By now, her vision was useless, fully clouded with tears. She attempted to wipe her face dry, but when a loud, awkward sob that sounded like a griffon’s mating call escaped her mouth, she buried her face in the crook of her elbow.
Dane pulled her into his chest, tilted her head back, and wiped her cheeks dry. His stern face slowly disappeared as his jaw and brow relaxed. With a soft voice, he focused on her eyes and spoke. “Stop that. I’m sorry. I have no right to tell you how to live your life, just like nobody else has the right to tell me how to live mine.”
A few more griffon sounds escaped while Ciera buried herself into Dane’s chest. She wrapped her arms around him, enjoying the warmth and comfort of his body. He smelled of the ocean in Erde, and Ciera longed for that realm. She longed for anywhere but here amongst the humans.
“Come back upstairs.”
Ciera shook her head, but didn’t know where else she’d go.
Dane kept his arm draped around her while he led her back into his home. Once the door shut behind him, he hugged her again.
“I—I’m sorry. The baby’s getting the best of me.” Ciera pushed her sobs away. This was useless and not getting her anywhere closer to finding the baby’s father, nor helping Dane.
“It’s hormones. I’ve been through this before with Rosa’s mom, and it terrifies me.” He laid his cheek on the top of her head.
Ciera nodded. “It terrifies me too.”
Dane pulled her away and wiped the last tears from her eyes. He stopped a moment, and she felt vulnerable. “Ciera, who are you really? Nothing’s making sense. You seem like you’ve never seen technology. You say odd things. Eat platypus eggs. I said you were crazy before, but I don’t believe that.”
She wanted to tell him everything, but the images she had been shown throughout her childhood of dissected fairies kept her mouth shut. All that came out was, “Does it matter? I guess we both have secrets we’d like to keep…for now.”
To her surprise, Dane shook his head. “No, I guess it doesn’t matter.” He leaned down, and she felt him inhale the scent of her hair. “You smell like a lilac bush.”
“I’m sorry.” She began to cry again.
Dane laughed and tilted her chin up to meet his gaze. “Oh, stop that crying now. It’s my favorite flower.”
Ciera laughed, tears flowing. “I can’t help it.”
Dane gripped her cheeks in his hands and rubbed her cheekbones with his thumbs. He shook his head. “Ciera, I find you amazing.”
She didn’t expect that. “What did I do?”
“Shhh.” Dane leaned down and his soft cheek slowly traced her temple, then brushed against her own cheek. Soon, his lips found hers and his arms wrapped around her. Ciera had never really touched lips with anyone before, and she stiffened. Dane backed away, shaking his head. “I’m sorry. I thought… I don’t know what I thought. You have some power over me, and I thought you wanted this too.”
“I’ve never done it before.”
“Come on, Ciera! You’re pregnant, for heaven’s sake.” Dane pulled back, hands brushing through his hair. “Never mind. I’m sorry I said that. Okay. Let’s focus. Tonight, we find this John of yours. Tomorrow, you need somewhere to go. You still can’t stay here.”
“I can’t?”
“No,” Dane snapped. “I can’t allow my daughter to get emotionally attached to you.”
“And how about you?” Would Dane miss her? Was there any chance he was getting attached? He did touch her lips with his. She remembered watching that term of endearment in those documentaries so long ago.
“Me? That’s absurd. You said yourself that you’re going home after the baby is born.”
“That’s true,” Ciera said, feeling an emptiness inside her from no longer being in Dane’s arms. “But I still have eight months.”
Dane laughed. “You’re about ready to pop now. Oh, never mind. I won’t ask. Get ready. We have a big day ahead of us.”
~ ~ ~
After Ciera and Dane finished planning their evening heist, they spent the rest of the day watching reruns of some show called Friends. Ciera didn’t know why, but it made her laugh. Dane made her this stuff called popcorn, and Ciera didn’t want to stop eating. She made him make her another bag.
She found herself admiring him while he waited for the popping to stop in that magic machine. Somehow, she felt she’d miss him when this was all over. When she came to this human world, the last thing she expected to find was someone as complex and intriguing as Dane. Someone she could see as an equal, even if he had no magic at all.
And what about the baby that resided inside her? Would he or she be as amazing as Dane and his daughter? Did it even matter that the baby was human?
Of course it did. It had to.
Chapter 14
Dane
Dane leaned into his daughter’s room. Already in bed, Rosa lay with her nose in a fantasy book. Its cover displayed a princess holding a sword to a dragon. For a moment, he thought of Ciera as that princess. A brave woman who was a bit out of place.
“Good night, Rosa,” he said.
“Hold on a moment.” She threw a bookmark between the pages and placed the book on her nightstand. “Okay. Night, Dad.”
How he raised such an amazing girl was beyond his comprehension. He smiled while flicking the bedroom light off before joining Ciera in the living room.
Ciera’s bright smile when he sat down beside her only made him feel happier. For once, his life felt complete.
“That was beautiful,” Ciera said, motioning toward Rosa’s room.
“Tucking her in? It was nothing. Just our routine.”
“I just enjoy seeing that soft side of you.”
Dane blushed, then brushed his hands against his jeans. “Are you ready for tonight?”
Ciera’s smile dissolved. “It just doesn’t feel right.” She folded and unfolded her fingers on top of her belly.
“Don’t tell me your conscience is taking over. You didn’t have a problem breaking into the antique store and taking that jewelry box.”
“That was for you. Now, that this is for me, I don’t know.”
“Come on.” Dane rubbed his hand along her back. He really wanted to help her. Once she had John’s name, she’d be able to move on. “All you’re taking is information. How else will you find this robotic arm guy, anyway?”
Ciera’s bit her lip, glancing away for a moment, pulling Dane into her beautiful eyes. “Magic.”
“Magic?” Dane laughed. “You’re just like Rosa. Believing in magical princesses.”
“I’m not even close to a princess, and I’d never want to be one of them. They’re trapped in a dusty castle and always have to be respectable. That’s not my style. Plus, they don’t have magic.”
Dane leaned back and rubbed his chin, playing her game. “I suppose you’re right. You wouldn’t be a princess. Not a peasant either. You’re more like a…” He examined her purple hair and matching eyes. That sparkling glitter returned to her cheeks. She looked like someone from one of the fairy tale books he used to read Rosa. “A magical fairy, perhaps.”
Ciera coughed.
Dane patted her on the back, and when she recovered, he stood up. “Come on. Let’s get going. We have to find your mystery man.”
~ ~ ~
They took a bus to a stop near Prosthetics R Us. On their walk, they went over the plan multiple times.
“We won’t have much time,” Dane said. “The alarms are usually attached to the phone lines. I’ll cut the wire a few buildings down the street, that way it won’t look specific to Prosthetics R Us. Hopefully, the alarm doesn’t go off. Even if it does, we need to make it quick. We need to be in and out before the police come.”
“Police?”
“Don’t worry. I’m a pro at this. Once we’re inside, you try the computer and I’ll search the file cabinets.”
“Um…maybe it’s better if you use the computer. I saw my first one yesterday.”
&
nbsp; “Your first one? Yeah, I should have expected that.” Dane ran a hand through his hair. “One day, I’ll figure you out. Okay, on second thought. You dig through the files, and I’ll see what computer magic I can do.”
“Magic?”
“Figure of speech.”
Before Ciera could say anything else, Dane positioned her against a building next to the prosthetic store with a clear line of sight down connecting sidewalks and streets.
Dane looked right, then left. His words were a whisper. “First, your job is to wait until I motion for you. Watch for people and let me know if you see anything suspicious when I get back from disabling the security system. What’s your cover story?”
“I’m on my way home and resting here. I thought I had a contraction, but it was nothing.”
“Good.”
With that, Dane made his way down a few buildings and, with a wire cutter, he cut the phone lines that ran down a telephone pole. He kept glancing down the street toward Ciera. There was something about her that radiated beauty. It was like she almost glowed in the dark, but not quite.
After finding the alarm’s battery back-up panel and disconnecting a few wires, Dane rejoined Ciera.
“My heart’s pounding,” Ciera whispered as they snuck to the back door of Prosthetics R Us.
The soft glow of the yellow streetlamps caused her long eyelashes to cast shadows onto her cheeks.
“Mine’s doing it too,” Dane said. “No matter how many times I do this, the adrenaline still flows.” Dane pulled out his locksmith set and bump keys and began to play with the lock. Industrial ones were so much harder to pick than residential. When the internal pins engaged and he pushed the door open, he finally took a breath.
Ciera gave a little clap. “You did it!”
“You doubt me? Come on, we’ll have to hurry,” Dane whispered. “If the alarm has a cellular override, we’ll only have at most ten minutes before the police arrive.” In the many times he’d broken into buildings, his rule was always to get in and out within five minutes. Five minutes was safe—six might not be.
Ciera ran inside and tried to hop the long counter, but with her pregnant belly, she struggled. Dane tried to open the half-door, but it was stuck. He helped her over the surface before hopping it himself. Ciera went right to the file cabinets and began sorting through them while Dane booted up the computer and typed the password Ciera had observed, Amy2004.
Dane clicked the keys, and swirled the mouse on the screen, taking a moment to orient himself. How hard could this program be?
Minutes passed. “How’s it going?” Dane called over his shoulder.
“No Johns yet.”
Just when Dane clicked the “patients” tab on the computer, a flash of red and blue lights reflected off the monitor. His muscles tensed, but he forced himself to spin around.
“Ciera, we gotta go. The police are outside.” Dane’s heart hammered, and by the look on Ciera’s face, so did hers.
She grabbed Dane’s hand. “I didn’t find anything.”
“Neither did I.” A sense of loss filled him. “Come on. It’s okay. We’ll figure this out a different way.”
Dane lifted Ciera and helped her over the counter. He then flew over the top. When he righted himself, all he saw was Ciera doubled over in pain, clutching her abdomen like she had in his basement.
Oh no. Not now.
Dane put his hand on her back and tried to guide her out the door. “You’re not having the baby now, are you? You’re gonna have to wait.”
Outside came the heavy sound of footsteps.
Dane wrapped his arms under Ciera’s and pulled her with him, but she couldn’t walk. Her face scrunched up, and she was breathing heavy. An image of his daughter flashed across his vision. The smile on her face when she said she loved him. Of her frustration over being teased at school.
Dane couldn’t get caught. He needed to be there for Rosa, no matter what. “Come on, we gotta go.”
He intertwined his arm in Ciera’s and headed for the door. Despite her size, Ciera was heavy in his arms. She leaned against him and clutched her abdomen. Dane tried to carry her, but the noises grew louder.
“Are you okay?” Dane asked.
“Yes,” she panted. “I’m fine. Hurts…to move. I can’t keep going.”
“You have to. Come on!”
“No. You go. You have more to lose than me.”
Dane examined the woman beside him, hardly able to walk. There was no way both could get away. His breath caught in his lungs when he found himself agreeing with Ciera. It was the only solution. Leaning down, he placed a kiss on the top of her head.
“I’m so sorry,” he said, feeling tears threatening to escape. How had this woman touched him this much? “They’ll get you the help you need. Maybe they can help you find the man with the silver arm.” Dane’s stomach clenched while his internal voice argued with itself.
You can’t leave her.
But it’s for the best.
She’d get the help she needed for her instability. Maybe find the father of the child. At the very least, some good healthcare to deliver the baby. It was the only solution.
Think of Rosaleen.
Dane looked into her lost purple eyes and hesitated, but finally tore himself away, sprinting out the door as the police came around the corner of the building.
Dane ran as fast as he could, taking the side turns and rushing through an abandoned building he knew so well. When he emerged on the other side, he was alone. No noises of the police. No Ciera. He fell back against the side of a brick building and rubbed his hands through his hair.
How could you do that, Dane?
She needed you.
All of a sudden, his chest constricted and he couldn’t get air. He pulled in as much as he could through his mouth and nose, but it felt like he was suffocating. His chest hurt. Was he having an asthma attack? Heart attack?
It served him right for ditching his partner.
But you’re of no help to anyone behind bars.
He focused on his breathing. Inhale. Exhale. Repeat. He slid down the wall and lay on the dirty Chicago sidewalk. He felt sweat bead on his forehead.
It’s a panic attack. Get back in control.
After way too long of focusing on his breathing, he pried himself off the ground and forced himself to return home. His insides felt hollow as he wondered how he’d live with that guilt of leaving Ciera.
Even worse, what would he tell Rosa when Ciera didn’t show up again?
And what if he had been caught? That was too close.
Something had to change.
He had to set things right.
Chapter 15
Ciera
Ciera sat in plain room with dingy gray walls behind a fake wood-topped table. Her contractions had stopped, and she cursed the child, wishing it would come out already. Across from her sat a woman, her hair tight in a low unicorn-tail and a shiny silver shield pinned to her dark blue uniform.
“Are you ready to talk now?” the woman asked.
“I’ve been ready since you found me.”
“Alright. Then tell us what your name is.”
“I’ve already told you, it’s Ciera.”
The woman tapped her writing device against the table. “What is your last name?”
“I don’t have one.”
“You realize how much trouble you’re in, breaking and entering. What’s worse is that your fingerprints match a crime scene from two nights ago. Now add not cooperating with the police, and you’ll be doing a lot of time behind bars.”
Ciera fumbled with her invisible wand, still tucked in her waistband, and wanted to argue that she wouldn’t be. As soon as the baby came, she’d zap herself out of there as long as they didn’t dissect her first. She decided to keep quiet.
The woman tried another question. “Who was that man you were with?”
Answering that question felt like a betrayal, so she stayed silent again. Dane would g
et himself in trouble someday, and Ciera didn’t want to hurry that along. She’d never live with the guilt of Rosaleen not having a father. She already didn’t have a mother.
The round of questioning with this woman with the shiny badge went in circles, alternating between Ciera being honest and staying silent. Neither made the woman with the badge happy.
Finally, the woman shuffled her to a room with only a bed and bare walls, surrounded by metal bars.
Completely exhausted, she lay down and fell asleep.
~ ~ ~
A tapping on the bars woke her up. “You have a visitor. Will you accept a Mister Dane Valentine?”
She rubbed her eyes at the uniformed man. Dane Valentine? “Yes. Of course.” She reminded herself that humans had two names.
The bars slid open, and as Ciera followed the man into a separate room, butterflies danced in her stomach. Dane had come for her. When the door opened, she saw Dane with the most grief-filled expression on his face. He sat in a separate room, with glass between them.
Ciera wanted to be mad at him for leaving her, but she completely understood. She couldn’t hold back her smile. “You’ve come to get me out. I knew you’d come.”
Her escort spoke up. “You’re not going anywhere. He can’t hear you unless you use this.” He handed her a phone receiver that looked familiar, like the ones she had seen in those old documentaries.
She sat down and picked up the phone. Dane already had it against his ear. She repeated her words, tears blurring her vision. “You’ve come to get me out?”
Dane shook his head. His voice cracked. “I can’t. I’m here to tell you that I’m sorry.”
“You’ve already told me that.”
“I’m sorry, and I wish we had met under different circumstances.”
Ciera tilted her chin. “Different circumstances? What do you mean? Like if I didn’t ruin your plan to get that jewelry box?”
“Shhh.” Dane leaned forward. “No. Not that. Forget about the box. You’re just so…positive. And amazing. And, oh, it’s just not right. You’re pregnant and need to find that baby’s father.”
Hidden: A Pregnant Fairy Godmother's Journey... Page 8