Piper (Queen's Birds of Prey 4)

“I don’t want to upset you anymore than you are, love, but we’d already planned on my mom staying with us. Did you know she was the sometimes cook in this castle? I bet she would have all kinds of advice for us running the other one.” Grant asked Duncan how large the castle was. “I mean, you said it was updated. Do we have lights and heat? Or do we even have running water?”

“Whatever is in this castle is in the other one. According to the journal again, Mom said the improvements would be duplicated in both of them at the same time. So you’d not just have heat and lights, but Internet and cable as well. And of course, running water.” Duncan handed him a file. “I’m not sure how much that is going to help you, but it was within the paperwork that was here. As you can see, that castle is larger than this one because it had been added onto at some point. I think it had something to do with brother rivalry. Anyway, there is a smokehouse on the grounds, as well as an herb drier. I’m not entirely sure what that might be, but you have it and a large herbal garden. My aunt, my uncle’s wife, was said to have had the best herbs around back then. Again, I’m not sure what that will mean for the two of you.”

“These people that we’re supposed to be taking care of. Are there jobs for them to do? I mean, are they just sponging off the land and will expect the two of us to take care of them? Look, I don’t want to have to go in there and replant the lot of them. If they’ve been lazing about for decades only to have them invite their friends around to do the same thing, I’m going to be sorely pissed off.” Duncan handed her some photos, and Grant looked them over as well. “They’re not even cleaning up after themselves? Oh no, they’re not going to be doing this when I get there. We’re going to have order and a place to dump trash. Not leave it— Is that a stroller there? Someone is actually raising a child in this sort of environment? That’s it, I’m going there today and taking care of this shit.”

“So, you’re going to take it?” Duncan looked at Grant when all Piper did was fold her arms over her chest and tap her foot at him. “I don’t know what that means. Is she all right with it now?”

“I would say she is. However, if I’ve learned anything in my years on this planet, it’s that you never assume anything when it comes to having a mate. Or any female.” Grant pulled Piper into his arms and felt her relax against him. “We’re in love. I just wanted to put that out there. Also, I will do what she wants. If that means staying in the tiny house myself and my mom have lived in together, then that’s good too. However, if my opinion matters, I think that even without me, Piper could make this work on a great many levels that I’m betting not even you have thought of.”

Piper looked up at him, then at Jude and Duncan. Duncan had been doing all the talking, and Jude just sat there. Grant thought that was totally out of character for her but waited. When she had something to say, Grant was sure it would not only be profound but also just what Piper needed to hear to make her know she could do this for them.

“There are nine children out in those houses. I’ve not spoken to them, nor the adults. But I can tell you this. Their living conditions are horrific. You’ll do this for me, won’t you, Piper? I need to know those kids are safe from harm. I don’t know how they were able to survive this long with how they’re living. But they need you to get up off your ass and help them.” Jude hugged Piper and him together. “They need a strong hand and a gentle word. I think we both know you can do both. And if not, let Grant here be the gentle word.”

They were all laughing when they sat down to lunch. After this, they were going to go back out to the site and see about what else was brought up. Whatever it was, Grant was going to ask Duncan if he could buy the ruby ring he’d found when he’d been diving for them.

He loved rubies. However, this one had been in a nice box and hadn’t been harmed at all from being in the deep for so long. When he’d opened the box, pulling out the ring, he gasped with the beauty. Holding it up to the sunlight, the colors reflected on the boat decking were so like Piper’s hair that he could only see this ring on her finger. Even Mercy, who had been o

ut on the boat with him at the time, commented on how much it was like her hair.

“I heard someone say to her once that it looked as if she’d dipped her hair into a setting sun to make it look as it does. I think that is the very reason everyone believes her when she tells them she’s a phoenix. There is no doubting she has the colors all right.” Grant asked her if she liked rubies. “Yes. She used to make jewelry at one time, a long time ago. She would find rubies, believe it or not, and use them in all sorts of things like that. Then one day, she decided she wanted to use them in a phoenix. If you get to see the one she made in her studio, look at her. The bird is covered in gems of all sorts and colors. To me, it’s one of the most beautiful pieces she’d ever created.”

“It’s still wrapped up in the barn behind the castle.”

At that time, they were both looking for a place to live. Now that they’d be moving to the other castle, he wondered what she’d do with it. Hopefully, she’d display it where everyone that came to see them would see that his mate was a very talented artist.

By the time they were ready to see what other treasures they could find, the crew that was doing most of the lifting was ready to go back out as well. The things they’d discovered were being stored away in the lower levels of the castle. He couldn’t wait to get it all finished so they could have fun opening the sacks and other containers that had been pulled up.

“Before I forget, there is a trunk for you.” He asked Piper what sort of trunk. “I’m not sure what might be in yours, but mine had all sorts of things that sparked memories from when I lived around here. I guess we can assume since she knew you were going to be my mate, that there are things there for you to have memories of as well. Also, in my trunk, there were crowns. Until now, I had no idea why she’d leave them for me. I’m assuming they’re from the castle we’re going to.”

“Is this something you really want to do, Piper? I know we’ve sort of bullied you into it.” She said she was warming up to the idea. “Good. I think it’ll be fun for you and I to have something we can call our own like this. We’ll run it well, I believe. I’m just hoping we don’t have too much trouble with the squatters. I’d hate to have to call in the police to have them moved on. I wonder just how long they’ve been living there.”

“Less than five years, Duncan told me.” He said that wasn’t terribly long. “No. But it might be for them. I just can’t believe anyone would subject their children to such conditions—no running water, no heat. I know for a fact that the weather up here can change in a heartbeat. That’s the first thing we’re going to tackle. Either getting them off the property or fixing it, so they have adequate housing.”

He didn’t point out to her that she’d not answered the question as to whether or not she wanted to do this. However, he had a feeling that someone was currently packing up their things for the move. Grant wondered if he could get himself a truck, just because it would be nice to haul things back and forth from the store. Also, a tractor. Thinking that he needed to slow it down a bit, had him laughing. They didn’t even know when they were moving in, much less if they’d be welcomed by the people.

The water was warm, he’d discovered earlier. Diving off the side of the boat and into the water was as much fun as he’d had in a while. When Piper dove in with him, they went to the bottom of the waterway together. He was ready to not just discover things here, but with her. Grant was as excited as he’d ever been in starting a new chapter of his life.

Chapter 5

Benson was afraid to feel this good. There had to be a catch. Lying in the big bed he’d been in for the last couple of days, he also couldn’t believe how well he’d been sleeping. All through the night without having to get up once to take a pain pill hadn’t happened to him in five years. Rolling to his side, thinking about getting up, he saw a young boy sitting in the chair next to the bed. It looked like he was reading War and Peace.

“Is it any good?” The child put the book down on his lap and told him it was really good but was also colorful. “In what way colorful?”

“The author describes each thing very well. Like if you could just close your eyes while reading it, you’d be able to see it. I like books like that. This book is good, but I enjoy science fiction better. I’m Abe, your biological son.” Benson sat up but didn’t say anything. “I talked to my mom and dad about you yesterday. They said that I could come up here and talk to you. If you didn’t mind.”

“No. I don’t mind. How much do you know about me?” Abe told him only what they could find out. “I suppose that’s not really a lot, is it?”

“Mom told me that you had AIDS. That you were dying. I’m glad they were able to heal you and bring you here. I’ve been wanting to talk to you anyway.” Benson nodded. “I’ve been thinking about what to call you. I know you’re my biological dad. I understand too that you and my biological mom had sex one time and that she murdered you with her poisoned body. If it’s all right with you, because we don’t know each other at all, I’d like to call you Uncle Benson. If that bothers you, we can think of something else.”

“I don’t have an issue with you calling me your uncle. I think that’s about the easiest way for the two of us to go forward. I don’t know how long I’ll be around, however. I’m not quite sure why they bothered with me at all.” Abe explained what he knew. “I’m immortal? I don’t suppose you know what that means. I understand the word, but not what terms there are with it.”

“You’ll not die or be sick anymore. Also, you won’t age. I will up until I’m about twenty-five, then after that, I’ll not look any different. The living forever stuff is complicated, and I don’t understand a lot about it. I guess I could look it up, but I doubt there will be much, as no one will believe that someone can live forever. Anyway. I’d like for you to stay here. I’d like to get to know you. But I have parents now, and I love them very much. So the uncle thing will have to be forever too.” Benson told him that he was fine with that as well. “Good. Mr. Bloom—he was a good friend of mine—he gave me his house when he passed away. I loved him too, and if he’d been around longer, I might have gotten to adopt him as my grandda. But he left me his house, as I said. I want you to live there until you can find a better place. Or not. You can stay there for as long as you wish. The house is in good repair. Dad told me it would be better to have someone staying in it rather than letting it sit and rot away. I don’t think Mr. Bloom meant for me to do that anyway.”

“You have a house?” Abe smiled and nodded. “I don’t have anything. Not even a home anymore. Once I got sicker, I lost a lot of things.”

“This will be a good start for you then. Mom said, sometimes, it’s good to have a clean slate. Sometimes you can remake yourself into whatever you want. I’d want to be just me, but she told me I was too young to make that sort of decision.” Abe got up. “Come on downstairs, and we’ll eat together. Then I’ll see if Dad can take us to the house. You can stay here for as long as you want. Mom said the house would need to be aired out and cleaned up. It’ll be nice for you to be there. I can ride my bike to see you whenever I want. Won’t that be fun?”

Benson entered the kitchen and found the rest of the family there. He didn’t say much to them. He wasn’t even sure what he could say to them. They’d saved him, opened their home for him, and all he’d done was sleep. Asking for something to eat, he wanted to beg them to let what Abe had been telling him to be true.