“Yes. We do.” He was as firm as I was in that.
It was very late—or very early—and although we had only a couple of hours before we needed to be up and moving, we did have those hours. So we went to bed, and while neither of us was feeling amorous, it felt good to be together, just holding each other for comfort.
30
Minnie got us up at seven. I wasn’t thrilled, but there was no denying her. I answered nature’s call, then started the coffee brewing while Bruno took a shower. I went back to bed, curling up under the sheets, trying to relax. At seven thirty, I called my gran. It was really too early, what with the time difference, but I called anyway. She answered on the first ring, sounding wide awake. It wasn’t a surprise, really, she’s always been a morning person. But it broke my heart that her usual cheer had been replaced with something very close to despair.
At times like this, I would cheerfully throttle my mother.
“Baker said that it was more a cry for help than a real attempt.”
“Yes,” Gran admitted. “The doctor said that, and I think he’s probably right. But it just breaks my heart. I know she’s done wrong by you and made mistakes. But she’s my Lana. I can’t bear knowing she’s in so much pain, that she feels so alone. I don’t expect you to understand.”
“It’s okay, Gran, I get it. You love her. Hell, I do, too. And I know it had to be a real blow that Ivy left for good without even saying good-bye to her.”
“Ivy was her baby,” Gran agreed. “And while parents shouldn’t have favorites—” They shouldn’t, but they often do. Mom did, and I wasn’t the one. “I wonder sometimes if it’s because you’ve always been so strong and self-sufficient. Lana needs to be needed. Just like I do.” She sounded wistful.
Wow, that explained a lot. Not about Mom; I wasn’t buying that for a second. We’d needed the heck out of her when we were little and she’d chosen drugs and booze over us. But for Gran, it made perfect sense. It explained why Gran had to rescue Mom every time she did something stupid. She honestly couldn’t help herself.
“Look, I tell you what,” I began, thinking furiously as I spoke. Tonight was the full moon. Tomorrow everything would be over, for good or ill. “Why don’t I see if I can catch a flight out to Serenity midweek? I’ll have my doctor check with Mom’s, and if they okay it, the two of us will go to the prison for an in-person visit.”
“You’d do that? After everything?” I heard the edge of hope in her voice and felt my heart lift.
For Gran, I would walk through fire. “Yes.”
“Oh, honey, that means so much to me! I love you so much.” Now she sounded more like herself and I was glad.
“I love you, too.”
When we hung up, she was in a better frame of mind, and Bruno was standing in front of me wearing nothing but a bath towel.
“Was that your gran you were talking to?”
“Yup. About my mom, of course.”
He stepped closer and gave me a kiss on the forehead. “I’m so sorry you have to go through this. I wish I could help. I know I can’t, but I wish I could.”
“Thanks. I appreciate that.” I did, too.
“Look, why don’t you go take your bath while I fix breakfast. Sound good?”
“I have a better idea.” I gave him a slow smile. “Why don’t the two of us take a shower.”
His eyes widened and his body immediately began to react. “What a wonderful idea.”
It was a long shower. I’ve seldom felt so clean or so satisfied. We didn’t get out until the hot water gave out and we were both completely sated and famished for breakfast.
Bruno dried off quickly and headed for the kitchen while I put on some makeup. One thing about the new hair, it was definitely easier to manage. No muss, no fuss, ready to go. A girl like me could get used to that.
I was feeling pretty good by the time I was ready to get dressed. Back in my bedroom and wrapped in my fluffiest robe, I found a shopping bag on my bed. It hadn’t been there before.
“Bruno?” I called.
As he so often did, he knew what I was asking from just a single word. He called back, “I was at the hospital with Isaac yesterday when Dom Rizzoli stopped by. He gave me your things. I meant to bring them in before; I just got sidetracked.”
Yay, the rest of my best gear! Before I had a chance to put it on, Bruno yelled that breakfast was ready.
I raced down the stairs. Bruno had not only made food, he’d straightened up—a lot of the flowers, which had begun to die, were gone. I assumed he’d taken them out to the trash when he’d gone to get my gear from his car.
A huge chunk of sapphire sat in the middle of my kitchen table as we ate.
“What’s that?” I asked. I thought I knew, from some reading I’d done back in college, but I wasn’t sure.
“It’s a vosta, a focus stone. You can use a good-quality crystal in a pinch, but unflawed gemstones are better. Diamonds are best but damned hard to come by and very expensive. This was the best I could come up with on short notice. And I wouldn’t have been able to get my hands on this if Isaac hadn’t made some calls for me.”
“Do I even want to know how much that cost?”
He looked at me soberly. “More than my house.”
Oh, hell.
“It’ll be worth it,” he promised. “Using the vosta we can combine our magics better, turning them into a single, flawless whole.”
I didn’t doubt he was right. But more than his house? Damn.
I steeled myself, looking from the rock to Bruno and back again. “Seriously, how hard is this going to be for you?”
“It’s probably the hardest thing any of us will ever do,” he said quietly. “Combining magic is never easy, even when there’s a strong connection between the mages; controlling a node is so dangerous nobody sane does it if there’s any other choice.”
“But you’re still going to do it.”
“We have to. We can’t let Connor Finn have access to the power of a node and we’ve got to get the prison sealed up again. I know I could die and that scares me shitless, but this is something worth dying for. I have to do it.”
I’d risen from my seat without thinking about it. I moved around behind him and wrapped my arms around him as I kissed the top of his head.
“I know you’re right. But I hate it.”
“I hate it, too.”
It was nine o’clock by the time Bruno left. But having him around had helped—I almost felt like my usual self.
I spread sunscreen over my skin then stood in front of the closet trying to decide what to wear. Ultimately, I went with my most comfortable black jeans, a sapphire blue blouse, and my beloved black blazer. I also wore a Colt in a shoulder holster, a Glock in the back of my waistband, and anything and everything else I thought I might possibly need tucked into the pockets, loops, and compartments of my jacket. I was a walking armory, and damn, I looked good.
I finished off with my black Nikes, the ones with the white swoosh and the blue layer in the sole. You never know when you’re going to have to make a run for it, and I wanted to be prepared. That was my motto for the day. Me and the Scouts.
When I put on my ring, I could feel the power of it augmenting my meager natural siren abilities. Good. I’d need the advantage of telepathy. Which reminded me … I went back into the bedroom, opened the safe, and took out some other very special jewelry. Then I grabbed the sniper rifle I’d liberated from Jack Finn during the previous day’s confrontation and went outside.
My timing was excellent—Dawna had just reached the gate. I was surprised that she wasn’t driving das Humvee. As I climbed into the car I started to ask whether everyone was in place and everything ready … then I got a good look at her.