Both Skyla and Laken worked hard coming up with the perfect first day of school outfit for Tobie. Wesley’s house—if you can call that monstrosity something so simple, was the first stop of the day. Both Skyla and Laken painstakingly French braided Tobie’s hair and, I must admit, she looks adorable with her plaited tresses, her dark curious eyes, and her crimson dress with a pattern of apples dotting it in neat vertical rows.
Beau Geste and Ember are here, too, already inside, milling around with the other children. Drake took Bree and Em to breakfast about ten minutes ago.
But Barron is crying, clinging to Skyla’s legs for dear life, and both Nathan and Tobie are doing their best to comfort and coax him inside.
“Hey!” Nathan taps his brother on the shoulder incessantly. “They’s gonna be dinosaurs in there. We gots to get them before they’re all gones!”
Barron pulls his head back, his face and eyes red as an apple. “I hates dinosaurs!” He stretches that last word out for a mile. “I hates Chloe’s dinosaur.”
Tobie’s eyes widen with fright. “Mally can’t come here.” She says to Skyla in a panic, “Mally’s my babies. She’s not—she’s not, not a dinosaur anymore.”
Wes picks up Tobie and plants a kiss to her forehead. “You’re doing great, princess. You’re a big girl today.”
She nods, her own lips suddenly trembling.
Skyla groans, “It looks as if this good time is contagious. Nathan”—she sweetens her voice as she looks to one of Gage’s mini-mes—“you’re going to be just fine. You are both Mommy’s brave boys.”
They nod their heads in turn with tears welling up in their eyes.
My God, the boys are adorable and have the ability to wipe away the patina of evil from their father if even for a moment.
Emma comes out with her hair slicked back and her lips painted traffic cone orange, as Skyla likes to point out.
“It’s time, Little Bears! Come, come.” She shuttles Tobie and Nathan inside and the two of them take off laughing without so much as a goodbye.
Laken hands Charlie, Coop’s mini-me, to Wes before she pats Barron on the back of the head.
“Poor baby.” Laken sighs at the sight of his bright red eyes. “We’ve got to run. I’ve got an appointment with the OB in ten minutes.”
Wes and Laken say a brief goodbye before taking off, and it’s just Gage, Skyla, and me. It feels right and entirely wrong at the very same time.
“Hey, buddy.” Gage tries to pick Barron up, but Barron strikes back with his fist, pummeling his father’s thigh five times in a row.
“Go away! I want Mommy!” He extends the words as Skyla struggles to pick him up.
“I got it.” I hoist Barron up and lean him against Skyla as he snuggles his wet face close to her neck. Skyla can’t pick up the boys anymore, not with her belly in the delicate state it’s in.
“Barron, baby, it’s going to be okay.” Her own voice breaks, signaling that it’s not. “Mommy and Uncle Logan are going to be right back.”
“Me, too,” Gage offers and Barron gives him a swift kick to the gut.
Nice shot, kid.
I can’t help but blink a smile at my nephew, and Gage is quick to return it with a frown.
Emma comes out and moans, “Oh dear. We’ve got a clinger.” She winks at Gage. “This is why we start the year off on a Friday. It’s the perfect way to wet their whistle. After the weekend, the kids are so much more relaxed and acclimated to the idea. In fact, they’re usually looking forward to coming right back. Come to Grandma.” She wiggles her fingers at him. “I’ll be here all day long, and I will never leave you.” She pries Barron off me, and he slowly conforms to her body. She whisks him inside, and we watch for a few minutes as Emma takes Barron to each of the stations and he slowly seems to warm up to the idea.
Gage scratches at the back of his head, always a sign of his discomfort.
“Maybe we should get the boys into counseling.” He takes a breath. “I don’t want them to hate me right now.”
Skyla huffs at the thought, “Oh, settle down, Gage. The boys will hate you eventually.” She looks my way. “Logan, I’m going to find a toilet that’s not meant for preschoolers. I’ll be right back.” She takes off, and Gage grunts my way.
“Feeling crappy?” I slap him on the arm as we head in the direction Skyla took off in.
“To say the least.”
“I have an idea. Why don’t you surrender your throne, give the people back to Skyla, rescue those Celestra you shoved on Raven’s Eye, and beg the world’s forgiveness? Once Skyla is in her rightful place, nobody will hate you—least of all your children.”
His brows bounce as if he knows better.
I shake my head as we walk through the damp fog. The day is cloaked in darkness, a thick layer of navy clouds has settled over the island and it looks more like evening than it ever does morning.
“Why do you do it, Gage? Why do you work so hard for something I don’t think you really believe in?”
“I only believe in one thing.” He slaps me on the shoulder, and a dull laugh bounces through him. “I’ll see you later. Tell Skyla I said goodbye.”
He takes off, and I think about that one thing Gage Oliver might believe in.
If I knew him at all, I wouldn’t need to ask.
If he were still the old Gage, I’d say he believed in his love for Skyla, for their family.
But this new version is riddled with question marks.
Skyla and I head straight for Whitehorse and rain starts to pepper the island just as we duck inside.
Lexy and Michelle are having lunch in the living room with a box of pizza laid out on the coffee table as they watch their favorite reality show.
“I haven’t seen this one.” Skyla helps herself to a slice and falls on the loveseat as she puts her feet up.
“I’ll be downstairs,” I say as I head that way to speak with Ezrina. Coop texted and let me know he’d be here. Coop, Ellis, and Brody were supposed to swing by this afternoon to get their levels checked for signs of the markers. So far so good, but Ezrina is worried about how often she’ll have to do upkeep. As of now, there is no magic bullet to keep the markers hidden for good. She’s hoping the missing link will be those genetics she’ll be able to tap into once Skyla gives birth.
I’ll admit, the thought of Skyla and me teaming up together, generally speaking, to save our people blows my ego and my heart up to the size of the solar system.
Downstairs, the lab is brightly lit just the way Ezrina demands it, but my tired eyes are used to the oppression Mother Nature insists on impinging on us.
“There he is.” Marshall Dudley stands at the round table where Gage Oliver’s primal apex acts as a decoration. Little Alice is coloring at the other end of the table, and Ezrina and Nev look busy in the back, running from boiling beaker to boiling beaker. “Roll out of bed so early? It’s not yet noon. To what do we owe the pleasure of your company at this ungodly hour?”
I scowl over at him. “The boys started preschool today. It was a tough morning for Skyla. She’s upstairs watching your favorite soap opera. Why don’t you join her and have a little girl time?”
He shoves his hand in my chest and stops me as I’m about to pass him. I can see Coop, Ellis, and Brody lying in those dental chairs Nev bought off eBay, waiting for the readout on their blood.
“All right. What gives? What has your celestial panties in a bunch?” I smack his hand away from me. “You do realize you were designed to land me in the position I’m in today.”
His jaw redefines itself with anger, and yet he looks simultaneously bored. “You do realize you were designed to perish and henceforth make room for my magnificent presence.”
“You’ll amount to nothing but a sperm donor.” Not that I plan on letting it happen.
The tips of his lips curl. “Your head has been removed once before. I can arrange for a reprisal of the blessed event. Shall I seek Ms. Bishop and ask if she’d like to do the hon
ors? Rina?” he calls to her while rasping his knuckles against the table, causing Gage’s disembodied head to bobble as if he’s egging Dudley on—and knowing the new and unimproved version of my nephew, he is. “I want another glass box filled with keeping solution on the table tonight. I’m about to add to my collection of dead Olivers.”
Ezrina hustles over, her crimson locks blowing every which way. It’s amazing how she’s managed to take Chloe’s frame and turn it into her own.
“What seems to be the problem?” She cuts the air with her caustic curiosity.
“I’m ignoring him,” I say, moving past Ezrina as I speed over to the guys with their legs thrown over their seats. Both Ellis and Brody look up my way while Coop’s still lying back with his eyes closed.
And then I see it for what it really is.
“Crap.” I take a step back. Coop’s eyes are swollen shut, his lips have that bee-stung look to them, and his hands are puffy with fluid trapped underneath his skin.
Brody gives the back of his neck a quick scratch. “He’ll be fine.”
Ellis nods. “Ezrina is administering some counteractive shit. He’ll live.”
“Coop, can you hear me?” I say, leaning in. My stomach gets that weird feeling as if I were on a roller coaster that just bottomed out. I feel light-headed just looking at the poor guy.
A dull moan comes from him as Ezrina bustles back and shoves what looks to be a syringe minus the needle into his mouth and a thin line of pink fluid drips down his chin. She takes her blouse and mops it up for him.
“Two minutes.” She glances to the clock on the wall. “All will be well.”
Heathcliff comes in and makes a face at poor Coop. “This is what we’re up against. How many people will have adverse reactions to the serum?”
Dudley strolls in. “It’s hard to tell. But alas, this is a necessary evil. Unseating the enemy is of the utmost importance.” He sharpens his eyes over mine. “Send your people into hiding if you have to. We carry out the attack as planned. Eight weeks.”
“I’m not sending anyone into hiding. It’s not against the law to have an allergic reaction. Ezrina, can this kill?”
“Maybe.” She combs Coop’s hair back gently with her fingers. Becoming a mother has softened Ezrina and it’s heartwarming to see.
Cooper groans as his swelling visibly reduces.
Ellis lets out a hard breath. “I would not want that to happen to anyone. Dude, you’ve got balls of steel asking for it twice.”
Brody frowns over at me. “Coop may have balls of steel, but you can bet your supernatural dollars that as soon as people hear of deadly consequences, they’re going to shy away from it.”
Ellis shakes his head. “We may not need a serum. The government can’t test every person. It’s impossible.”
“They’ll find a way,” I mutter.
Brody looks to Ezrina. “What about old blood samples?”
“The markers don’t last. It needs to be fresh.”
Nev nods. “And it doesn’t need to be blood. A simple swabbing of the inside of the cheek produces the same results.” He looks my way. “And you’re right. The government will find a way. But they won’t want to cause a mass hysteria. They’ll have to be creative.”
“Or not,” Dudley offers.
I can’t help but scowl at him. “Aren’t you a ball of sunshine.”
“It’s true. I am.” He flexes an obnoxious grin that dissipates faster than it came. “But I wouldn’t rule out mass hysteria. It’s the most efficient way to rule a mob. You can use this to your advantage.” He steps in. “It must be of your own volition. I cannot hand-feed you something like this.”
“So, you want me to think,” I grunt at the thought because I don’t appreciate head games.
Dudley gives a long blink. “I realize it’s asking a lot of you, but for the sake of your Nephilim brothers and sisters, put on your thinking cap as they say.”
I glance to Brody and Ellis, both offering me their vacant stares.
“Okay. So mass hysteria isn’t the worst option for the government then”—I shake my head—“it’s the worst option for us.”
Dudley rocks back on his heels. “Now you’re catching on.”
“You want me to start up mass hysteria.” I stare out at the wall a moment, and then it comes to me. “Ah, you want me to stir up mass hysteria with the government.”
Coop moans as he sits up. His hands look all but the way they should and his lips have cut down in size.
Brody bounces to his feet as he heads my way. “Mass hysteria with the government.” He looks to Dudley. “What do you want us to do? Send them a letter explaining the fact there are angelic half-breeds roaming the planet?”
Dudley’s cheek pulls back, unimpressed. “Try again.”
Ellis lifts a finger. “We’ll call them and let them know we’re aliens and that they have our alien brothers captive. We’ll tell them there are enough of us to overrun their planet if they don’t hand them over.”
My chest pumps with a laugh I don’t have the energy to give. “It’ll never work.”
Dudley’s chest expands. “It’s the only thing that will.” He glowers at me a moment. “And now I see clearly that Candace bestowed her favor on the wrong Celestra. Clearly, Mr. Harrison is the one who should be in charge.”
“Yes, if you want outlandish ideas,” I shoot back. “Sorry, Ellis, no offense.”
“None taken.”
Dudley smirks my way. “Sometimes outlandish ideas are the only ones that can take you anywhere.” He says something to Ezrina that sounds like gibberish and she and Nev share a quiet laugh. Marshall takes a deep breath while looking my way. “Be prepared for all hell to break loose, Young Oliver.”
“Okay, once we unleash this new plague on our people, then what?”
“Then we keep our foot to their throats. We don’t relent until the proper order of things has been restored.” His crimson eyes darken a notch. “And it will be.”
Coop groans hard as he looks up, his face all but restored to the way it should be. “It will be. We win, Logan. I can all but assure it.”
I’m not feeling so sure. And I don’t stick around to share my uneasiness with what the upcoming months might hold as far as the warfront goes. The only thing I want to focus on is what the upcoming months hold for Skyla and me.
Selfish.
I know.
Skyla and I pick up the boys. Gage is front and center, as he should be, and it’s a joyous reunion with the boys. Skyla is enormously relieved as if the boys had come back from war rather than preschool for the last four hours. Gage looks as if he feels just as much stress, so I suggest we take the little tikes to the bowling alley to finish the day off in style.
The boys shriek with enthusiasm at the idea and both Skyla and Gage agree, and soon enough we’re right back where we started, in the bowling alley, eating pizza as the boys dive in and out of the ball box with enough enthusiasm to convince me there might be gold at the bottom.
Skyla takes off for the kitchen to talk with a few of the new hires, a couple of girls named Elle and Shay, along with Brielle who still picks up a mercy shift for me now and again. And Gage and I take a seat and watch the boys pulsate in and out of those rainbow-colored spheres.
Barron runs up and kicks Gage in the shin. “Daddy, look! I can swim in da balls!” He runs over and dives on in, headfirst.
“He’s fearless,” I say. “Just like his daddy. And believe me, that was no compliment.”
Gage grunts, but before he can sling a comeback, Nathan pulls himself out of the ball pit, pausing a moment to submerge his brother just as he comes up for air.
“Daddy, Uncle Loggie!” Nathan darts this way and doesn’t bother kicking his father like his brother did. “I going to marry Tobie.” His tiny lips are pursed as he struggles to pull his pants up to his waist. His entire face is a miniature replica of his father’s.
“No can do, buddy.” Gage leans forward and pulls Nath
an’s sweater down over his jeans. “She’s your sister. Can’t marry your sister.”
Nathan’s little mouth falls open as he looks my way. “Tobie’s my sister?” He jabs his thumb in his chest as he waits for affirmation.
“I don’t know, big guy,” I tell him. “Those are higher family mathematics for me.”
“That’s crazy,” he barks, his face exerting a whole new level of stress. “Chloe’s dinosaur is my baby sister. Not Tobie.” He shakes his head emphatically before hoisting himself back into the ball pit.
“There you have it,” I say. “Next gen love triangle is all figured out. Nathan and Barron warring it out over Tobie of all people.”
“He’ll outgrow it.”
I tick my head to the side. “Chloe never outgrew you, and now look at you lovebirds?” I offer him a congratulatory slap on the shoulder. “And no take backs. You chose to lie down with a viper and made her the mother of your child. Godspeed.”
I stand up as Skyla heads this way, her face glowing, her hair blowing back in perfect golden coils. I hold out my arms and she falls into them effortlessly. If only I would have held her tight to begin with, none of us would be in this mess. But the boys. They were needed. And if anything, they make all this madness worth it.
“Gage, would you mind watching the boys for a few hours? I have something very important to do with Skyla.”
“Ooh.” Her eyes grow wide. “Please tell me this involves sushi.” She makes a face because she knows it doesn’t.
“It will in about eight weeks.” I glance to Gage. “We’ll swing by and pick them up at your place?”
He exhales hard. He’s not doing a lot to hide his frustration with me these days. “I’ll take them to your place—the Landons’. I wanted to talk to Em. Besides, I think they’re tuckered out. They’ll be ready for bed soon.” He drags his eyes toward Skyla as if it were impossible for him to look at her these days, painful, and I’m sure it is. “I’ll bathe them.”
All Hail the King (Celestra Forever After Book 6) Page 47