He’d suffered greatly for getting them out of the house. A large fiery beam had fallen on his back, catching his clothing on fire when he’d gone back to get Will. When he came out, laying her brother on the soft grass, Father tumbled over to his side and closed his eyes.
“She hated me.” Neither of them moved, as they’d not gotten enough clean air into their lungs yet when their father spoke. “Hated me from the start, she did. Only married me on account of me being the only one to say yes to her. She was a fine woman then. Now she is a monster.”
Father looked at her then at Will, and Dorcus could tell that he wasn’t long for this earth. The fire had burnt him so badly that in places she could see his bones. When he coughed, blood spewed from his mouth and ears and he died. Dorcus had never seen a dead person before, and wasn’t at all sure what to do now.
“We have to make her pay. Our mother.” Dorcus asked Will what he meant. “She meant to kill us. Locked us up in that room so that we’d be dead. Why would she do such a thing to us? Dorcus, we must make her pay for this.”
She had been for it. And as they hid themselves in the woods, burying their father’s body so that no one would find out that any of them had lived, they plotted her demise. It was then that they found a way to summon a demon to help them.
Shape, he’d told them to call him, had joined them late one night when they’d been sitting around their meager meal of berries, their fire barely enough to keep them warm. He’d been in a human form then, and told them how he would help them with their plans if he could have the child that Dorcus carried.
The fire danced with warmth the moment that he put his hands to the wood. Food appeared, more than they’d seen even before all this with their mother had come to pass. They were both getting their fill when the demon spoke again. He told them what he could do for them.
She’d not known that she was breeding, but agreed immediately to his help. Will had been a little less happy about it, but came around to her way of thinking when she pointed out how much work having a child would be, and how it would make her a bitch like her mother had been. After that, Shape had not only killed off their mother, but had made her suffer while they were allowed to watch. The child, their first of many girls, was given to the demon just minutes after she struggled to bring it into the world.
“I’ve been thinking about something.” Dorcus pulled herself from her thoughts and asked Will what he was thinking about. “This birthing, it will be our fifth to this group, correct? I was wondering what we should do if we were to have another child?”
“You mean would he take it? I don’t know. I’d just as soon never have to carry another one for so long as I live. But what did you have in mind?” Will asked her if she remembered what the first of the five had told them. “You mean about the laws that are being broken with this? Yes, I remember. He told us that the fact that we were doing this without the king’s knowledge was why it was so appealing for him. What are you getting at?”
“What if that’s all we want?” Dorcus didn’t understand, and Will smiled as he explained. “What if we were to tell them that we’d give them every child we had for the kingdom. That way we can have all the coins that are here. We both know that there is plenty of money to becoming the king of leprechauns. Right?”
“You mean instead of asking for money and fame again, we should ask to rule here? I like that idea. But we know nothing about ruling. What if we mess it up?” Will asked her how hard it could be. O’Reilly was doing it, and he was stupid. “He is. And he’s very rich. Did you hear the story about him helping some human in the other world? Why doesn’t he help us?”
“He doesn’t know that we’re alive. We died in the fire, remember?” Dorcus wasn’t so sure that anyone believed that they’d died at all. Just as they crossed over into this land, someone asked her if Will was still with her. “I was thinking that we start watching what he does all day, and figure out what we are to do to be the rulers. I mean, how hard could it be?”
“I wouldn’t think that hard at all, knowing his wife and all. O’Reilly seems to spend a good deal of his time hanging out at the pubs and having a good time with that idiot messenger that he has.” Will said that was what he was talking about. “Okay. Before the baby is here, we should do as much watching as we can. I don’t think that it’ll be that hard to find him, now that I’ve thought about it, but it would be a good idea to make sure that we can do it without losing our asses and all the money that comes with the job. Remember the restaurant business?”
They had thought to open a restaurant in the other world. Well, Will had. She had only gone along with it because it had made him so happy. But hiring people to work there, making the place clean with chairs and such, became too much work. Then they were to figure out what they’d cook to sell to the humans. That part, she thought, had been easy. But it never worked, none of it had.
“I do. That was a big mistake on my part. Who knew that humans wouldn’t care for healthy food all the time?” Dorcus didn’t point out to him that she had, but let it go. “All right. We’ll head to the pub in town, the one closest to his home, and keep an eye on him. Also, we’ll want to make changes to our list. We’re to have one ready this time.”
“I can work on that at the pub. You just remember that I’m not travelling too far from the place that will contact the demon. That place is where I need to meet Agnew, the demon that we work with this time, to give over this brat.” Will agreed that he’d do most of the following. “All right then. We’ll go now. It’s nearly lunch time, and I could do with a nice meal for a change.”
As they made their way to the pub, she thought about her mother. Would she be proud of them for making it in this world? No, she’d be still trying to kill them, of that Dorcus was sure. But having her out of their life had certainly made them have more fun. Now they were going to be king and queen of the land here. Dorcus was hoping for the first time since she started having babies that this one hung on just a little longer. They needed some information before they took on their new jobs.
~*~
Charlie sat down with the Winchesters and listened to them banter around the table. It wasn’t as bad as she had thought it would have been. Dominic had told her that not only did they talk loudly, but they also rarely got to finish a sentence before someone was either cutting them off or changing the subject. She loved the way that you could watch them like a tennis match. Then someone let out a loud whistle. They all went silent and turned to look at the newcomer.
“Hello, Charlie.” Carmen? She knew the Winchesters as well? “I’ve known you longer, of course but they mean just as much to me. I’ve been doing some research on yours and Dominic’s behalf. It’s amazing what you can find out when you have friends in all sorts of places. I’ve formed in you a very important ally in all this. I hope you understand what this is going to cost your parental units.”
“I could care less what it costs them so long as they’re no longer able to ruin lives. I take it you’ve spoken to Roger.” Nodding, Carmen sat down with the family. Using a bit of her magic, not only was Carmen able to have a chair at the table, but the table itself extended out more for the extra room. “To be honest with you, Carmen, it didn’t ever occur to me to have you talk to anyone.”
“I’m sorry. Who is Roger, and why is it important that you reached out to him?” Olivia, Caleb’s wife, looked around the table when no one answered her. “We want to help you so that you’re not hurt. I swear, Charlie, we’d never do anything to anyone that is willing and able to keep you that way for Dominic.”
“Roger is....” Charlie tried to think of a way to tell them so they’d not freak out. They would too. It wasn’t every day that someone got to know the king of the underworld. “His name is many. His work is—”
“Just spit it out. I swear, leprechauns are the longest winded people about getting to the point that I ever did see.” A few o
f Kelley’s sons snickered at their father, but no one said anything. “I heard you laughing at me. I do get to the point, I tell you. What is the Roger person? The devil himself?”
“Yes. Yes, as a matter of fact he is.” Charlie laughed, then they all paled. “I have had dealings with him before. Not in a bad way, but when I’ve noticed that some of the rules are being broken, I call to him to let him know. There is a treaty, I guess you’d call it, that forbids his kind from coming to our realm and making trouble. It’s because he comes there to rest when he needs it. You might well call it a neutral zone. It’s been very helpful for my kind and his to have a retreat when they need it. It’s strictly a place for him to come without questions asked.”
“How the devil does that work?” Roger showed up in the room just as Kelley asked his question. When he stood up, so did the rest of the family. Carmen and Charliestayed seated but alert. “How did you get here?”
“I’ve not been given permission, so you’re only seeing an illusion of me. None of you, however, see me as I am, thank you for that.” Rayne asked Roger what he meant. “I’m sure you each have an idea what I look like in real life. Everyone has one. But when I come to a home where I have not been invited, as a ghost if you wish, then I let the person decide what it is they’ll see me as. Each of you wanted to see a man. While there are variations on my age, you’ve all made me appear to you as just a person. Again, I thank you for that. If you were to permit me to enter your home, this one and only time, then I will help you with the doings that are going on in the realm of the leprechauns. I swear to you, no harm will come to anyone in his family.”
Charlie wasn’t the least bit surprised. Well, maybe just a little when Sara, Dominic’s mother, asked her to extend the table again while she went to get him a plate. Charlie did as she asked, and Roger looked at her then Carmen before he took the chair that she made for him as well.
Sara not only came back in the room with a plate mounded over with food, but she also brought him a basket of rolls that no one had wanted enough to have them brought to the table. Also a glass of water. When she sat back down, she looked at Roger with a stern look.
“You break your word about my family and you won’t be able to hide deep enough in Hell for me to find you. I want you to understand that right this minute.” Roger said he would never. “See that you don’t. Now, you eat and we’ll talk to our lovely new family member. By the way, no one in this family will harm you either so long as you keep your word on your side. I just want that put out there.”
Roger looked around the table, and Charlie could tell that he was finding humor in the situation. His large shoulders were shaking just a bit, and when he looked at her, she could see a twinkle in his eyes. The man was enjoying himself.
“I’ve never broken bread with a family before. Not even my own.” Kelley told him that was sad. “I didn’t realize that it was until just now. But I have to say this too. I’m never going to enjoy one, if I’m ever invited to one again, as much as I am this one right now. Thank you all for this.”
Roger didn’t say anything more until he cleaned his plate. Then when he was offered dessert, he asked if he could brew him a cup of tea. For some reason Owen thought it was the funniest thing he’d ever heard—the devil wanted a hot drink. Roger laughed with him when Owen was able to explain what he’d found so funny.
“I do love a cup of tea now and again. The heat is bad, but like anything, you get used to it. But with fine company and wonderful food, this seemed to call for a cup of something soothing.” Owen said that he was sorry. “Don’t be. I’m happy to have been someone that you felt comfortable enough with to laugh. This has been an enlightening day for me.”
It had been for her as well. Dominic had said that his family was one in a million, but she’d not understood that until just now. Without a single mean gesture they’d welcomed her to their home, even knowing the circumstances of her birth. But they’d also dined with the demon of all demons at their table, and threatened him with death should he fuck up. Charlie thought that if there was ever anyone that she could trust, it was this family right here.
“As some of ye know, my parents are related, as in they were brother and sister. I’m not entirely sure when the first time was that they bargained with their unborn child, but I know that I wasn’t the first. I’ve also become aware that they’re doing it again.” Jazzie asked what she meant by bargaining with their children. “The pissers hand them over, usually only minutes old, to a demon that has done or will do them a favor for it. I was only saved when a witch of some considerable power was able to drag meself from the waterways that I’d been tossed into. There are some things, an unusual rope and some marked stones, that I’ve been able to find that were with me when I was saved.”
“I’d like to see them.” She asked Addie what she thought she might be able to find out about them. “I have some people that know people that have access to a great many things. If, as I’m assuming, they might be using black magic, then I can make some calls to find out what it’s used for. The reason I want to see is, after we figure out what they’re used for, it’ll be easier for us to know how to deal with them.”
“I need to know the names the demon is going by to help figure out who it is. I’ve been lax in my job of late. For that I am sorry.” Roger sipped his tea before continuing. “I have a great many people working for me, and some of them are somewhat neglectful in their jobs. Or I should say that they were. They’re understanding more and more daily that I’m the one that rules. But I digress. With that information, I can take of him.”
“No.” Everyone looked at Rayne when she spoke. “Please, you cannot deal with him until we have the last child.” Rayne looked at her. “You have some of the babes with you, did you know that? Each of them are your sisters, and while they’re dead, I can still talk to them. All right? To help you find him, and find him only, he comes in from portal number seven-six-two. I don’t know where that might be, but I’m sure you do.”
“Why are they attached to Charlie?” Dominic took her hand into his as he spoke. “I mean, it’s not like she had anything to do with their deaths. To be honest with you, Rayne, I thought that there would be more of them.”
“These babes know that Charlie was saved, and in that they know that she’s going to stop the people that killed them. But they want her warned that should they not wait for this child, it will be killed. By them.” Dominic looked at her and she nodded. She’d wait for as long as it took to be able to save just one if she could. “They’re grateful to you both. Also, there are more than the few with you. They’re only the ones that were strong enough to find you. The others have moved on. The older they get, even as infants, the stronger they are. These children were the first of many, I’m sad to say.”
Charlie and Dominic answered questions as they were put to them. There were a great many of them too. It was Roger who asked her when she would come into her own, and Charlie had to think for a moment. Things were so different on this side that she had to calculate the days.
“Three days. Well, midnight that night. I will then receive the magic in full that the witch gave me when she died, as well as the magic that being a leprechaun will give me.” He then asked her if she knew if Dominic would get it as well. “I don’t know, to be honest. The only reason that I know about the witch at all is that she marked me. It took me a long time to figure out what the markings meant.”
“May I see them?” Nodding, she stood up to show the mark on her leg to Roger. It was just on the back of her leg, so she made the part of her pants to cover it disappear. When he then asked to touch the mark, she asked him what he was seeing. “Just a moment, please. Then I can tell you all what I know of this witch. Will that be all right with you, Charlie?”
“Yes. Of course.” When he touched his finger to her flesh, she could feel the heat of it. Not that it was too hot, just warmer than she was used to. “
If it helps you in anyway, I know her name to be Rosa.”
“Rosa was indeed a powerful witch. Old too. A great deal older than even you and Carmen together. I only knew of her, of course, me being what I am. But from tales that I’ve heard, she was kind and caring. Her magic was that of all the elements too.” Charlie had only known her name and a very few details about her. Her being this old was a startling revelation to her. And Carmen, it seemed. “Dominic, you will receive all that Charlie gets. I’ll warn you now that it will be more than she’s already shared with you. Considerably more. There is no way for either of you to be prepared for it other than to have someone here when it comes. They’ll be able to watch over you as the magic takes its hold on you.”
“What sort of hold are you talking?” Charlie wanted to know too, and was glad that Clare had asked. “I’m assuming that it’ll knocked them on their asses if you’re thinking someone needs to be here to watch over them.”
“Yes. It will be as if they’re being reborn. The trauma to their bodies will be much like being brought through a small opening, only to be brought back through it again and again until all the magic is adhered to you.” Dominic asked if there was more. “Yes. Then you’ll be marked with what you are.”
“I’m sorry. What exactly will they be if not her a leprechaun and him a wolf?” Kelley looked at her before smiling at her. “I’m sure that you’re more than that, darling, but so is my boy there. If’n you’re going to be changing, I’d like to know what it’ll be afore I can be bragging about the two of you.”
Roger didn’t answer him. Charlie wasn’t sure if it was because he didn’t know or he was trying to think of a good way to tell them the bad news. Before too many things circled in her head, Dominic took her hand into his and kissed the back of it.
“Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it when it comes.” He kissed her again, this time on the mouth. “Right now I’d like to hear what we should expect in the way of danger when it comes to Dorcus and Will. I’d like to be prepared for them more than I care right now what our relationship brings us by being mated.”
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