Page 57 of A Bloodline Redeemed

I sighed.But I didn’t have the energy to argue with the water weaver right now.And besides, Hasumi looked so… happy.Andalive.

Fucking hell, Hasumi was alive!I didn’t care if they came back to us toting an entireherdof stray kids, the important part was that they werehere.“I’m so glad you’re okay,” I said, my voice cracking.Then I leaned in and kissed the water weaver, maneuvering my way between the twins for a brief taste of reassurance.

Hasumi chuckled as the soft kiss ended, pulling back to smile at me.“I’ve missed you too,” they said easily, their magic flowing around us, filled with contentment and peace.“All of you.”

I swallowed down the stupid tears that wanted to erupt, and took a deep breath, letting it out on a heavy sight.“Right.Okay.”Putting my hands on my hips, I gave the little witches what I hoped was a stern, but not scary, look.“This house is not a place for kids.You keep an adult with you at all times, understand?”

At a murmured encouragement from Hasumi, they both nodded solemnly.

“What will happen to us?”the little girl asked, lifting her tiny chin a bit to give me a defiant look.“Will you hurt us if we forget and go somewhere alone?”Ooh, she was going to befun.Great.

I crossed my arms over my chest and met her eyes.“We won’t hurt you.But the house might.The basement stairs eat people.There are booby traps all over the house that were put here by the evil family that used to live here.I don’t know what would happen to you if you wandered around without an adult, but whatever it is would probably be painful.And possibly bloody.”

“Andy,” Zhong hissed coming up beside me.“Don’t terrorize them!”

At the sight of the massive gargoyle with his sharp fangs, long claws, and those huge wings spread out in agitation, the kids both shrank back, hiding their faces in Hasumi’s neck.

“Oh,” Zhong said, immediately deflating, hunching his shoulders and pulling his wings in tight.“I’m sorry.No.Don’t be afraid, babies.”He started to reach out a hand to them, then thought better of it and hid his clawed fingers behind his back, taking several steps backward and hiding behind me.

I shook my head.

Niamh chuckled.“Good job, gargoyle.”Then she relented.“The witchlings are probably used to scary monsters by now.They’ll recover.”

River clicked his tongue in disapproval and padded forward, snatching a doily off a nearby table to cover his junk on the way by.“You are all terrible at this.Havenoneof you ever spent time with children?”

Not waiting for an answer, he stopped in front of Hasumi and reached out to ruffle both kids’ curly red hair.“It’s okay, kiddos.I know you’ve been through a lot.But you’re safe here with your goddess.”He tossed an affable wink toward Hasumi, then returned his attention to the kids, who seemed completely unconcerned that he was buck-assed naked.Then again, they’d seen a lot of shit today.One naked guy was hardly the most shocking.

“Hey, you wanna see a trick?”River said, still smiling that affable smile.“I can summon a guardian just for you, so you’ll have someone to watch over you.”

That got a slow, cautious show of curiosity.“Is it a bad trick?”the boy finally asked.“Or a good trick?The guards before used to trip us and push us when they were bored.”

River somehow ignored the horrible part of that question and focused on the first part.He grinned at the little boy, all warm vibes and soft humor.“It’s the best trick.Do you like cats?”

The little boy glanced at his sister for moral support, then nodded his head warily.“We had a kitty once.Before…” His happy expression shut down, and he popped his thumb in his mouth.

The girl leaned her head against Hasumi’s shoulder and examined River as if she was judging his worth.“You can give us a cat to guard us from bad people?”

River winked.“Absolutely, sweetheart.Would you like to meet him?”

“Yes,” she said softly, glancing up at Hasumi’s calm face before looking back to River.“Please, sir.”

“Okay,” River said, crouching down on the floor.“He’s a big kitty.But he’s nice, and he loves snuggles and pets, so don’t be afraid.”

“We’re not afraid of anything,” the girl informed him seriously.

And goddess, I really wanted to rip someone’s fucking head off at the trauma I could sense justoozingoff these poor babies.But I kept my mouth shut for now.

River’s magic flowed from him, stronger than ever.His transformation from man to cat was complete in the blink of an eye, faster and easier than ever before, as if he leapt from one form to the other with nothing more than a thought.

The black jaguar stretched and yawned, like a big, lazy housecat.Then he padded up to Hasumi and looked up at the kids.It was obviously love at first sight.And the sight of the kids’ joy, even through their fear and sorrow, tugged at my heartstrings.Hard.

“They can have my room,” I said without thought.“I’m pretty sure there’s nothing dangerous in there, and there’s the big bed and the attached bath…”

Hasumi nodded to me in acknowledgement.“Thank you.”Then the weaver and the “big kitty,” took the kids upstairs for a bath and a much-needed rest.

I scrubbed a hand over my face and turned to lead everyone else into the kitchen for tea, alcohol, or “medicinal” herbs—whatever floated their boats.We had far less pleasant things to get to in a minute here, and I needed some fortification.

I carefully avoided looking at my sister’s body, which we had laid out by the entry door.

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