Page 143 of Dawn Caravan
No one gave him a glance.
Where had he always found Tatyana? She was usually near the humans cooking, seeming to prefer the company of humans rather than vampires. He scooped a few piles of manure along the edges of the inner circle until he spotted her.
“Vecchio!”
He tensed until he heard the accent. Ben turned and saw René walking toward him.
The man stopped a few yards away, seeming to examine a flower arrangement that had been erected near a music stage. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“We got your note,” he murmured. “It told us nothing.”
“It told you enough. Everything is in place. Come to the camp tomorrow night an hour before midnight. Meet me by the same birch tree where I left the gold.”
“You’re not the one in charge,” he said. “What did Radu say about me and Tenzin?”
“Nothing. People come and people go. Vampires here don’t ask questions.”
“And Vano?”
“Playing his part. His people were the last to arrive today.”
“Kezia?”
“Her people showed up the same day I returned to camp. They’re coming from closer range.”
“So all the Poshani are here now?”
“Yes.”
Ben moved to another pile of manure. “And you have the goblets?”
“I have access to them,” he said, strolling past Ben. “I have my own interests, Vecchio. Tenzin would do well to remember that.” He curled his lip slightly.“Merde.”
“Literally.” Ben flipped a piece of manure toward René. It landed perilously close to a handmade leather shoe. “Oops.”
“Tomorrow,” he said. “Eleven o’clock. Birch tree. That’s all you need to know. Now get out of here before someone sees you.” René walked off, leaving Ben with the shovel and the rake.
He set them behind a portable toilet, then strolled through the outer ring of the camp, his hands stuffed in his pockets. Maneuvering closer to the kitchen area, he stopped to wash his hands before picking up a few chairs and moving them to where a man was pointing and shouting.
By the time he’d gotten close enough to Tatyana, he knew he was pushing his luck. He had to be close to an hour. The last thing the plan needed was Tenzin roaring in like a hurricane.
Tatyana was standing near the humans again, listening to them chatter as she sipped a glass of wine and observed the clutches of Poshani vampires and visitors in the most inner circle.
“Tatyana.” He said her name barely over his breath, but she looked up.
“Ben Vecchio.” She glanced around and walked toward him. “I am surprised to see you here, where you definitely should not be.”
“Did Radu make my excuses for me?”
“He told us nothing. Only that you and Tenzin had chosen to leave the caravan. Is everything well with your family?”
“Yeah. I don’t know if Radu knows what’s going on.” He spotted Vano speaking to some of his guards. “Stay away from Vano. He’s dangerous.”
“You tell me things I already know.” She raised an eyebrow. “That man makes my skin crawl.”
“Tomorrow night,” he said, lowering his voice, “anything you can’t live without, keep it with you. If you need to run, be light.”
She narrowed her eyes. “What do you know?”
