by Tena Stetler
“I’ve never heard you play that song before. It’s so moody but yet finishes with such hope and joy. Is it new?”
“Yep. I just finished it tonight,” Stefan said proudly.
Brandy’s eyes twinkled as she gave his knee an affectionate squeeze. “Amid all this doom and gloom, you finish a song upbeat. How?”
“Because I’ve learned to live in the moment, and right now I am happier than I have ever been. The song came to me the day you left, but I never had the heart to finish it. Tonight, the rest of it kinda wrote itself. It felt right.” Leaning over, he kissed her cheek. “Whatever the future may hold for us, I’m going to enjoy what we have right now.”
The corners of Brandy’s lips twitched. “I’d like to hear more, then we can discuss this mess.”
Brandy lay on the floor, eyes closed, her body swaying with the last strains of a song. “Guess I’m ready to discuss our options now,” she said on a sigh as he placed the guitar carefully in its case, pulling the purple silk cover over it and closing the lid carefully, latching the case securely.
Peering at her from under his furrowed brows, he asked, “What options do you see?”
“I’m not sure. I don’t know how, but I missed that the girl was demon and that she was after me rather than you. I’ve never made such bad mistakes in judgment before.” Brandy shook her head, looking down at the floor.
“Hey, now, wait a minute. You never had a chance to get close to her. How could you have known? Besides, you gave us another chance. Some would say that is the epitome of bad judgment. To top it off, you bring me to meet your demon slayer brother-in-law.” He stopped and took a deep breath, “Now, I would say there is an error in judgment somewhere in there.” Grinning outrageously at her, he brushed his knuckles gently across her cheek.
“You just gave me examples of what I’ve done right. We’re working it out together, and you really didn’t need to tell Tristian we weren’t committed.”
“Yes, I did. This whole situation is hard enough. I’ll not allow you to lie to them. If we work it out, then they’ll be the first to know. Until then, we keep it honest.”
She took the pillow out from under her head and flung it at him.
“Not my fault that Tristian’s ideas are flawed.” Her green eyes sparkled again, the earlier fear gone.
Yes, we are on the right track now. Important decisions can’t be made under duress.
Stefan discussed with Brandy the options they saw, whether this situation would change their plans for Ireland, and how Tristian’s revelations could impact them, possibly for the rest of their lives. After a couple of hours, he tucked his shirt in, Brandy slipped her feet into her shoes, and they padded downstairs.
Already sitting close to the blazing fire in each other’s arms, Tristian and Hannah whispered softly. Walking in, Stefan grabbed a floor pillow and sat down, much as they had last night.
“I really didn’t mean to involve you two in my world.” Tristian began shaking his head slowly, his expression grim. “Things have never been this outrageously out of control. That’s one of the reasons I finally took Hannah as my wife. I thought I could provide a good life for us. Turns out…”
Stefan interrupted, “Tristian, we have to play the cards we are dealt in life. I should know. Brandy and I have decided to stay here for a couple of weeks as planned. Then we’ll spend Christmas in Ireland with Brandy’s parents. In fact, we’d like you and Hannah to accompany us to Ireland. If I have to meet Brandy’s family, I see no reason why you should get out of it.”
Tristian grunted, stood up, and shook his head. “That’s not possible given the circumstances.”
With a mischievous glint in her eye, Brandy looked over at Hannah, who nodded as her mouth curled into a wicked grin. “I’m afraid it is. I’ve already purchased four tickets to Ireland. We’ll spend Christmas with Ma and Da.”
“Hannah, you are free to take Brandy and Stefan with you, but I won’t go.”
“Yes, as a matter of fact, you will. I’ve gone along with your wishes up till now, but with the recent turn of events, I want to see Ma and Da. You promised a celebration of our wedding. Now is as good a time as any. If the world is to end, I want them to meet you.” Hannah stood in front of Tristian, hands fisted on her hips, and blew a strand of dark-red hair out of her face, blue eyes flashing a warning as she set her jaw.
Stefan glanced at Tristian and shrugged, hooking his thumbs in his front pockets. She’s got him by the short hairs. He coughed to keep from laughing. Better him than me. “Besides, we’ll need you and Hannah to keep relatives busy when Brandy and I hunt. Revealing what I am and how I live is not something the whole family needs to know right away. Her parents will know soon enough, but it would be best if it ended there. It’ll be hard enough to be close to warm-bloods twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.”
“What do you mean ‘hunt’?” Hannah tensed, those determined blue eyes now turned in Stefan’s direction and then accusingly toward Brandy. “You hunt with him? I thought we’d evolved beyond that.” She sniffed.
On a half laugh, Brandy said, “Relax, Hannah. It’s not what you think. I transform and hunt with him. It’s something I’ve always done, even before Stefan. Not such a bad way to live, and I don’t expect you to understand. But you will have to accept our way of life if we’re going to stay with you and Tristian.”
Obviously yanking her temper back to a simmer, Hannah blew out a breath. “It’s not a problem. I just wondered; that’s all.”
“From our viewpoint, it looks like you two need all the help you can get,” Brandy said smugly.
Chapter Nineteen
Fireplace Apparition—Not a Normal Form of Communication
The worst of the conflicts settled, the couples relaxed around the warm fire. Hannah stood up and stretched. Hands on her hips, she leaned to the far left and then to the right. “Anyone want popcorn?” she asked, moving toward the kitchen.
“Sure. Want some help?” Brandy asked, unfolding herself and getting to her feet.
Before they could leave the room, flames suddenly crackled and popped in the fireplace, then a plume of dark-blue smoke curled around the blaze. Everyone in the room gasped except Tristian as a violent scene played out right in the middle of the raging fire.
****
“You wanted to see me, Baltizar?”
“Yes, Synn, I can’t believe you’ve lost the gryphon girl and her vampire boyfriend!” Baltizar raged, shooting exploding orange fireballs in Synn’s direction.
“Hey, back off. I’ll tell you what you want to know!” Synn screamed, dodging the fireballs and retaliating with shocking-blue lightning bolts.
“Brandy’s capture was your responsibility.” Baltizar’s face distorted with fury but his voice was deadly calm.
“It would’ve helped if you’d told me that her brother-in-law was not only a demon slayer but a damn warlock from the oldest, most powerful family ever known.” Synn deflected a blazing fireball back at Baltizar. The right side of his black robe went up in flames.
Ignoring her lucky shot, he eyed her menacingly. “How did Brandy make you?”
“I’m not sure she did. She and the vampire saw me in the mall after she returned. When I checked on them two days later, her house was empty. The vampire’s cabin was locked up with sheets over the furniture, and there was no trace of Stefan or Brandy. I called the radio station disguising my voice and was told Stefan was on a leave of absence.”
“She’s a talented gryphon, you fool. She knew what you were before you opened your mouth.”
“If they knew I was a demon, why didn’t they kill me?”
“I don’t know,” he said, momentarily rubbing his chin. “You have forty-eight hours to find them and bring Brandy to me. Otherwise I’ll kill you myself!” Baltizar took careful aim. A massive blazing red-orange glowing fireball shot from his palm and found its mark.
A horrifying scream escaped Synn’s throat as her flaming body writhed in pa
in.
“That’s going to leave a scar.” He grinned in satisfaction.
The scene faded within the curling dark-blue smoke, and the flames rose, engulfing the logs again.
****
Tristian stood. “Excuse me.” Quickly, he strode out of the room just as his phone rang.
Hannah and Brandy remained riveted to their seats. Stefan stood staring into the fire, privy to Tristian’s side of the conversation.
“Hello, Bruce. I was expecting your call…Yes, we all saw the images…I don’t know. The damn scene just appeared in the fire. Let me ask and I’ll get back to you…Yes, Brandy and Stefan are staying with us…They arrived a couple of days ago…I haven’t had time to call you. We’ve had our own family problems to deal with.”
There was a long pause as Tristian listened. “I know I should have, but I didn’t…What’s done is done. Let’s move on…Yes, given the situation, I agree that Synn will probably seek you out…She has no alternative; there is no way she can get to them here. That means that Baltizar will kill her unless you intervene…We were planning a couple of outings to keep up the ruse of normalcy, but we’ll wait till she is contained. Then we’ll leave town for a few weeks. Family business overseas requires our personal attention.”
Stefan moved toward the doorway, bringing Tristian into sight.
“I’m well aware,” Tristian said tersely, fisting his free hand repeatedly, punching the air and walking toward the door. “Things are different now. As you’ve told me repeatedly, I have a family to protect.”
Another short pause and Tristian blew out a breath. “It’s too late for that. We’ll do the best we can. How would you feel if someone told you that you shouldn’t have married Angelique?” As soon as the words were out of his mouth, it was apparent that was a bad example.
Tristian held the phone from his ear as a roar of laughter emitted from the phone.
Stefan covered a grin with his hand. These family dynamics fascinated him as long as he wasn’t on the receiving end of bad juju.
“Yeah, I know I did exactly that, but it was for different reasons than what we are talking about now.”
Another long pause. “I’ll call you back as soon as I explain this whole situation and get answers to your questions.” Tristian touched the screen, ending the call, and pocketed the phone.
When Tristian strode back into the room, all eyes were on him. “I assume that you heard my conversation.”
“Well, we heard mostly your side of the conversation. What the heck is going on?” Hannah wanted to know.
“Was that real?” Stefan asked, pointing to the fireplace.
“Unfortunately, yes.”
“Where did it take place?” Stefan asked, raising a dark brow as he crossed his arms across his chest.
Tristian raked his fingers though his hair and sighed. “All in good time. First, I need to know if Synn was the girl from Montana?”
“Yes,” Brandy and Stefan answered simultaneously.
“Okay, let me make one more phone call and I will explain everything.”
“No, how about you explain everything first and then…” Stefan growled, standing up and stepping directly in Tristian’s path.
“Because if I don’t get your answer to my boss, things are going to go south in a big way.” Tristian moved menacingly toward him.
Stefan remained standing in the arched doorway of the room. Tristian stood there only a moment. His eyes flicked to Hannah, then he pulled the cell phone out of his pocket, touched the screen, and put the phone to his ear.
“Bruce, yes, Synn is the girl from Montana. Now, I really have to go. I’ll talk to you later. Tristian opened his mouth as if to retort, paused, closed his mouth in a firm line, and listened to the voice on the other end.
Finally, Tristian interrupted. “I know, but I have my own set of problems demanding my immediate attention. Once those are settled, then we’ll discuss the others. If you don’t like it, you know where to find me.” He angrily ended the call and shoved the phone in his pocket. He took a long breath and let it out slowly, regaining composure and exuding an air of calm control once again as he turned to the others.
“Stefan, sorry if you feel I’m keeping you in the dark. It’s going to be a long night, so please try to be patient. The scene you just witnessed is real and took place in Hell within the last few hours. It was a communication sent to me by Bruce out of Washington, D.C. When he saw the scene and heard your names, he immediately forwarded it to me, which is what you just saw.”
“Bruce is married to your sister, Angie, right? The one we rescued a while back,” Stefan clarified.
“Unfortunately, yes,” Tristian grumbled. “Now, mind if I continue?”
“No, go right ahead,” Stefan suggested.
Just then the doorbell rang.
“This is not what I need right now.” Tristian strode to the entrance and yanked open the door. Bruce stepped inside, grasping Tristian by the shoulder. “This matter is too important to wait.”
“Welcome, Bruce. I’d rather you let me sort my family situation out before you force me to handle ours.” Tristian yanked his shoulder out of Bruce’s grip and stepped back. Off-balance slightly, he fell backward, his elbow shattering the glass door of the antique china cabinet standing against the wall. The wood groaned under the sudden impact, and crystal stemware tumbled to the floor, sending shards of sparkling crystal skittering across the polished oak floor.
Bruce reached out to steady him as Tristian waved his good arm toward the door, closing it with a bang.
Bruce’s eyes glowed a bright orange tinged with red, but he moved out of Tristian’s way. The doorbell rang again. Hannah looked puzzled and started for the door. Tristian reached for the door, jerking it open. His eyes rounded as he stared at his sister. Angelique sprinted through the door into the room.
She grabbed Bruce’s arm. “What in Hell’s fire are you doing here? You said you were going to let Tristian handle his family matters before complicating things further?” Her tiny, lithe body quivered with anger as she flung her long blonde hair back and glanced behind Bruce to survey the damage. With a wave of her arm and words muttered quietly, the crystal shards reformed into stemware and returned to the shelf. The glass in the china cabinet door flew back into place before she turned her attention back to Bruce. “Explain yourself,” she demanded, tapping her tiny foot impatiently.
Bruce calmly put his arms out in front of him, palms out. “Tristian had a clumsy moment as I arrived.” Bruce raised an eyebrow, shrugged, and smiled innocently at Angie. “I don’t have to explain myself to anyone. However…”
Angelique narrowed her eyes at Bruce. “Is that so?” She looked from her husband to her brother and then to Hannah. “What happened here?”
“Tristian opened the door. I gripped his shoulder to get his attention. He wrenched his shoulder away, lost his balance, and smashed an elbow into the china cabinet,” Bruce said matter-of-factly. “I reached out to steady him and…”
“Okay, so why are your eyes still whirling orange in anger? You know the minute you walk in this house your powers are useless. She placed her hands flat on his chest and glared up at Bruce, who was way over a foot taller than her five feet two inches. “You and Tristian have been getting along so well. Now this!”
“Nothing’s changed,” Bruce said smoothly. “It was just an accident. Nothing more. I promise.” He turned to Tristian for confirmation.
Tristian brushed the dust off his clothes and nodded in agreement. “Everything is fine,” he said through clinched teeth.
“Hello, Angie,” Hannah greeted her sister-in-law while moving closer to examine Tristian’s elbow where blood was seeping through this shirt. “It’s been a rough night for all concerned.”
Angelique turned, noticing for the first time there were others in the room. With a nonchalant wave of her hand, she said, “Too much testosterone in this room, as usual when you get my husband and brother in the same room. Sorr
y for the intrusion.”
Hannah grinned, nodding her head. “Angie, Bruce, this is my sister, Brandy, and her friend, Stefan. They are visiting with us while we make plans for Christmas, maybe in Ireland.”
“Oh, I remember Stefan. Assassin to the Vampire Council, right?” Angie said.
Bruce glanced in Stefan’s direction again, and recognition shone in his eyes as they blatantly swept over Stefan’s scars, visible above his collar. “Well, well, we meet again. Stefan Talltree, isn’t it? And rescuer of damsels in distress,” he teased. “Seriously, I owe you a debt of gratitude for rescuing my Angie.”
Stefan’s eyes steeled as his face went blank. “Former assassin. And you’re right, last name is Talltree.” Of all the things to keep catching up with me…Good thing I came clean with Brandy.
Bruce raised an eyebrow. “Ah…yes, I remember Lady Rose mentioned that at Angie’s and my wedding. My mistake.”
Brandy just shook her head. Stefan knew further explanations would be required before this bit of information would go away.
“Now that everyone’s calmed down, what is so important that it couldn’t wait till Tristian had solved his family situation and was ready to discuss the mounting demon one?” Angie glanced up at Bruce, her gaze softening.
“Tristian indicated over the phone his family would be leaving for Ireland soon. That has traditionally been a safe place. However, I’ve recently learned of unexplained deaths in London and Dublin in recent weeks. We’ve lost a watch demon, a warrior faerie, and a witch along with a couple of unknowns that have lived there for centuries.”
Stefan let out a low whistle. “That’s bad.”
“Demonic activity seems to be increasing worldwide, making Ireland as dangerous as anywhere else, which leads me to believe the dark demons are getting desperate. I thought this was something my security specialist should know immediately.”