Page 34 of The Mating Fire
“A sandwich a day keeps the demons away?” she asked, unsure why she’d mentioned demons.
Jared raised black eyebrows. “Perhaps the right kind of demons it deters, if you fuel your magick enough. You’re living in a different reality now, Harper.”
She waved a hand. “Demons never scared me. Not the fairy-tale demons told in stories. Well, except for one.”
Jared leaned forward. “Do tell.”
She finished half the sandwich and set the other half down.
“I guess every kid has these secret fears that gnaw at them when the lights go out. You pull the blanket up to your chin, make sure the closet door is shut tight, and your feet never dangle over the bed’s edge. I never worried about the monster hiding in the closet or under the bed. Not even when myclassmates would tell spooky stories at Halloween. But my one classmate was military and had moved from Germany and told us about the Krampus parade…”
“Krampus parade?” Jared looked odd.
“It’s a cultural event, a parade at Christmastime, Dec. 5, that replays the folk stores of Krampus. I guess the parade is to keep the demons away.”
He studied the mountains. “I suppose it works. I’ve never visited Germany, not at Christmastime.”
Odd remark. “Anyway, Krampus is this creature with dark hair and pointed ears, fangs, and horns and carries a batch of sticks to beat children with. He’s half-demon, half-goat with big, sharp teeth and a forked tongue, and a forked tail. My friend showed me a photo of the costumes in the parade. Wicked scary.”
“I’ve heard of him,” he said in a dry voice. “How did this…Krampus legend scare you?”
Harper felt her stomach pitch. “It happened, when I was a little girl. Maybe around seven years old, I don’t remember. But I’ll never forget the terror.”
Her throat went dry, and she sipped water. “Then I made the mistake of telling my parents about Krampus. I guess I thought they would sympathize.”
A short laugh. She’d been so wrong about that. Even at the tender age of seven, she realized they didn’t care.
“Tell me,” he urged.
Bitterness simmered as she remembered the incident. All she’d wanted to do was attend a Christmas party hosted by a classmate who had previously ignored her. All those months of desperately wanting to make friends with this girl and she’d finally been invited to her house for their annual Christmas party for all the children.
She explained this to Jared.
Harper smoothed out the linen napkin on her lap. “At home, I talked nonstop about the party, and I kept bouncing around with excitement. Usually I was quiet, because you never knew when my father’s temper would erupt, but this was special. My mother, for once, tried to take my side when my father ordered me to stop talking about it. Did no good. Finally, my father dragged me outside and told me if I didn’t shut up about the damn party, Krampus would get me. Come and take me away and then eat me alive with his big, sharp teeth because that’s what Krampus did to naughty little girls.”
Jared went still. A shadow touched his face. “What happened?”
The next part still dredged up fear, as if she were that long-ago little girl, fearing every shadow that moved. The excellent sandwich congealed in her stomach, leaving only hot, greasy terror.
“He left me outside and told me to think about how naughty I was being. Locked me out.”
“Oh,” she added as anger furrowed his brow, “it was Florida, so it wasn’t cold. But it was dark in the backyard, no lights. So dark. And you know, when you’re a kid, the dark holds all kinds of nasty monsters. I sat on the steps, trying to be brave, and then I saw a shadow move, and heard this laugh…”
Harper ducked her head and drank more water, chasing away the vision in her mind, the fangs ready to cut and pierce, the birch stick bundle Krampus carried descending on the bare skin below her shorts, his horrifying chuckle as he whisked her away to eat her alive…
“Anyway, eventually I screamed and banged on the door, promising to be good, and my mom let me inside. My dad laughed and said it hadn’t taken long for me to come to my senses.”
Jared’s mouth compressed and his gaze darkened. “Bastard. Did you go to the party?”
“No. It… no longer held the appeal.”
Harper brushed away a crumb as if brushing away cobwebs of memories. “It’s okay. I got over it, like I did a lot of things. As most kids do.”
“Most children aren’t locked outside their homes with threats of a demon eating them alive.”
His voice was gentle, almost compassionate. She didn’t want his pity.
“It doesn’t matter. It’s in the past. I’m all about the future.” She lifted her head and locked a defiant gaze at him. “My future and getting out of here.”
