Epilogue- Beckett
Beckett
“Iwon’t cause any trouble. I-I believe I could even be an asset, liege.”
I leaned back in my desk chair and studied the fae who stood in front of my desk nervously shifting her weight.
I estimated she was young—maybe in her early twenties—and her most striking feature was her freckles, but that was probably because her fair skin was extra pale from fear as she gulped and avoided my gaze.
She was a selkie—a fae shapeshifter who could swap between the form of a seal and a human. And she was here because Christopher had opened his dramatic piehole and invited her to move to the area.
I knew that prince would be a hassle one way or another.
“I just want to live in a peaceful area, near the water.” The selkie rushed her words, my silence unnerving her. “To show my good intentions, I brought you an offering—an acknowledgement that you are the leader of the area.”
I tilted my head—I thought I could hear Abi’s familiar step coming down the hallway.
At that same time the selkie picked her fur coat off the box shape it had been covering and set it on a chair, revealing a plastic cooler.
“Wait—don’t,” I said, too late.
The selkie opened the cooler and plucked a cluster of blood packs—wrapped together with plastic wrap—out of the cooler.
At the same time Abi marched through the open door. “Beckett, do you—oh.” Abi stopped in the doorway, her gaze landing on the blood packs.
Instantly her eyes rolled back and her legs collapsed underneath her.
Thankfully, I was already out of my chair and I made it to her side in time to catch her before her head hit the ground.
“I’m sorry, I am so sorry, I apologize, what happened?” the selkie babbled, terrified.
“It’s fine.” I scooped Abi up and stood, leaning her head against my chest for her unconscious comfort. “But would you return the blood to the cooler? I know your… offering is well intentioned, but it’s unnecessary.”
Carefully, I sat down on the couch in front of the fireplace, arranging Abi on my lap while the selkie hurriedly put away the blood packs.
After easing a pillow under Abi’s head, I tucked a curl of her dark brown hair out of her face and adjusted her glasses for her. “How am I going to turn you into a vampire when you can’t even look at blood?”
Abi, just barely starting to come around, said in a woozy, slurred voice, “You do have your work cut out for you.”
I froze in surprise. I hadn’t yet told her of my vague hope that she might, one day, be willing to become a vampire. I meant to wait for a while—at least until she could inhabit a room the same time as a blood pack.
Did she actually hear me and was agreeing, or is she still out of it?
“Is she alright? What happened?” The selkie was back, hovering near the couch and even paler with fright.
“My health is fine. I just happen to have an inconvenient biological response to blood.” Abi stirred on the couch, trying to get up, but immediately settled back into place on my lap. “Woah. Too soon.”
The selkie’s lower lip trembled. “She sounds very ill.”
“She isn’t. That’s just how she talks,” I said.
Abi gave me an accusing look as she tried to sit up again. “You told me you found my blunt manner of speaking charming. Oof.” She placed a hand on my chest to brace herself and blinked rapidly when she managed to scoot into a sitting position.
The selkie hurried around to the front of the couch and bowed to Abi. “I apologize. I didn’t mean to harm the liege’s dearest One.”
Abi waved her apology off. “It’s fine. You had no way of knowing I was about to pop in. And I must admit, there is something ironic about me being in love with a vampire when I faint at the sight of blood.”
The selkie made a choking noise and looked from Abi to me, not sure what to say.
As Abi was seated on my lap, this made it easy to scan her for any leftover signs of lightheadedness, but already color had returned to her cheeks and she looked at the selkie with eyes brightened with interest.
“You’re beautiful,” Abi said. “You’re, let me guess, a fae?”
“I’m a selkie,” the selkie replied, still half distracted by her distress. “My name is Feidhelm.”
“What brings you to Beckett’s study, Feidhelm?” Abi asked.
“I was hoping to secure the liege’s approval to move to the area.” Feidhelm cast an anxious glance at me, concerned she’d ruined the entire thing.
Abi, still perched in my lap, leaned forward in interest. “By area, do you mean Algoma specifically?”
“Yes,” the selkie said. “The new fae empress has generously offered any trustworthy fae unaffiliated to a Court personal access to the Night Court’s fae realm when necessary to renew their magic, so when the prince—that is, Christopher—told me how charming Algoma was and how refreshing it is to be away from Court politics, I aspired to leave. ”
“I don’t really understand much of what you said, but I assume it could be summarized by saying supernatural politics are the worst, right?
” Abi waited for the selkie’s nod before she continued.
“Now, a very important question: do you intend to reveal your nature as a selkie, or will you try to live like a human?”
“I’m not sure the liege of this land will allow me to stay here.” Feidhelm nervously glanced at me over the top of Abi’s head.
“Of course he will,” Abi scoffed “He would have kicked you out by now if he wasn’t, much less let me meet you. So! Selkie, or human?”
Feidhelm blushed. “I should like my selkie nature to be known, as I should like to swim in the lake in my seal form.”
Abi clapped her hands in glee. “That’s marvelous news!”
“Is it?” I asked.
“Yes!” Abi casually threw an arm over my shoulder.
(I’d always liked her up front personality, but I was especially fond of it now that we were, as Abi would call it, official.
She didn’t hesitate to be physically open with me in the presence of others.) “The locals are going to be thrilled. They’re bitter about the mermaids on the other side of the peninsula, but if they have a selkie of their own, they’re going to lose their minds in happiness.
” She shifted her gaze back to the selkie—who was trying not to have a mental breakdown. “Prepare to be a local celebrity.”
“A what?” Feidhelm asked, bewildered.
“It’s a good thing,” Abi assured her. “But make sure you talk to a lawyer before agreeing to anyone using your likeness. Okay?”
“Okay,” Feidhelm echoed. “If I have permission to stay, that is.”
Abi and Feidhelm shifted to look at me. “You do,” I said. “Make sure you complete a change of address form with the Magiford Curia Cloisters. Christopher and the local gnome clan can advise you on the finer points of moving here and everything it entails.”
Feidhelm beamed. “Thank you!”
I nodded, which the selkie correctly interpreted as a dismissal, so she started gathering up her things.
Abi, unfortunately, hopped off my lap and joined her in standing by my desk. “Welcome to the area, Feidhelm! Oh, and don’t forget your lovely coat.” Abi reached for the fur coat Feidhelm had draped across a wooden chair.
“Don’t!” I tapped my vampire speed to reach her side in a second and stopped Abi and her bone-deep politeness from touching the pelt.
Feidhelm looked at Abi with her big brown eyes in a way that reminded me of Flint when he watched my One with that gooey adoration that set my teeth on edge even though he was—as Abi liked to remind me—a pup.
“Sorry?” Abi said.
“No, no, nothing to be sorry about!” Feidhelm carefully picked up her coat—her pelt, that is. She bowed first to me, then to Abi. “Thank you again, liege. Lady.”
The selkie left my office, leaving us alone.
“Oh, wow. I get a title, just because I’m dating you? Nepotism for sure, but I don’t think I’ll argue against it,” Abi said.
She moved to step away from me, but I reeled her back in. “We need to talk.”
“About what?”
“About the supernatural world. I need to give you lessons, or you’re going to have half the supernaturals in the area eating out of the palm of your hand.”
“Why? Are you referring to me trying to get her coat for her?”
“That wasn’t just a coat, that was her pelt—which allows her to turn into her seal form. It’s very special to selkies, and anyone handling it is… complicated.”
“Oh, so you mean my ignorance could get you in trouble. I understand.” Abi frowned, shifting into work mode. “We should search your basement for more useful books so I can educate myself in my downtime. Unless, are there any online resources I could peruse?”
“There may be, but I don’t know of any of them.”
“Of course not. That would be too organized and helpful.”
I smiled as I watched her grumble.
I knew it wasn’t just Abi’s ignorance that made her a supernatural magnet. It was who she was. The way she accepted us for who we were, and her earnestness in dealing with us.
But I knew better than to try to explain that.
Abi would simply point out most people would say her blunt manner of speaking would be viewed as rude. Or she would complain about Helen from HR—whoever that was.
Abi leaned into me, sliding her arms around me in a hug that cut off all these thoughts.
“I’m beginning to see what you meant about supernatural politics and all the work it brings.
It’s only been two weeks since you handled Josephine, and already I’ve had to order a new filing cabinet for you just for supernatural paperwork, and you’ve had magical visitors nearly every day trooping through here. ”
I kissed the top of her head, noting the subtle scent of her hair products. “It’s not so bad. And it’s quite worth it if it means I can be a tyrant when it comes to assuring your safety.”
Abi rested her cheek against my shoulder. “Selfishly, I’m thankful. But I didn’t think it would be this much work—and this is just the start. I thought the Curia Cloisters handled all this kind of stuff and supernaturals adhered to their laws?”