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last person is taken from here.” She turned to look at him then, trying to see just what he was seeing. “I shall forever miss you, Mother.”
It was the first time he’d called her that. Her heart, so tender of late, felt like it would burst into tears at all that would be gone in so short a time. Hugging him to her, she could feel that his body was getting stronger daily. He knew how to work, and did it without complaint.
“I have been writing a book. It is just for you, my son. You will know things that I have known for some time. It will replenish the riches that I have put aside for you. Also how to keep the birds safe should they need it.” He nodded. “I will give it to Mary on the day that you travel. I do not want the others to know that you are my son, even after all is finished here.”
“They will only know me as a man that you trusted. But I will need to tell them at some point. This you know as well as I. I will be their king when they need me.” She nodded, tears flowing quickly now. “Mother, you do know that I will take care that they are as safe as you made them here?”
“I do, my son. I know that better than you could. You are not anything like your father, a cruel and terrible man. When you marry, and you will, I want you to know that she will only love you if you give her your heart. It’s important that you do that for her.” He said that he would. “Let her strength help you when you know that you are not armed to do it on your own. She will love you more and respect you forever for that.”
“Will she be stronger than me, Mother?” Dante told him that she was sure of it. “Then I will be for her what you have been for these people—a person of worth. I promise you I will also protect her forever.”
“That is all that anyone can do for their mate, my child.” He hugged her, something that neither of them were able to do often. “I shall miss you, Duncan, much more than I could ever explain to you. Go forth, protect all the people of your kingdom, and do what I say. Love your mate more than anyone, including yourself, and the two of you will be able to move mountains.”
Chapter 1
Blaze had been staying at the hotel nearest the business of the man who had fucked up her blueprints for three days. It was better than her having to drive the twenty minutes both ways daily, she thought. It didn’t seem that they were any closer to getting this resolved than they had been when she’d first called the company. Deter Prints had a great deal to answer for.
When she made something, a toy to be put together, she would have the company make blueprints. It helped with the size of each piece and the way they had to fit together every time, so that she could have the piece manufactured correctly the first time they made them.
Not just her either. There were a total of sixteen companies for which he’d contracted to make the blueprints from the specs that the other companies gave him, so they could manufacture their products having pieces that they could cut out and put together. However, he was sending them shitty blueprints with poor craftsmanship, and was making the correct blueprints for himself, perfectly this time. He would then put them into production at his own plant with his own name on them.
Deters would send back the work he was supposed to be doing for these companies, the specs blueprints, with so many flaws in them that it was little wonder they didn’t come out the way that they should have. Lucky for her, she’d only worked one week with the mistake before noticing the flaw, and hadn’t produced any of the products to go out. Some of the other fifteen companies had produced over a million of the suckers, and had shipped them out to customers. That didn’t bode well for their customer service and high-quality output.
Have you heard anything to do with your prints from Lilly? I mean, has she gotten it any closer so that you can come home? She told Mercy that she had actually, and that she was just sitting around on her ass waiting until Mercy called to tell her it was okay for her to come home. You’re not in a very good mood, are you? This is really messing with our spring line of production. Don’t they know that?
Yes. They know what we’re all up against. It’s about the only thing I say to them every time they ask me if I’ve had this sort of trouble before. I think they figured that if we were putting out a product for one whole season away, then we’d have to be the last one they fuck with. Mercy told her to behave. I don’t fucking want to behave. I want to find this Lloyd Deter and crush him with my beak. I want to hunt him down, tear out his little tiny throat, then spit on his burning fucking building.
All right. I can tell you’re upset. When Mercy laughed, Blaze wanted to fly there and kill her too. Not that she’d be able to, but it sounded nice in her head. Want me to come and stay with you? I don’t think it will improve your mood, but at least you’d have someone to bicker at for a little while.
No. I’ll be fine. But it just seems as if they’re taking forever to do one thing. Since Deter never had enough time to work with our design, I see no reason for us to have to wait around to have our blueprints released. It’s not like I don’t know how to fix it. I did that while they made me sit around and wait for them. Christ, this is stupid. Mercy asked if Jude had figured out anything. She’s working from her offices today. She told me that there isn’t any reason why they haven’t released us yet to start producing. But she said that it was a great deal of money that they’re dealing with on their end, and they want to make sure that everyone gets what’s coming to them.
I can understand that. Blaze could as well, but that didn’t make it any easier on her waiting around for it to be all right. I’ll tell you what I can do. There are a number of things I want to deal with in our town. I could send them to you and have you look them over. You might have a few suggestions on getting things done while you’re waiting.
That would be great. I’m bored mostly, and that doesn’t make me any less needy to get my ass home. Mercy told her she’d send them out now. Thanks. Also, I was wondering what our plans were for Thanksgiving. What with you having a family, I thought that we’d not ignore it, but go all out this year and visit New Village. I want to see the castle. I need to feel our roots around me again.
I was thinking that as well. I don’t know about the castle, however. I know that it’s in ruin. Do you really want to go there and be reminded of all we lost? I’ll have to give that some thought. Blaze had not thought of that. But I’d love to go to New Village with you. I’m not sure how many people are still there that we might have known, but we can go there.
Setting up a time to gather all the other birds together, they made plans to talk about it then. The thought of seeing the castle in disrepair was heartbreaking. It had been their beginning, their life for so very long. Then the six of them, per the queen’s request, had destroyed not only the castle and its walls, but the queen as well.
The phone ringing startled her, and Blaze answered it with her usual pissy mood. The person on the other end laughed, and Blaze smiled. It was Clara. She’d know her laughter anywhere.
“I have good news for you, and bad. Which would you like first?” She told her that she wanted the bad first. “Good, I was hoping you’d say that. Mr. Deter died of a massive heart attack last night in his home. He must have known it was coming on, because there was a note saying how sorry he was. I think last night was a stab in the heart to most of you, but that’s just me.”
“Now what happens? I mean, that’s a great deal of money no one can collect on now, correct?” Clara told her that was the good news. “I don’t understand.”
“Mr. Deter had a sixty million dollar insurance policy on himself and his business. Since he cannot run the business any longer, the money basically becomes part of the building. So the money will be there for all of you to collect on. Problem is, there is still the building and the people that work here. Most of them have only been working here for about five years. The rest since they were in their teens, so they’re ready to retire anyway. Know anyone that might like to purchase a solid—up until recently—printing company? Blaze asked if she was asking her to purchase it. “I am. You could do worse than having your own company that could make blueprints for you. From what I’ve understood from the people working here, Mr. Deter hasn’t been making the blueprints for some time now. Only the sixteen that were screwed up.”
“How much do you know about the company itself?” Clara, the FBI agent that was in charge of the investigation, said that she knew all the specs on the company, but it was the people that she didn’t know. “Do you know if it was in the black before all this shit hit the fan?”
“It was. Still is, now that the insurance money is coming directly to it. After payroll to the people working from home right now because of the investigation, and paying out for the loss of each of you, there will be enough to do the upgrades that were in the works before this all happened. Not that I’m taking his side or anything, but I think that was his plan with the money that he was stealing from the companies. I mean, I could be wrong, but that is what I’m thinking after talking to the bank. Who, I should add, had turned him down for any money. Something about his age and how the computer industry is making his job obsolete.”
“Banks—you gotta love them.” Blaze thought that it was a good idea to buy the business, but had to talk to the other birds. “How long do I have to get an answer to you?”
“Not me, the bank. They’re ready to take it now, as a matter of fact. The only reason I know that is because the banker and his minions have been here every day since this began. I haven’t any idea why it’s suddenly worth his time, but I think he has other plans for the place. I’m thinking that he has an idea to make a buck or two the same way that Deter Prints did. Not the same way, I guess, but still bilking people out of something good. That’ll be bad news for the people working here.” Mercy asked the banker’s name. “Get this—his name is Jacob Banks. Yes, I was surprised too. But he is here now. If you were to, I don’t know, call the corporate offices, you might be able to get it before he does. Just a thought.”
/> Instead of talking it over with her sisters, she called the corporate office and asked to speak to the bank president. She knew the man very well—they’d dealt with him recently on another matter. Today he took her call within minutes of her being put on hold.
“Blaze, my dear, how are you? Please tell me that you’ve decided to marry me and make me the happiest man in the entire world.” She laughed when he did. The man was younger than her, of course, but he was pushing seventy if not older. “I am at your disposal. What can I do for you?”
