Dancing with the Viper by Amy Beatty

Author:Amy Beatty [Beatty, Amy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780578412740
Publisher: Stickpin Press
Published: 2018-11-16T00:00:00+00:00

24

Jon stood looking at the closed front door. Maybe he should’ve gone with them. Maybe Hanna would’ve gone too. Maybe there could’ve been one more magical evening in which he was still just her new friend, Jon, and she didn’t think he was a monster. Didn’t know he was a monster. But she deserved to know.

He turned to face her. Hanna stood with her arms folded across her chest. Her face was tight and her body tense. “I didn’t give you permission to show that note to Kamm,” she said. “What ‘matter’ are we talking about, and what does he mean that it will ‘be addressed’? I want an explanation, Jon. What does that note say?”

He wanted more time. He wanted to reach out to her, to touch her face, to hold her, to feel the tantalizing softness of her body pressed against his, to kiss her one more time—could she even know what a gift that had been? But she was angry with him now. And would be worse than angry later. And there was no more time.

He waved vaguely at the couch and said, “You are right, Hanna. I am sorry. Please sit, and I will show you what it says.”

Hanna relaxed at his capitulation but still eyed him a little warily as she perched stiffly on the near end of the couch. Jon wanted to sit by her, to put his arms around her and draw her close, to tell her it did not matter. But, of course, it did matter. It would matter a great deal to Hanna. And it was not right for him to sit beside her on the couch and pretend it did not. He lowered himself to the floor next to her feet instead, so she sat above him looking over his shoulder as she had at the soaking pool. He would seem less threatening this way. He took out the note, carefully unfolded it, and held it up with one hand where she could see.

“First,” he said, “you should know that the handwriting is recognizably that of my sister, Narista.”

“It’s from Narista?” Hanna didn’t sound entirely surprised. What did she know?

“Yes,” Jon said gravely. “And before I read it, you should also know that this is almost certainly nothing more serious than a harmless prank intended to frighten you.”

“I see,” Hanna said, even though she could not possibly.

“This is what it says.” Jon pointed to each line as he read it aloud.

“The Mouse may play

In the Viper’s den,

But she is a mouse still,

And he is a viper still,

And Death may come to dinner.”

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