They ate breakfast and then Sebastian ushered them into the living room. The giant sparkling tree nearly touched the ceiling, but somehow Oliver had still managed to cram a large glowing star that occasionally shot little bursts of green and red fireworks into the room.
They passed out their gifts.
Abby opened a set of fantasy books from Lydie. A purchase from the local bookstore because one adventure with Amazon had been plenty for this season, Lydie told her. From Oliver, she received a copper bracelet engraved with the phases of the moon.
Abby slipped it over her wrist.
"It's lovely," she told him, handing him her gift.
Oliver smiled, but avoided meeting her eyes.
"Sweet, CDs!"
"There's Coldplay and Kings of Leon and some other really good ones. I think you'll like them," Abby told him, feeling strange that her gift seemed so impersonal compared to his.
Oliver set the CDs aside and opened another gift from Lydie. He held a glass sphere with a flame glowing in its center.
"It's bewitched with an eternal flame, or that's what the spell said," Lydie told him. "But who knows, it might burn out next week."
She gave Sebastian a set of kitchen utensils that performed their task magically when you sang to them.
"Let me show you," she told him, running to the kitchen to retrieve a potato.
"Peel peel peel my potato, right into the sink!" she sang to the tune of "Row, Row Your Boat," and the peeler floated around the potato, quickly shaving off the skin. However, when it went to dump the skin into the sink, it started to spin madly through the air and then ricocheted off the wall, nearly taking Oliver's ear on its way.
"Maybe wear a helmet when you're peeling the potatoes," Oliver joked.
"Thank you," Lydie said shyly when she opened her gift from Abby and Sebastian. Abby had bought her a necklace with an intricate silver pentacle charm and a shining amber stone nestled in the center of the star.
"Here, put it on," Oliver told her, smiling at Abby. He clasped the necklace around Lydie's neck.
From Oliver, Lydie received a large acrylic paint set and canvas.
Sebastian opened Oliver's gift, a long, lethal-looking knife.
"Awesome, right?" Oliver asked, scooting by Sebastian.
"Yeah," Sebastian breathed, running his hand along the ivory handle. The handle was shaped like the head of a panther, the bone carved with a fierce eye and snarling teeth.
"Extra special too," Oliver said. "Better not show you in here though, we'll try it outside later."
****
"I have one secret gift," Sebastian told Abby after Lydie and Oliver returned to their Monopoly game. He led her up the stairs, pausing to tie a scarf over her eyes.
"Are you getting naked right now?" she whispered, reaching out for him.
"No peeking," he murmured, spinning her around twice.
He pushed open a door and she felt him guide her forward. When he removed the blindfold, they were in the nursery. In the center of the room stood a beautiful wooden bassinet. Half-moons were carved into the sides. A mobile of tiny white birds, identical to those that Helena had made for Sydney's release ritual, hung above the baby bed.
"Wow," she breathed, walking to the bassinet. The smooth blond wood felt warm beneath her touch. She rubbed her fingers along the soft purple blanket tucked inside.
Sebastian moved behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. She leaned into him.
"I can't believe we're having a baby," she whispered and felt her chest constrict with emotion.
There hadn't been time to talk about it. Between their trips back and forth to Ula, and having Oliver and Lydie in the house, they both skirted around the topic, but suddenly it felt absolutely necessary.
"Are you happy" she asked.
"More than that. I don't know how to describe the way I feel. I think about it constantly. What will the baby be like? Will he look like both of us? Will she have some forgotten trait of my sister or one of my parents?"
"Will she be a witch?"
"Yeah, I wonder that most of all."
"And what do you want?"
"I guess I hope that she will. If I thought we could escape danger by pretending you're not a witch, I might consider that. I'd do anything to protect you both, but I've learned that we can't escape our fate. Even if we tried to hide her from that aspect of our lives, she might come into her own power and resent us later."
"You are having some heavy thoughts."
"Now you know why I keep burning the bacon."
She laughed and turned into him.
"You're going to be an amazing father, Sebastian."
He looked into her face, seriously.
"Sometimes I wonder. I failed Claire, you know? I was her guardian."
Abby shook her head.
"No, you did amazing with Claire. I wasn't there, but I can feel her sometimes. She adored you."
"Sure, what sister doesn't adore their big brother, but I should have protected her. I should have known about Tobias. I've gone over it a thousand times in my head. How did he get into her life without my knowing it?"
Abby leaned her head against his chest.
"That's what he does, that's what his kind does. You never saw him coming; how could you possibly have prevented it?"
"That's what I'm afraid of. I never saw him coming. Will we see him, this time?"
****
"I have to call my mom," Abby sighed, crawling to the edge of the bed and nibbling Sebastian's neck. They had slipped off to their bedroom after their talk in the nursery. They both wanted an escape from thoughts of Tobias.
"Mmm, that tickles, in a good way." He kissed her.
He turned to look at her sideways.
"I wondered about that. I was going to bring it up, but didn't want to hit a sore spot."
Abby sat back and looked toward the window.
"I need to call and a part of me even wants to, but I'm also dreading it. I haven't been there for her. The last time I saw her, she was falling apart and I just took off."
"Why don't we go see her?"
"Go?"
"Yeah, let's pack up the car and drive down for Christmas evening. I want to meet her. We can take Oliver and Lydie. It will be like a portable Christmas party. I'll load up the steaks I was going to make for dinner."
Abby groaned.
"Now I feel like we have to."
"We don't have to, but this is going to torture you all day. Why don't we do something about it?"
"You're right," she agreed. "I'll go ask Oliver and Lydie if they can be torn away from their Monopoly rematch."
****
"Woo-hoo!" Sebastian called as he took the turn out of their driveway fast and they spun in a complete 360-degree turn.
"Donuts," Oliver howled. "Yes, do more."
"Not unless we want to drive three hours with the smell of puke wafting through the car," Abby told them grimly, her knuckles turning white as she clutched the dashboard.
"I agree," Lydie chirped. "I don't have a spell to stop the car smashing into one of those trees."
They drove through a mostly deserted Trager City and got on the highway heading south.
Several hours later, they arrived in the industrial part of Lansing.
Lydie frowned out the window.
"This isn't what I was expecting," she said.
"Hoping for something more metropolitan?" Oliver teased.
"Well, yeah."
"Industrial wasteland," Abby said, watching the familiar landscape pass by.
She did not miss her hometown. Some people moved away and longed for home. They looked back with rose-colored glasses at the little ice cream shop downtown or the bookstore with the quirky old widow who smelled of lavender and mothballs.
Abby mostly remembered the confines of her childhood home. She remembered listening quietly to figure out where her mother was in the house so that she could avoid her. She loved her mother, but she never escap
ed her scrutiny. Becky couldn't stand a hair out of place on Abby's head. She micromanaged her like she was a full-time job.
"Turn here," Abby directed Sebastian as they came to her old road.
"This is pretty," Lydie added. The houses were mostly decorated with twinkling lights. One house boasted a giant glowing Santa, sleigh and reindeer.
"That one." Abby pointed to the saddest-looking house on the street. Dark windows had their shades drawn and there was not a decoration in sight. A pile of newspapers huddled beneath the mailbox, turning yellow and mushy.
"It's nice," Lydie lied.
"I better go in first," Abby told them.
Sebastian gave her a wounded look and she leaned over to kiss him.
"My mom will never forgive me if I introduce you while she's in her bathrobe."
Abby walked around the garage and tried the door. Locked, which was strange because Becky rarely locked her doors. She claimed a strange pride about living in a neighborhood where no one had to lock their doors.
Abby returned to the front door and rang the bell. She listened for sounds within, but heard nothing. She knocked and then called loudly.
"Mom, it's Abby."
She waited, turning to the car and holding her hands up.
Sebastian got out of the car and walked to the stoop.
"Do you feel okay? No weird vibes or anything?"
Abby stilled her thoughts. She pressed a hand on the door and searched for any feelings of misgiving. Nothing sinister greeted her.
She rang the doorbell again and this time it jerked open.
A man Abby did not recognize stared back at her.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"Who am I?" He looked surprised and annoyed. "Who are you?"
"I'm Abby Daniels. My mother lives here."
"Oh, sorry." He thrust a hand through the doorway. "I'm Cody. I think I'm renting your old room. Ha, who would have thunk it."
"My mother rented out my room? Abby asked, incredulous.
Sebastian shifted slightly so that he stood just in front of Abby.
Cody-who looked like a grungy teenager trapped in a man's body-seemed affronted.
"And you are?" he eyed Sebastian, critically.
"Sebastian. Is Abby's mother home?" he asked curtly, making it clear that he wasn't interested in warm greetings.
"Yeah, sure. Probably in her room talking to that psychic hotline. She seriously loves that lady. Kanti I think is her name."
"Wait, what?" Abby grabbed him by the shirt before he could turn away.
"Candy. That's her name, Candy Stevens. I've listened to her on speakerphone a couple times. What a hoot. She told me that my dead cousin wanted me to know he liked my new haircut. Wild, right?"
Abby frowned and nodded.
"Yeah, wild."
Cody shuffled back into the house, and they moved in behind him. He wore tattered red slippers. Abby recognized them as an old pair of her mother's. Above the slippers, a long gray robe hung just past his knees. Abby studied the robe, unnerved by the familiar fabric. Also her mother's, she realized, though she thought it had been pink before.
"I'll just go get your mom," Cody told them. He turned and smiled and Abby noticed missing teeth. His breath smelled. Even from several feet away, the scent made her recoil.
Her pregnant body reacted with double revulsion and she searched the room for a place to throw up.
"Are you okay?" Sebastian asked, startled as Abby pulled away from him.
She closed her eyes and gradually the nausea passed. She nodded and watched Cody, who had turned back to stare at her.
Finally, he broke his watery gaze and flapped up the stairs.
"Something is not right," Abby whispered to Sebastian, clutching his hand.
Chapter 8
The door banged open behind them and Oliver strode in.
He looked keyed up and ready for a battle. He seemed surprised to see Abby and Sebastian standing calmly by the door.
"What's happened?" he asked.
"Nothing," Sebastian reported, but looked at Abby. "Is it the guy? I mean he's pretty dodgy, but he hardly seems dangerous."
"I saw something outside," Oliver said. "Upstairs. A flash of red. It freaked me out."
Upstairs they all heard a scuffle, followed by a thud and then silence.
Abby ran toward the stairs with Oliver and Sebastian on her heels. She knew that she might be racing into a trap, but she didn't care. A vision of her mother, beaten, held captive flashed through her mind.
She burst through the master bedroom door to find her mother angrily batting Cody away from a heap of blankets on the floor.
"I said no, Cody," she shrieked as he leaned over and tried to pry her from the nest of comforters.
"Mom?" Abby asked, surprised.
Her mother, hair a halo of snarls, looking bedraggled to say the least, glared up at Abby.
She frowned and snatched away the blanket in Cody's hand. He stumbled back and landed on his butt with a loud thwack.
Oliver snorted and Abby saw that he was trying to keep his laughter at bay. Sebastian held out a hand and helped the disheveled, and annoyed, Cody from the floor.
"I told her you was here and that she ought to see her own daughter on Christmas Day. Didn't I?" Cody accused, looking pointedly at Becky.
Becky rolled her eyes and shooed him toward the door.
"Get out of here, all of you. I'm trying to sleep for God's sake."
"Mom, it's four in the afternoon."
"So, what's it to you, how I spend my time? You suddenly have a conscience because it's Christmas? No thank you, Abigail Daniels. I definitely won't be listening to a lecture from you today."
Exasperated, Abby turned to Sebastian and Oliver. She offered them a tight smile.
"Why don't you guys go back downstairs?"
Neither of them look thrilled at the prospect of leaving Abby alone with her apparently nutty mother. Sebastian stepped forward and leaned in to kiss Abby's cheek.
"I'll just wait in the hallway," he whispered.
The three left and Abby looked around the room. Near the heavily drawn curtains, Abby noticed a tall lamp that had fallen and smashed on the floor, likely the red light that Oliver had seen. Hundreds of porcelain dolls lay in heaps along the base of the wall, nearly stacked as high as the window ledge. Becky had collected the dolls all of Abby's life. Her mother insisted that Abby collect them as well. She remembered countless Friday and Saturday nights watching the Home Shopping Network and carefully gluing the doll parts together. She shuddered at their wide, vacant eyes watching her.
She sat on the floor next to her mother, pulling her knees up and wrapping her arms around them.
"I'm sorry I haven't been around, Mom."
Becky continued to stare fixedly at the opposite wall, refusing to meet Abby's eyes.
"So much has happened. I got caught up in it all and I should have checked in."
"Hmph, checked in? Why on earth would you do that? I only raised you, fed and clothed and cared for you. Ungrateful! You never appreciated all that I sacrificed for you."
Abby cringed and tried not to argue. She wanted to. She wanted to remind her mother of all that she had sacrificed. How she, Abby, lived those eighteen years in constant fear of her mother's emotional flux. Would her mother go on a rant and smash half the dishes because Abby forgot to empty the trash in her room? Or would it be a silent, brooding mood where Becky stared into nothingness and didn't speak for days?
"I'm grateful that you took care of me, Mom. I know it wasn't always easy."
"What do you know?" Becky sneered. "Living in some paradise now? Check out of reality?"
"Actually, Sebastian and I bought a house."
"Sebastian? One of those thugs you brought in here?"
Abby snorted. She couldn't help it. Thugs?
"Sebastian and I are getting married."
Becky blinked slowly at her daughter as if examining an alien life-form.
/> "So that's why you're here? For my blessing?"
Abby tried not to take the bait. Her mother knew just the things to say to send her teetering into an emotional meltdown. I am a different person now, she reminded herself.
"Mom I came here to try and bring you into my life. I know I've screwed up. I ran away, I left you behind and I'm truly, genuinely sorry. Let me make it up to you? At least a little. Come downstairs and meet my fiance and my friends."
Becky set her lips in a grim line and Abby knew that she wanted to take another jab at her daughter. Finally, she sighed and started to struggle out of the blankets. Abby stood and helped her up. Becky had put on a little weight. The last time Abby saw her, she looked like a skeleton wearing skin. Now she had a slight puffiness to her face and body. Abby wondered if she'd been drinking, but dared not ask.
"Let me get dressed."
Becky opened her closet and pulled out a dress and shuffled into the bathroom. Abby waited, growing impatient after more than thirty minutes had ticked by. She spotted an empty bottle of gin next to the bed and gazed around the room. Drawers hung haphazardly from the dresser with clothes sticking out. Several glasses cluttered around a remote control on her mother's nightstand. The Becky that Abby knew did not live like this.
She heard a light knock at the door and opened it.
"Everything okay?" Sebastian asked, peering beyond her into the room.
"Don't worry, I've tied her to the bed. We're all safe now."
He grinned and shook his head.
"I'm sorry that I pushed you to do this."
"No," she sighed. "It was the right thing. I want her to meet you and as hard as it is, I need to show up for her."
The door to the bathroom opened and Abby quickly closed the door in Sebastian's face. She didn't want her mother to think she was talking behind her back.
Becky strode into the room in a full face of makeup, her hair wound in a twist and wearing a long, sparkling blue dress.
Kanti (Born of Shadows Book 3) Page 8
