rogue shifter 05 - caught between (27 page)

After the fae name and sponsor was announced, Garrett and I led a short naming ceremony where Charlie was given the names
we
had chosen for him.

Garrett spoke. "These names hold great significance for us and for our family and friends. We're proud to stand before you all to announce that we have named our son Charles Liam William Cuvier." Liam was beaming with pride and I noticed Lord Caelen and Aedus nodding in his direction.

We'd decided to add William's name because of his bravery in the past, enduring Eleanor's torture, but also because of the work he'd done as a member of Garrett's nest and our team of Rogues. I'd grown very fond of him over the brief time I'd known him and because he'd been my sister Bridgett's mate, he was family. He deserved this small tribute.

In the manner of most supernatural ceremonies, Garrett, Liam and I exchanged a tiny amount of blood, not drawing any from Charlie since he'd been poked enough during the fae naming ceremony. If William or Garrett's father had been alive, their blood would have been added to the mix. It was all accomplished smoothly and efficiently, with very little pain or discomfort and lots of delicious fae magic. If only I could ensure that Charlie's life would be so easy.

I stayed one last night in Faerie, feeling exhausted from the party that followed the ceremony. Physically, I was back to normal, all my pain disappearing with the help of fae magic and my own healing abilities. Emotionally, however, I was ragged. In bed, Garrett held me tightly and whispered his love as I wept quiet tears, mourning my sister, her mate and the end of a more secure and simple time. As crazy as our life together had been up until now, it was about to get much crazier.

When I was done with my grieving, I turned in his arms and kissed him passionately, surprising him with my desire. Soon I would pick up my metaphorical sword and become the warrior who would fiercely protect her son and her mate. But tonight I chose to lose myself in passion as Garrett comforted me with his body and his love. I offered him my blood, my magic and my devotion and we washed away thoughts of the impending war.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

We were back in our lovely home in Crescent City. Charlie had settled in like a real champ,  sleeping in the nursery in his bassinette, since he was much too small for a crib. Sash, Rick and Flynn made a huge fuss over him, and I caught Sash making some sketches when he didn't know I was looking.

Kyle asked, after looking the baby over, "How will you keep him from beaming back and forth to Faerie?"

"His powers don't come on until puberty, apparently."

"Whoa. Talk about bad timing. Puberty was tough enough without being able to read minds and glow in the dark."

"Kyle's still going through his adolescence." Ethan joked.

Kyle glanced at Peter. "Aren't you going to defend me? Tell everyone how mature I am?"

"Well, I could, but then Jackie would see the change in my aura and I'd be busted for lying."

"I'm gonna remember your disloyalty the next time you expect me to empty the dishwasher."

"I think you just proved Ethan's point for him."

Ethan had wanted to hold the baby, so I passed Charlie over. My sweet son curled his tiny fingers around Ethan's pinkie and that was it. Ethan melted, making silly baby noises and then, when I made fun of him, telling my son all about how big a pain in the neck I was on Solo Island where we first met.

"Your mom threw stuff at me, made me carry her down a tree and kept kicking dirt in my face every time we went for a run. Don't you let her tell you she was a perfect teenager, 'cause she wasn't."

Charlie saved Ethan from getting a stuffed animal in the face.

Samson had decided that a fae guard and a pixie guard were not enough and had tried to take up residence in the nursery. Liam had a stern talk with him so my dog wisely gave in, settling down again in his usual spots, sprawled by the kitchen door when I was up, and on the floor in our bedroom when I slept.

We had a memorial ceremony for William, our whole team attending, including Sinc, who'd come down with Aaron. Of course Liam was there, but so were Brina, Kaera, Angel, and Fred, the current pack leader of Bridgett's former pack. The biggest surprise was when Francois and Yvette showed up, coming all the way from Paris. Yvette had been a member of Eleanor's nest and had known Will from when he was first turned, and Francois was Eleanor's maker, Garret and William's grandsire.

We'd decided to plant an apple tree in the garden of the Vamp Villa, since Will enjoyed eating apple slices, even though vamps didn't need to eat regular food. He said it was his comfort food, so we always made sure there were apples available for him to munch on.

Everyone who wished to, spoke briefly about William.

"He was cool. He was the only guy who ever beat me at Mario Kart..."

"William was starved and tortured constantly by Eleanor, and yet he had the strength to survive and hold onto his integrity and his compassion for others. I will miss him..."

"He forgave me, for what she made me do to him...."

"Will loved my sister and kept her grounded. I'd never seen her so happy. I'll miss his smile and his easy-going nature..."

"His tech skills were amazing, even though he'd been off the grid for so long. The team will miss him, and so will I..."

"He proved himself to be a valuable asset to our band of Rogues and also a good friend. We'll feel his loss every day..."

When we'd finished, everyone came inside for a meal and a few drinks. It had been tough for all of us to say goodbye, but at the same time it felt right to do it like this. If Will's spirit could see us, he'd have been grinning.

Francois took my hand and brought it to his lips. "You look magnificent as always, Jacqueline." Francois had that yummy French accent that made you want to melt.

"It's been a crazy couple of months."

"And young Charles is well?"

"Yes. He's sleeping, but I'll bring him out when he wakes so you can fuss over him."

"A Frenchman does not fuss, Madame, but I would like to hold him, if that would be allowed."

I smiled and gave him a hug. "You can hold him anytime you want, Grandpa."

"Ugh. Not Grandpa, please. And especially not Great-grandpa. Perhaps he can just call me Francois."

Of course when Charlie was brought out, Francois managed to make a fuss anyway. Vampires were forced to give up any hope of having children when they were turned, but they'd all started out as human. I didn't know if Francois had ever had kids of his own, but when I watched him holding Charlie and whispering sweet little words to him in French, I guessed that he must have had some experience with kids.

Garrett got a huge kick out of seeing them together.

Leaving Charlie to Garrett and Francois, I sat down on the couch near Sinc, Kyle, Peter and Ethan.

"He's beautiful. He'll have the girls chasing him by the time he's ten." Sinc squeezed my hand.

"And the boys." Kyle winked at me and Peter whacked him in the head. "Hey, just sayin'."

I laughed. "I just want to get through the next few weeks. I'm exhausted."

"Doesn't Garrett change diapers?" Ethan teased.

"Sure he does, and gives him a bottle once in a while, too. But even when I'm not on call, I still am. I can't shut it down.  It's like I've got a micro-sized baby monitor in my brain. Like right now, I know that he's getting fussy and he wants to eat. In a few seconds, Sinlae will be in here to get me."

Kyle waved a hand and looked at his watch. "I'll take thirty seconds for fifty bucks."

"Twenty-five seconds." Ethan piped in.

"You idiots." Sinc giggled and punched Ethan in the shoulder.

"Hey, it sounded like a good bet."

Sinlae showed up a few seconds later and we exploded in laughter.

"See, see. I coulda won $50.00." Ethan gave Sinc a gentle nudge.

"You want to come with me?" I asked Sinc.

"Sure."

After I collected Charlie, we closed the nursery door behind us. I let Sinc sit in the rocking chair while I sat on the window seat and fed my son. "So tell me, how are you feeling?"

"I've been trying something. Aaron, Gabe and Katrina are helping me."

"Katrina?"

"Yeah. Her witchy skills are coming in handy."

"What have they been helping you with?"

"I'll show you, but don't tell anyone else, okay?"

"Sure."

She was wearing calf-high boots, but I figured she had the left one stuffed with something since she came in using crutches and hadn't put any weight on it. But my mouth dropped open when she showed me what was left of her foot.
What was left of her foot?
Her foot had been amputated just above the ankle!

"How the...?"

"I have to shift four to six times a day. Gabe and Aaron help me with that part of it. I'm so exhausted after the last shift that sometimes I just collapse, so they help me get back to my bed. I do it two days in a row and then skip two days, because it's just too much. But look at it...it's really growing back." She beamed at me.

"It's a miracle." I couldn't believe what I was seeing. She'd grown a new ankle and part of a heel. "Who had the idea?"

"Katrina. She said that any shifter or werewolf should be able to grow back fingers, hands, feet, even legs, because the act of shifting enables us to take in an enormous magical boost. She gives me a disgusting potion to drink on the mornings that I shift which supposedly helps my cells absorb the greatest amount of energy. I won't lie, the whole process is awful, and I've been close to just giving up half a dozen times. Gabe's been amazingly supportive."

"You're incredible. I can't imagine going through that."

She laughed at me. "Are you on drugs? What you've gone through was so much worse."

"My crazy stuff was sudden and over fast. You've committed yourself to months of hard and painful work."

"Oh yeah, and raising a child is sudden and over fast, right?"

"Charlie isn't work—and the pain part was sudden and over fast." We both giggled and then Sinc got up, managing to hop over and plunk down on the window seat next to me. She stared at my tiny son, so perfect and so fragile.

"He looks like you."

"That's him." I waved my hand so she could see the mural.

"Awesome. A man on a horse is so hot."

"Hey, that's my son. Tell Gabe to buy a horse. Then you can ogle him."

"Oh I almost forgot. I have something for you." She handed me a large manila envelope. "Open it after everyone's gone." I put it aside and forgot about it until the next day.

Two days later, Philladre gave birth to her lovely little Jacqueline, who everyone decided to call Linn for short so there wasn't any confusion between the two of us. She had Aedus' dark hair and Philladre's lovely mouth, her lavender eyes standing out like jewels on her beautiful face. She was going to be a knock-out just like her parents. Lord Caelen, Lady Silvus and Philladre's parents looked so proud. I laughed to see the way everyone wanted to hold her and touch her. Linn's birth was indeed a magical moment in Faerie, one that had nothing to do with the ley lines.

As I watched the naming ceremony, I thought about Bridgett. I hadn't called Simon to tell him what happened and I was sad that he'd never have a chance to meet her. I knew he'd probably feel the same way when he heard.

I missed her a lot. That would never change, no matter what choice she'd made. I mourned her loss as much as I mourned Will's. Two deaths. Two births. The fae would say it was an example of the Balance at work. I didn't feel there was anything balanced about Will's murder or Bridgett being used as a pawn between incredibly powerful and ruthless supernaturals.

When the ceremony was over, I pulled Kellie aside and handed her the envelope.

"These are pictures of a six year old child in foster care in Portland, Oregon. The child's eyes are deep blue, but they have a lavender tinge. If you look closely at the pictures you can see it. They've labeled the child mentally handicapped, but Rob's gone to look at him. He thinks he's ill because he doesn't have access to your magic. Of course, he's not a doctor. Could you and Liam go and take a look? You'll have to sneak in, and you should make yourselves look human, but that shouldn't be a problem for you.

Her hands were shaking as she slid the photographs out of the envelope. Liam came over to see what was wrong, so I explained.

"This is definitely a child with fae blood. Maybe not half fae, but some."

"Will living in Faerie make him sick?" I asked.

"As long as he has some of our blood, he'll flourish." Liam hadn't spoken yet so she turned to him and whispered. "I want this. It doesn't mean anything permanent has to happen between us, but I want a child, this child if possible. Will you come with me to see him?"

He spoke to her mentally and I watched her worried look disappear behind her wide smile. When he leaned in and kissed her, and I turned away and walked back to Garrett.

"It looks like there may be another new resident in Cascade soon."

"You're a hopeless romantic, my love."

"Don't complain." I leaned up for a kiss of my own.

That night, I dreamt.

Charlie was grown. He was tall and lean like Kennet, but his jaw was more rounded and his long hair was golden blonde like mine and not the platinum color of his birth father. His straight nose and full lips were evidence of my DNA, although his high forehead and sharp cheekbones were not. His dark lavender eyes glittered with golden flecks as, sword drawn, he faced Isaiah alone.

Isaiah looked nothing like the sometimes pleasant young man who'd taught me to travel the lines and speak to shades, nor the handsome hunk who'd saved Maya. He was in his warrior form, a foot taller than my son, a foot broader and probably 150 lbs heavier. Isaiah also held a sword, darker and weightier, but still deathly sharp.

I saw myself in the distance standing off to the side, out of danger but still very much involved. I had an anxious expression, understandable under these circumstances. Charlie was alone facing a terrifying creature, much larger and more powerful than he was. Where was Garrett and his nest or any of our fae allies? Why wasn't I fighting by his side?