Page 24 of Curse of Ancients

“Pwetty animals.” He held out his fingers, curling them, and growled.

Bayu blinked back the tears that threatened to fall. Until recently, he hadn’t cried since the day he left home, but now, it was as though his heart was both breaking while being stitched back together. Seeing how much trouble Carleigh’s family had gone to for Juni in such a short time was overwhelming.

Juniper walked over to the dresser and patted the top. “We washed his clothes and put them in here. Since it’s warm weather, we didn’t bother with a jacket, but there are some shoes in the closet, along with extra sets of sheets.”

Carleigh stood and hugged her sister. Bayu wanted to embrace the female too, but he didn’t know how she would receive it, so he said, “Thank you, Juniper.” Bayu turned to find Jon leaning against the doorframe. “And you, Jon. All of this means the world to Juni and me, even if he’s too young to say so.”

Jon inclined his head. “You’re welcome.”

“Oh, wow!” Katherine entered the room, followed by Julian. “If it were anyone but Connor, I would say I can’t believe he did this so quickly.” She dropped to her knees beside Juni who was now trying to play with all the stuffed animals at one time. He held out a couple to her, so she lowered to her butt, crisscrossing her legs to play with him.

Carleigh touched Bayu’s elbow. “Come with me?”

Bayu followed her across the hall to the master suite. “I just wanted to give you a little breathing room since Juni’s occupied.” She pulled him into a hug, and Bayu melted into her arms. Like Juni had done several times, Bayu shoved his nose into the crook of Carleigh’s neck and inhaled. If forever had a scent, it was Carleigh Stone. She rubbed his back with one hand while cradling his head with the other. He wanted to fall apart and let her take control of everything. So much had happened in the last few days, but Bayu hadn’t truly taken the opportunity to let it sink in.

He raised his head but kept his arms around his mate. “I don’t understand how Baekyo could be this all-powerful god and still allow this to happen to my family. If the Nuhuala is his champion, why would he not step in where the Black Lotus is concerned? If it wasn’t for not having access to Tiger, I wouldn’t care. I would say ‘fuck it’ and let whatever imbalance there is in the universe happen. When Juni ran off earlier, I tried to shift. I couldn’t.”

“I’m so sorry. I would probably be despondent if I were cut off from my beast. As for Baekyo, I don’t have the answer to that. I’ve never understood why bad things happen to innocent people. Why little kids have to get cancer, or why women and children are trafficked. Why can’t all the bad shit happen to the rapists, and traffickers, and murderers?” Carleigh moved one hand to his cheek, caressing it with her thumb. After standing in silence just holding each other, Carleigh gestured around her. “This is our bedroom. I haven’t changed anything since my parents moved out. Not that I haven’t wanted to; I just haven’t taken the time. Since you’re here now, maybe we could decide together what changes to make. I do want to get a bigger bed.”

“I have a king-sized suite at the apartment. It’s in good condition, and the wood is the same color as what you have now.”

“Since Jon offered, how about you make a list of everything you want to bring over now, and he can go get it? He can get one of our cousins to help with the bedroom suite.”

“Carleigh, are you sure? I know I keep asking, but I don’t want you to—”

Carleigh placed her fingertips over his lips. “You are my mate. The fates chose you for me, and I’ve never seen them make a mistake. Like the human vows say, for better or worse. We will get through this curse crap together. You, Juni, me, and my Clan. Hopefully Gemi too. I want you to reach out to her and tell her we can help look for Kiki. She shouldn’t do that alone.”

“I would appreciate Jon helping since I can’t go back to my apartment. As for Gemi, I will text her, but I doubt she accepts the assistance.”

“Even if you confide in her we are a Clan of Gargoyles?”

“Is it safe to put that in a text? What if the Black Lotus captures her too and sees there are other strong beings they could be targeting?”

Carleigh leaned into Bayu’s chest, resting her cheek against it. “There are very few things that can harm the males, but I see your point. We have a lot to do, so how about for now, I move some of my things around so you have somewhere to put your clothes. You can make that list for Jon before you unpack, and I’ll get started on the drawings? Mom and Juniper will take care of Juni, and Dad will do his thing in my office.”

Bayu agreed, and he pulled out his phone and made the list. Since Carleigh had plenty of furniture, he only listed the bed instead of the whole suite for now. He didn’t want Jon to have to empty his whole apartment, so Bayu only asked that he bring over the necessities. When that was done, he texted it to Jon and gave the male the key to his apartment. Jon called one of their other cousins to help at the apartment, then told them he would see them soon. Carleigh showed Bayu the drawers that were his, and while he unpacked his bag, she retreated downstairs. Bayu checked in on Juni who was having a large time on the floor of his new bedroom with Kat and Juniper. Since Jon was bringing Bayu’s bed, he stripped Carleigh’s bedding off and placed the sheets in the dirty clothes hamper, then folded the queen-sized comforter and set it off to the side. He then carried the mattress downstairs. Carleigh was sitting at the island in the kitchen, her phone propped up in front of her, drawing on a notepad.

“Where would you like me to put this?”

Carleigh tapped her cheek with the pencil. “In the garage for now.” She stood, taking her phone with her, and opened the side door. She tapped her phone a few times, and the garage door whirled as it opened. When he passed by, she popped him gently on the butt. Bayu arched a brow, and she grinned. “What? You have a nice ass. Sue me.”

Bayu chuckled. He loved that she was playful with him. If they weren’t in the middle of a crisis, he would want to see exactly how playful she could be. He placed the mattress against one wall of the garage, and when he reached the door to the house, Carleigh pointed to the biometric scanner. “Put your thumb against the reader please.” Bayu did as she asked. “The code is 197355. Now you can get inside.”

“Thank you. I’ll be right back with the box springs.” Carleigh returned to sketching the symbols, and Bayu finished moving her bed to the garage. When he closed the door and entered the kitchen, Juni was running through the house with Juniper and Kat watching. “What’s up with him?”

“He’s exploring,” Juniper responded. “He said Harry needs to see their new house. At least that’s what I think he said. I also believe he’s fighting to stay awake.”

“What if he breaks something?” Bayu started after his brother, but Carleigh stopped him.

“Accidents happen. We told him to be careful since there are things that can hurt him. Juniper pointed out what he needs to avoid, but once he’s down for a nap, I’ll just rearrange anything glass or with sharp edges to somewhere he can’t reach.”

Bayu tugged on a strand of Carleigh’s hair. It was getting harder to keep his hands to himself, but he wouldn’t disrespect her in front of her family. “You do realize he’s a tiger cub and can climb, right?”

“Well, crap.”

Katherine laughed softly. “That’s the fun of parenting. Keeping your kids alive when all they want to do is explore. Set boundaries with him. Be firm but gentle, and if he messes up, remind him why he has to be careful. I didn’t have to worry so much with Carleigh since her nose was always in a book, but Juniper? That girl was into everything, and the higher it was, the more she was determined to reach it.”

Juni ran full out toward Bayu and didn’t stop until he hit his shins. “Bafroom, pease.”