by Lane Hart
"Asking him to go through that again might be too much?" I supply.
"Yes. And I'm stuck in the middle. I want Kate to do this for Joselin, because she's never been a mother before, but I see where Sam's coming from too and can't ask him to go through that shit again. Fucking warlocks. Sorry Jason."
"I don't lump myself in with them. Apparently I'm a super warlock because I'm witch born."
"Witch born?" Tom asks.
"Yeah, they said warlocks conceive warlocks, and witches conceive witches. I was a twin, and Chris was…nuts, as far as they can figure."
"So what gender would a witch and warlock's babies be? Witches always?" Tom asks.
"That's what the warlocks seem to be banking on," Jason says.
"Should I go check on the women?" I ask. Tom nods, so I hand Madison's tiny sleeping form to Jason with a smile before heading to the closed door at the end of the hall.
I knock and go in, stopping short at the sadness of the two women. Kate's head is in Joselin's lap on the foot at the bed, and Joselin is crying too. I go into the adjoining bathroom and grab some tissue, then hand a bundle to each woman.
"Thanks," Joselin says. "Have a seat," she nods to the place beside her on the bed.
I climbed up and rubbed Kate's back feeling bad for her, even though we just met. "You don't have anything to worry about if the warlock is telling the truth. He said he's already seen you both raising babies with your spouses."
"Really?" Kate asks.
"Yeah."
"Sam was so angry. I haven't seen him like that since…"
"You found out you were pregnant," Joselin finishes.
"Yeah."
"He seems to love you so much he doesn't want to share you. You should’ve heard his threat to the warlocks of what he'd do if they come near you."
"What are the warlocks like?" Kate asks.
"Well, all of them are really cute. The youngest is still a boy, his name is Ryan. There's an Asian teenager named Seth who is their IT guy. Matt is a handsome Hispanic man in his twenties that does potions. Alex is…odd. Supposedly ‘his woman’ is a werewolf being held in the D.R.A's custody. And then there's Sebastian. He's the white haired German guy who's in charge. He says he and Madison will end up together."
Kate sits up abruptly. "What?"
"Yeah, Sam didn't care too much for that prediction of his either."
"How old is he?"
"I'd say mid-twenties."
"He'll be too old for Madison," she says, which is sort of ironic since she’s so young and is married to a vampire older than her father.
"Yeah, he wants your uncle to do the anti-aging spells for all of them, to wait for their witches to grow up."
Kate scoffs. "Are they saving themselves too?"
"Only the youngest says so. Ryan. I think that's who he said your second daughter was meant for."
She goes still like she’s thinking. "Who would be her father?" she asks quietly, like she’s afraid Sam will hear from wherever he is.
"That I don't know. Probably any of them except Ryan would do the job."
"Artificial insemination though right?" Joselin asks.
"Oh yeah."
"And Joselin, your little girl's mate would be Seth."
"Do you know how long I've waited…wanting…"
"A baby of your own?"
"Yes. I'm two hundred and sixty years old."
"Whew, that's a long time to wish for children. I'm only twenty-five and I'm starting to get the itch. All because of your little girl," I tell Kate with a smile.
"She is something. Why Sam doesn't want another one, I don't understand."
Thirty minutes later we hear the front door and Kate's back goes ramrod straight. "Sam?"
I go to look, but come back and shake my head. "Sorry, just Jason taking Max out."
"Kate, do you want me and your dad to stay here with you tonight?" Joselin asks.
"Please, if you don't mind. I don't want to be alone."
"We don't mind. Cyn, would you and Jason like to stay at our house? It's just a few blocks over.
"That would be great. The bunk beds on the bus are terrible, and the hotel rooms haven't been much better. I could use a change of clothes if either of you have something that might fit? We had to leave town when Jason's blood spilled in public."
"That's terrible, but we're glad you're both safe. You and I look about the same size, so help yourself to anything in my closet or dressers. Jason too, he can probably make do with Tom's clothes, and I'll ask my husband to drive you both over to get settled."
"Thank you so much," I tell her. "I'm glad Jason has his family back. He seemed so alone in D.C."
"We're glad he found us. Oh, and if it's okay with Tom, the warlocks can stay with us too."
"You've got room for five more men?"
"Oh yeah, their house is huge," Kate says.
"We've got four spare bed rooms, so one for you and Jason and three for them to split up."
"I'm sure they'd be glad to get off the bus too," I tell Joselin.
"Come on, let's go talk to Tom and Jason about getting everyone settled in," she says, and the three of us head back to the living room
"Tom, you mind if we stay with Kate tonight?" Joselin asks.
"No, of course not. Should I take Cyn and Jason on over to our place?" he asks.
"Thanks, hon. What about the other warlocks?" she asks him.
Tom groans. "You want them to stay with us too?"
"They need somewhere to stay."
"Fine. But I won't be held responsible if Sam comes over and kills any of them."
Chapter Eleven
Jason
I grab my cell phone, scroll to Sebastian's number and hit send.
"Jason?" he asks.
"Yeah. You guys want to get off the bus and sleep in real beds?" he asks
"Shit yes."
"Then here. I'll give you to Tom so he can give you the directions."
A little while later we’re shown into a huge bedroom in an amazing house, fully equipped with one very crabby vampire. We found Sam, and when the five warlocks arrived at the house, the same ones who've caused problems between him and his wife, he went nuclear.
"Sam, calm down," Tom tells him. I’m sitting outside in the backyard with Tom while he tries to talk down the vampire before he destroys his house.
"How could she!" he screams.
"Don't bite my head off, but this isn't about her, it's about you, and you know it," Tom responds coolly, leaning back in his patio chair.
Sam paces along the grassy area of the yard holding some large metal object that looks a hell of a lot like a car bumper, bending and squeezing it.
"It's about her not giving a shit about my opinion…how could she not even talk to me about it first?"
"No it's not. It's about you feeling emasculated."
"Emasculated?" Sam shouts with a glare in Tom’s direction.
"I know, because that's how I feel knowing I can't give Joselin the children she wants. But Kate can. And you know how long Joselin has waited and wanted this."
"If it was just for Joselin that'd be one thing, but it's not."
"Kate wants another baby, that you can't give her," Tom says. "E-mas-cu-lat-ed. Look it up."
"This is why she shouldn't have married me, because I can't give her what she wants," Sam chokes out, sounding more dejected than angry now.
"Yes, you can. If you let her do this then you're giving her what she wants without losing her. It's a compromise, not a betrayal of her wanting another man."
"I'm so glad I don't have you all's problems to worry about," I interject.
"How long have you and Cyn been together?" Tom asks.
"What's today? Sunday? Only about a week. We just met, so no marriage or baby talks for us for a long time."
Sam barks out a chuckle. "Yeah right. I knew I loved Kate and that she was the one for me in less than a week. Tom, how long did it take you to fall for Liz and Joselin
?"
He sighs. "Three days or less with Liz, and about the same with Joselin."
"Oh no, that's way too soon," I tell them
"So you drug a woman away from her home to run off with you as a fugitive, the most dangerous way possible, putting her life at risk, and you don't think that's serious? Come on," Sam teases. At least he’s in a better mood.
"I couldn't just leave her in the city." I was trying to keep her safe right? No, thinking about leaving her had been…unbearable.
Sebastian is one brave son of a bitch, because that’s the moment he chose to venture outside knowing how angry Sam is at all the damn warlocks, especially him.
"You might want to hold that thought," I warn him.
"There's no time. With the D.R.A. facility bombings we need to move now on the Atlanta holding cells. My informant on the inside says there's talk of moving the prisoners the first of the week, separating them across the states as a precaution."
"Maybe you should've started there instead of blowing up the DC, Charlotte and New Orleans offices, dumbass," I tell him.
"My mistake," he admits rubbing his temple. "But can we count on you to come with us?" he asks me, and I nod. Then he turns to Sam and Tom. "What about you two vamps? Want to help save some of our kind?"
"I worked for the D.R.A. for almost twenty years, so I can help you more than almost anyone," Tom responds.
"I wouldn't mind killing a few agents to take the edge off," Sam says, throwing his big metal stress ball out into the yard where it lands with a thud and makes a crater.
"Good. We could use you both, and hopefully if there's time, we can use the deaths of the agents for the anti-aging spells, but Jason's in charge of that project."
"We'll need some empty vials to collect blood from each dead," I tell him.
"We're also going to need to do some prep work. Why don't you break out your book, tell us what you need and we'll get to work preparing the spells. But gentleman, they'd be a hundred times stronger with Kate's blood instead of Jason's activating them. More than that with Madison's, but I know that's probably too much to ask," Sebastian says.
"You're not getting a drop of blood from Madison, but it's up to Kate whether or not she wants to donate," Sam replies.
"I can get the guys started on the spells and go talk to her if you want," I offer.
"All right,” Sebastian agrees. “If we can be ready to leave by midnight, then we'd get to Atlanta before they close tomorrow night, try and catch them when they're weary."
"Tonight at midnight?" Sam asks. I can almost bet he isn't happy about leaving Kate with things unfinished. Shit, I don't want to leave Cyn and we’re fine. More than fine.
"Now or never," Sebastian says, heading back inside, but then he stops at the door. "Would it be okay if Ryan stays here with the women? He's too young to go on this field trip."
"How old is he?" Tom asks.
"Just turned thirteen."
"And his parents just gave him to you?" Tom inquires.
"No. He was in an orphanage. His teenage mother gave him up for adoption…probably when she realized what he was. And from what I've heard, you killed his father," Sebastian responds with a smirk.
"I never killed any warlocks when I was an agent," Tom says defensively.
"So you've only killed one warlock?" Sebastian asks.
"No. I've never…No! Chris was his father?" Tom asks.
"Bingo."
"How? Chris couldn't have been but fifteen or sixteen when he was conceived," Sam asks.
"Yeah, and warlocks hit puberty just a little later than humans, around fourteen or fifteen. Ryan was probably one of his firstborns," Sebastian says.
"You mean Chris has more..?" Tom asks.
"Fuck!" Sam exclaims. "I thought he knocked women up, but I didn't even consider the consequences of those babies."
"Yep, there's probably a bunch of his little fatherless wizards running around North Carolina. Hopefully we'll round up more of them before it's too late."
"Wizards are what you call un-matured warlocks?" I ask, and Sebastian nods.
"So Ryan is…Madison's half-brother?" Sam mutters, still clearly stunned.
"Yeah. He can meet his sister while we're gone. And don't worry, since he's prepubescent your wife's virtue is safe with him. At least for a few more years," is Sebastian's parting comment, before heading back inside.
"I'm, ah, going to tell Cyn bye, then. Can I get a ride over to your place Sam?" I ask.
He nods, his mind still a million miles away with the latest revelation.
When I go back to our temporary room Cyn’s in the shower, so I grab my book from my duffle bag and head back to the kitchen where the warlocks are making plans around the dining table.
"Here," I say tossing the book in the middle of the group. "Start getting everything we need for the stunner and heart stopper spells, as many as you think we need. I'm going to count them and pat down every one of you after it's over to collect unused ones. And not a single sheet of paper leaves this room. Got it?"
There are nods of agreement.
"Jason's going to hopefully get what we need for the anti-aging spells while we're there."
"I'll do my best. When I get back with Kate's blood, assuming she agrees, we'll finalize them."
"Ryan, you're going with him to Kate's to stay-"
"You're leaving me behind?" he yells, standing up from his seat.
"You're too young, and we have to make room for Sam and Tom. Don't you want to meet your sister and your future mother-in-law?" Sebastian asks.
"My sister?" he asks, clearly hearing it all for the first time.
"Yes. Your father was Chris Turner, and he was Madison's father as well. I'm sure Kate can tell you some stories about him."
I start to walk off and tell Max to stand guard. The sleeping dog barely lifts his head when I speak his name, then I head back to see if Cyn is out of the shower.
I lock the room door behind me as I enter. I can hear the hair dryer through the bathroom door. I undress and climb into bed, remembering to grab a condom from the box we got in New Orleans, and wait.
Five minutes later she pulls the door open and freezes with a smile when she sees me waiting for her.
"Bedtime coming early tonight?" she asks.
My smile falls when I think of having to leave her in a few hours, and not holding her while she sleeps tonight.
"What's wrong?" she asks, picking up on my mood shift.
"We're leaving at midnight tonight for Atlanta."
"We are?" she asks.
"No, you're staying, and I'm going with the guys."
She crosses her arms over her chest. "This is going to be dangerous, isn't it?"
"What? No. With five warlocks and two vampires, one of which is a former agent, there'll be nothing to it."
"But you might get hurt," she says softly.
"Did you forget, sweetheart? Nothing can kill me."
She exhales in relief and heads for the bed. "But what if they catch you?" she asks.
"They won't catch us," I assure her, reaching for her and pulling her on top of me, which she does with a smile.
"So I take it this is your way of saying goodbye?" she asks, leaning down to kiss me.
"I'm going to miss you," I tell her honestly, feeling the softness of her skin on my fingertips as I run them over the side of her almost healed black eye.
"I'm going to miss you too. Guess there's no point in trying to convince you to let me come with you?" she asks.
"Hell no! I love you too much to risk-" I start, then pause as I hit rewind on the words I just said. Cyn's eyes widen, equally surprised.
"Y-you love me?"
"I guess I do. I mean yeah, I just hadn't realized it, but those bastards were right. I do already love you."
The smile that stretches across her face is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. "I love you too, Jason."
My arms circle her, pressing her chest against mine, and nee
ding her closer still.
…
Cyn
Sam’s driving Jason, Ryan, Max and I back to his house, and I really hope he and Kate will work things out before he leaves. I feel much better having had a nice shower, great sex, and clean clothes. Oh, and hearing Jason say he loved me was pretty awesome too.
"So your wife knew my father?" Ryan asks Sam, causing the vampire’s knuckles to turn white on the steering wheel. I hadn't heard about that.
"Yeah. I did too," Sam responds.
"You did?"
"Chris was my roommate for five years."
Chris? As in the same Chris? I look at Jason who’s sitting beside me in the back seat and he nods at my unspoken question.
"Oh…wow. So what was he like?" Ryan asks.
Sam barks out a laugh. "He was a cat while he lived with me."
"A cat? Seriously?" the boy asks.
