The smoke-filled parlor was sticky with the smell of Haldir’s cigar and more than a few beer bottles littering the card table. Staring down the greatest poker player he ever met, he threw in his stack of money. “So, tell me about Mr. Lover Boy, Tess. He seemed like a sweet kid. What’s his name?”
While she examined her hand of cards, she glanced up over them to the blue-eyed immortal. “Well, if you must know, you damn busy body, it’s Rafik Idrissi.”
“Idrissi? You got to be shitting me.” While Jasper drew two more and gave them to her, Haldir glared at him. “How in the fuck did this come about?”
His disapproving eyes narrowed and warned Haldir to hold his tongue. “Those days are behind us. All those ancient rivalries need to end. It’s in all our best interest to negotiate this thing in good faith.”
Her suspicious eyes glanced back and forth between the two of them as Teddy leaned over the table and grabbed a handful of pretzels. “What in the hell are you two old ladies going on about? Is there something you need to tell me about him?”
Jasper pushed his lips together and hoped to extinguish any fiery indignation she had brewing as he shook his head. “For a long time, there was some bad blood between our families, but that’s all over now. Omar and I want to bury the hatchet and move on.”
She glared at her father as the light snapped on in her head and revealed the truth. “Oh, so that’s what last night was all about? Am I some kind of goddamn bargaining chip in your negotiation? Well, you can forget that shit. You assholes can smoke your peace pipe and piss off instead.”
The throaty chuckle of the Viking bounced around the room as he raised his bottle to her. “That’s my girl. You give him hell.”
A dirty look shot at Haldir before Jasper pressed himself into his seatback and tried to stop the little green-eyed freight train before she flew off the rails. “That’s not at all what’s happening. Although, the two of you hitting it off the way you did can’t hurt the process.”
Teddy elbowed her arm and pointed his finger at her. “You got to be smarter than that. That boy played you like a damn fiddle. You can’t trust anyone but the people under this roof; remember that.”
The first to take up for her in almost every situation, Haldir stretched out his back and took a sip from his beer bottle. “Leave her alone. She wouldn’t be the first person who lost their good sense when they got their bell rung by a toe-curling kiss.”
After he cringed at the thought of it, Jasper turned to her and let her in on the plan. “We’re having dinner with them tomorrow, Sugar. They’d like to work out the particulars of your courtship.”
The throaty cackle shot from her as she dropped her head back. “After all that mess you just said, you really think I have any interest at all in seeing him again? Go find yourself another chess piece, Daddy; I’m done with this game.”
He drummed his fingers against the table as he trilled his lips in frustration. “Sugar, if he’s your mate, this might be a blessing in disguise. The thing that brings our world’s back together and ends about a thousand years of bloodshed.”
Her eyes drew down into a look that told him the deal was off. “Don’t give me that guilt trip shit. I call, by the way.”
A freckled hand slammed on the table, and Haldir pointed his finger at the little shark. “No fucking way, Tess. You better show me those goddamn cards; no way you have that good a hand again.”
The cards fanned out before her, and she laughed deviously. “You’re all pathetic, and you’re lucky I play poker with you.”
As she collected the stacks of money, she continued picking at Haldir. “Maybe there’s some nursery school somewhere with a game more your speed like hopscotch or tic-tac-toe.”
Teddy sighed and threw his cards in the center. “Don’t feel bad; Tess cheats her ass off. We’re the only ones dumb enough to keep playing her; even the humans in this city won’t come to her table.”
While she fanned herself with her winnings, she shrugged off his confession. “That’s what all losers say. I never cheat; hustling is an honest trade. If the mark’s too stupid to know I manipulated them like you three geniuses just were, that’s not my fault.”
Jasper pulled the deck back to him and nodded towards the door. “Alright, you two, time to say goodnight.”
Haldir fist-bumped Teddy then wrapped his arms around Tessa and kissed her cheek. “See you soon, Tess.”
With a crooked finger, she stabbed at his chest. “Where are you taking off to? You just got here. You promised to take me out somewhere nice for my birthday; I bought a new outfit and everything.”
Knowing she was ticklish, he returned her finger poke into her belly, and when she flinched away, he got her again in her side. “I have to go see Father Michael. I’ll be back tomorrow evening; you won’t even miss me. You can tell me all about your dinner with Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome when I come back.”
Just mentioning the Seraph brought a smile to her face, and Tessa balled her fists in excitement. “New Orleans? Sweet! I can’t wait until I’m older so I can go party with you. You think Michael will let me help him catch a demon someday?”
He crossed his arms and nodded as he pulled down his lips. “Yes, I’m sure he would like to make you his little apprentice.”
Like the little pugilist she was born to be, she swung her fist in the air. “Those demons got nothing on me; I’ll knock their asses clean out. Michael can go on and retire back to that goddamn cloud he jumped off of.”
An amused smile came to Haldir’s face as he witnessed his little protégé talk smack as he taught her. “Well, I’ll let him know to expect you.”
His penance for daring to leave her, Tessa crossed her arms and tapped her finger against her lips before she pointed it at him. “Bring me back something shiny and not some of those titty beads from Bourbon Street. I’m thinking earrings, 24-carat gold.”
He shooed her away with his hand. “Yeah. I’ll bring back a crucifix and some Holy water and exorcise that foul-mouthed, gold-digging demon from you. Now go to bed.”
As she passed by, she leaned down and kissed her father’s cheek. “I love you, Daddy.”
He spoke back over his shoulder as she walked away. “I love you too. Goodnight, baby. Don’t you two wake your Momma.”
Once the children left the room, Jasper closed the door and sat back down at the table. While he drummed his fingers on the green top as he thought, his eyes finally snapped up at Haldir. “We need to talk about a couple of things.”
Haldir drank the last of his beer and lifted his chin at him. “Yeah, it sounds like it.”
His eyes snapped up to the painting on his parlor wall, and Jasper nodded as he and his conscience agreed.
The old chair groaned out in protest as he pushed it back from the table and walked to the portrait of his wife. He gave it a smile before he pulled it from the wall and set it on the floor.
When he spun the combination, the lock clicked open, and he removed several leather-bound cases.
He set them in front of Haldir and sat back down, then tapped his fingers on them. “Something just doesn’t feel right. These are our will, stocks, and properties; I hoped that you’d take them for safekeeping. I also have jewelry and money hidden with Michael.”
After he took a sip of his beer, he licked his lips and sighed as the icy hand of Fate nudged him to continue. “If anything happens to Isabelle and me, we want you to be the kids’ guardian.”
Haldir pulled his hand down his beard as the uneasy tingle moved down his arms. He’d known them for centuries, and it wasn’t like them to be so nervous. “Of course, I will. If it comes to it, we’ll meet you in the Realm.”
Jasper curled his lips under as he shook his head. “No. I don’t want you to do that, not if you can help it. If that boy is her mate, we can’t do that to her. It wouldn’t be right.”
While he huffed out through his nose, Haldir pushed himself back in his chair. “And if they do come at you? What happens next?”
He glanced around the room as he considered it before turning back to Haldir. “We kill everyone. If we’re going to war anyway, we take out all our enemies, so when Tessa takes over, it’s with a clean slate. I already alerted Billy that if anything happens to me, he’ll be stepping in until she’s ready.”
Tapping his cigarette against the table, he shook his head and smirked. “And Lord help whoever the fuck stands in her way. That’s one shit list I wouldn’t care to be on.”
“You’re not lying.” Haldir took the cases in his hand and knocked his fist against the table. “Alright, I’m heading off to bed. I’ll see you tomorrow night.”
When Haldir walked out the door, Jasper slumped down in his chair and wiped his hand across his mouth when suddenly, from behind him, a pair of soft hands pushed their way down his chest. “Were you coming to bed anytime soon?”
He took her hand, brought Isabelle around him, and sat her on his lap. As she wrapped her arms around his neck, he put his hand on her round belly. “How’s that boy of mine?”
Her long black hair fell around his chest as she peeked down at herself. “He’s been very active tonight. You’re usually in bed snoring him to sleep by now.”
The yellow light of the den and the hormones surging through her pregnant body made her glow like a copper goddess, and even after all the years they were married, she still took his breath away. “Sorry about that. I had some things I wanted to talk to Haldir about before he goes to see Michael tomorrow.”
Isabelle rubbed her fingers back and forth on his neck as a heaviness seeped into her chest. “Did you ask him about the children?”
A soft shot of air huffed through his nose as a quick grin rose on his lips. “I didn’t even need to. He loves those two like his own.”
The relief in her sigh washed over Jasper as she caressed his jawline with her fingertips.
There weren’t many things that sent a wave of panic through a mother’s heart like the thought of leaving her children behind to fend for themselves. “If the worst comes to pass, I’ll meet you in the Southlands. Don’t make me walk all the way North alone.”
The coarse grooves of his fingertips sent a shudder through her shoulders as he slipped them under the straps and slid them down. Her eyes traveled up to the ceiling then wove together as his lips kissed down her collarbone and his throaty voice vibrated her chest. “It’s a date, baby.”
“I don’t have a good feeling about this.” With her hand on her belly, Isabelle rubbed at the little one trying to get her attention while they strolled down Jones Street.The waning moon glowed red in the sky above her as the thunder started in the distance, setting her psychic tendencies abuzz in prickly alarms that rose from her arms.As he peeked behind him to make sure the children were out of earshot, Jasper agreed. “No, I don’t like any of this either, but I don’t believe he would hurt his son’s mate, especially not in his own home.”With the brick mansion of her ancient enemy coming up before them, she rolled her teary eyes away. “She’s too young.”He slid his arm around her and pulled her into his side. “She’s not getting hitched anytime soon, baby. We’re stuck with that smart mouth for at least another decade. Shit! That boy may change his mind about the whole thi
A whistle soaked in the stench of sulfur fell from the air in the foyer as the black ball of mist spread out like little fingers in every direction. As it faded away, the only thing that remained was Teddy with Tessa tucked tight against him. “I got you. We made it.”The feverish hands tugged at his chest when they balled his shirt in them. A shrill whimper built at the back of Tessa’s throat as her fat bottom lip quivered. “They killed them.”He gritted his teeth and blinked up to the ceiling to halt the sting of tears and hide them from her. They were twin flames, and when one lost control, the other followed along until the spark became an Armageddon.With his hands on her shoulders, he bent down to look into her eyes. “Go grab our bugout bags and meet me right here. Find Momma and Daddy’s too. Go on! Be quick.”When he heard her little feet start beating against the stairs, he rubbed his neck and took a
The dark mist cleared into the night that surrounded him in little specks of charred coals as Teddy scanned the poorly lit parking lot and the rain poured down over them. “Alright, Tess. We’re here. You’re going to be okay now.”Like he was on the road to deliverance from the nightmare they found themselves immersed in, he staggered across the parking lot towards the emergency department sign. “Third, you’re Sean and Sara Osulf now. Your father is Howard. Sean and Sara Osulf, your father is Howard.”For being so petite, she was like a floppy, wet sack of hundred-pound potatoes the way her limbs flailed around as he walked.He tried to keep hold as he gritted his teeth, then stopped and tossed her up in the air. “It’s okay. I got you. Had to move you around a little; you’re slippery as hell.”The blast of air that beat down on them when they came through the automatic doors splattered her bl
The bed dipped down as Haldir shoved his knee on it, and he lowered Tessa on the sheet. After he covered her shoulders with the blanket, he glanced at Teddy as he sat on the edge of the bed facing the wall. “Have you been able to reach her yet?”The crushing sensation began in his head and radiated through his body as Teddy’s mind got sucked into a dark room.On the edge of that cliff she always teetered on, Tessa stared over the side as she swung back and forth and hummed out a song he couldn’t place. After he snapped his fingers in front of her, he tapped on her shoulder. “Are you done yet, Tess?”He blinked out of his trance when she didn’t answer him and shook his head no. “I can see her now, but she isn’t ready to talk yet.” His back jerked as he huffed out his mouth and shook his head. “You’re not going to believe this shit, but I think she’s dancing.”Haldir pushed
In the darkness of the bedroom that surrounded him, Haldir tried to drift off to sleep. Teddy said a spell of protection over the thin, wooden door, but he didn’t trust the warlock’s skill yet.Once he relaxed enough to let his mind wander in the celestial plane, he envisioned Tessa in his mind. Not the little girl that laid beside her brother in the other bed as weak and helpless as the day she was born, but the one she was meant to be.She glowed as bright as the angry sun on the hottest day as she walked through the fields of her enemies and cackled in her witchy way as she laid them all to waste.Dreadful and beautiful, the oldest of warlocks bowed down before Tessa in reverence as they witnessed her carnage. The Queen of Ruin returned, and even the devil himself feared her.He squinted through the flames and black smoke as he followed her and her beasts through the field of war-torn bodies until he noticed a familiar form on horseback in
“Jesus, will you go tell your sister to hurry up? We’re going to be late.” Haldir checked his cuff link with his arm turned over as Teddy admired his hair in the mirror.“Yeah, I’m on it.” His handmade leather shoes slid across the marble floor as he passed through the villa, and the waves crashed against the rocky cliffs outside the windows while the Mediterranean breeze swept through the home.His knuckles bounced off the doorway he leaned against as he knocked on it. “We’re waiting on you.”While she slid her hands down her waist, Tessa turned to the side and took in the splendor of her own loveliness in the full-length mirror. “Yes, I’m aware, but something that looks this amazing is worth waiting a few extra minutes on, don’t you think?”The makeshift family was in hiding for ten years, and now that the danger was over, they appeared in public under their proper names witho
“Sleepwalk…” Tessa shook her head as the song she long ago refused to utter fell so sweetly from her lips again. “Where in the hell did that come from?”While she packed her things in her room, she found herself humming the tune again. The flash of the memory of Rafik’s brown eyes came to her mind, and she swallowed back the urge to cry. “What the hell is going on?”Leaning over with his hands clasped between his legs, Haldir breathed away the dull ache in his chest. He’d spent almost every second with her for ten years, and the thought of her being somewhere without him made a sick sensation rise in his gut. “Don’t you think you should prepare her for what’s about to happen?”On the soft, white couch across from
“Hello, Rohi.”In the last ten years, Tessa often wondered if she remembered everything right, but he had changed little since she last saw him. His curly black hair was shorter, and he had a short black beard, but his dark brown eyes still had a hint of amber in the right light. The dark tawny skin she remembered was paler now, but Rafik spent most of his time in a cold, damp basement these days.While he inched closer to her across the dusty old floor, Rafik’s chest pounded with the renewed spark of their bond. Seeing her was like a surge of fire running through his veins that made him breathless, and he placed his hand on his chest to catch some of her magic. He sensed her fury and grief as her eyes burned through him. “I’m sorry, Tessa.”When her eyes locked with his, the room heated with her rage while the Firestarter in her gained momentum. He knew it should terrify him, but he only stared in wonder at his rare creature.