Page 18 of House of Kallan
The assholes of Silence behind this were either incredibly brilliant or stupid beyond reason. I shuddered at the outcome of either possibility.
Case in point was that these little cocooned creatures seemed to respond to Suzanne’s question. Before our eyes, one pair of wings split open, and a child peeked out. They looked at us with big eyes. I was stunned speechless, but Suzanne said, “There you are,” and their eyes locked on hers. I could nearly see their recognition.This is my mother.
That was enough that the feathers fell away, and a mostly recognizable shape emerged, laying in the fluff of feathers. Except that now we could see that those feathers were in a very familiar pattern. Wings.
“Oh,” Suzanne said. “Look at you! You’re remarkable.”
An entire team of nurses and doctors flocked into the room at that point. Just in time to witness the spectacular unveiling of the other three newborns.
Their wings were all identical, but their bodies were lined with some spectacular colors in various patterns. The patterns didn’t look like they were happenstance, but definitely intentional. As if they meant something. Denoted something.
Suzanne looked between them with wide eyes, her lips parted. All four of these little boys stared at their mother. Waiting? She shifted slightly and pulled the little beds closer.Then she looked up at me. “Help me hold them all, Miss Tatum?”
I nodded. “Sit back. Let’s get you situated first.”
A nurse raised the head of her bed so Suzanne could be more upright, mindful of her stitches and that she had her body cut open not long ago. After she was settled with blankets and pillows, I moved back to the newborns.
“Can I bring you to your mother?” I asked. I wasn’t expecting a response, and I didn’t get one. However, like Shadow, I was pretty sure they understood what I was asking, and therefore, it was better to communicate and ask permission than it was to treat them as helpless.
The truth of the matter was, we didn’t know what these newly created species were capable of. Their instincts tended to keep them docile, but if they felt threatened, who knew what would happen.
Carefully, I picked up the one that opened his eyes first. While I had him in my hands and crossed the room, I spoke to the nurses about the observations I could make. Primarily, he was all in one piece. All four limbs and five digits for each appendage. He appeared human-shaped, but with the addition of wings.
Setting him in Suzanne’s arms, I brought her the second boy. Then the third. And somehow, we managed to fit the fourth within her hold.
I tried not to get emotionally invested in a lot of the residents we brought in, but I stood back and watched Suzanne talk gently to them. As if they were little people who understood her instead of newborns barely capable of breathing. Her smile was reminiscent of any new, proud mother. I loved this image and burned it into my mind forever.
These women—those like Suzanne—were a remarkable breed all their own. Able to look beyond the horror that they’d lived through and be presented with offspring that were entirelynot human and loved them anyway. There was no doubt in my mind that she was absolutely in awe of them.
Not wanting to disturb her moment, I quietly backed out of the room, leaving them to bond as any new parent should. This was a good thing. A good experience. It had the potential to go so poorly, but nothing did.
Keeping the good, positive energy flowing through me, I headed down the hall toward Sadie’s room. Not that I could necessarily blame her, but even weeks later, she was just as horrified of the infant that clawed his way out as she had been when she arrived. There was no progress, and I was coming to terms with the idea that she might not mentally recover from this.
The door was already open, and I knew what I’d see before I even stepped inside. I sighed, shaking my head, despite the smile that tipped the corners of my lips.
Sure enough, when I stood in the doorway, I found the scene I knew I would. Sadie was tucked into the corner of her bed as far away from the infant as she could get, looking on with wide, fear-filled eyes.
On the opposite side of the room was Tyrus, holding the mini monster in his arms. The oni was fucking enamored and nothing anyone said could convince him to stay away. There were attempts, but let’s be honest here. For a being that can move through shadows, there was no keeping him out.
Instead, we worked with him, telling him he could come visit the baby any time he wanted as long as he abided by a couple rules. One, it had to be between the hours of eight am and eight pm. Two, the door had to remain wide open at all times that he was here. Three, he could not take the baby out of the room, never mind out of the building.
Tyrus had readily agreed. I’d personally spoken to Iker, his husband and the head of his house, to let him know the rules in place so that he could ensure that Tyrus abided by them. He was very apologetic, but I could also hear the resignation in them.
His demon had become instantly attached to this child. There was no keeping him away. I wasn’t sure what that meant in the long run, but as I glanced at Sadie again, I could guess where this might go.
Stepping into the room, I stopped at Sadie’s side and sat in the chair next to the bed. “How do you feel, Sadie?”
“Fine,” she said. Her eyes met mine for a brief second before staring at the other side of the room again.
This close, I could see that her fear was mixed with resentment and disgust. There would be no happy family here. Unlike the weird ass nonsupernatural systems in place, we would never try to force the issue. Supernaturals knew that the best place for a child wasn’t with a biological parent who wanted nothing to do with them, where they weren’t safe, where they weren’t a first priority, and where their best interest wasn’t always considered. I wasn’t sure why that was such a hard concept to accept among all species, but here we are.
That didn’t mean we wouldn’t try to get her to overcome her fear. However, I had already marked her chart to not try to push it too far. If it was just fear, we could work with that. But everything else boiling in her wasn’t a healthy place for that child. Or for Sadie.
“Do you need anything?” I asked.
She shook her head. “When can I leave?”
“Whenever you want,” I said. “Will you be taking your son?”
