by Eden Ashley
Cal was the first to break the silence. “You think you could go by there? She really wants to see you.”
Nodding absently, Kali rested her cheek against Bailen’s furry head. “I’ll do that.”
“Okay.” Cal hesitated. “Are you okay? I mean, besides losing your job and everything. Because I’m here. Anything you need.”
York fought the urge to roll his eyes. But he lost.
“I’m fine, Cal. But thanks.”
He took a long time deciding his next line. “You must have seen him over there,” he finally blurted.
Kali looked taken aback. A slight frown rippled across her forehead. “Why would you say that?”
“Because you look great. You’ve got this glow about you that I’ve only seen when he’s around. I’m man enough to admit that now.”
Well, that would be a shiny new development.
But Cal wasn’t done with the surprises.
“Rhane’s a good guy. You probably don’t realize it, but even Gabriel likes him.”
A smile flickered at Kali’s lips. “Thank you,” she said graciously.
“Okay. I’ve got to get going…maybe I’ll see you around then.” He started toward the front door.
“Callan,” she called to his retreating back.
“Yeah?” The poor guy still sounded hopeful. York almost felt sorry for him.
“It really means a lot to me that you stopped by. Really…thank you.”
After Cal was gone, she let York in on what seemed to weigh so heavily on her mind. “We have to protect him.”
“I know.” He knew Kali meant Bailen without her actually having to say it. “He’s yours. That means I’ll readily give my life for him.”
“He said they have to take him. What does that mean?”
Bailen whined.
“I don’t know.” York looked at the canine, wishing the kid would just say what the hell was going on. He’d suspected from the beginning that Bailen had more secrets than he let on. Oh boy had it turned out to be truer than York could have ever imagined. “I wish you would tell us,” he said, speaking directly to Bailen.
Meeting York’s gaze, the young kin replied with a soft huff. Then he laid his great head across Kali’s lap again.
“Okay, you have to stay in that form. We don’t know exactly why, but I guess we get it.” York leaned forward and tried to rein back the frustration evident in his voice. “But even in this form you could communicate if you wanted to. The skins have a language. Use it.”
Without looking at him, without changing positions, or even the speed of his tail slowly beating against the cushions, Bailen did exactly as York asked. He spoke.
She can’t know yet, Yorkshire.
#
It was getting late. If Kali was going to pay a visit to her parents’ house, it would have to be sooner rather than later. After only an hour of sparring, she had come back inside for a shower and some mindless channel surfing. She was simply too distracted to accomplish anything meaningful. With attempting new skills or even honing old ones out of the question, she threw down the dowel and retreated to burrow within the plush cushions of the living room sofa. Bailen quickly nestled beside her and seemed content watching Kali’s near manic handling of the remote as she contemplated ditching her pajamas to go see her parents.
Kali stole a glance at Bailen. All afternoon, he had glued himself to her side like barnacles on a gray whale. But the kid had shown a pretty dogged display of independence before then. From secretly hanging out in kindred lairs, to recruiting Dmiri for his own mysterious purposes, to insisting on going his own way in China—Kali just didn’t know what to expect from him. But if she went home tonight, Bailen would come with her whether he liked it or not. No way was she going to leave him behind, not with his warning still echoing in her thoughts. They’re going to take me soon.
The thought of Builders once again stealing her child was too much to bear. She couldn’t stop picturing the abandoned labs discovered within the catacombs while in China. Inside those rooms were the remnants of Builder experiments. She remembered the strange humanoid creature with both reptilian and marine qualities, an aberration created and then cast aside on the whim of its makers. Was its creation painful? Did it suffer even now as it languished in that stasis pod? How many more creatures filled the hundreds of pods stored throughout the labyrinth? Is that why they wanted Bailen? Would he be another experiment?
Kali shook her head vigorously to banish the thought. She would drive herself mad if she didn’t focus on something else. In an act of perfect timing, her stomach growled. Shoving herself from the couch in one resolute motion, Kali migrated toward the kitchen, thinking food could be a suitable distraction. The click of Bailen’s toenails against the hardwood floors followed through the doubled doors and past the dining area where Matthias sat wearing an expression that bordered on panic. She didn’t have to guess hard at the source of his troubles. What looked like hundreds of rhomboid and triangular shapes in all colors of the rainbow were scattered on the table before him in an exploded version of York’s prized dodecahedron.
Crapola.
The young kindred appealed to Kali, alternating his gaze of desperation from her to the puzzle and back. The pang of sympathy she felt for him was swiftly overtaken by an unexpected snort of laughter. Matthias’s ears perked and flattened at the sound, only making her laugh harder.
The noise must have summoned Rion from the kitchen because he rounded the corner carrying a greasy spatula. Taking one look at Matthias, he broke into a wide grin. “I thought it was pretty hilarious too.”
Holding her stomach, Kali used the other hand to wipe the tears from her eyes. “York is going to be so mad,” she gasped out before doubling over again. Gulping in a few deep breaths, she managed to pull it together. It felt good to have something to laugh about again. She shoved at Rion’s shoulder playfully. “But you can fix that, right?”
“Yup. I’m just letting him sweat it out a little longer.”
Matthias looked absolutely horrified. “But he could be back at any moment.”
“Then, buddy, you’ve got a decision to make.”
Before Kali could ask, Matthias answered with zeal. “Fine. I’ll do it.”
“Great.” Rion turned and started walking away. “I’ve been put in charge of dinner tonight,” he called back to her. “What do you want?”
Narrowing her eyes suspiciously, Kali followed him into the kitchen. “I didn’t know you cooked.”
Rion winked. “Rhane taught me a few things.”
“So what are you making?”
“There’ll be a choice of courses: French toast, grilled cheese, or uh…” scratching his head, he shrugged. “Toast,” he finished.
In spite of herself, Kali laughed again. “You’re not joking, are you?”
“Nope.”
“Okay. I’ll have a grilled cheese.”
“Coming right up.” Adjusting the burners, Rion went to work buttering two slices of bread.
“So what did Matt agree to over there?”
Rion looked up from the stove, completely pleased with himself. “He’s got to stop sleeping naked. It’s boxers or briefs from now on.”
“Why does Matt’s naked sleeping habit bother you? I didn’t even know he did that until last night.”
“That’s because you sleep upstairs in Rhane’s bed and he doesn’t go near there at night even while he’s sleepwalking.”
“Oh. Wow.” Kali threw her head back and laughed. “You could just lock your door.”
“Trust me. I’ve done that. But sometimes I have to get up in the middle of the night to take a leak. I’m still half asleep.” He waved the spatula in the air. “Do you have any idea what it’s like bumping into a naked guy who’s just standing in the darkness like some whacked out weirdo? He’s freaked the hell out of me twice now.”
In an attempt to be sensitive to Rion’s plight, Kali tried to hold back her laugh. But it escaped in a s
nort, followed by a burst of giggles.
“Laugh it up,” he said, faking sternness. A grin cracked the façade as he slid a steaming grilled cheese sandwich in front of her. The deliciously cheesy aroma stirred her appetite, making her stomach growl in anticipation. Her mouth was still full with the first bite when Matthias stormed into the kitchen carrying the pieces of the disassembled dodecahedron in his arms. “York is coming! What do I do with these?”
“Dump them in the trash.”
Matthias’s eyes got impossibly bigger. “You promised to fix.”
“A little trust here, okay?” Rion pressed the pedal at the base of the trash can with his foot, releasing the lid as soon as Matthias relinquished the broken puzzle. Then he opened a kitchen drawer, retrieved an identical puzzle, and tossed it to Matthias. “As soon as you touched it, I knew that thing was toast.”
Any affront to his dexterity was completely lost on Matthias who was joyful to the point of tears. Seeing his reaction, Kali had to choose between keeping it together or choking on her scrumptious sandwich. Somehow she managed to keep a straight face.
“Thank you so much,” Matthias exclaimed.
“Anytime, buddy.” Rion clapped the young kindred on the shoulder. “Be careful with that one. The price goes up next time.”
Nodding and smiling, Matthias scurried off into the living room with the resurrected toy.
When Rion slipped a second sandwich onto her plate, Kali gave most of it to Bailen, keeping only a corner for herself. “I’m surprised Orrin and York are still out,” she said as she nibbled. “Those two rarely spar this long. It’s been hours.”
“Yeah. Orrin misses his brother. York misses his best friend. Rather than talking about their feelings, they’re handling it like real men—pounding each other black and blue.”
“At least they’re dealing with it…well, sorta.”
“Do you think your Builder friend is going to come through for us? Maybe we’ll get them back soon?”
“I don’t think Wes and I are friends anymore,” Kali said and was surprised by the abrupt rush of sadness she felt. “But even if it was for selfish reasons, I think he left last night ready to help. All we can do now is to wait and see.”
Rion took a seat at the table and began drowning his French toast in maple syrup. “Waiting sucks.”
“Absolutely,” she agreed.
“Tremendously.”
“Immeasurably.”
“Super fantastically major suckage.”
“Total astronomically epic suckfest.”
Rion laughed. “You win, but only because I’m hungry,” he said and stuffed his face with a huge forkful of French toast almost too big to fit into his mouth. Before he was done chewing it, a couple of large, very sweaty and slightly bloody kin trampled into the kitchen. York and Orrin practically made a beeline for the stove, helping themselves to mountainous portions of the bounty Rion had just finished preparing.
Kali looked them over. She knew the guys had big appetites, but sometimes after a hard workout, they could still surprise her. Between the two of them, an entire loaf of bread and at least a dozen eggs were about to be devoured. “York, I need to visit my parents. Rion and Bailen are coming with. I’d like whichever of you who can shower fastest to tag along but hang back and keep an extra eye out.”
“I nominate Orrin,” York said around a mouthful of food. “I’m planning on marinating in my sweat all evening. Savor the flavor. Makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something.”
Kali and Orrin wrinkled their noses. She spoke for both of them. “That’s so gross.”
York smiled. “I knew you’d understand.”
Chapter 36
No, Kali decided. I will not tell my parents that Rhane’s dog is actually their grandson who is only a boy part-time.
Her homecoming was a warm one, as usual. Lisa had taken an out of state case and was away on trial, so there was no hot and homemade meal prepared. Greg was however a master brewer in the art of sweet tea. He and Kali sat on the back porch, swinging gently in the cool breeze with two glasses of the ice cold beverage, sipping as they idly chatted. She could tell by the thin lines creasing his brow and the way his lips slightly pinched when he wasn’t speaking that a lot weighed on his mind. Yet, for her sake, Greg was making an effort to keep things light. Kali couldn’t help wondering what troubled him but was almost afraid to ask. She didn’t want to pry or risk making a difficult situation worse, so she waited. Perhaps he would tell in his own due time.
Bailen was stretched out at the end of the stained deck, nearly dangling over the edge as he warmed in the last rays of sunlight. Watching him with both fondness and worry, Kali was struck with the thought that maybe this was exactly how Greg felt.
“I’m okay, Dad,” she said out of the blue. “I think Rhane and Warren are going to be okay too.”
His face visibly relaxed. “So, Wesley David was able to help?”
“He’s working on it.”
“That’s good. I’m glad.” Falling quiet again, he took a swig of tea.
“But you’re still worried.”
After a beat, Greg nodded. “Callan came by and basically told me what happened with your job. I know that Davidson Founder Internship meant a lot to you because you used to talk about it all the time. It was supposed to be this summer, but now I really can’t see how it could have happened at all. I know I haven’t always been on board with this archaeology thing, but I’m worried about your future, Kali. Your mother and I have the money for your schooling. Consider it paid for. I’m only afraid that after all this is over, you won’t want it anymore.”
Kali stared into her glass, thinking how right Greg was to be concerned. It was difficult to think of college with her soul mate held prisoner on the other side of the world and newly exposed son sitting at her feet. Growing up was rough.
She knew she owed it to the girl she used to be and the humans who’d raised her to consider everything Greg had said. Through it all, she didn’t feel like she had lost any of who she was. She was simply evolving. There was no reason why past Kali and future Kali couldn’t find a compromise of sorts.
“When all this is over, I will go to college, and I will graduate. I promise.”
Greg’s face lit up with a genuine smile. “You took that much better than I thought you would. Maybe you are growing up.” He squinted thoughtfully. “Any chance I could get you to reconsider law school?”
Rolling her eyes, Kali laughed. “Not a chance. But I do think I will make a slight adjustment to the archaeology thing.”
“Yeah?” Greg was clearly trying not to sound too hopeful.
“Oh yes.” Kali grinned. “I’m going to be a marine archaeologist, specialize in diving. Maybe I’ll eventually start my own team.”
“Wow.” Greg nodded, looking legitimately impressed. “That actually sounds pretty fascinating. Don’t tell me that you’ve gone and gotten addicted to this new dangerous and exciting lifestyle of yours.”
Kali thought about it. She couldn’t remember ever longing for the somewhat normal life she’d led before reuniting with Rhane. But claiming to be some sort of adrenaline junkie would be a stretch. Becoming an archaeologist had been her dream for a very long time. At the same time, the new abilities she had realized couldn’t be wasted. Exploring sunken realms few others could reach seemed like a great career for a siren. “Or maybe breathing underwater is just too good a talent to waste,” she said.
“I hadn’t considered that.” Greg set his glass down and leveled a serious gaze in Kali’s direction. “How could I have ever forgotten that my youngest daughter is in fact a little mermaid? Shame on me.”
“Ha. Ha,” Kali said flatly. “So hilarious. When did you start doing stand up?”
Greg let out a good-natured chuckle. “I’m only teasing you, kiddo. Relax.”
“Uh huh.” She folded her arms and waited warily. A mischievous gleam still twinkled in her adoptive father’s eye.
“S
eriously though. Have you thought about coloring your hair? Red would look good on you.” He laughed again.
It was the same crack Rhane had made. This time Kali was ready for it. “I’d look like a hooker,” she said, and Greg’s laughter quickly faded. Kali kept her expression deadpan for about five seconds before she broke down with a belly laugh of her own.
“Young lady,” he scolded with a shake of his finger. “That wasn’t even remotely funny.”