As soon as he was healed enough, though, he’d shift and fly them out of here.
“Jonathon?” Maggie lifted her head and looked up at him. Her lip trembled as she met his eye. “You’re not… upset, are you?”
“Upset?” He shrugged. “I’m upset that we’ve been taken prisoner once again. It seems like we have spent more time being held captive than anything else ever since we started this quest. I’m upset that I can’t seem to keep you safe.”
“But are you upset that I am still a vampire? I didn’t turn back into a human. And I might not get another chance…”
Jonathon blinked. In all of this, he hadn’t even considered that. He had just been so happy to know that she was here, to have her safe. Wanting to get her out of here, of course, wanting to protect her, but happy that she was alive and well. Her scent was still powerfully vampire. He pressed a kiss to her head.
“No. I’m not upset about that at all. Are you? I mean, if I wasn’t fighting Josh…”
She twined her fingers with his and let out a sigh. “I’m not. When I thought about it, I realized that I had to give something up. Either becoming human again or you. I couldn’t have both. And I couldn’t give you up. You are far more important to me than anything else. Things can’t go back to the way they were, and I don’t want them to. I want you to be with you. That’s what I want.”
His fires burned a little warmer. A smile spread over his face, despite himself. And he pulled her into his arms and gave her a deep, passionate kiss. As long as they had each other, he knew this was going to work out. Somehow…
A woman clearing her throat made them break apart. The caretaker stood before them, impassive as always. “The Elders want to see you now. Come, let’s go to the airfield.”
Chapter Fourteen
The flight was a comfortable one, in a private jet. Jonathon and Maggie were both given medical attention. Jonathon was in much worse shape than she was, but she still had a few broken bones that needed cared for. Jonathon slept most of the way, but Maggie was plotting. She knew she only had one chance at this and couldn’t blow it.
The thing was, she didn’t know how to approach the Elders. She didn’t know if they were crazy or arrogant or liked pineapple on their pizza. Not that the pizza thing had anything to do with it, but it was just another thing that she didn’t know about them. So, she had two options, as far as she could see. Either be small, demure, try her best not to anger them… or go in guns blazing.
Maggie had never thought of herself as small and demure.
“Before you guys start blathering on to the sounds of your own voices,” she started as soon as she and Jonathon were brought to see them, “I have a few things to say. First off, you guys suck.”
Jonathon’s head whipped around. His jaw dropped, and his eyes went wide. “What the fuck—“ He shot a nervous glance at the Elders. "I mean hell—I mean, what are you doing?”
“Saying what’s on my mind.” Maggie’s heart pounded, not sure what to expect for a response but not about to back down. She lifted her chin and glared at the Elders. Not all of them looked old, really, but there was a sense of history about them. If Maggie let herself dwell too much on that, she was going to lose her nerve and bow out of here whimpering. “You have no right to force vampires to stay vampires if they don’t want to. Especially in circumstances like mine. I know that lots of times people like me would have gone feral and then you’d just kill them. When you could be changing them back to human! It’s indecent to kill someone over something they have no control over when there is a cure.”
One of the Elders spoke in a rumbling voice. “Being a vampire is not a disease to be eradicated.”
“Except, of course, when you decide to kill people because being a vampire has made them go feral. You have the means to fix the problem, to make them human again so they aren’t overwhelmed with everything that being a vampire entails, but instead you just chop off their heads.”
The Elder looked affronted. “We do not behead ferals anymore. We have much more humane methods of euthanasia.”
“It’s not humane when you kill them instead of giving them their lives back.”
Another of the vampires spoke. “You are quite hypocritical to speak this way. After all, didn’t you change your mind? Should we take action that will prevent these vampires from becoming a vampire again once things are more settled for them?”
“They can’t choose anything when they’re dead.” Maggie shook her head. Did these people really think that this was a good argument? They were just making excuses. She knew what was really going on here. They were afraid that if humans and shifters knew how to turn vampires back into humans, they would weaponize it. “I was given the chance to change my mind. I was able to get through the days after being changed and survive it. I was told I could be human again and given the time and space to examine both sides of what I would be giving up. And I don’t want to stay a vampire forever.”
The first vampire made an incredulous noise in his throat, but Maggie ignored him. She reached for Jonathon’s hand. He looked pretty nervous about this, but there was also an admiring gleam in his eye.
“I want to stay a vampire so I can live my life with my mate but become human again so I can grow old with him, too.”
The first two Elders both bared their fangs but another one laughed the held her hand out to another, who reluctantly handed her a wad of cash. She then grinned brilliantly and sauntered to the front of the room.
“Isn’t this exactly what I’ve been saying?” She bumped the first one with her shoulder. “There is always the possibility of humans using our weaknesses against us, but with the way things are now, we have a real chance at change. Haven’t we been hiding from humans long enough? Maybe if we open things up and have more transparency, it’ll stop them from beheading us. And the girl here, she has a point. We have vampires falling in love with mortals all the time. If they became human again, we’d see a lot fewer suicides once their mates are dead.”
“Because they’d be dead, too,” argued the first Elder, clenching his fists. “What is it but a slow suicide?”
“Shifters can’t stop being shifters, so why should we be forced to give ourselves up?”
Maggie rolled her eyes. “Nobody is asking you to. Well, not in this room anyway,” she amended. “But why are you so determined that nobody else be given that choice?”
“Maggie here could be a very positive force for change.” One of the men stepped up beside her and smiled as her gaze drifted to Jonathon. “They both could. Haven’t we had enough of these petty fights between us and the shifters? A dragon and vampire being mates… now that’s a real Romeo and Juliette story we could spin to our use.”
“No,” Jonathon said instantly, a growl in his throat. “We are not Romeo and Juliette. They died. We have no intention of going that same direction. And we’re not here for you to use; we are our own people and will do as we wish.”
A few of the Elders gave him annoyed looks, others pitying. Jonathon held Maggie tighter and she licked her lips, uncertain now. Had they decided to spare the two of them just because they were useful to some sort of long-haul plot? Maggie didn’t like the idea of her relationship being politicalized. She was also growing uncomfortably aware that these were all ancient vampires and had probably heard all of this before.
“Oh, it’s not like that at all,” the first woman who spoke in their defense assured the two of them. A sly smile was over her face, but she seemed genuine enough. “We mean that there has been too much fighting between the branches of our paranormal family. It’s not impossible for an individual to be vampire and shifter, you know, but there is always too much fighting that such hybrids are rare. So much in fact that people seem to think it’s impossible.”
“And what does that have to do with us?” Maggie asked suspiciously.
The Elder shrugged. “Just what we said. There is nothing that brings people together quite like romance. There is so v
ery little of it these days. But people will look at the most unlikely of pairings and root for them still. It brings change, more so than the most passionate arguments.”
“And what do you mean by that?” Jonathon spat. “Are you planning on killing us so that the world feels sorry for how bad we had it?”
“Success stories are more inspiring than tragedies.”
Maggie wasn’t sure what to make of that, except that her romance with Jonathon was going to be sanctioned, encouraged even and that the Elders weren’t looking for it to fall apart. She could only assume that meant with death as much as anything else.
She studied the vampires for a long moment, looking at each of them in turn, before she finally nodded. “I suppose we can work with you to promote a more harmonious relationship between different paranormal beings. So long as humans are also included. Humans might treat shifters and vampires like shit, but that can change. But that doesn’t mean Jonathon and I are going to be at your beck and call. We are going to live our lives first and foremost, understood?” She glared at the vampire who opened his mouth to argue. He shut it again, looking surprised. Maggie had to admit, it felt good to be able to silence an ancient vampire with a single look. “And furthermore, this thing where vampires can be human again? That needs to be told. People need to have that choice.”
More of the Elders scowled at this but the woman with the big smile only nodded. “We will arrange it so ferals can be taken there, rather than killed when it’s clear they cannot cope with being a vampire.”
“And other vampires who want to carry on their natural lifecycle.”
“We are natural,” another vampire snarled.
Maggie shook her head. “Vampire-born vampires are natural. Being changed from one thing to another isn’t.”
“Well—” Jonathon shrugged at her. “Water turning to ice is being changed from one thing to another and it’s natural.”
“Whose side are you on?”
“I’m just saying.”
Maggie narrowed her eyes at him, but he did have a point. She let out a sigh. “Fine. Their human lifecycles, then. Nothing to do with natural and not natural.”
“It would be better than the suicides,” one of them, who had not spoken yet, mentioned. “You can call it what you want, but I, for one, know many who were despaired because being a vampire meant they could no longer change. And how many of us would choose to live forever without our mates?”
There were some grumblings, some glarings, but nobody contradicted her. Maggie glanced at Jonathon and managed a small smile. It was odd but now that they were more or less arguing with each other, she felt the pressure even more. Had she really told them that they sucked? She moved a little closer to her dragon, drawing in the scent of his smoke to steady herself.
“And you?” one of the Elders turned her gaze back on them. “Do you intend to become human again one day, Maggie Roxton?”
“Yes,” Maggie responded instantly. “Spending my life with Jonathon is what I’ve wanted for a very long time. And I want to spend his life with him, too. When he’s in the last eighty or so years of his lifespan, I will become human again so I can grow old with him. I’ve never been afraid of death and I fear it less now. My mate and I will have a long and happy life. And we will walk hand-in-hand to the next one.”
***
It seemed like forever since he’d held his children in his arms. Jonathon teared up when he and Maggie arrived at his mother’s house and the kids raced to greet them with huge smiles. All babbled at once, trying to tell them what they were doing. Jonathon hugged and kissed each one of them, it only really sinking in now that there had been a very real possibility that he might not have seen them again.
But we’re not thinking about that right now, he told himself firmly as he cuddled Summer and Ronnie, and Ned buried himself into Maggie’s embrace. We are free to live our lives now. Maggie’s made her choice and the Elders have agreed not to interfere with our life.
It was more than he expected. His fires burned high and clear as he gazed at his children and his mate while his mother clucked and shook her head with a smile on her face. Things weren’t ever going to go back to the way they were, but at this point, he didn’t want them to. He wanted things to be like they were now. Change was a good thing, especially here and now.
Maggie grinned at him and rose a brow. He grinned back, remembering what they had discussed on the way back here.
“So, Summer, how do you feel about getting a new dress? A fancy one with a puffy skirt and a tiara you can wear in your hair?”
Summer looked annoyed. “I don’t like dresses.”
“Me dress!” Ronnie rose her hand. “Me dress! Green!”
Ned folded his arms and made a pouting noise. “What do I get?”
“You can have a new suit. And Summer, if that’s what you want, you can have one, too.”
Summer nodded in satisfaction, while Ned looked at his father cautiously. “Can I have a batman suit?”
Jonathon repressed a laugh. He ought to have seen that one coming. “Maybe. We’ll see if we can find one. Now. What do the three of you think about starting to call Maggie mom?”
His own mother inhaled sharply, looking stunned even as a huge smile crossed her face. The kids stared at him in confusion, especially Ronnie, but Summer gave him a serious nod. “I think I would like that very much.”
“But hers Maggie,” Ronnie said, a frown on her face. “Hers name not mom.”
“It’s going to be,” Maggie told her gently. “You see, Daddy and I are going to be married.”
Jonathon’s mother threw her hands into the air. “About time!”
“Wait.” Ned scratched his nose. “You are going to marry and then you will be Daddy and Mommy like the other kids got?”
“That’s right,” Jonathon nodded. He glanced at Ronnie, who still seemed confused, then at Summer. Her lip trembled and she burst into tears, hiding her face in his shoulder. Jonathon was startled. “What’s wrong?”
“I want Maggie to be my mom,” Summer sobbed. “I’ve wanted her to be my mom for so long.”
Emotion swelled his throat. Jonathon hugged his daughter tighter while Ronnie moved to sit on Maggie’s lap. This wasn’t what he’d been expecting but he was glad that the idea of Maggie being her mother made Summer so happy. Ned seemed to accept it without any more thoughts and Ronnie… well, Ronnie didn’t understand the difference yet.
They sat and discussed it for quite some time, until the kids understood it enough that they got bored and wanted to play. Jonathon and Maggie spent a few more hours with them, until it was clear that it was time for them to get to bed. After their nighttime routine was complete and all three were in bed, Jonathon’s mother told them that she had been waiting for this for a long time and slipped off to her room as well.
Jonathon and Maggie settled down in the living room. So much had happened that Jonathon knew he could fall asleep the moment his head touched the pillow. However, he and Maggie hadn’t had a lot of time to themselves yet, and there were still things they needed to discuss. So much had happened. So very, very much. She smiled at him, her small fangs flashing in her mouth. And he suddenly had the thought that the next time she drank from him, he wouldn’t have to fight his desires.
“I can’t wait for you to sink those fangs into my neck again,” he murmured to her. “Because now that we’re lovers as well as best friends, I don’t have to feel awkward by how much it drives me crazy.”
Maggie’s eyes widened and her cheeks flushed. “I… wow. Okay. I should have expected that.”
Jonathon laughed and kissed her lightly. “Maybe. Oh, did you hear? The search for the Smithsonian thief has been dropped. They’re saying that it was some sort of security test.”
“Thank god! I was afraid that was going to haunt us forever.”
Jonathon nodded. “Yeah. Me too. That was a stupid move, wasn’t it?”
Maggie pinched her fingers together. “Just a l
ittle. But your heart was in the right place.”
“So. We’re getting married.” Jonathon grinned at her, loving the sound of it. “Do you want a ring or something else? I know that you’re not crazy about diamonds. I thought, I could dig out some old book or something and—”
Maggie laughed. “You can figure that one out. I trust your tastes, whether you go traditional or not. I’d like it to be a surprise, though. I know I’ll love it no matter what because you’re giving it to me.”
“Ooh, a no pressure gift them.” Jonathon lazed back on the sofa and hummed in his throat. “So. I got a call from Samuel earlier today. Camille’s been worried about you, apparently. Wants to know if you’re going to go back to school.”
Maggie sighed. “Yeah. I’m planning on it. I think next fall is the best time, don’t you? It’ll give us plenty of time to figure out schedules so that one of us is home with the kids. And Ronnie will be in preschool, so there’s that, too. It’ll be easier to make it work.”
Jonathon nodded. He took her hand in his, his brow furrowing. “Well, there is another complication. Samuel’s offered me a job. He said that he took a look at the essay I wrote for business management and was very impressed. He thinks that I’m beyond what school could teach me. I’m just… You know. Not sure if he’s being real or if Camille is pressuring him to help support us more.”
“Camille would never do that. If Samuel is offering a job, that means he thinks that you’re qualified for it.” Maggie beamed at him, and the weight on Jonathon’s shoulders eased. “You don’t have to take the job, though. What do you want? I know that you’ve been enjoying school.”
“I have, yeah. But the point of school is to get a good job. And honestly, the opening salary he’s offered? That’s more than I expected to get after graduating. It’s enough to help get you through school without having to take out loans, as long as you still apply for scholarships and grants and the like, and we’d be able to take trips in the summer. I’ve always wanted to give the kids more experiences than I got as a kid.”
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