5. Rob
5
ROB
R ob sat at a back table in the village café, holding his coffee cup between two fingers. His newly acquired immortal strength had already crushed two cups this morning, which resulted in coffee stains on his jeans and ceramic shards on Gertrude's kitchen floor.
After the disastrous morning, he'd changed pants, cleaned the floor, and headed to the café. A paper cup was much more fragile than ceramic, but it was also more flexible, so as long as he paid attention, he had visual cues about the force he was applying.
The transition had left him with enhanced everything—sight, hearing, strength—but apparently not enhanced grace or coordination. He felt like a teenager going through a growth spurt, constantly misjudging what his body was capable of. He hadn't been to the gym yet, though, and he expected to be impressed with his performance.
When Margo walked in, her eyes immediately located him, and she wove between the tables with a smile on her face. "You look good," she said, settling into the chair across from him. "How are you feeling?"
"Like I could bench press a car but might accidentally crush the steering wheel." He managed a wry smile. "How are you?"
"Excellent. Frankie and I are working on an idea for a new Perfect Match adventure. It will be so exciting if our idea gets accepted."
"That's great." He lifted the cup gently and took a sip.
She pouted. "Aren't you going to ask me about it?"
He sighed. "Maybe another time. Right now, we need to talk about how to deal with our parents and Mom's potential to become immortal."
"Did Gertrude talk to Bridget about what we discussed?" Margo asked. "You know, all the aspects of inducing a female Dormant."
He winced. "Yes. In fact, she arranged for Bridget to come and explain it to us." He preferred that his sister be the one to ask the doctor all the relevant questions.
Margo rolled her eyes. "You're immortal now. Maybe it's time to get over this silly squeamishness. Our parents are healthy adults who enjoy sex. At least, I hope they enjoy it."
"No, they don't. We are the product of immaculate conceptions, and our parents have a platonic relationship."
Bridget's throaty laugh made them both jump. "Males and their mothers." The doctor pulled out a chair and joined them, looking amused. "For some reason, daughters seem much more open to the idea of their mothers enjoying a healthy sexual relationship with their fathers, but sons like to pretend that it never happens."
"Is Julian like that?" Margo asked.
"A little bit," Bridget admitted. "He wasn't comfortable with me and Turner, and I understood that." She leaned her elbows on the table and rested her chin on her fist. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"
Rob's face felt like it was on fire. "Didn't Gertrude explain? I'd rather not repeat the questions."
Bridget's expression turned professional. "She said that you were looking for alternatives to the traditional method of inducing transition for your mother."
"That's right," Margo said. "I don't think our parents will be open to my mother having sex with an immortal to induce her transition."
"I understand." Bridget lifted her hand to wave Aliya over. "There is another possible option, but I'm not sure it will work."
They waited patiently for the doctor to order a coffee and a pastry.
When Aliya left, Bridget continued. "We can collect and store semen from a willing donor, but venom can't be harvested. The production of venom has to be triggered by arousal, same as semen, but even if harvesting it was an option, which it's not, I'm pretty sure that it has to be injected directly into a receptive body to be viable."
Rob had thought a lot about that since the idea had been floated, and he'd come to the same conclusion. Immortal males weren't snakes, and it was impossible to milk their venom glands. The moment the situation became clinical and the arousal waned, the production of venom stopped.
"So, Mom would still need an immortal to bite her, but she could be artificially inseminated?" Margo asked.
"Yes," Bridget confirmed. "You would need to find an unmated volunteer because mated immortals can't bite anyone other than their mate." She pursed her lips. "Well, that's only true for bonded mates, not for regular couples, but the vast majority of couples in the village are bonded. Finding a bachelor shouldn't be a problem, though. There are plenty of unattached males, and most will gladly assist. The caveat is that the donor would need to self-stimulate until the urge to bite manifests, and some might not be comfortable with that."
"Oh God," Rob muttered. "I really don't want to have this conversation."
Bridget continued as if she hadn't heard him. "Ideally, the same immortal would provide both the bite and the semen donation for artificial insemination. We've never tried to do this that way, but I have a feeling that using the same source for both will increase the chances of success."
"That's sounds doable," Margo said. "It's almost clinical."
"Not really." Bridget paused to thank Aliya for the coffee and Danish she delivered. "The bite itself is quite intimate. It's something your parents would need to discuss whether or not they are comfortable with it."
"I think they would be." Margo looked at Rob. "Right?"
He had no idea. In fact, he was pretty sure that his dad wouldn't be on board with the whole thing.
Rob shrugged. "Maybe, but what I would like to know are the chances of success. I know it hasn't been tried, but can you guesstimate?"
"The chances are definitely lower than with the traditional method," Bridget admitted. "But they are not negligible. Given your mother's age, she will be taking a risk attempting transition, and if she's not in perfect health, her issues have to be resolved first. That being said, we had a woman in her mid-fifties transition with relative ease. Ultimately, it has to be your mother's decision, and I agree with Gertrude that you shouldn't make the decision for her just because you want to save her from having to make difficult choices."
The doctor finished her coffee and put what was left of her Danish back in the paper bag. "I have to go. If you have any more questions for me, don't hesitate to call or text me."
"Thank you, doctor." Rob rose to his feet and offered Bridget his hand. "I appreciate you coming out here to talk to us."
"It was my pleasure." She offered him a bright smile, shook Margo's hand, and strode away on her insanely high heels.
"How can she even walk on those?" Margo murmured. "My toes hurt just from looking at her feet."
"You are immortal now." Rob sat back down. "A lot of things that you thought were difficult or impossible before should be easy with your new and improved physique."
"They are, but squished toes still hurt." Margo took a sip of her coffee, which was probably cold by now. "Maybe we should just tell Mom first. Without Dad. Let her decide if she even wants to consider it."
"Makes sense." Rob ran his fingers through his hair. "But I can't be the one to explain all this to her. That has to be you."
She chuckled. "I'll handle the birds and bees talk, but we need to ensure that she doesn't reveal what we tell her. No one would believe her, but they might think she's insane."
Rob arched a brow. "Might think? Mom is crazy."
"She is complicated," Margo corrected him. "Anyway, we need a compeller or someone who can thrall the memory away if she decides against it. Compulsion will work better because we can let her think about it for a while before deciding, but compellers are more difficult to come by. Thralling the memory of what we tell her means that she will have to decide on the spot, and that's asking a lot, but since almost all immortals can thrall, it will be much easier to get someone to do that."
Rob grimaced. "It's unfair that neither of us can thrall."
Apparently, thralling had to be learned as a teenager when the mind was still malleable. Those who transitioned as adults had a much harder time learning to do it or couldn't do it all.
"Gertrude can thrall Mom," Margo said. "Or Negal. It will not even look suspicious if we invite Mom to lunch with our partners."
"We might have no choice." Rob leaned back in his chair. "Let's see who can compel. Kalugal's too busy being important, Parker's too young for this kind of thing, and Drova..." Rob paused. "Actually, Drova might work if they let her out of the village, but she's also young."
Margo laughed. "She's a girl. I bet she will have no problem with the subject matter even if she's still a virgin."
"Is she?" Rob asked. "Given the swagger on that girl, that's not likely."
Margo pursed her lips. "I think Drova is full of it and is insecure on the inside."
He wasn't going to argue with her. His sister was a much better judge of character than he was, especially when it came to the female gender. "What about the Clan Mother?" he suggested half-heartedly.
Margo stared at him. "You want to ask the goddess to compel our mother about transition logistics involving biting and artificial insemination?"
He shrugged. "She might surprise you. I think the goddess is full of love and compassion."
"She is, but I would never ask her for such a favor."
"Excuse me." A soft voice came from the next table, and as Rob turned, he saw a female immortal looking at them apologetically. "I couldn't help but overhear your conversation, and there are two more compellers that you might not be aware of. Eleanor and Emmett are both compellers, but they are stationed in Safe Haven. Either would be happy to help, but you might be more comfortable with Eleanor. She used to be human up until not too long ago."
"Eleanor?" Margo straightened. "Did I meet her?"
"She was here for the wedding. A tall, very thin woman with small dark eyes and wavy dark hair."
The unflattering description didn't ring any bells. "What makes you think that she will be willing to help?" Rob asked.
"I know her well." The immortal smiled. "She was my sister-in-law when my first husband was still alive." The female extended her hand. "I'm Vivian, Parker's mom."
Rob felt terrible about discussing Parker within earshot of his mother without knowing who she was. "It's nice to meet you, Vivian, and thank you for the recommendation."
"You are most welcome. You could take your parents to Safe Haven for a spiritual retreat or a paranormal one if she's into those kinds of things. It would provide the perfect cover for talking to your mother privately and for Eleanor to ensure that the conversation stays between you."
"That's a great idea," Margo said. "Mom could use one of those retreats to unwind. She's always so stressed."