Remington (Queen's Birds of Prey 5)

“I was able to find a couple of credit card numbers, also in the son’s name. There was, a few years ago, a mess up at the bank where the money exceeded what the bank would be able to hold for him. I didn’t see how that came to be a problem because when I checked this morning before coming here, there was less than five hundred dollars in the bank.” She asked him about offshore accounts. “I can’t get to those. I could at one time, but I’ve been locked down for doing that.”

“I’ll give you access that won’t be traced back to you. You’ve done a great job here, Mr. Caldwell. This is more than I had hoped you’d be able to find.” He thanked her, his face pinking up a little. “Have you kept track of your expenses for us?”

“Yes, miss.” He handed them over to her. As she was looking them over, adding them up in her head, he explained to her why some of the receipts had him taking things off it. “My wife came along with me on some of the trips. I took off the difference on the hotel for a second person. Why they charge that is beyond me. All the rooms have two beds in them anyway. The dinners too.”

“Mr. Caldwell, we’re sisters that are all together on everything. Do you know why? I’ll tell you. We’re family. Family, no matter what needs to be done, comes first every time. When you want to take your wife out with you to a nice restaurant we’re footing the bill for, you do it. It’ll make you feel better, and she will certainly be happy. Take her on all the work you do for us.” He asked her if she’d be using him again. “Absolutely. You’ve done some very fine work here.”

“I hate to say this, but the money has been nice. Being retired isn’t what we’d thought it would be.” She told him she was sorry about that. “Nothing to do with you, miss. It’s just that it’s too expensive to live or die. When we buried my brother last summer, it was over ten grand. I just don’t think young people nowadays are cut out to be old and without.” He laughed when she told him she understood that a great deal.

“Privileged, I think is what my brother-in-law calls it. Some of them, not all, think that whatever is going on that doesn’t affect them, they want to part of it. I have several nieces that are being raised to work for what they want, even though their parents could well give them whatever their heart desires. I like that.”

He nodded and told her about his own daughter. “Forty-two years old, and she’s still living and dressing like she’s just about sixteen. Acting like it, too, most of the time. No job. Nothing to show for her living in this world after she’s gone. And forever with her hand out. It’s why we’re in the predicament we’re in now. When we didn’t hand it over, she’d just take it.” He cried a little, and she let him gather his emotions by looking out the window to her office. “I nearly told you that she’s a good girl, but she’s not. Her mother and I are raising up her son like he’s our own. It’s her son that I feel the worst for. Knowing his mother is out there having a good time when he’s stuck with an old couple that doesn’t have anything left because of her shenanigans.”

“I’m so sorry, Willy. I can call you that, can’t I?” He knew she was older than him, so he laughed and told her that was fine by him. “I can fix some things up for you and your family.”

“No, I didn’t break down to have you helping me out.” She told him what she had in mind. “I’m doubting you keeping this old buzzard on retainer for whatever you need would be of much help for you.”

Remi nearly scolded him for saying buzzard. It was a name associated with her bird. Being a vulture, she had heard just about all the names people would call her if they ever found out what she’d been born as. Instead, she smiled at Willy and set him up with whatever he needed in the name of being on retainer for the birds.

After he left, she went back to her work. It wasn’t hard for her to come up with some new recipes for her venture here in New Town. But the fact of the matter was, she was bored out of her mind. Everything here just seemed too perfect. There was some trouble. She knew that. Just last week, Duncan and Jude had had to put one of the people of the town in jail.

“Do you suppose I really do need a nanny to help with the kids?” Mercy was like that. Just sit down and start a conversation as if they’d been talking about whatever it was the entire time. “I’m exhausted all the time. Not just from feeding them—Joel helps with that a great deal—but taking them off the ceiling, out from under the bed. Also, and this one is scary as fuck, I have to keep an eye on them so that they don’t go outside. I’m terrified they’re going to simply float away.”

“They’re only three weeks old, Mercy. Are you telling me their magic is that powerful already?” She said it was and that they now were changing their own diapers when necessary or if she didn’t get to them fast enough. “Christ, I’m never having kids. That’s fucking messed up. But back to your first question. How the hell would you hire someone to watch over kids that are flying around and changing their own diapers? Just chain them to the bed and wait until they’re like, in their thirties.”

“It’s been tempting, let me tell you. But then I look at their faces light up when they see me. That’s the plan, I think. That you can’t harm them while they’re little and driving you to fucking homicide because they’re so adorable.” Mercy handed her phone to Remi. “See what I mean?”

The girls were on the ceiling of their bedroom, laughing. Joey, named for his dad, was lying on his back looking up at Beth and Sandra as he laughed too. The three of them would have had her running for cover. It made her feel good that she could have one to three babies. They were a lot of work, but she couldn’t love them any more.

“I don’t have anything, though, other than I’m glad I’m not you.” Handing her back the phone, she could see that Mercy was really destressed about this. “Look, most everyone around here knows what we are. Why not see if you can put the word out that you’re looking for a nanny for three rambunctious kids? Mary could probably help you with that. She knows everyone around here better than we do.”

“I’ll do that. I should have gone to her first.” She looked at the stuff she was working on when Remi offered it to her. “I don’t know how many people would go for caviar around here, but I do like the other things you have here. I also love th

e fact that you have a listing under each item for smaller portions without calling it a kid’s meal. Do you suppose you’d have prizes for them when they eat all their food? Like, they don’t get it until they’ve eaten everything. Or at least until their parents are satisfied.”

“That sounds good in theory, but I doubt it would work. I think it would piss people off more if we did that, for the simple reason that we’re putting pressure on their children.” Mercy said she’d not thought of that. “Normally, I’d not either, but I’ve been in this setting before where there was an ice cream or something for all the kids that cleaned their plates. It didn’t matter to some of the parents if they ate or not, so long as they didn’t whine too much and that they didn’t bother them. Christ, I dislike parents that let their kids run wild in a restaurant like it’s home, and they don’t give a shit.”

“I suppose you think you’re going to have some perfect children?” It was a fair enough question, Remi supposed, but she still didn’t like it. She was glad when Mercy changed the subject. “I’m going to need a new project soon. Something I can work on from home. If you have anything on the fae project, I’d like to work on it.”

After answering a few questions that Mercy had, she was alone once again. Taking off the caviar, she worked on some of the other dishes she’d like to have. Remi was liking the overall menu she was creating. Having at one time worked on computers, and having Miley, Mercy’s other child, helping made it easier too since she was able to work a computer almost as well as Remi could.

It was well after five when she went home. The house hunting wasn’t getting her anywhere, and she wasn’t happy living with Duncan and Jude. Not that they’d been mean to her or anything, but it wasn’t her place. Not her things. In addition to the restaurant, Remi wanted to get herself an office front. She was going to do some design work again on logos and such.

Walking back to the castle from the new restaurant building, she thought about what she might name the place. She’d had a couple of ideas but had tossed them out as silly. She did want something that would make her stand out. As there wasn’t much competition in New Town for her to try and drum up business, she thought if she just named it Come and Get It that no one would care.

Everywhere she looked, people were putting things out for spring. It was still cold out, enough of a cold spike in the air to make a person shiver. But she could see signs of spring right around the corner. She paused in front of the house that Esme was having built.

It was a beautiful structure. Remi could see it finished in her mind. There were five bedrooms on the topmost floor and three more on the second level that included a master suite. She had wanted it small, one bedroom and the rest of the house, including the bathroom, all open. Personally, Remi thought Esme was doing that to piss off Mercy. But she had relented when she had it pointed out to her that she’d need more room simply to be able to paint. Esme was a very famous painter.

“Mistress? Do you have a moment?” She told Patch, the faerie in charge of the greenhouse in town, that she had lots of time. “Oh, good. You see, I was working with the others, and I swear to you I only stepped away for a few moments. But you know how our kind work. Busy, busy, busy.” She asked him to get to the point, please. “Yes. I only stepped away for a moment. When I returned, the others had planted thrice the amount of herbs you’d asked for. So instead of having just ten plants of basil, we have thirty. You can see my worry, can you not?”

“I do. Is it only herbs, Patch?” He nodded. “That’s all right then. When I have my home finished up, when I find someplace, I’ll want them in my yard too. I was thinking that instead of wholly flowers, I’d mix in a few herbs with them for the powerful smell they give.” He said it sounded heavenly. “Thank you. So you go ahead and take care of the extra, and when I get me a house, they’ll be good for me to use. In the meantime, I’ll pick out a place for them to be around the restaurant too. That’ll be a win-win for me.”

She made her way to the castle just as Duncan was pulling into the driveway. He was a very nice man and kind to all his people. Remi couldn’t have been happier with the man if she’d picked him out on her own to be king.

~*~

Rose couldn’t read, so why she was looking at the magazine when she was in the doctor’s office was beyond her. Putting it down with a huff, she looked around the waiting room. She hated waiting more than she did having to find something to eat that was fun and delightful for herself.