Wings of a Lark

by Jen Pretty

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  The scent of bacon and coffee raised me from the dead. Ok, I wasn't dead, but something might have died in my mouth. It was a new day, and I tried to put the pain of the previous day behind me. Until I sat up. Then I remembered I don’t have super healing powers anymore, and I collapsed to the bed again.

  “Morning Lark,” my bestie said.

  I raised a hand and waved.

  “You still lying around? Get up lazy. We have a plane to catch.” Peri said.

  I flipped her off.

  “If you don’t get up, I’m eating all this bacon and drinking all this coffee,” she said.

  I heard the door to the room open and close.

  “Stop tormenting her or I will cut off your head,” Vincent’s stern voice said.

  I sat up and glared at him. “Hey. You don’t get to threaten my friend,” I said, pointing a finger at him.

  “That is how you get Lark out of bed,” Vincent said with a grin.

  Peri laughed, but I continued to scowl at the vampire lord.

  He stepped forward and stole a kiss before setting a plastic bag down on the bed beside me. “I got you some clothes. Comfortable for travelling. It's a long flight.”

  I grabbed onto his shoulders and tried to pull myself off the mattress, but I was stuck in the blankets that had wrapped around me somehow overnight. A lion used to hold the sheets down on one side. The thought made me miss Singh again, but I wouldn’t cry. Damn it.

  Vincent untangled the blankets and then lifted and set me on my feet. I had to hunch over because my chest still hurt. A flutter made me set my hand on my stomach. There was a small bump where none had been the day before. I froze and waited. The bird flapped its wings, much stronger than the day before. Little kicks and twirls felt more like a fish than a bird.

  Vincent noticed me holding my stomach, and his hand slid to join mine.

  “Oh my god,” he whispered. “You should change and eat. We should get home.” His voice was a little worried, but I knew everything was fine. Elliot was twisting and leaping, how could anything be wrong? I would need to get him into sports, or maybe martial arts. That would serve him well. Not that he would need to fight. I would protect him.

  I shook out of my visions of Elliot’s future and grabbed the bag of clothes before heading to the bathroom.

  “Guard my bacon,” I said over my shoulder.

  I came back out dressed in jogging pants and a hoodie that was loose and comfortable, just as Vincent had promised. I grabbed the small tray of bacon and a cup of coffee off the table then walked out the door. When we loaded back into the car, someone had covered my seat with a blanket. I bet those blood stains would never come out. I took a sip of the coffee, but it didn’t taste right.

  “It's decaf, you’re pregnant,” Peri said with a laugh when she saw my face.

  Gross.

  I put it in the cup holder and left it there.

  Ninel was with us, his cheeks were flush, though he was still thin. He looked like a sick man now though, instead of a skeleton. He was bouncing back faster than Trevor had.

  “Hey, Ninel. You headed back to Moscow?” I asked.

  Frankie and Peri slipped into the seats on either side of the ancient vampire.

  “No, I am coming back to America with you. I will guard the child if you allow me.” He bowed his head.

  “Of course. I would be honoured. But you know Durga left?” I asked, to be sure.

  “Yes, Vincent informed me, but she is never gone, Lark. She would approve of my mission to see you and your child safe.”

  The hairs rose on the back of my neck. He was right. The goddess was always watching, just not through my eyes anymore.

  “Thank you, Ninel,” I whispered.

  Vincent started the car and drove us to the airport. He pulled up to the doors and let me out. I waited with Frankie for the vampires to park.

  “I’m glad you came,” I said to fill the awkward silence.

  "I’m glad I came too. I wasn’t sure how it would feel to be around you and Vincent, but it’s ok. I feel like maybe we should have never been more than friends — good friends.”

  “I feel that way too,” I said, smiling at him. “So. You and Peri?”

  Frankie flung his arm over my shoulders and pulled me in tight beside him. “I don't want to jinx anything, but she is amazing. Isn’t she?” We watched as the vampires walked across the parking lot. I tried to get my eyes to shift from Vincent, but it was like he had hypnotized me. He was back in a suit and looked delicious. He had styled hair perfectly and wore dark sunglasses. Nope, it was too much. He was too beautiful.

  “You drooling, Lark?” Frankie teased.

  “You would be too, he’s drool-worthy,” I muttered, still distracted.

  “I’ll take your word for it,” Frankie said.

  Vincent took my hand and kissed my knuckles with a steamy grin on his face. Then he looped his arm around my shoulders, and we walked through the airport. It was just as busy today as last time we were here. We wandered around laughing as we tried to find the right gate when out of the crowd an old lady appeared in front of me.

  Frankie gasped, but I couldn't take my eyes off the old woman. She had to be over one hundred. The lines on her face were deep valleys. She hunched over a cane and leaning heavily on it as if it were the only thing still keeping her upright.

  “Finally,” She whispered and reached out her hand towards my stomach. I lifted my hand to stop her, but Frankie grabbed my arm, and the old woman's fingers pressed into the small bulge below my navel.

  “Jayanta,” she said before she backed a step and disappeared into the heavy flow of travellers.

  I stood stunned for a minute and then turned on Frankie. “What the hell was that?”

  “That was an ancient. She was older than the elders. Older than any I have ever met before.”

  “An ancient what?" I asked, still not putting the pieces together.

  “Witch,” he replied.

  “That was her? Do you think it was the one who told Alex and that woman where to be?”

  Frankie’s face was pensive, but he didn’t answer me.

  “What does Jayanta mean?” I asked, not expecting an answer, but Peri piped up.

  “He was the son of Indra.”

  The crowds moved around us like we were a rock in a river. I caught Vincent's eye his lip ticked up in an unusual way. It was Indra in charge. I wasn't sure how I knew, but he was there, looking out through Vincent's eyes.

  “His name is Elliot,” I said to the thunder God.

  He bowed his head and slipped away, leaving Vincent in control again. Vincent ushered me to a gate. We all boarded in silence and took our seats in first class.

  I was lost in thought through taxiing and takeoff. When they shut off the fasten seat belts light, I got up to go to the bathroom.

  Vincent had a worried look on his face, but I flashed him a smile. It was fine, see. I smiled.

  In the tiny airplane bathroom, I stared at myself in the mirror; it was strange to look at myself and not feel Durga looking back, but then it was strange to look at Vincent and see some other guy staring back. I guess what goes around, comes around. He lived with me and Durga; I can live with him and Indra.

  I told myself I was just unsteady because of all the sudden changes. Once we were home and had space to relax, I would feel better.

  Someone knocked at the door.

  “Just a sec.” I splashed cold water on my face and fumbled with the lock. The door opened, and I saw Peri’s face for a second before her hand shoved me back into the bathroom, and she slid the door shut behind us.

  “What the...”

  “Shh,” she said, holding her finger to her lips. “I wanted to see if you were ok. The thing with the witch was weird, and I saw Vincent change and then change back. It was weird, right?”

  I sighed. “Yeah, that was weird, but I used to do the same thing as Durga, so I can’t complain.”
/>   Peri bit her lip. There wasn't much space between us up in the tiny bathroom. “I guess you are right, but you can still have a feeling about it. No one would blame you.”

  “Vincent might.”

  “Fuck him. Don’t forget who you are just because you are all pregnant and in a relationship.”

  I snorted a laugh. “You’re right.” I took a deep breath. “I’ll talk to him, but it's not like he can change it. Gods do what they want.” Nobody knew that as well as I did.

  “Still. He should know how you feel.” Peri cracked her knuckles. “If you want me to fight him, I will.”

  “Oh my god, you are so weird.”

  “Yeah,” she smiled.

  I hugged her and pushed her back out of the tiny bathroom.

  “Everything ok?” Vincent asked as I fell into the seat beside him.

  “Yeah, just girl talk.” In the middle of the Atlantic Ocean was not the place to discuss Gods and their offspring.

  I set my seat back and put on the headphones to watch the movie. I must have dozed off because before I knew it, Vincent was shaking me awake.

  “You should eat something,” he said, and I realized there was a flight attendant with a food cart beside me.

  “Oh, um, I guess a sandwich.”

  The woman smiled at me, and a snippet of a dream came back to me. I couldn’t quite remember it, but it was at the edge of my mind as I ate. There was only a dark feeling. I stopped eating and looked out the window, trying to force my brain to chase the memory.

  “What’s wrong?” Vincent asked.

  “I don’t know. Just a weird dream,” I said.

  Vincent’s eyes studied me for a minute. Then he went back to the laptop that was sitting on a small fold-down desk in front of him.

  “What are you doing?” I asked.

  “I’m putting your name on all my businesses and investments and updating my will. My lawyer sent me the paperwork while we were in India, so I'm just getting it all filled out so it will be official shortly after we land.”

  “Whoa. Why are you doing that?” I asked, staring at the screen filled with appendix C’s and side notations.

  “Because I want to make sure you are taken care of if anything were to happen to me. You and our son.” He smiled and slid a hand over my stomach. The little nugget inside did a flip and karate kick making me giggle.

  He smiled and watched my tiny belly jiggle.

  A woman stopped in the aisle with a big smile on her face. “When are you due?” she asked.

  My mouth hung open as I grappled for words. That was a typical question, right? People asked pregnant women that all the time but I had no idea. I mean, my belly was much bigger than it should be, considering I wasn't even a week pregnant. Luckily Vincent was quicker than me.

  “Three more months,” he said, and the woman moved along.

  “Oh, my god. Shouldn’t I be taking vitamins and seeing a doctor and eating a salad? I had bacon for breakfast! That's probably not healthy. I’m already failing at this.” I covered my face with my hands.

  “Stop freaking out,” Vincent whispered. I could hear to humour in his voice.

  “This is serious, Vincent. Why is everything so funny to you now?”

  He leaned in close his eyes on mine. “I almost died. Almost lost everything. And now I’ve got everything I ever wanted. I got the girl and the family.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a little box, and my heart pounded so loud I could hear it in my ears.

  “I am the luckiest man to walk the earth,” he said as he opened the box and pulled out a diamond ring. “And the only way I would be happier is if you said yes and agreed to spend eternity with me.” He slipped the ring on my finger. It sparkled in the sun coming through the tiny airplane window.

  “That is a huge rock,” Peri’s voice cut in. I glanced over at her, and she and Frankie were watching on, both smiling.

  I looked back to Vincent still stunned.

  “Say yes,” he said with a laugh.

  “Yes,” I said. He swooped in and kissed me as the rest of the first-class passengers cheered and clapped. I hadn’t even realized they were watching us.

  When he pulled away, he was still smiling. He looked so much like his twin with the happiness on his face.

  “Shotgun wedding!” Peri cried over the crowd.

  I shot her a look. “Why am I friends with you?” I called back.

  She used her fingers and thumbs to form the shape of a heart and mouthed the words “I love you. I shook my head.

  Holy shit, I was getting married.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  When the plane landed, there was a limo waiting for us at the airport and Drew stood by the door.

  “Hey, listen, I’m sorry for how things went down, Drew,” I said as I stopped in front of him. His eyes flashed to my stomach and then back to my face.

  “It’s cool. You know, I didn’t take it personally,” he said, but he didn’t sound believable.

  “I’m still sorry for kicking you out and leaving you in Russia.”

  He nodded. I would make it up to him.

  We climbed int he limo, Vincent, and I sat together and Peri and Frankie and then there was Ninel. He was looking rough again. His eyes kept rolling closed, but Drew sat beside him and hooked him up to an IV in the back seat of the moving vehicle. I had no idea that Drew could do that.

  The car rolled through the city and past my old store and old apartment building. Frankie pointed out his warehouse to Peri.

  “I need a liaison for the magic community,” Vincent said. “Peri, if you are up for it, I would like you to fill that role.”

  She looked from Vincent to Frankie and back again. “Sure, sounds like fun.”

  “Perfect, I will have your employment papers written up,” Vincent said, sounding more like the boss he was as we closed in on his mansion. I knew the relaxed Vincent wouldn’t last. The vampires of the city wouldn’t take him seriously if he were a happy-go-lucky guy. Without Durga, it would take work to keep the city safe. I rubbed my stomach.

  The steel gates slid open at the end of the driveway, and the limo glided up the tree-lined lane. It pulled to a stop at the door, and a second later a small vampire flung the car door open and had his arms wrapped around my neck.

  “Hey Trevor,” I said with a laugh.

  “I was so worried. They sent me home from Jaisalmer, but I wanted to stay and help. I could have fought. I’m getting strong, you know,” he took a breath, and in that brief pause, he glanced down, noticing my stomach. His eyes shot up, a look of shock etched into his face. He looked back down and tentatively rested a hand on my stomach. Elliot did his patented karate kick, and Trevor jumped back, bumping his head on the roof of the car. Everyone else had already snuck out around him.

  “You have a baby?” he whispered, more a statement than a question. I remembered him playing with all the babies at the mom and tot yoga classes. He was a natural with babies.

  “Elliot. I’ll need your help. I have no idea what to do with a baby.”

  Trevor looked up again, his eyes rimmed with tears. “Can I be Uncle Trevor?”

  “He’ll be so lucky to have you as his uncle.”

  Trevor wrapped his arms around my waist and hugged my stomach. When he pulled away, he helped me out of the car. Everyone else had gone into the mansion already. Trevor and I climbed the steps, his hand on my elbow like I was a delicate old lady. I guess I was more fragile than before. We walked through the door and into the tall foyer. I remembered the first time I had walked in. My fear seemed so ridiculous, looking back.

  “I’m going to order you some books on babies, Lark. You will be the best mom,” Trevor said as he hustled off down the hall, leaving me standing alone in the beautiful entrance.

  My cheeks pulled up into a smile, and I felt calmer about having a baby, knowing I had help.

  I started up the stairs to head for my old room, hoping it was still there when a voice behind me stopped me.
>
  “You did it.” Vlad’s accent echoed through the foyer.

  I turned on the stairs, and he was standing there, looking every bit the old-fashioned vampire. Vlad and I worried together for months before I finally ran off to find Vincent.

  “It’s been quiet here. Thank you for bringing him home.”

  I nodded and climbed the stairs. I walked to my old room, but when I swung the door open, it was empty. Not a trace of me remained there.

  “Your stuff is in our room,” Vincent said from behind me.

  Startled, I spun around and bumped into his chest, my hands wrapped around him and I relaxed in his arms for a moment. His hands rubbed up and down my back.

  “We need a baby room,” I said. “Elliot needs his own room.”

  He smiled down at me. “Ok, I’ll call a contractor to put a door in from our room to the one next to it.”

  I nodded, and he put his arm around me, leading me to his room. It was just as I remembered it — the tall bed and antique furniture. Nothing had changed, except that all my clothes were hanging in his closet, too.

  “I think I’ll have a bath and a nap. I didn’t sleep well on the plane,” I said.

  “All right. Our lawyer will be here soon. I have a bit of work to do, but I will wake you up for dinner.”

  I ran a hot bath with tons of bubbles and felt my aching muscles relax. I missed Durga for her healing ability if nothing else. I was sure I wouldn’t be fighting rogue vampires if this was how long it would take for me to heal from an injury.

  When the hot water had sufficiently pruned me, I stepped out of the deep tub and got dressed in some of my old yoga pants and a tank top. I curled up under the blankets and was asleep within minutes.

  —

  Men and women swarmed around me. They were small like elves or leprechauns. That thought brought forward a man dressed in green velvet. His tiny suit and dapper hat made him look exactly like a leprechaun, but I knew he wasn’t. I had met him once before when Vincent had brought me to an old logging road, and we walked until a small house appeared. Inside had been a giant warehouse of short men and women forging steel blades. That was where I had chosen my blade. The one Durga and I used to fight fallen vampires. My magic knife.