by Lola Gabriel
Now he just had to get through the last hour of his working day without going stir crazy. It was easier said than done now that he not only craved seeing Raven again, but also had a plan for what he needed to do to put his mind at rest about his baby. The last hour always dragged, but today, it seemed even worse than usual.
He waited for as long as he could, but he still ended up leaving work ten minutes early. His work was done for the day and he knew that his boss wasn’t going to start complaining about him leaving early anyway. He drove straight to his parents’ place and went to find them. He found his mom in her home office, typing at the computer.
“Hey, Jagger. What’s up? I wasn’t expecting to see you today,” she beamed at him, looking up from the screen as Jagger stepped into the office.
“I wanted to ask your advice about something,” Jagger said.
His mom held up one finger for a second and then she did another quick burst of typing. She hit enter with a flourish and then switched the monitor off and smiled at Jagger.
“Okay, fire away,” she said.
Jagger smiled back at her and went and sat down in one of the chairs in front of her desk.
“I’ve been seeing someone,” Jagger started.
“Right. Raven, isn’t it?” Jagger’s mom smiled.
Jagger raised an eyebrow.
“You knew about that?” he asked.
“Of course I did, Jagger. You’ve been seeing her for a few months, right? People talk,” his mom shrugged. “I figured you knew your dad and I knew about this.”
“So then I suppose you also know that she’s a vampire, not a witch,” Jagger said, getting right to the point quickly.
It was a little bit easier to explain the situation now that he knew his mom already knew more than he had thought she had and she didn’t look particularly pissed off or anything.
“Yes. I had heard Raven is a vampire,” Jagger’s mom smiled. “Look, Jagger, I know I should be giving you a lecture and telling you to stop messing around and find your one true mate, but the thing is, you’re still young and if you and this girl are happy together, then why not let it run its course, I say.”
“Well, that was kind of how we were seeing it too. But…well…the thing is…” Jagger sighed and took a moment to compose himself and then he blurted it out. He was pretty sure his mom didn’t suspect this part. “The thing is, Raven is pregnant.”
Jagger’s mom winced slightly.
“So you thought you were exclusive and she didn’t? Or did she know you were exclusive and she cheated on you?” she asked.
“Well, that’s the thing, Mom. She claims not to have done either. She swore to me that she hasn’t slept with anyone else and that the baby is mine. And as impossible as it sounds, well, I believe her,” Jagger said.
“Okay,” his mom said.
She paused and then raised an eyebrow.
“What?” Jagger said.
“Well, I was just waiting for you to go on,” his mom said with a frown.
“I was kind of done,” Jagger smiled. “I was just waiting for you to give me all of the reasons why it’s impossible.”
“Oh, Jagger, when you’ve lived for as long as I have, you’ll be a lot less inclined to think that anything is impossible.”
“So you believe that the baby is mine? You’ve seen cross-species mating before?” Jagger asked.
“I haven’t seen it personally,” his mom said. “Although I have seen a few examples where shifters get with another species and live happily ever after. However, I’ve never knowingly seen a baby conceived that way. But as for whether or not I believe it’s possible, well, if you trust this Raven girl and you’re sure she hasn’t cheated on you, then yes, I believe it’s possible. How can I not believe it if it’s happened, right?”
“Right,” Jagger said. “She swore to me she had been faithful to me. She even offered to do a DNA test on the baby. I do believe her. Aside from the fact that I trust her, at this point, what would she achieve by lying? It would be such an easy lie to disprove.”
“Are you trying to convince me that you believe her, or are you trying to convince yourself that you believe her?” Jagger’s mom asked him with a raised eyebrow.
“Neither really,” Jagger said. “I’m just trying to convince myself that it’s real at all, I suppose.”
“Yes, it must have been quite a shock,” his mom smiled.
“It was,” Jagger agreed. “But once I got my head around the fact that Raven hadn’t betrayed me, I was happy about it. I still am. But I’m a little bit worried too.”
“Worried? About what?” his mom asked. “Taking over the tribe?”
“No,” Jagger said. “I know that if I don’t find my one true mate, I can never take over the tribe and I’m okay with that. If it means I get to be with Raven and our baby, Silver can have the tribe.”
“He’s a few years younger than you, Jagger,” his mom pointed out.
“I know. But literally only a few years. And it’s not like you and Dad were planning on retiring anytime soon anyway. Right?” Jagger said.
“Right. So yeah, your brother can take over the tribe if it comes to that. So what is it you’re worried about if it wasn’t that?”
“It’s the baby,” Jagger admitted. “What if there’s something wrong with it? Like, I don’t know. Like what if it’s a freak of nature or something because Raven and I should never have been able to have a baby together in the first place?”
“Oh, Jagger, you don’t have to worry about that. It’ll be fine,” his mom smiled.
“How can you be so sure?” Jagger asked.
He desperately wanted to believe her, but he wanted her to be telling him the truth, not just saying what she thought he wanted to hear.
“Think about this. If, say, a wolf shifter and a bear shifter have a baby together, then there’s a chance the baby could shift into a wolf, a bear, or a combination of the two. Granted, a combination of the two could have problems, if you get my drift,” Jagger’s mom said. He nodded his head. He got her drift all too well and that was exactly what he was worried about for his own child. “Now think of you and Raven. A warlock and a vampire. You don’t shift at all as such. Even when you use your magic, your form doesn’t change. And a vampire, well, their eyes change and their teeth. But you two aren’t so much different species as you are two slightly different kinds of the same base species. Do you know what I mean?”
“I think so,” Jagger said. “You’re saying that Raven and I are close enough to being the same species that our child won’t be physically deformed, right?”
“Right,” his mom agreed. She frowned after watching him for a moment. “Why don’t you look like you feel better about this?”
“Oh no, I do,” Jagger said. “But it’s not just a physical malformation I was worried about. What about in other ways? What if the baby gets some of my genes and some of Raven’s and ends up with a bit of warlock and a bit of vampire inside of it?”
“Well, then you’ll end up with a child who can do magic and who has an appetite for blood, too. I really don’t think it will be any more sinister than that, Jagger. And it will have you to help it to control the magic side and learn how to be a good witch or warlock, and it will have Raven to teach it about impulse control and everything vampire-related.”
Jagger smiled widely at her and blew out a big sigh.
“Thanks, Mom. Now I really do feel better,” he said. It was his turn to frown. “And now you look worried.”
“I’m not worried about the baby’s health or anything like that, I swear. But I am a little bit worried about its safety once its born. You’re the baby’s father and you were worried there was going to be something strange about it. I am a little concerned that other tribes might get worried about the idea of a warlock or witch and vampire hybrid.”
“I see what you mean,” Jagger said, nodding his head. “You think the baby might be in danger from someone who is worried that a hybrid ba
by might end up too powerful for them.”
“Exactly,” Jagger’s mom nodded.
“Okay. Well, we can worry about that more once the baby is born. But for now, I will say this. I will do everything in my power to keep my baby safe and I know Raven will do the same. It’s going to take some serious manpower for anyone to get to my baby. And once the baby is older, then the other tribes will be able to see that we’re raising the child right, not as some sort of weapon,” Jagger said.
He hoped that would be enough. He had to hope that. And if it wasn’t, then the three of them would have to leave the country and go somewhere where no one knew them and start over again.
6
Raven was humming to herself as she crossed the street after leaving the office. She couldn’t wait to get home and get out of her suit and maybe have a nice long soak in the bath. She almost wished she had brought the car to work this morning, but she reminded herself it was hardly a long walk and she wanted to make sure she kept as active as possible now because it would be good for the baby.
She was almost home when she saw a young man coming toward her. She looked at him in passing and then looked away, and then she looked back quickly when she realized who it was. She smiled a greeting at him and then looked away. The young man was Silver, Jagger’s brother. Raven didn’t expect him to recognize her as they had never been formally introduced, but as a member of the ruling warlock family of the United States, she was expected to know who he was and treat him with respect.
“Raven, right?” Silver said, stopping beside Raven and surprising her greatly by knowing who she was.
“Yes. Hi, pleased to meet you,” she said.
“Raven, I know this is kind of weird, but I was wondering. Do you have a minute? I’d really like to talk to you about something important,” Silver said.
“Yes, of course,” Raven said, nodding her head. Under no circumstances would she have been able to politely refuse an audience with Silver, but even aside from that, she was curious as to what he might want with her. “I take it it’s not something you want to discuss in the street?”
Silver shook his head and looked around.
“No, it isn’t really,” he smiled. “I thought maybe there would be a café or something nearby.”
“There’s a little coffee shop about fifteen minutes that way,” Raven said, nodding in the opposite direction to her home. She thought for a moment. Surely she was safe enough with Silver. She decided she was fine and she nodded in the direction of home. “Or if it’s not too forward, my house is only a few minutes that way.”
“It’s not too forward. If you’re comfortable inviting me to your home, then lead the way,” Silver smiled.
Raven returned his smile and carried on walking toward home. It looked like getting out of the suit and having a bath was going to have to wait. She was so eager to start quizzing Silver about what he might want with her, but he’d told her he didn’t want to discuss it in the street, and she didn’t want him to think she was uncouth. Not now that she was not only dating his brother, but having his baby. Maybe that’s what this is about, Raven thought to herself. Jagger had been saying he was going to tell his family. Maybe he had finally gotten around to doing it. She had kind of hoped for a little warning. Maybe even the chance to be there when he had made the announcement. But she had told him she didn’t mind him telling people now that she was past the three-month stage and she hadn’t told him she might want to be there when he told his family, so she could hardly object.
Raven and Silver finally reached Raven’s home.
“Here we are, home sweet home,” Raven smiled as she led Silver up her garden path and unlocked the door. She stepped inside and then stood aside so that Silver could enter. She gestured to a door on her right. “Go on through to the living room.”
Raven closed the front door and followed Silver to the living room.
“Take a seat,” she smiled. He nodded to her and sat down in one of her armchairs. “Would you like some tea or coffee? Or maybe something stronger?”
“No, thank you,” Silver smiled. “But I’m not in a hurry if you want something.”
Raven shook her head and came fully into the room.
“No, I can wait,” she said.
In truth, she really wanted a nice cup of tea, but she was more eager to hear what Silver had to say than anything. She sat down on the end of the couch closest to Silver and smiled at him, a little bit nervous suddenly.
“So, what can I do for you?” she asked.
“It’s about the baby,” Silver started.
He didn’t say anything else and Raven realized he was a little bit uncomfortable about this too.
“Jagger told you?” she prompted him.
“Not exactly,” Silver said. “Listen, Raven, this is kind of awkward so I’m just going to come out and say it, okay?”
Raven nodded, even more curious now.
“Jagger was talking to our mom about the baby and I overheard him. He doesn’t know I know about this, and he obviously doesn’t know I’m here and I would prefer it if it could stay that way,” Silver said.
“Okay, sure,” Raven said.
She couldn’t imagine Silver saying or doing anything that she would feel morally obliged to tell Jagger about, and if he did, well, then she would have to go back on her word and it would be Silver’s own fault for putting her into that sort of position in the first place.
“There’s no easy way to say this, Raven. If you want to stay with my brother, you can’t have the baby,” Silver said. He spoke slowly at first and then he rushed on. “Don’t worry about money or anything like that. I’ll take care of the doctor bill.”
For a moment, Raven just sat there in stunned silence, looking at Silver. Had she heard him correctly? Had he really come here to tell her to end her pregnancy?
“Wait,” Raven said, shaking her head, telling herself she had to have misheard or misunderstood Silver somehow. “Are you implying that I end the pregnancy?”
“That’s exactly what I said,” Silver said calmly. “Or, I can pay you to leave. I can give you a lump sum to ensure you’re comfortable. All you would have to do is start a new life in a new country. Nobody can ever know the baby is Jagger’s. Of course, I would have to put an enchantment on you and the baby to ensure you stay away from our family and tribe for eternity.”
Raven shook her head again, although this time, it had nothing to do with her thinking she had misunderstood something. It was more sheer disbelief that Silver had the nerve to sit there and say that to her.
“Look, I know you’re royalty and what you say goes and all that, so excuse me for what I’m about to say. But are you out of your fucking mind?” Raven fumed.
A few seconds passed. Silver looked at Raven and she felt herself starting to get nervous. She shouldn’t have said that to him. After a few more seconds, Silver smiled and the feeling of dread at what she had said slipped away from Raven.
“I’m here as Jagger’s brother, not royalty, so say what you like. And second, no, I’m not out of my mind. I…” Silver said.
“Okay, stop right there,” Raven said. Silver stopped and she was so surprised she was almost stunned into silence, but she found the words she needed after a pause. “You say you’re not here as royalty, but then you have the nerve to ask me to end my pregnancy or disappear from Jagger’s life forever. Is it because you don’t think I’m good enough to be a part of your extended family in some way?”
“No. I promise you it’s nothing like that. You seem like a nice enough girl and I know Jagger thinks a lot of you, which tells me I’d probably like you myself. I’m not asking you not to be with Jagger. All I am saying is that by staying with Jagger and keeping the baby, you’re putting him at risk with the tribe. Our kind will no longer trust him. We have no idea what a hybrid child will be like or what it will be capable of. I’m just asking you to consider that and not bring an unknown entity into our tribe. That’s all,” Silver expl
ained.
“I…I don’t know what to say,” Raven said after a moment. “You do realize what you’re asking, right? You’re asking me to give up my child or my child’s father.”
“Yes,” Silver said. “I do. But don’t tell me you haven’t thought about what this child might grow into yourself. Don’t tell me you haven’t agonized over whether it’s a good idea to have a cross-species child.”
“Jagger doesn’t seem to share your concerns,” Raven said.
“Actually, he does. He was talking to my mom about them when I overheard him. For what it’s worth, my mom reassured him that it’ll all be fine and he accepted that. But no one knows for sure, do they? I’m guessing my mom only said what she said because she knew there was no way Jagger wouldn’t want you to have the child. And obviously, he wants you in his life. Well, for now anyway. What happens when he meets his one true mate and you and the baby are pushed aside? I’m doing what no one else in my family has the balls to do, even though they all know it’s the right thing to do,” Silver said.
Raven swallowed hard. She didn’t really know what to say at this point, but Silver gave her an out. He stood up and smiled at Raven and then he put his hand in his pocket and pulled out his card. He held it out to her and she took it automatically.
“I know this is a lot to take in and I don’t expect you to just agree to this without thinking it over. I beg you to really think about it, though, Raven. And when you do, you will see that I am right. When that happens, my number is on my card. Call me and I will arrange everything for you,” Silver said.
He turned and started for the door. Raven started to get up, but Silver shook his head.
