by Dawn Ibanez
“I think I hate her,” Kayin said at last.
“Don’t ever say that,” Madison said quickly. “Nana Tina may have her faults but she’s family. You respect her as your Nana and you love her even more because she doesn’t understand you.”
Tina gently knocked on the bedroom door and looked at the trio on the bed. “Or we can all start fresh and I can try to be a little more understanding,” she suggested. She tried to ignore the way the boys closed in around Madison. “You don’t even have to call me Nana if you don’t want to.”
Madison gently stroked Aiden’s back and kissed Kayin’s head. “Hey, why don’t you both get your pajamas on and I’ll play for you all.” She nodded as they slowly climbed down from her bed and left the room. “I hope you mean that,” she said to her mother.
“Why wouldn’t I?” Tina asked in turn.
Brown eyes flashed red for a moment. “Aiden, the one that was ready to attack you, is a Necromancer. Kayin, the silent badass in training, is a Healer. I don’t want anyone to praise one, and not the other. They’re a packaged set.” Madison walked over to her closet and pulled out her violin case. “And that has nothing to do with the fact that their father is a werewolf. We both know there’s a chance that they’ll change as soon as they hit puberty.”
Tina frowned as she watched her daughter. “So you think that I’ll just turn my back on them? That they’ll do something that I can’t handle and then that’s it; I don’t want anything to do with them?”
Madison was used to cloaking her emotions with indifference, anger, even sarcasm. After everything she had been through with her family, she was just tired. “I’m speaking from experience Mom,” she sighed. “I know what you and Dad say to everyone. I know what you have to tell yourselves so that you can sleep at night, but look at it from my point of view for a minute.”
“I didn’t mean it like that, Baby girl.” Tina watched as Madison rubbed a piece of silk along the beautifully crafted instrument. “I didn’t know you played.”
“It was taught to me as a meditation technique. Trying to keep time to a piece of music can be hard as hell if you’re pissed with the world.” Madison lifted the violin to her chin and tuned it. She then looked at Tina. “The lessons started when I was eight. By the time I was fifteen, music helped me calm down but not control my anger. Then he started the fencing lessons.”
Tina gave her a confused look. “Pan said you were in self-defense since you were nine. What happened?”
Madison laughed. “When Pan was around, he taught me as much as he could. That meant there would be months when I was doing the whole wax on/wax off routine and then nothing. A couple of Crispin’s guards kept up the martial arts training. I was pretty awesome at the weapons stuff. I think Victor has a video of a few of the tournaments where I did demonstrations. When I was fifteen, he put me into European formal fencing. It’s just as controlled, but with a lot more rules. Crispin has videos of those.”
Tina’s light brown eyes filled with tears once more. “I feel like I don’t even know you.”
Madison bit her lip as she thought of something to say. There had been a number of years where her only thoughts were of how she would throw insults and accusations at her parents. At the end of it all, she simply wanted peace. “You don’t know me, Mom,” she said plainly. “A part of that is my fault, but you have to understand and own up to your part in that too.”
The older woman stood thoughtful for a moment. She remembered when Madison’s powers first surfaced better than anyone. They had been at the funeral. Tina shuddered as she relived the memory. When the decision was made to send Madison to Pan, no one argued with her. “Was the transition to living in New York hard?” she asked lowly.
“It was at first.” Madison turned and looked at Tina. There was something in her eyes that was sincere. For once, Madison didn’t see any of the usual mocking or contempt in her mother’s gaze. “Pan tried to soften the holidays. He and Crispin always told me you and Dad were working. That you two would have sent for me, but you were really busy and couldn’t. Or it would have been too dangerous. I bought into it until Jimmy and Dylan started sending the pictures.” She wiped her eyes again then offered Tina a tissue of her own. “I felt like Pan and Cris were lying for you, or you were lying to them. Then Victor came along.” Madison went walked over to the window and looked out along her property. “Pan had been teaching me about my magic, but Victor taught me how to live.”
“I’m sorry,” Tina said suddenly. When Madison looked at her, she tried to offer her a smile. It soon crumbled under her tears. “I didn’t know what you were capable of doing. There was someone in the family to help train everyone. Eric and Barry had my brothers, Jimmy had me, and Dylan had your father.”
“I know, Mom.” Madison went over to Tina and looked into her eyes. “But the mind of a child processes things differently. As far as I was concerned, you threw me away. It didn’t matter the reason.”
Tina wiped her eyes and felt her shoulders fall. “Is there any way you can forgive me?” she asked. It wouldn’t surprise her if Madison said no. Not after everything she was learning.
“Don’t hurt my boys,” Madison said seriously. “Either you come into the room ready to love them, knowing that they’ll be able to cause some serious damage, or you and Dad leave. I’ll respect your decision either way, but you need to make one.” Madison placed her violin in its case and carried it to the door. She felt a smirk cross her face as she saw the boys running down the hall to the stairs. “Every full moon I play for the boys. If you stay, you’ll get to see if I’m any good. You can also talk with Belle Davenport. She was at the ME’s building today.”
“You’re a bigger person than I gave you credit for,” Tina said softly.
Madison shook her head. “Again with the big comments,” she mumbled playfully. She looked at Tina and smiled. “What can I say? Motherhood agrees with me. I can grow up and be playful at the same time.” When Tina started to smile as well, she walked out of the room. “Besides, their father just came into their lives. You know how werewolves are. They eat those that threaten their young,” she said before heading down the stairs.
Tina blinked at Madison’s back. That was the attitude she was used to getting from her wayward daughter. She then mused as she went to follow. Her relationship with Madison was on the mend. Everything else was going to have to wait. She wanted to see her daughter play. Just as Tina was about to follow, she felt someone staring at her. She turned to see Victor watching her from down the hallway. “I don’t think I ever thanked you.”
Victor nodded. “Madison is a delightful addition to my family. Just as she would be to yours.” He approached her and leaned close to her ear. “As for what happened when Dylan was turned, Madison may not want to address it but I have no such hesitations.” He leaned back and looked into her eyes. She needed to see how serious he was. “I will personally rip out your intestines if you dare treat her or my grandsons as though they were freaks of nature again.” He gave her a simple nod as he scanned her mind and saw that she had no such thoughts. As far as she was concerned the twins were two little cherubs that should be loved and protected. “I believe Madison wanted to play Bach tonight.”
Chapter 14-
It was after 3am when Troy made his way into the kitchen. He paused when he saw Madison eating the rest of the plate he left for her. An amused snort left his wolf form as he sat on his haunches and watched her.
Madison grabbed a napkin and wiped her mouth. “I was hungry,” she said in her own defense. She couldn’t hide the smile on her face as he shifted and went to her side. “You going to make me fat you know that?”
Troy couldn’t help himself as he leaned over and kissed her. “That’s one of the reasons why I went to culinary school,” he teased. He could feel the confusion radiating off of her and decided to take pity on her. “Right after high school, I went to culinary school. My grandmother had started to teach me to cook, and I enjoyed it.
I figured why not.” Troy took her hand into his and caressed her knuckles. “After I graduated Mom and Dad wanted me to have my own restaurant, so they sent me to college for business.”
“Oh, you poor thing,” Madison mocked. She leaned forward and ran her fingers through his hair. “How dare they want you succeed?”
Her teasing was refreshing. Troy kissed her knuckles. “You’ve met them. Imagine how they took me dropping out to work at the bar.” He smiled as she laughed. The anger and hurt he could smell around the estate bothered him. Golden eyes watched as she enjoyed her food. The night they met she had been in a self-destructive mood. Now, she was just resigned to her pain. “Are you happy?” he asked suddenly.
The serious tone of his question threw her. She had to take a moment to chew her food and try to think of an answer. She hated talking about herself but with Troy she wanted to make an effort. “I’m content,” she answered at last. When he raised an eyebrow at her, she clarified. “I’m not disgustingly happy, but I have my boys.” She brushed her hair away from her face and shrugged. “My real parents and I weren’t on great terms, but I have Victor and his brood. It’s not like I’m alone or anything.”
“I didn’t ask if you were alone,” Troy said gently. He leaned forward and brushed his lips against hers. “I asked if you were happy.”
Brown eyes closed tightly. “Don’t do this,” she breathed.
“Do what?”
“Don’t make me count on you for my happiness,” she confessed. Tender fingers tangled in her hair and she tilted her face up to his. “Don’t make me fall in love with you. Don’t act like I’m the best thing you’ve ever had.” Madison opened her eyes to reveal the tears in them. “I’m too raw. My mother wanted to make amends and I’m just really worn right now.”
Troy kissed her again and took her empty plate. As he placed everything in the sink, he felt a pair of eyes on him. When he looked at his Mate, she had the decency to blush. “Enjoying the view?” he asked.
She smirked. “Maybe. But did Dennis tell you that we keep blankets all over the estate? You could have shifted and wrapped up in something.” Madison walked over to him and slid her arms around his waist. “Every now and again the boys sneak out. We wouldn’t want you to scare them or anything.” She laughed when he lifted her hand and nipped at her fingers. As he turned to face her, Madison raked her eyes over his body. “Then there’s the fact that your mother will probably be staying with us for a while. I don’t think she would appreciate us making out in the kitchen.” A gasp escaped her when he leaned forward and ran his teeth over the Mating Mark on her neck.
Troy kissed her passionately and slid one of his hands down the front of her pants. “She wouldn’t catch us making out in the kitchen,” he promised. His dimpled grin crossed his face as he lifted her legs to his waist. “We’d be fucking on the table,” he breathed against her skin.
Madison ripped off the top she wore before fusing her mouth with Troy’s. The feel of his skin against hers was intoxicating. She groaned as he leaned her back against the kitchen table. Open mouthed kisses trailed from her lips down her neck as she started to shimmy out of her pants.
“Oh, God,” Dylan’s voice rang out.
Madison and Troy pulled away from each other as they saw Dylan standing in the center of Crispin’s arms. Horrified, Madison made a mad dash for her clothes as Troy sat low in one of the chairs. “What are you two doing up?” she asked breathlessly.
Crispin looked at the scene around him and smirked. “We were looking for a midnight snack as well,” he said barely containing his laughter. When Madison rolled her eyes, he pressed a kiss to Dylan’s hair. “You both know that we do eat on that table, right?” he asked.
Madison snorted as she sat on Troy’s lap. It didn’t matter if he was comfortable with being nude around people. She didn’t want anyone else looking at her man. “You do know that this is my house, right? You don’t see me pulling a CSI in your kitchen.”
Dylan blushed as she went over to the pantry. “That isn’t the point,” she said quickly.
Troy laughed when Madison turned to her sister. His mate had wolf tendencies and didn’t even know it. She knew they were hiding something from her. The way Crispin was laughing and Dylan was trying to avoid looking at them not because of what she saw, but of what she and her husband were almost guilty of doing as well.
A look of outrage and disgust crossed Madison’s face. “The point is that you were about to get busy in my kitchen!” she whispered in a squeak. When Dylan ducked her head, she turned to Crispin. “The midnight snack you wanted was a little nookie from your cookie, isn’t it?” she asked.
The Vampire wouldn’t deny the truth. “That is a rather crude way to think of your baby sister,” Crispin answered diplomatically. When Madison simply folded her arms, he smirked. “Contrary to what you think, I did not have any edible relations with said cookie.” Green eyes glowed as he watched his wife. “Yet.”
Troy looked at Dylan, who had turned an interesting shade of red. He then ran his fingers through Madison’s hair and nuzzled her ear. “Now, I saw a can of Reddi Whip in the fridge and I don’t know about you, but I’m in the mood for something sweet.”
Madison giggled and then covered her mouth in shock of the sound. She looked at Crispin and Dylan, who were both exchanging odd looks. “What?”
Dylan shook her head. “I didn’t say anything. Just keep your kinky love life out of my food,” she said before opening the refrigerator and pulling out the can of Reddi Whip. She tossed it to Troy and then went back into the pantry. “Where did you leave the peppermint patties?”
“I think Donald put them on the top shelf so the boys couldn’t find them.” Madison looked at Crispin and smiled sweetly as she put her chin in her hand. “Can you be a good little Prince and bring me a blanket for Troy?” she asked.
Crispin leaned against the wall. It had been forever since Madison had been in such a good mood. For that alone he would always be thankful to the werewolf, but that didn’t mean he had to go easy on them. “What if I don’t want to?” he asked.
Madison grinned at him. “I have my Mate back, and I just figured out what you’ve been doing in my kitchen.” She glanced at Dylan and saw that her sister was starting to get over her embarrassment. “Turnabout is fair play,” she reminded them. “We can go into your house and completely defile the kitchen that you two so painstakingly renovated.” She then wrapped her arms around Troy’s neck. “Their kitchen isn’t as big as this one, but it has a lot of flat surfaces.”
“Plenty of room to work,” Troy said with a nod. He snorted when Crispin turned and walked out of the kitchen. “You are so wrong,” he laughed.
Dylan shook her head. “That’s Madison for you.” When Troy looked at her, she smiled at the two of them. “That’s also one of the reasons why we love her.”
“Please tell me this isn’t one of those if you hurt her, we’ll hunt you conversations,” Madison groaned. “I really don’t feel like listening to any of those.”
The Vampire Princess smiled at her sister. “That was all covered on the way here. You don’t have to worry about that one.”
Crispin walked back into the kitchen with a towel in his hands. “This was all I could find,” he said handing it to Troy. He glanced at Dylan and winked at her as he opened the towel.
Madison ducked her head as she laughed. Of all the things for Crispin to find, he brought them a He-Man towel that Donald had bought for the boys. She looked at Troy and smiled. “It fits.”
Troy smiled as he accepted the towel from Crispin. As Madison stood up, he covered himself with the towel. “Well now that that’s taken care of, I will bid you Royals good night,” he said with an exaggerated bow. When he spied Madison frowning, he smirked. “I’m going to go shack up with my mate,” he said before pulling her with him out of the kitchen.
She lifted a finger before running back to the doorway. Madison frowned when she saw Crispin leaning over to kiss
Dylan. “You’re going to pay for the cleaning people to scrub this place down with bleach.” Her frown then deepened when Crispin opened his mouth to say something to her. “Better yet, you’re paying for a whole renovation,” she said before leaving them to their candy.
* * * * *
An alarm clock started to ring. Lily stretched as she thought of all of the errands she would have to run today. Her boss wanted her to join him in a handful of meetings so she could take notes. The lunch meeting would be the worse one out of them all. They had to meet with the defense’s council to see if they could plea out a case where the crime was clear as day.
Lily always hated having to deal with murders. Just because she was a Demon didn’t mean she bathed in violence. Really all she wanted was to be normal, or at least as close to normal as she could get.
As she walked to the bathroom, Lily noticed Cord standing in the kitchen. She frowned as she spied the way his hands were shaking. It was as almost like he was high. “Cord?” she asked softly. He spun around to face her at a speed that made her jump. Her eyes widened as he started to giggle. “What did you do?” she asked in a whisper.
“Would you believe…?” he started. He closed his eyes for a moment and seemed to tip himself forward before he straightened. Cord cleared his throat and laughed. “Would you believe that I actually forgot how good a virgin could taste?” Wild green eyes looked at the utter horror that crossed Lily’s face. She had always been one to take things way to seriously. Another chuckle escaped him as she started to shake her head in denial. “It’s been so long since I had one. I tell you, I love the sexual freedom of the 21st Century. But finding a virgin is almost impossible now. I don’t even know if she was legal.”
