Chapter 9 #2
“Yes, well, I think you are delusional. Even if the mating bond hasn’t broken, my sister obviously does not want to be found.
Otherwise, why wouldn’t she be here with you?
” Vivian starts pacing around the living room, picking up knickknacks and examining them before putting them down and repeating the process with the next object she finds interesting.
“She probably found a new family and is living happily on the other side of the universe. She always was untrustworthy. I tried to convince my parents to give me the council seat. I care much more about our great planet than she did. The fact that she lived off it most of the time proved that.” I can see by the look that Eric and William exchange that it’s not something they haven’t considered, but hearing someone else say it must hurt them.
Holy fuck, this woman is nasty. If she raised Fiona and Phillip, it’s no wonder they are the way they are. For the first time, I have a little sympathy for my cousins.
“Thank you, but the answer is no,” Eric replies firmly, getting up and removing a crystal figure from her hands and returning it to the sideboard. She eyes it carefully before turning her back to it.
“Fine, but let me know if you change your mind. We could be good together. Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about Philip and Fiona. Don’t you think it’s time that they had some more responsibility in the circus?
That Reccedean reptile show is beneath them.
You could be training them to take your place as ringmaster when the time comes. ”
Ah, hello, bitch, what the fuck am I? Chopped liver? Also, wow, talk about whiplash. This woman is all over the place.
“Well, that is Lila’s birth right as an Adams. We wouldn’t take that away from her,” William explains none too gently.
“But she won’t be able to manage that task in addition to being a mother to three…” She shudders before continuing. “Whatever it is she will give birth to.” She moves over to another cabinet filled with curios and starts manhandling them all. What the fuck is this woman doing?
I can practically see the steam pouring out of Eric’s ears.
My normally jovial grandpa is about to go postal, but before he does, I hold up a hand, stopping him.
“I can assure you, Vivian, that I can handle that and more. Not to mention I have two mates who aren’t actually in any of the circus acts who will be happy to look after their children when I am working.
You see, that’s how it’s done in a lot of families.
It’s called sharing the love and responsibility.
Just because these babies are Caspian’s, that doesn’t mean my other mates won’t love them like their own. ”
“You won’t have a nanny?” She gasps and clasps another figurine against her chest.
“No, we will be hands-on parents, just like mine were before they were taken from me.”
“Well, there is no accounting for taste. I’m sure that’s how you ended up mated to a kraken, because your parents chose to live on Earth and then got themselves killed. If you’d lived here on Skarr, you would have had a perfectly nice Skarrian bond group.”
My eyes slide to my cousins. “Fiona and Phillip aren’t mated to anyone.”
“Well, they don’t have time. They have been devoting themselves to the circus in the hope that their skills and drive will be recognized.”
“Actually, now that we are on the subject, why don’t we discuss that?” Eric looks at William who nods, latching onto the change of subject like it’s a lifeline.
“You assured us when we agreed to take Phillip and Fiona on that they had animal control abilities. It’s why we allowed them to apprentice with the animal trainers at our compound here on Skarr.
After an incident during a show on Earth, however, I am beginning to question that they have those skills.
Do I need to ask to see their Skarrian ability registration?
I didn’t when they first started because you are family, after all, but I’m not so sure if that was smart now.
” William’s tone brokers no argument, and Vivian glares at her grandchildren.
“What do you mean?” she asks through gritted teeth.
“Phillip and Fiona were unable to control the raptor during the show, and it became dangerous for our crowd, not to mention themselves. I had to have the warlock step in to make things right.”
“I’m sure it was all a misunderstanding.
Maybe they were sick. You know that can wreak havoc with a Skarrian’s abilities.
” She sounds a little panicked as she offers up the excuse, but even though none of us have built-in lie detectors, it’s not a stretch to know she’s trying to pull the wool over our eyes.
“Maybe they need to stay on Skarr once the circus resumes and practice a little more with the animals,” Eric suggests more kindly than I think any of them deserve. I still suspect they were involved with Viggy’s Vegas jaunt—we’re lucky nobody got eaten.
“No!” She stops fiddling with my grandpas’ stuff and comes back over to the sofa. “No, they need to be on that ship. On the way over, they were telling me just how much they love it.”
I’m skeptical because they have nothing but disdain for most of the performers and only socialize with other Skarrian crew members. They also certainly don’t have a warm and fuzzy bond with their animals.
She kicks Fiona, forcing her to respond. Fiona grunts and rubs at her shin before replying, “Oh yes, we just love it. Please don’t make us stay on Skarr.”
William, Eric, and I just stare at her in amazement. You couldn’t get a more robotic response than that.
“I think what Fiona is saying is that we are sorry for the incident. We really do love being with the circus. We aren’t sure what happened with Htaed. He usually responds to our commands. It’s almost like he was being controlled by someone else.”
Oh snap, I see what you did there, Phillip, casting a shadow of doubt on your culpability. Sneaky, but he was certainly more convincing than Fiona was. She grimaces but agrees with her brother.
Vivian claps her hands together. “See? Perfect, all is solved. Well, we should be going. Fiona and Phillip will be staying with me until the circus resumes. We await your summons.” She stands up and gestures for her grandchildren to follow her.
In a flurry of motion, she kisses both of my grandpas on the cheek—overly familiar if you ask me—before she departs in a wash of overpowering perfume, followed by the redheaded twins.
“Spend some time working with the dinosaurs while you wait. Let’s not have any other kinks in the show,” William shouts after them, the unspoken warning obvious.
The three of us remain quiet, giving them enough time to leave the house as we remain in our seats.
“I do not like that woman,” I declare after enough time has passed. Eric flops back, but William gets up and goes around checking all of the items she fondled during her time here.
“Neither do we. She is nothing like her sister. I promise your grandma was loving and kind and gentle, but she had a spine of steel if she needed it. She would not let Vivian bulldoze her,” Eric says as we watch William lift each and every object and run his hands over them.
“What are you doing?” I ask him, and he grunts.
“I wouldn’t put it past her to bug our house. The woman is after something. I’m not sure if she wants the circus or evidence that you are not a suitable replacement or what, but I don’t trust her.”
“But the circus is a private cooperation, so the Skarrian council has no say in it.” Eric sounds weary as William sets down the last item she’d been holding and swings back to face us.
“No, it doesn’t, but the galaxy council does. They could revoke our ambassador privileges, and we could be Skarrian bound, which would make things a little difficult.”
I think about the orb. It would be a lot easier to find if it was only on one planet.
“But she has no sway over the Galactic Council,” Eric argues, and William sits back down with us, waving a hand.
A hidden door in the wall opens up, revealing a fridge.
Two bottles of beer and one of Skarrian water float out and land in our respective hands.
I screw up my nose at the water, but I guess that’s the sacrifice I make for my kiddos, though alcohol after that visit would be welcome.
“No, but the Skarrian Galactic Council position is coming up for reelection. I have it from a good source that she is running.”
“But she’s an awful woman. Surely nobody would vote for her.”
“Lila, just like on Earth, Skarr has its corruption, and Vivian is a wealthy, influential woman. I’m sure she would make some waves for us, especially now that we spurned her advances once more.”
“That wasn’t the first time she’s tried to get you to throw a leg over?” I ask.
William grimaces, and Eric pales slightly, shaking his head.
“No, she has been pursuing John, Will, and me since Lili went missing.”
“And even more seriously once her own bond group was killed in the accident.”
My mouth drops open in shock. “She was pursuing you when her bond group was still alive?” I ask, not believing what I’m hearing.
“Oh yes, what are three more mates, especially three who are never around? We’re not stupid. We know it was for the prestige of being bonded to us, but she fails to remember that without attraction marks, there is no chance of bonding.”
“Not to mention Liliana still has our hearts and souls.” Will’s words are gruff, but I can hear the emotion in them.
“Now, enough about us and that dreadful woman. Tell us about your visit to Fluxx.” Eric does a good job of changing the subject, and I am more than happy to follow where he leads me.