The Bride Of Casa Dracula by Marta Acosta

Author:Marta Acosta [Acosta, Marta]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2010-01-21T06:00:00+00:00

Since Oswald wasn’t around, I asked, “How is your brother? And Ilena?”

“Wildly happy together. He called last night and I told him about your accident. He’ll be relieved to learn that you were only a victim of rats.” She laughed, and when

I didn’t join in, she said, “Try and see the positive side. A girl in trouble is irresistible

to Oswald. He wants to have some troubled female leaning on his strong and capable shoulders.”

After our meal, we settled into the family room with blood spritzers and watched a Dutch film about a young artist who goes mad when her lover abandons her. I found it

quite tragic and blinked back tears. Cornelia seemed to think it was a comedy. When I gave her a look, she said, “Oh, Americans always take love so seriously.”

“Cornelia, what is your nationality, anyway?”

“I’m a citizen of the world, darling.”

It was the same answer her brother had once given me. I thought they probably had a stash of various passports and identification documents. I took a few dog biscuits outside and wandered into the fields calling for Pal. He probably didn’t even know he had a name.

I went through the garden, inhaling the scent of mock-orange, and remembered a poem I’d read somewhere about the scent of the blossoms. I’d look it up tomorrow. As I washed up before going to bed, I kept looking at my engagement ring glittering in a china dish on the vanity. Beside it was the silver penknife. The next day, I decided that I was done with being passive and patient. The first thing I was going to do was get behind the wheel again. I told Cornelia I was running

a few errands and would be back soon.

“If you don’t return, shall I alert a pest control company?”

I could have come back with several snappy rejoinders about Cornelia and vermin. But now I owed her. “Can I pick up anything for you in town?”

“A case of the palest rosй you can find,” she said. “That little spa has a nail polish

called Bruised that I like. And please bring back the latest issues of the magazines,

including both French and Italian Vogue.”

“Sorry, but the store only carries the domestic edition.”

“What good is that? Oh, bring it anyway.”

I took my keys and went to my little green truck. Before leaving, I looked in the engine. It stank of the mothballs Ernie had put in there to deter rodents, but nothing

was obviously amiss.

On the way down the drive, I hit the brakes and played with the steering. Everything was fine. There was nothing to worry about. Although the town was small, the local market had a fine selection of wines from local wineries. I found a suitably uncommited rosй and bought a case, along with magazines and groceries. The cozy spa was out of Bruised but recommended a similar red-black shade called Gangrene.

I kept the truck’s windows down, not just because my air-conditioning was broken but so I could better listen to the engine. My confidence in the vehicle was restored by

the time I pulled into the parking lot at the nursery.

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