by S. E. Babin
"Hey, Marissa?"
"Yeah?"
"Did Lucas tell you what I was?"
She tilted her head in surprise. "He did. Why?"
"I don't often gift out readings, but I was wondering if you wanted one. You have some big changes coming up. Plus I didn't get you a baby gift."
Soft laughter warbled from her. "A crazy pregnant lady accosts you in the grocery store and strong arms you into taking her to a creepy mansion in the woods and you worried about a baby gift?" She grinned brilliantly. "I can see why you got under Lucas' skin so much." She sat up. "But yes, if you're offering, I would love it."
I stood and handed the baby back to her. "Maybe put him to sleep first and we can get started. It takes quiet and concentration for me."
"Two impossible things for a new mom." Marissa snuggled the baby and I looked away as she began to breastfeed him. I didn't have a problem with nudity or breastfeeding or anything of the sort, but it always felt like I was intruding on a private moment, so I tended to look away or leave the room. I took out my phone and checked my schedule for the next few weeks.
Several minutes later, baby Clint was fed, burped, and passed out in the bassinet in the next room. Marissa had set up the baby monitor just in case. I pulled her up a seat so she could face me and I took her hands. I shut my eyes, took several deep breaths, and after a moment I slipped into the alpha state where my visions could come through.
Sometimes I asked people questions before I did a reading. Sometimes, in cases like Marissa's, I let whatever needed to come to me, come. The first thing I noticed was the darkness. I was in the woods somewhere, and I could sense people all around me. There was a cabin in front of me with a truck parked outside. The lights were on inside and there was a fire crackling in the fireplace. I struggled to see more of the inside. To my right, people began to speak.
"When is she due here?"
I turned my head and noticed a powerful man with a rifle slung over his shoulder. "Soon. The birth of the baby is imminent. She will need to be moved soon after before other creatures can sense the presence of the child."
"And you're sure this is where she'll come?" I couldn't make out the details of this man. It was dark and his face was in profile. He was tall, but built like a tank.
The other man shrugged. "Best case scenario. This cabin was built by her husband just for this purpose."
"You'd best hope so. If we lose her, it will be your ass."
"We won't. I knew Sikes very well. He would have planned for a contingency like this. It was pure luck we stumbled on this."
I held my breath even though I knew they couldn't see me. My gaze scanned the tree lines, revealing at least two other armed people.
The cabin was surrounded.
I opened my eyes.
"Marissa, you cannot go to your husband's cabin. It's surrounded right now by armed personnel. No idea who they are. You're going to need to find another place to stay."
Marissa's eyes widened with fear. "What am I going to do?"
I shook my head. "I think you should call Lucas right away. He has the resources to help."
She nodded and with shaky hands produced her cell phone. When he answered, I stood and walked to the other side of the room to try to give her a semblance of privacy, but I could still hear what she said.
"Lucas, the cabin has been compromised."
Marissa fell silent and I could hear Lucas yell through the line. When Marissa took a deep breath and her shoulders fell, I had a terrible feeling I knew what happened.
"I called his parents," she said.
"YOU DID WHAT?" That was Lucas, completely enraged.
"It's their grandchild. I didn't want to keep that secret from them."
I couldn't hear the rest of what he said, but a few moments later Marissa disconnected. Her mouth was a thin line of anger as she laid back on the couch and stared at the ceiling.
"I'm sorry," I said. It was weak, but it was the only thing I could offer.
"It was my fault. I try to see the best in people."
"I've been there before. Does Lucas know what he's going to do?"
She shook her head. "I need to get out of here soon, though. If anyone gets within a mile or two of this cabin, it's possible they'll pick up Clint's scent. It will be unfamiliar and probably elicit attention I don't want."
I nodded. "He'll figure something out." I grabbed my purse. "I have a few appointments. I need to leave, but I'll stop back by in a day or two. Text me what you need from the store."
Marissa nodded, but I wasn't convinced she'd heard me. I slipped outside the door, making sure it was locked behind me. I couldn't imagine being in her shoes right now, but especially not with an infant added into the mix.
I made it home about twenty minutes later and kicked off my shoes with a groan. I had a little while before my appointment, so I collapsed on the couch and picked up the paperback I'd been trying to read for the last three weeks. It was about a monster invading the city but not because he was evil. He wanted friends. I had no idea why I was still reading it because it felt like a sappy soda commercial, the kind they do at Christmas time, but it was also kind of sweet. Even the monsters needed a friend sometimes. I needed to get into the right frame of mind to do another reading especially after Marissa's. I hated seeing that in her future, but at least it gave them a chance to find something else. I wasn't sure if she'd ever truly be safe. I definitely wasn't sure her child would be. After all, what was going to happen when it was time for him to go to school? Unless she figured out a way to hide his scent signature or somehow managed to convince the vamps and wolves he was not harmful to them, Marissa had a long road ahead of her.
My cell rang. I took it out of my pocket only to see it was Lucas. "Hey," I said.
"Hey back." His voice was warm and friendly. It was a new side of him that I was beginning to really enjoy. Once he felt like he could trust me, the gentleman I suspected had been inside of him all along had come out to play.
"I'm sorry about Marissa," I said.
He blew out a breath. "Thank you for offering her a reading. Without that, we would have walked right into a trap. I can't believe she told his parents." His voice vibrated with frustration.
"She needs help," I told him. "Being a single parent is a lonely thing. Being a single parent to a creature people want to kill has to be even worse."
Lucas let out a bark of laughter. "He seems way too cute to be dangerous."
"I agree. But not everyone does."
"Do you think he's suddenly going to grow Wolverine claws and start ripping through people?"
"Hmm. Too soon to tell. Right now his fingers are too tiny and adorable to speculate."
"What a mess. I wish we could just communicate about this."
"You can still try."
"No. Even bringing it up will result in suspicion. I don't want anyone digging into this."
"Maybe working from behind the scenes can help open up a dialogue again."
"The last hybrid child turned murderous in the first few weeks it was alive."
My thoughts snagged on something. "Do you think it was related to loupism?" This was something I'd read about very briefly in the newspaper a few years ago. But the local Alpha had done a good job controlling outbreaks of loupism and was very careful to enlist strict rules on werewolf creation.
There was a pause. "Maybe?" he wondered aloud. "The odds of loupism in made werewolves are a lot higher than those born, but it could have something to do with the viruses mingling."
"Clint is two weeks old. Do you remember how old the other hybrid was when he turned violent?"
"I don't, but it couldn't have been more than a month."
"So we still have some time."
"We do. Let's cross our fingers Clint turns out okay." Lucas started to speak again and paused.
"Yes?"
"I'd like to ask you out again."
I stared at the phone. While part of me wanted to leap for joy, the oth
er part wanted to slink away and hide under a rock.
"It will be different this time," he insisted once the silence went on too long.
"I don't know, Lucas. We seem like fire and gasoline."
He chuckled. "Well that's usually because I said or did something stupid that made you explode."
"True," I admitted. "I'm not sure what would be different, though. You still don't want to date, do you?"
"Considering I'm asking you on a date and our slate is clean, do you really believe that?"
I shrugged but then remembered he couldn't see it. "I've never seen you date anyone else. I'm not sure you know what you want."
"Why do I have to know right now? Can't a man take a pretty lady to dinner?"
I smiled against my better judgment. "He can as long as he doesn't expect anything afterward."
"Seriously, Grace. I would like to see you again. In a non-friendly, you wear something pretty and put your hair up so I can see that delicious vein beating at the side of your neck."
My heartbeat picked up into a gallop. "I'm almost creeped out by that."
"Almost?"
"Lucas..."
He laughed. "I'm serious. It will be great. Don't say no, Grace. Please."
Silence stretched for a beat. "Fine. If you show up in a beard, I'm going to beat you with a barbwire bat."
"Violent, but I agree to your terms."
"It's a date then."
"Good."
"Lucas?" I asked before I hung up.
"Yes?"
"Please don't be weird."
He laughed, but it sounded exasperated. "I'll do my absolute best."
17
We'd planned our date two days from that phone call which was tonight. Per his instructions, but mostly because I wanted to, I was wearing something pretty - a flowy polka dotted dress that flared with movement at the bottom when I shifted or walked. I paired it with a pair of comfortable wedges and some silver jewelry I'd found on a rack at the plant nursery I'd stopped into on a whim. The jewelry maker was local and supposedly the pieces were infused with positive attributes. For tonight I'd chosen silver moonstone earrings for patience and a teardrop necklace that was supposed to soothe the nerves. I had to laugh at myself when I put them on. Every single time I'd been out with Lucas he'd managed to drive me into a singular focused rage. I was hoping that would be different tonight. I genuinely cared about him. I thought about him at all hours of the day, I wondered what it would be like for him to pull me close, but most of all I wondered about getting to know him. Really know him.
What he'd done and was continuing to do for Marissa was above and beyond what I'd ever expected from him. He was putting himself in harm's way for her even when he didn't have to. And all because of a promise made to his best friend. You could tell, though, he genuinely cared for his friend's wife. I wondered what it would be like to fall into that category with him. I knew he liked me, but we hadn't exactly had the best track record.
I put down my journal. I'd been writing in it every day and I noticed my clumsiness was almost all of the way gone. The Comey sisters were right. Sometimes life came down to mind over matter. I had noticed one particular thing during this journey. Any time I was upset or nervous it got worse. Considering most of those times happened when Lucas was around or otherwise being an irritating tool, I was able to refocus my thoughts on something else. When I'd sat down to really think about the other times, all of them had in some way been related to a relationship.
And it had all started on prom night.
I took a deep breath, smoothed my skirt down, and peeked at myself one more time in the mirror. I looked good. I felt good. I had high hopes.
Maybe the third time would be the charm. This would be the "official" third date, but I'd seen him a lot over the last several weeks. We'd just been careful to keep it strictly in the friend zone. Mostly because when he got that arrogant look on his face I had to stifle the urge to smack him.
The doorbell rang. I slipped on my shoes, grabbed my purse, and headed out, not giving myself time to invite him in.
"Hey," he said, his eyes widening in response to my antics.
I shut and locked the door and abruptly stopped as I took in his appearance. No beard, thank all that was holy. His blond hair was swept back from his face, accentuating his eyes and angular cheekbones. He wore a suit with no tie, the white shirt unbuttoned at the top showing a hint of golden skin. He was fresh shaven and his eyes glittered with an emotion I couldn't place.
"You look nice," I said. It was the only thing I could come up with. He looked way better than nice. If scrumdiddlyumptious was a word, that was what he would look like. Which meant delicious but not mediocre delicious like ice cream, more like super delicious like creme brulee or something.
Yum.
"You look way better than nice," he retorted and held out his elbow for me to take. I clasped my fingers around his arm and allowed him to lead me down the stairs.
"Thank you."
"And I noticed you have your hair up."
"Mmm," I responded. "I hope you're hungry."
Lucas faltered and misstepped. "Clever girl," he murmured. He held the door open for me and helped me into his truck. I grinned at his retreating back. I'd put my hair up and added perfume right at that vein in my neck.
He slid in, started the vehicle, and pulled out of the driveway and away from town.
"Where are we going?"
"Somewhere I've never taken anyone."
"I can't decide if I'm intrigued or terrified."
"If this were a book, the correct response would be terrified. After all, vamps are scary."
"I think if people were smart, they'd be way more scared of clairvoyants."
Lucas nodded in agreement. "Does it ever scare you?"
I nodded. "All the time. It isn't easy. I can feel the emotions surrounding the event sometimes. And there have been occasions when I'd witnessed someone's death."
His eyebrows rose. "Do you tell them?"
"That they're going to die?"
He nodded.
I shook my head. "Not usually. Only if it's a crime. Even then, people usually don't believe me. I'll read about it later in the paper."
"Damn. That has to be tough."
"I just don't understand why someone would pay for my services only to ignore my advice."
"Human nature," Lucas said. "We always think we know best, don't we?"
"Are you lumping yourself in with the humans now?"
He grinned with a flash of fang. "We've lived among them our entire lives. We aren't exactly inhuman. Vampires started out as mortal. We become turned and lose parts of ourself, but we are still mostly human."
"With perks?"
He laughed. "Definite perks."
I'd never been to the barrier of Midnight Cove. I gasped in surprise as Lucas pulled up to it. "Have you ever been out this way?" he asked me.
I shook my head. "I've never been outside of the town."
I felt him look at me in surprise. "You may feel disoriented for a minute or so. There's a lot of magic keeping the town running. When we pull through you will feel an abject...loss of it."
A frown pulled at my forehead. "Will my magic disappear?" I asked, feeling a sudden panic in my stomach.
"No. Nothing like that. But it may be a little harder to pull on if you need it. The regular world doesn't have a lot of magic in it. Some, but not nearly as much as the cove does."
"Why do you come out here?"
He shrugged and began to accelerate slowly. "There's a lot more to our world than just our town. The earth is a gorgeous, wondrous place. Plus the food is to die for."
That was exciting. The food was pretty good in Midnight Cove, but it was always the same thing. "Can't wait," I said and gasped as Lucas exited the barrier.
It was like a sudden absence of color and sound ripped over me. Everything smelled different. Less rich for a moment, more...unfamiliar. I took a couple of deep breaths and f
elt my stomach lurch. Lucas took my hand. "Just breathe through it. It will pass."
He took a left hand turn and I was bombarded by street lights everywhere. My stomach began to settle and I looked at out the window unable to keep from gaping. There were buildings and lights everywhere. More light than I'd ever seen in Midnight Cove.
"Are there different barriers in the town?" I asked.
"Several. Depending on which one you take, you could come out either downtown, where we are, into a suburban neighborhood, or right out onto the highway."
"Cool," I murmured and continued to gawk at the sights. "How much longer?"
"Just a few minutes."
We drove in silence for awhile until he turned into what appeared to be a large shopping area. Stores, boutiques, restaurants and other shopping areas were all over the place. Lucas pulled into a parking garage, paid the attendant and pulled into the first available spot. He reached into the back and pulled out a lightweight jacket. "The weather is different where we are too. It might be a little cooler than you're used to."
I accepted the jacket and shrugged it on. He came around and opened the door for me, offering a hand to help me out. I pulled the jacket closer. It was quite a bit cooler than I'd expected.
"Come on," he said and clasped my hand in his. "We have reservations in about fifteen minutes and we still have a little ways to walk."
I let him take my hand and allowed him to lead me further into the shopping plaza. What an adventure. I was grinning like a lunatic. People were milling everywhere around us, smiling and laughing. Every single person seemed human. No one had horns or fangs, or weird auras. It was amazing.
