia said nothing. She was wide-eyed and silent as she took everything in.
As they entered the ranch yard, Beatrice scented the aroma of meat cooking on a grill. They passed the last set of corrals and rode the horses between the houses and toward the long red barn behind the bunkhouses.
Friendly hands waved from the porch, human and vampire intermingling. In Gus and Isabel’s valley refuge, there were no secrets and all the humans were accustomed to the immortals. For the most part, those who occupied the ranch were family of one sort or another. The few others were trusted friends and employees.
Beatrice rode up to the barn and dismounted, tying her horse’s reins to a long hitching post before she turned and held her hands up to Giovanni. He handed their daughter down, and Beatrice wrapped Sadia’s arms around her neck.
“How is myprincesa?” Beatrice asked.“Cómo estás? Estás cansada?”
Sadia spoke enough Spanish to shake her head. No, she wasn’t sleepy, though her eyes said otherwise. Beatrice pulled her wrap close around Sadia and pressed her cheek to hers. “Are you cold?”
She nodded.
“Let’s go wait by the fire, okay?” Beatrice looked around for Dema, but she was helping Natalie and Baojia with their two kids. Giovanni dismounted and passed the reins to one of Gus’s ranch hands before he took Beatrice’s hand and walked back toward the fire.
At the back of the yard was Gustavo and Isabel’s large ranch house with all the main rooms of the compound, the dining hall, library, and large living rooms. Jutting off the side was a simple chapel with a cross rising from the top. Fronting the house was a deep porch that provided shade and rain protection year-round.
