Rourke kissed me, still grinning. “You look beautiful, and everyone is used to it. Come on, Lucas made breakfast and I saved some for you.”
I followed him downstairs.
Maggie was perched on the kitchen counter, chatting with Lucas, who loved indulging her. She immediately stretched her arms out to Rourke, who scooped her up. She didn’t bother to try that with me anymore, as there was absolutely zero room. “Annie and Aidan will be here soon,” she cooed. “And Auntie Marcy too!” Marcy was flying in for the birth. Her words had been, Just try to stop me.
“That’s what you keep telling us.” Rourke chuckled. So far the little cherub hadn’t been any more specific than soon. “Is your mommy downstairs?”
She nodded vigorously. “Yes, the warlock is willy upset.”
When wasn’t he?
It was taking more time than I had hoped for Jeb to acclimate to the new structure of the Coalition. Since my pregnancy was going so fast, others were taking meetings with him in my place. Jeb had taken a certain umbrage to being passed around, but so far it was working as well as it could. We’d had no immediate issues that had been too hard to handle.
I grabbed a few pieces of bacon, a muffin, and a glass of orange juice. “Is Romy in my office?” The dark angel stopped by once a week. She had kept us updated on what was happening. Unfortunately, her world, a place she called Vail, was very close to total unrest. It was worrisome for all of us.
“Yes,” Rourke answered. “I’ll be down as soon as I can get rid of this little kitty cat.” He tickled Maggie, and she giggled.
I padded through the house, taking one of the two stairways that led down to the basement. My office was in one of the bigger rooms, complete with a set of French doors that led outside. The view of the countryside was amazing. I enjoyed living here. “Sorry to keep you waiting,” I told Romy as I walked in. She was lounging on a leather sofa, but stood as soon as I entered.
“Nice outfit,” she snarked.
“Yeah, my choices are a bit limited these days.” I set my glass and plate on my desk. “Doesn’t make sense to stock up on a bunch of maternity clothes when I’m about to give birth.” I tried to ease behind my desk with some grace. It wasn’t easy. My belly ended up knocking most of the things off the desk. I shoved the juice glass and food out of the way in time. When I was finally situated, I asked, “What’s up? You were just here on Monday. Have things changed?”
“Yes, I’m afraid they have. And I fear chaos in our world will leak into yours.”
“How can we prevent that from happening?” I asked.
“I’m not sure yet,” she admitted as she began to walk around my office. “I have a meeting with Leo later today. We will likely have to leave for Vail soon.” I was still trying to understand all the nuances of the different realms and how they worked. It was complicated.
“I want to send someone with you,” I said. I’d gotten to know all of Julian’s wolves over the last few months. “There’s a wolf with a special talent who might be an asset.”
“What talent is that?” she asked.
“His name is Dag, and he can heal any wound with speed. Some wolves have healing skills, but I’ve never seen anything like this before. I’m pretty sure he could’ve put Ceres back together if he’d wanted to. If your world is as harsh as you say it is, you will be in constant danger. I don’t think Dag would mind accompanying you. On the contrary, I actually think it would be right up his alley. He’s enormous, imposing, gregarious, and is always up for adventure. You could present him as our emissary. I wouldn’t mind sending representation along with you.”
“That might be useful. I’ll let you know,” she said.
Tally stuck her head in the door. “We have a problem. I need you in the conference room.”
“Got it,” I told her. I turned back to Romy. “Is there anything else I can help you with right now?”
“No,” Romy said. “I just wanted to let you know that I’ll be leaving soon.”
She hesitated.
“What is it?”
“There is a chance once I leave I may not be able to return to this realm,” she said.
“Why not?”
“I haven’t been completely honest with you.” She paced toward the French doors and looked out. “I was actually ordered home months ago.”
“Why didn’t you go when you were summoned?” I asked.
“Because my sister had been taken hostage by white angels.”
I wasn’t following. If Tyler were in trouble, I would’ve rushed to him. “Why wouldn’t you have gone home and tried to get her back?”
Romy sighed, turning to face me. “My sister is a very powerful angel. She holds a prominent position in our parliament. They wanted me home to trade my life for hers. There was no plan to break her out, only to give me to them in hopes that they would set her free.”
“That almost never happens,” I pointed out.
“Tell me about it.”
“So what’s your plan?” I asked.
“Leo has decided to help me, which is unprecedented, as he is white and I am dark. But, whatever the outcome, I may not be able to return. I could be jailed for failing to do as they asked, or worse. I wanted to let you know because I’ve come”—she paused—“to call you a friend. I wanted to give you a proper farewell.”
I made my way out from behind my desk, managing to aim my belly away from anything breakable. We embraced as well as we could. “I’ve come to call you a friend too,” I told her. “Let me confer with the other women, but I’d like to send Dag with you at the very least. If your world falls, I want ample warning, and Dag can also provide you with protection. He’s a fierce wolf. You told me before that there are many ways in and out of your realm. If they lock you up, Dag can alert us, and we can help you.”
She nodded. “Your offer is very generous. I’ll send word after my meeting with Leo.”
“Be well,” I said, kissing each cheek. “I hope you find your sister and that everything works out.”
“Me too.” She walked to the French doors and opened them. “Give those beautiful babies love from me.” She glanced over her shoulder. “You will be a wonderful mother.”
Then she was gone, her long, blonde hair flowing out behind her.
I picked up my juice and plate and walked into the conference room. Tally sat at the head of the table. Naomi and Kayla were also already there, Jeb pacing behind them. The first thing I noticed was Kayla’s pale face.
I eased myself as gracefully as I could into a chair. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s the gargoyles,” Tally started before Kayla could answer. “The ones after Jax. We’ve gotten some intel that they’re planning to strike against us.”
“When?” I asked. “Why would they do a stupid thing like that?”
Jeb had his book out. “It will happen within a week,” he read from the pages. “According to what is written here, they have a good chance of winning their prize if they’re allowed to arrive in Italy. We must preempt them, ideally somewhere in Austria, as they’re coming from the Czech Republic.”
“Any word from Eudoxia?” I asked.
Tally shook her head. “No, nothing.”
We’d heard from her only twice in the last three months. I glanced at Kayla. “They must want Jax pretty badly to come all this way and try to fight us for him.”
Kayla’s gaze was pinned to the table as she fidgeted. “They need him for a specific reason.”
I leaned forward as much as my belly would allow. “And what’s that?” I asked.
“To procreate,” she said. “Their numbers have dwindled far lower than I’d thought before. They believe Jax to be fertile. They will likely stop at nothing.”
I turned to Naomi. “Can you track this band of gargoyles?”
She nodded. “I believe so. It shouldn’t be too hard.” She glanced at Kayla. “Do you have anything one of them might have touched? Maybe something of your families that you kept?”<
br />
“I might,” Kayla answered. “When they attacked, they brutalized my mother. I have her things. I can search through them after this meeting.”
“Okay, we send Naomi to scout their exact location,” Tally said, coming up with a directive. “Then we send Kayla in to negotiate terms. If that doesn’t work, we send in a battle battalion full of witches and spells to break them up.”
We all nodded.
“I’ll go with Naomi,” Ray announced as he walked into the room, yanked out a chair, and sat. “Sorry I’m late.”
My eyebrows rose to my hairline. “You look like hell. Did you get Selene settled?” There was no way the goddess was going to live here with us, so she and Ray had gotten their own place. Because Ray could fly, they’d picked Rome. Apparently, Selene had acquaintances there.
“More or less,” he said as he sighed. “This mate business is a bunch of malarkey.”
I laughed. “Well, it is when you’re mated to somebody like Selene.” That was a circle of hell I didn’t want to know about. “Hang in there. If her pregnancy is anything like mine, your baby will be here soon.” He had announced she was pregnant a few weeks ago. I hadn’t had the heart to tell him about Enid yet. There would be time for that after he bonded with the baby.
“Back to the business at hand,” Jeb announced with a sniff. “As Tally was saying, Naomi and Ray will go scout the location. After that, we send in Kayla.”
“Let’s add Danny and Tyler to the list,” I told Jeb. “Since this is Naomi’s first official tracking duty and Kayla’s first negotiation, both mates will want to accompany them.” I addressed the women. “I’m assuming you want them with you?” I smiled. “If it makes it any easier, I don’t think you need them there to do your job. But when I get back into the field, Rourke and I will go out as a team. Every time. I believe it makes us all safer in the end. But the choice is yours.”
They both nodded. “That works,” Kayla answered. “The gargoyles will be hostile, so I’d like to take ten to twenty wolves with me.”
“And some spell crafters,” Tally announced. “Just to be safe. We don’t need to go into these meets blind. I’ll have my witches research spells that work on gargoyles. They are resistant to most things, but I’m sure we can drum up something.”
“Sounds good,” I said. “If the gargoyles don’t back down, we can always send Jax off plane.” Everyone stared at me blankly. “What? It’s not the craziest plan in the world. If they can’t find him, they can’t take him.”
Kayla crossed her arms. “And where exactly would you send him?”
“That depends on what happens with the angels and their civil war and how dangerous it becomes,” I said. “Romy has described Vail as welcoming to other supernaturals. If that’s not an option, there’s always the Underworld. I’ve been in contact with the Princess of Hell a few times, and we’re on good terms.” I leaned forward. “Do you have a better plan? Our duty is to keep Jax safe, and I’m willing to do whatever it takes.”
Kayla was quiet for a few seconds. “I am too.”
Tally stood, placing her palms on the table. “This meeting is adjourned.”
Jeb was about to say something when a small voice interrupted him. “Auntie Jessica?”
I turned to find Maggie in the doorway with Rourke. “Sorry to bother you,” he said. “She insisted we come down.” We’d all learned to listen to Maggie when she had something to say.
“What is it, baby?” Tally crooned in a voice she reserved for her daughter.
Maggie met my eyes. “It’s time.”
The moment the words tumbled out of her mouth, a gigantic contraction ripped through me. I moaned as my nails gouged the conference table.
Everyone jumped out of their seats.
Tally took Maggie, and Rourke came to my side. “I’ll call Genevieve,” Tally announced. “She’s the best midwife we have, and I’ve had her on call for this. You won’t feel a thing.” She disappeared out the door.
Another searing pain washed through me, and as I tried to stand, my knees buckled.
Rourke caught me and scooped me up into his arms. “Are you okay? Is this normal?” His voice was full of concern.
“I’m fine,” I told him, wrapping my arms tightly around his neck, right where they belonged. “It’s just time for us to meet our babies.”
He rested his forehead against mine. “I can’t wait.”
The BLOODED WORLD continues…Stay tuned.
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About the Author
Amanda Carlson is a graduate of the University of Minnesota, with a BA in both Speech and Hearing Science & Child Development. She went on to get an A.A.S in Sign Language Interpreting and worked as an interpreter until her first child was born. She’s the author of the high octane Jessica McClain urban fantasy series published by Orbit, the Sin City Collectors paranormal romance series, and the contemporary fantasy Phoebe Meadows Series. Available everywhere. She lives in Minneapolis with her husband and three kids.
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