Chapter 17 #3
Antonio raced out of the living room and was back in seconds with his sneakers. Holy smokes, the kid moved fast. No one seemed surprised by it, either.
Was this normal behavior for shifter kids? How about witch-demon-shifter kids? I glanced over at Ronan, who was standing just outside the door, hands loosely on his hips, angrily whispering to another wolf. Tried to picture a child that was half me, half him.
“Alpha?” Esperanza brought me out of some very strange thoughts. “What’s going on?”
“I think it’s best if you both stay with me until the trailer is delivered. I’ve got tons of room, don’t I, Ronan?”
He finished his tense conversation and entered the apartment. “That’s right.” Directly to Antonio, he said, “Also, there are two kitties who hang around the place. One is magic and the other is a cute little kitten.”
“I’ve never had a cat before. They like to eat tuna,” the boy said, before rattling off a few random cat facts he’d obviously gotten from TV, since half of them were wrong.
“He’s not allergic, is he?” I asked Esperanza, while Dylan tied his shoes and Ronan regaled him with some true cat facts. “I’ll have Cecil craft a charm for that, if so. I can text him. It doesn’t take long to make one. He’ll have it finished by the time—”
“Don’t worry about it. He’s not allergic to anything but silver and wolfsbane, like the rest of us.” Esperanza smiled proudly then checked her pride and said, “Most of the rest of us. You being the obvious exception, Alpha.”
And Ronan, although I supposed he wasn’t so much not allergic to silver as he was far less sensitive to it than most wolves after surviving his mother’s peculiar form of silver immunotherapy.
“I’m allergic to some things. Mean people who make mamas work too much, for one. That won’t be happening any more now that your mama’s working for me. Pinky swears are binding in my world.” I held out my little finger to Antonio. “I can’t change my mind.”
He hooked his tiny finger around mine and we shook. “Pinky swear,” he said, with the slightest of baby lisps.
Were most little kids this cute? I could get into this motherhood thing if I could be guaranteed one as adorable as Antonio. Mine would be a girl, of course. All Lennox witch firstborns were girls. A smart, sassy little girl with Ronan’s eyes. Wouldn’t that be something?
I made an effort to corral my strange thoughts. There was more work to do.
“No sense giving them time to regroup. Let’s get moving. Pack everything up, Esperanza, because you aren’t coming back.”
“I’ve already started packing,” she replied. “I don’t have much.”
I nodded and faced Mason, who’d been surveying the scene with his usual lofty remove. “Second, please ensure this place is closely observed, because I want a list of every wolf associated with Bookie Grimface.”
“Greer’s cohorts won’t get past us,” he said, with a quick look down at Antonio before bringing his gaze back to mine. “Got three solid alphas on the way. Milano will stay, and I’ll stick around for a while. Get everyone on the same page.”
Ronan, Esperanza, Antonio, Dylan, and I carted the items Esperanza had packed out to Ronan’s truck.
She was right; there wasn’t much. She’d shoved things in garbage bags, totes, and a couple of boxes Dylan had set aside at his place in anticipation of moving in with her.
Only the large items had been left behind—beds, dressers, a desk, a sofa that had seen better days.
We were sending wolves out to move them into storage tomorrow.
Dylan got the car seat out of Esperanza’s car and secured it in the truck’s narrow rear bench.
She was upset about leaving her Mazda behind, so he promised to drive it over tomorrow morning as he buckled Antonio into the seat.
Ronan took one look at the Mazda’s duct-taped cardboard window, and his jaw clenched.
Something told me the car would be getting a new window soon—or a new everything. Ronan had formed a corporation just so he could fund his sister’s college education. The man had the mysterious benefactor thing locked down.
We drove straight to the Siete Saguaros, leaving my Mini at the pub. I’d get it tomorrow. Antonio was sleepy, and Esperanza was exhausted. It was more important to get them settled in.
Before we went inside, I took a moment to introduce them to the protection spell—and Red. As long as they were with me, they wouldn’t be affected, but I couldn’t always be around, and besides, this was going to be their home soon.
“Red, meet Esperanza and Antonio. They’re one of us now. Allow them entrance and protect them.”
“Do we need to say anything?” Esperanza asked.
“You don’t have to, but you can. There are seven saguaros who protect us here.
You might thank them as you pass them by.
Please impress upon Antonio that they’re our family and that we respect, care for, and protect our family.
” I patted her shoulder, opposite the one Antonio was resting his sleeping head against. “Although, he seems to already know that last bit pretty well.”
“Yeah.” She smiled, brushed her lips over his forehead. “My hero.”