Chapter 12 #2
“This is great. Thank you.” Kieran’s grin is so wide, it might just split his face.
“We’re making plans to get you your own cottage on the grounds, which of course you’re welcome to weigh in on.
Whatever you need to be comfortable. That’s at least a few weeks, maybe a month or so away, so as soon as the crash room is habitable again, you can stay there.
We’re aiming for Friday. And until then, we’ll put you in one of the guest rooms. I’m sorry about the musical rooms thing,” he adds.
Gabe and I exchange glances, thinking the same thing. “Believe me, this is fine,” Gabe says. “Much better than a tent.”
“Or under a hedge.”
Kieran looks at me in shock. “Under a hedge?”
I shrug.
“We can definitely do better than that,” he declares. “If Gabe’s got everything locked down, I guess Skye and I can go home tonight?” He glances uncertainly between us.
Gabe nods. “I’ll be making minor adjustments over the next few weeks, but the barrier is in place. The gateway is secure. As for Skye…?” They both turn to me.
“I haven’t seen him yet today, but his shields were already looking a lot better last night.
I’ll check in with him, but there’s no reason for him to have to stay.
I can give him a temporary shield if necessary.
” I try to hide my disappointment. If Kieran goes home, I’m not going to get many opportunities for alone time with him.
Especially if I’m taking trips around the area to hunt down the rogue gateway.
Kieran nods, clears his throat, looks away, then meets my gaze and says, with pink cheeks, “It’s going to be chaotic here this week, with the contractors upstairs, and we have more guests than last week.
If you need peace to work, you can come and crash at my place. I’ll be coming in every day anyway.”
From the corner of my eye, I see Gabe’s face light up in delight, and I bend all my mental energy into a “shut the fuck up” vibe.
Too bad telepathy isn’t a thing. “That would be great, thank you. I’m about to start the ‘canvassing the countryside’ part of the job, so a quiet place to work in the evenings would be perfect. ” Am I laying it on too thick?
He nods. “Okay. Good.”
We all stand there pretending this isn’t awkward.
“Uh… so I found Emma’s boyfriend.”
And bam, awkwardness gone. “You did? Our Emma?” Kieran asks, eyes alight with interest.
“Yep. I have to drive up to Chicago and see if he’s done anything he shouldn’t. I can’t tell over the phone.”
“You’ve spoken to him?” He leans in. “What did he sound like?”
Um… what? “Like an eighty-something-year-old man?”
Kieran chuckles and shakes his head. “Yeah, but… did he sound like the kind of person who’d ingratiate himself with a young woman while plotting to sacrifice her to a demon?”
I blink. Then I look at Gabe, who shrugs.
“What exactly would that sound like?” he asks.
Kieran opens his mouth to answer, then closes it. “I have no idea.”
“We can’t generally tell by sound, but I’ll be able to sense it on him when I’m close,” I offer. “If he’s been summoning demons. If he never has, just plotted to, then…” I spread my hands. Can’t judge someone for thinking about committing a crime. Well, you can, but they don’t get punished for it.
Kieran looks like he’s going to say something, then stops and bites his lip.
“What?” I ask.
He hesitates. “Could I go with you?”
“To Chicago?” Four hours round trip alone in my car together?
“Sure! I mean, if you want. It’s probably not going to be very exciting.
I’ll get there, and if he has summoned demons, I’ll strip him of whatever power he gained.
It’ll be over in a few minutes. They almost never fight back.
” There’s a note of regret in my voice, because it’s a lot more fun when they do.
Or when they try to summon a demon to help them.
“Oh…kay. But I’d still like to come. If he is an evil virgin sacrificer, I want to see him get his comeuppance.” He cringes. “Did I just say ‘comeuppance’?”
“And ‘virgin sacrificer,’” Gabe points out helpfully.
“Go away,” I tell him, and he obediently waves and heads toward the kitchen. I smile at Kieran and try not to sound overeager. “I’d be happy to have your company. Do you have to work, though?”
He shakes his head. “Tomorrow’s my day off. Since Gabe has everything under control here, I think I can actually take it.”
“You can,” I assure him. “I’m going to spend some time with Josh this afternoon, too. He’s not a hunter, but mediums can do some serious damage if they know what they’re doing, and he’s one of the strongest mediums I’ve ever met. Between the two of them, this place is safer than most.”
“Okay. That’s great. Thank you. Uh… so I’ll head home after we close to visitors. About six? If you want to follow me, or…”
“That would be great.” I don’t want to give him a reason to take back his offer. “Maybe I could cook dinner for you? As a thank-you for letting me stay.” Not that my cooking is all that great. I can manage the basics, but they don’t always taste that good.
“Takeout?” he suggests. “I’m not sure what I’ve got at home, and the grocery store feels like a job for another day.”
“Deal.” This shouldn’t feel as momentous as it does.
“I’ll see you later, then.” He takes a step backward, smiles, then turns and heads toward the office.
I’m totally winning at life today.
“…and don’t forget to be charming,” Uncle Norval chides. “You’ve always had a smart mouth, and while many find it funny, none of those people want to marry you.”
“I’m not looking to get married, Uncle Norval.
” I put on my blinker to follow Kieran into a side street, wishing for the millionth time that I’d managed to get away from the estate without the ghosts finding out.
I don’t know who told them I was staying with Kieran, but half an hour before we left, they descended on me like locusts, determined to both ferret out the gossip and offer advice.
Uncle Norval is so determined to lecture me that he jumped in the car to ride along.
“Pah. Of course you are. Maybe not right away, but you don’t want to be alone forever. Don’t make my mistake, boy.” His voice goes wistful on those last words, and I sneak a sideways glance at him. His face is pensive, maybe even a little sad.
“I didn’t know you regretted not getting married.”
He sighs. “Sometimes. I was so focused on making the world safe and getting the Collective set up that I let opportunities slip by me. People. I let people slip by. I had this vision of a legacy, but I forgot that sometimes a legacy can be people too.” He’s silent a moment, then sighs again.
“I’ve spent a thousand years meeting the legacies my siblings left behind, and I’ve loved you all dearly.
Even that idiot during the Renaissance who thought we should try to make peace with the otherworld. ”
I wince. My great-great-something-cousin Thomas is a cautionary tale in the Collective schoolroom these days. He was literally ripped apart by demons when he tried to convince them to sit down for “conciliatory talks.”
“I’m just saying, as wonderful as it’s been to see all my nieces and nephews grow up, it might have been nice to have descendants of my own.”
Which is a sweet thought, but… “You do remember that I’m gay and not likely to impregnate anyone, right?”
He scoffs. “See? That’s exactly what I meant. A smart mouth. And for your information, boy, there’s this newfangled thing called IFV. No, IFD. It’s when scientists make a baby without sex.”
“IVF,” I correct, because I don’t want him saying it wrong to anyone else.
Infertility is often a sensitive subject, and I might have a smart mouth, but I’m not a complete asshole.
I can’t help wondering what he thought the D stood for, though.
“I’d still need a surrogate for that… and a partner who wanted kids.
Which I don’t have. Don’t read into this, Uncle Norval.
Kieran and I are friends, and he’s offering me a place to stay away from the estate. That’s it.”
“Pffft. Are you trying to tell me you’re not having sex? I don’t believe you.”
“I’m telling you it’s none of your business. And if you think you’re hanging around tonight, you’re so, so wrong. I’ll salt you out if I have to. Go back to the estate and hang out with your new friends.”
He folds his arms across his chest and gives me his patented gimlet eye. I grew up with it and also know exactly what his capabilities as a ghost are, so I ignore it.
“I’m just saying,” he starts, and I groan.
“Be charming. Kieran is a nice boy. Works hard. Looks after his ghosts. Very good-looking. And Hattie told me that people from the big hotel chains call all the time to see if he wants to work for them. A man like that isn’t going to wait around for you to step up if you don’t give him a sign that you’re interested. ”
“Uncle Norval—”
“And that’s all I’m going to say.” He holds up his hands in surrender, then pops out. Hopefully back to the estate… or better yet, to the Collective.
Heaving a sigh, I pull the car to a stop in front of Kieran’s house.
At least, I assume it’s his, since he’s parked in the driveway.
It’s cute, very well-maintained—which doesn’t surprise me, knowing Kieran—and I get an immediate good vibe just from looking at it.
This is another place that has absorbed happy feelings from its inhabitants.
I grab my overnight bag and join Kieran at the front door. He glances over my shoulder. “Is Norval…?”
“Gone,” I assure him. “Hopefully to the other side of the world, but most likely back to the estate.”
He chuckles. “Warn me if he comes back. I like to think this is the one place I don’t have to worry about ghosts watching me.”
“I got your back.” I cringe. Did I really say that?
Fortunately, he just smiles as he unlocks the door. The inside of the house reinforces my impression of the outside. Someone lived here for a long time and loved this place a lot.