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“That’s an idea, actually. I don’t have a lot of spare time, but I could take a limited number of orders each week.” He grinned. “I could become a gourmet blood dispenser.”
Smoky harrumphed. “No offense to you, Menolly, but we really don’t need a lot of vampires hanging around the property.” His ankle-length silver hair shimmered as it rose to thunk Morio lightly on the head.
I snorted. “I tend to agree with you. Morio, if you’re serious, you should take orders at the meetings and then have them delivered, by vampire messengers. No use in taking a chance on setting up some poor delivery person for being somebody’s dessert. So what did you find out today?”
Morio shook his head. “Wait till dinner so nobody misses it. Shamas will be here in a few minutes. We’ve brought him up to date on what’s going down in Otherworld.”
Camille was foraging in the fridge for salad dressing, butter, and all the usual condiments. “He took it hard. The guilt about his foray into sorcery is exacerbated by the news about Telazhar.”
I nodded. Shamas was our cousin, and he’d escaped our former queen’s wrath by using sorcery to wrest energy away from a triad of assassins who were out to kill him. He’d teleported himself out of the dungeon, and later we’d been reunited and brought him Earthside.
Shamas was the spitting image of our father and Camille. He and Camille had feelings for each other when we were younger, but she was long over him. However, Delilah and I privately believed that he was still in love with her, though he tried to deny it.
“He’d better get over that guilt. What happened, happened. He fucked up and he knows it, but the best thing he can do now is to use what he learned to help us instead of trying to repress it.” I frowned, looking around. “Is Nerissa home yet? That fucking doppelganger has spooked me and I won’t rest well until she’s back from her conference.”
Delilah grinned. “She called an hour ago. She’ll be here any minute. I asked her to come directly over instead of going back to her condo first. I figured we might want to go with her to check it out and make sure everything there is safe. She won’t make it here by the time we start dinner, but she’ll be here soon.”
Relieved, I jumped up and gave her a hug. “Thank you. I was worried about that. The demons have broken into our house before. Our enemies could easily get into her condo. I wish she’d just come here…”
“Speaking of houses, Bruce and I got word that our trailer will be delivered tomorrow. So there will be a little more breathing room in here, though I’ll still be here all day. But Hanna will take over making supper for me. I’m starting to tire a little quicker now.” Iris patted her belly. “The bun is extremely active.”
“Do you know whether it’s a girl or a boy?” Trillian glanced over at her.
Iris blinked like a deer in the headlights. “Actually, yes, I do know. And I have some news. I saw the midwife today and she did a scan—think of it as a magical ultrasound that my energy and nature won’t interfere with. Um…” She paused. “Bruce, honey, sit down.”
Bruce, the curly-haired leprechaun she’d married who looked like a slightly older Elijah Wood, gave her a long look. “You are all right, love, aren’t you?”
“I’m fine. Fit as a fiddle. But we’re having twins.” She blushed and ducked her head. “A girl and a boy.”
Bruce blinked. “We’re what?” Then, with a laugh that belied his stature, he slapped his knee. “Oh, girl, that is too fitting. Twins run in my family and I’m not at all surprised. We’re off to a good start, my love.”
I grinned at them. “Twins, huh? You’re determined to make up for lost time, aren’t you?”
Iris snorted. “I know very well what a handful they’re going to be. But I’ve waited for this for a long time, girl. And I intend to enjoy every moment I can. Except for the morning sickness—that can go away, especially since it lasts all day long.” She sighed. “I’m just sorry it means I won’t be able to help out more.”
“You’re part of the family. We’ll be helping you for a change.” Camille walked over and took Maggie from her. “Here, Smoky, will you feed her while we finish getting dinner on the table?”
And so, for the next few minutes, the chatty bustle continued. Smoky took Maggie and put her in her specially designed high chair, feeding her the cream drink she so loved, but only after she agreed to eat a few bites of the ground lamb Iris had prepared for her.
Maggie was starting to eat the meat she needed in order to grow, but it had been a fight to get her to give up several of her bottles in exchange for solid food. She’d still get her cream drink three times a day—morning, evening, and right before bed, along with three meals of ground meat and other foods she needed for growth.
Our little gargoyle would be a baby for a long, long time, but we were seeing the gradual changes in her as the weeks went by. While she wouldn’t grow out of toddler stage for a good fifty years or more, she was gaining more balance, using more words, and learning.
While Smoky fed her, Iris helped Hanna with the last of the dinner and everything was ready by the time Shamas walked in. He washed up and joined the fray around the huge oak table, looking grim.
“What’s wrong?” I thought it was the trouble in OW, but when he spoke, I realized I’d missed the mark.
“We have a problem down at the station. There’s some new movement going on, and while we don’t think it’s going to be as dangerous as the Brotherhood of the Earthborn, we’re not quite sure what it is.”
“Not another hate group?” Delilah slumped, looking glum. “I would have thought with Andy Gambit dead, we might be free from some of that.”
“No, not that. We’re not sure just what it is, though. In the past three days we’ve gotten reports of both teens and adults running off from their families to join this…cult.” Shamas flourished his napkin and laid it on his lap as the rest of us gathered around the table.
I took my usual place, hovering up above them with my thermos of chili-cheese-flavored blood, to leave space at the table for everyone who could actually eat real food.
Delilah passed around the biscuits. “Is there a name for this movement?”
Shamas pulled out a notebook and flipped it open. “Not that I know of. But there’s every indication it involves several ghost hunting groups, a few of the FBH covens, and even some of the Fae organizations that have sprung up are vaguely connected to this. We haven’t been able to dig up much info yet, but Chase is concerned enough to ask that we look into it.”
