Her sister shrugged. “I thought she had a right to know.”
“Well now she’s in London and wants to see us, and we live with a vampire, five dragons, and a Native American healer you raised from the dead!”
“Don’t forget Clarissa and Nick.” Raven spread her hands and giggled.
“This isn’t funny, Raven. What are we going to do?”
Gabriel entered her room, looking concerned. “Why is everyone yelling?”
Avery pointed a finger at Raven. “Thanks to your wife, Sarah Tanglewood and her never-before-used passport is, at this very moment, at Heathrow Airport having a coffee and waiting for us to pick her up.”
Gabriel’s black eyes widened. “No!”
“Yes.” Avery raised her eyebrows. “We need to find Nathaniel. We’ll have to ask to borrow Emory to go pick her up.”
“Pick her up? Are you insane? She can’t come here!” Now Raven seemed to get it. She stabbed a finger toward her flat abdomen. “I’m supposed to be pregnant. And what about Charlie?” Raven looked over her shoulder toward the hall and their room where little Charlie was baking cozily in the fireplace within a dragon’s eggshell.
Gabriel frowned but wrapped a supportive arm around his mate. “We can have the oreads watch Charlie,” he said. “But perhaps the best option is to not bring your mother to Mistwood at all. This place is… Well, it may be hard to disguise its magical qualities.”
“What am I supposed to do? Leave her at the airport?” Avery asked. A knot had formed between her shoulder blades, and suddenly the cut on her chest was throbbing like a bitch.
“Has she actually seen Raven?” Gabriel’s eyes darted back and forth between them. “Can you tell her we’ve left town?”
Avery poked her tongue into her cheek and shook her head. “If you think for a second that I’m going to entertain Mom all by myself this week and make up lie after lie for you, you are crazy. I can’t do it, and it’s wrong for you to ask me to. Shove a pillow under your shirt, or better yet, use your magic to look pregnant. I don’t care. But you are going to face her with me.”
Nathaniel strode into the doorway. “You three are about as subtle as a brick through the front window. There’s no need for raised voices.”
“Have you heard—?”
“Everyone in the house has heard, Avery.” He picked a stray thread off his sleeve. “No one is leaving anyone at the airport. I’ve called Emory. He will take you and Raven to Heathrow to retrieve your mother and bring her back here. Gabriel will stay with Charlie for now. Tell your mother he stayed behind to allow more room in the car. I will ask Tobias, Sabrina, Alexander, Maiara, Nick, and Rowan to use this time to take a short holiday to simplify things. The rest of us can pass as human for a few days. We do it every day in public.”
Avery winced. “Will the others be okay with making themselves scarce? I feel terrible kicking them out of their rooms.”
Nathaniel gave a little nod. “I think it’s best for everyone involved.”
Avery locked eyes with Raven before reluctantly nodding her agreement. “I guess we’re doing this. Let’s go get Mom.”
By the time the two sisters arrived at Heathrow and loaded their mother’s luggage into the car, Raven had used her magic to create an illusion of pregnancy. Their mother raved over Raven’s empty belly while Avery rolled her eyes and mimicked her from behind. By God, their mom acted as if she hadn’t seen her in years rather than a few months. Avery intentionally chose the front passenger seat next to Emory and made Raven take the back with her. She’d always hated lying to her mom. This way Raven would be on the spot to answer questions.
“This Nathaniel, he’s Gabriel’s brother?” Mom asked from behind her.
Avery glanced over the seat at her sister.
Raven smiled. “Yes. He has a home in Oxfordshire. It’s a bit of a drive. If you’re tired, I understand if you want to nap until we get there. There will be plenty of time for us to talk later.”
“Nap? Never. This is my first time to England!” She gave an excited sigh and stared out the window. “Why is it I hadn’t heard about Gabriel’s brother Nathaniel before you both came here? Was he too busy to travel to the states for the wedding?”
Raven nodded. “He owns a bookstore in London. It’s hard for him to get away.”
She nodded slowly and tapped her chin. “But Gabriel owns Blakemore’s Antiques, and he’s okay with an extended visit?”
Avery lifted an eyebrow and gave Raven a make-something-up-fast glare.
“Gabriel hadn’t seen his brother in a number of years.” Raven smoothed her skirt as if the subject made her slightly uncomfortable. So far she hadn’t lied—precisely. Gabriel hadn’t seen Nathaniel in centuries. “He wanted a chance to become reacquainted. Plus Nathaniel is recently engaged. We wanted to help with the arrangements, considering we were just married ourselves.”
“Engaged,” Sarah exclaimed, clapping her hands together. “How wonderful. Love is in the air.”
Avery cleared her throat. “His fiancée is a singer recording her first indie album. She actually offered me a job as her personal assistant.”
Out of the corner of her eye, Avery watched her mother’s smile fade and her lips thin. “That sounds exciting, although would it be fair to take a position short term? You know, when you do come home, I’d love to give you more managerial experience at the Three Sisters. It’s long past time I promoted you.”
Avery tugged at her seat belt. “That would be great,” she said weakly. It wouldn’t be great. It would be a life sentence. If she learned to run the Three Sisters, she would definitely be expected to take the bar and grill over from her mother, just as her mother had taken it over from their grandmother. The Three Sisters had been in the Tanglewood family since before Louisiana was a state.
“Um, Mom,” Raven interrupted, seeming to sense Avery’s discomfort. “How are things with you?”
“Oh well…” She waved a hand dismissively. “Your father has been around a lot. He was absolutely destroyed when that Charlotte just up and left him like she did. I mean, the letter was so cold, and the way she just abandoned you in Sedona, Avery, it was all… just odd. He’s heartbroken. I finally convinced him to box up her things and give them to charity.”
“She was a nutjob,” Avery said. “He dodged a bullet, believe me.”
“Yes, I think we all know that.” She shook her head. “But since she’s been gone, he comes to see me every day. You know David… he can’t be alone. To tell you the truth, I needed this trip just to get away from him.” She laughed a little, and Avery’s heart broke.
Aborella, posing as Charlotte, had put her father under her spell and made him believe she loved him. The fairy had tried to use the same magic on her, but it hadn’t worked as well. When they vanquished the evil bitch months ago, Avery never thought of what her absence would mean for her father. She was sure it was confusing, like a part of his life was completely gone.
For a long time, they traveled in silence until Emory cleared his throat. Avery turned her head to see Raven conveniently knock her purse onto the floor.