"Open the damn portal then go home!" she pointed to the blank wall of her chambers.
"I am never appreciated," he sighed. "I may hide out in Storm Keep for a bit. Allia Li'Aerlin wants to 'train'. She's been a bear to work with since she wasn't able to send her brother any troops, if she finds out I opened a portal to Noctem Falls she'll attack me in my sleep," he groused.
Laelia and Radclyffe were fighting back laughter as they walked over to stand next to Serenity.
"Allia and Ailain both spoil you since we're the next set of twins born after them in Eiré Danu," Serenity pointed out.
He rolled his eyes. "Being nearly three hundred isn't very old in the paranormal world, but in Eiré Danu it's a thousand times worse. I feel like a damn toddler."
"You are one of the youngest in a city of immortals," Serenity teased.
Zach gave her a flat look before opening the pouch at his waist to pull out a silver ring. "Her Majesty appreciates your attempts to protect her by keeping her out of this venture. That being said, she lent me this ring. It should open a portal directly to the Ledge of Noctem Falls. When the portal opens it will also bypass the spell that hides the door and open it for you. To pass through the portal you have to be a witch. I think it scans for magic to prove you're a healer." His handsome face sobered. "Be careful Seri. Don't hesitate to call if you need help. I'll chance going through the portal with my meager magical abilities to get to you."
Serenity hugged her brother tightly. "Love you."
He gave her one last squeeze and stepped back. "Love you too. Have fun breaking the law."
She gave him a salute then turned to face the wall. Zach slipped on the ring and opened the portal. "Gods' blessings be on you all," he whispered as they walked through.
*****
Micah thought that if Pip's eyes widened anymore they would simply fall out of his head. The poor boy had no idea how to take Meryn. Currently she was trying to get him to sit next to her in a chair. Micah looked around the dining room. "Where's Sebastian?"
Ryuu lifted Pip from where he was kneeling on the floor and sat him next to Meryn. "He is checking on Magnus." He looked down at the young vampire. "Sit next to Meryn if you would please. It would hurt her back to keep leaning down to look at you," he explained gently.
Pip's eyes filled with understanding. "I would not want to hurt Meryn." Of course he would sit next to Meryn for her own sake, not because he wanted to sit on the furniture. "The servants in my father's home usually put my bowl on the floor," he explained.
"They what?" a terribly cold voice asked. Micah was shocked to see that the question came from the normally pleasant Sebastian.
The Rioux squire walked into the room to stand behind Meryn and Pip. "Who is this?" he asked.
Meryn pointed to her new friend. "This is Pip, DeLaFontaine was his sperm donor. As you heard, he's done a bang up job of taking care of him." She looked up at the squire her eyes pleading. "He's hungry Sebastian."
Sebastian inhaled and looked down at the innocent face staring up at him. "Well, we cannot have that can we? Give me a few minutes to throw something together."
Meryn gave him a thumbs up. Pip held up his hand and curled his fingers down to give the squire a thumbs up sign as well. Sebastian patted them both on the head and quickly headed to the kitchen.
Meryn sighed. "Being hungry sucks."
Micah had a feeling she wasn't just referring to the annoying rumbling you get between breakfast and lunch. The look in her eye told a darker story.
Pip nodded. "It makes it hard to sleep."
"Even though you're tired and want to sleep your body keeps telling you to eat," Nigel said quietly.
Meryn looked at the twins that sat on her other side. "You too?"
Neil smiled weakly. "Sometimes there wasn't a lot of food at the orphanage, so we gave ours to the little kids."
Micah could only stare. His childhood hadn't been all roses and puppies but his grandmother made sure he had never gone without.
Meryn shook her head as if to chase away her thoughts. "Yup. But we don't have to worry about that now. We have Ryuu and Sebastian to feed us."
The twins smiled. "They rock!"
Pip turned to the witches. "Do you belong to Meryn too?"
Nigel laughed. "She adopted us as her brothers."