Page 36 of Midlife Demigod Unexpected

“We need to find out who inherited the sword,” Bianca said. “I can guarantee you it’s not me, because I’m a shifter. It’s not the Hayes because her ancestor was the one being threatened by the owner of the sword. It’s not the vampire because we know who her ancestor was and it’s not Helen because we know it wasn’t the Dagda. That only leaves two of us. Jane or Kartika.”

“If it’s a sword that belongs to one of them, then why did it hold my magic trapped in it?” I asked.

“Objects can be turned into talismans of talent,” Mae explained. “Your father must’ve held it there until something triggered it to come to you. It’s probably what kept it safe during the pub fire.”

“And the pub fire is probably what triggered it,” Jane agreed.

“How could you know that?” I asked.

“It doesn’t have to be that specific,” Mae said. “The sword could’ve just triggered when you were in a time of need. When everything is falling down around you, the sword would stay firm and when you touched it, it would get your powers going.”

“Dagda was given the sword by one of our ancestors, a female who he was friends with,” I said.

“More than friends with,” Jane said. “They were lovers.”

Kartika stepped forward. “The sword,” she said, “belongs to me.”

Jane tilted her head to the side and for a moment I thought she might argue with Kartika. Jane looked at me instead. “I concur with this analysis. If you want to test the sword, you can do so with your hand.”

“I trust you women are old enough to know what’s yours and what isn’t.” Mae turned to Kartika. “How do you feel wielding that thing?”

“I knew one day those three black belts would come in handy.” She took the sword and looked it over with a grin.

“They use swords in karate?” I asked.

“Not the only martial art,” Kartika fired back, slicing the air with the blade.

“Are you kidding me?” I asked. “You’ve watched me fart around with the sword, and this whole time you’ve probably known that not only is it your sword, but you actually know how to use it.”

Kartika looked at me and grinned. “You don’t want to tell all your secrets in the first go, now do you?”

"So,” Bianca interjected. “It’s the three of us.”

“That doesn’t make sense, Bianca,” Mae said. “Listen. You can sit at the gates of the cemetery and howl loudly and keep everybody as calm as you can. If you can focus on that, you can do a lot more than if you’re inside fighting for your life against those crazy hungry zombies.”

“So, you’re suggesting it’s going to be you, Kartika, and Helen going into the zombie lair to find out where to put the golden egg? I don’t like the sound of that.” Bianca shook her head.

“We’ve got to figure out the egg,” Mae said. “Let’s take a look at it and see if we can figure it out.”

I brought forth the box that had the egg inside it. I had grown accustomed to its lacquer finish. It had a black outline across each curved edge and a beautiful red rose lacquered pattern all around the inside of the top, as if a bouquet of tiny roses was exploding from it. I held my hands over it and focused my energy on the box lid. Light flooded into the air.

“That’s new,” I said.

“A lot of times as you get to know more about who you truly are, your power becomes greater,” Jane said. “At least that’s what I found was true for me.”

“How’s it going to be finding out your ancestors were assholes?” Bianca asked.

“I don’t think we all had assholes for ancestors. I think maybe they got mixed up in something a little bit messier than we’ve been led to believe, something that’s been handed down through the ages,” I suggested.

“It’s certainly not anything I’ve heard,” Hilda pointed out.

I held the lacquer box out to Mae so she could look inside and see the nested egg.

“It’s perfectly brilliant. Does it weigh much?” she asked.

“It feels as heavy as solid gold.” I ran a finger over the egg. “Or a lead weight. I don’t know exactly what solid gold feel like in that size, but it’s heavy. It’s not hollow.”

“May I touch it?” Mae asked.

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