Gods and Monsters (24 page)

“We’ll explore those later,” Belus said to her either to make her feel better or just to keep her from outright breaking into tears. “Now, what happened after you made your wish.”

58

Ethan listened to Cori retell her last days, and from what he gathered, it hadn’t been much more pleasant than her days past in this reality. She muddled through her description of her last moments with her mother, but he knew she was only skimming the details so she didn’t break down during her recitation of the events.

She explained the immediate suspicion she received from him, Danato, and Belus. She described the strange woman that had taken her place and tried to kill her to prevent her from returning the world to the way it was. She described the resulting fight and final blows. Ethan could tell there was much more to know about her time there, but most of it was probably private, and not necessary for her report.

When her summation landed them back to the here and now, Belus looked to Danato. He shrugged, “I’m satisfied if you are.”

“Anything else?” Belus asked her.

She cleared her throat. “There were a few strange things about how you and Danato reacted to my presence.” Cori looked between the two men, but neither of them reacted to the statement. “I suppose that’s not really relevant to my report though.”

“In regards to those many safety protocols that had you being questioned and examined by us in that world, you should know that we aren’t any more lenient in this reality. We will require that you stay in the infirmary for another night for tests and observation.”

Ethan didn’t feel himself standing, but suddenly he was up. Belus eyed him carefully, waiting for the objection. “She is not spending another night in this prison. She has been through enough.”

Belus didn’t bother to respond, he just stared back at him. It was far more irritating. “Danato?” Ethan looked to his superior expecting him to be on his side, but his arms were crossed tightly and his head was focused on the floor.

“Cori has had interactions with a very powerful being, we should be sure that she is herself.”

“I told you, I would not let her spend one more night in this prison,” Ethan bristled, but Cori touched his hand. He looked down at her and she kissed his palm, before cupping it over her cheek.

“It’s okay, Ethan. They aren’t going to hurt me. You know that. I know that. Belus might ask the nurse’s to use dull needles, but that’s all.” She smiled trying to ease his discontent.

“I just want you safe and sound at home, in my arms,” he said.

“That’s what Belus is ensuring,” she whispered.

Ethan sat back down and slipped his hand in hers. He didn’t like being without her, but for some strange reason everyone had decided to follow the rules with Belus. Considering he was usually the one going by the book, he was starting to wonder what he had missed.

“Oh!” Cori’s epiphany startled him. “I have a hole in my brain, three actually.”

“What?” They all asked simultaneously.

“They did a PET scan and found a few vacancies in my psychic trifecta. Neither of you seemed to know what it was. I thought maybe it might have something to do with the block Cleos put on me.”

Danato and Belus exchanged baffled looks. “We’ll take another tonight,” Belus said. “Hopefully it was just an anomaly from the rings interfering with the wish. Anything else?”  

Cori glanced around at each of them before answering. “There is one more thing.”

“There usually is,” Belus mumbled.

Cori took Ethan’s hand in hers. “When they were doing the tests, they found something else.” The somber tone in her voice made his heart clench. His first thought was Cori’s family history of cancer. “I guess…I’m pregnant.”

He exhaled trying to find the right reaction for the sentiment he was feeling. For a moment, he just stared blankly at her. Her face soured, and she drew her hand away from his. He glanced to Danato, for his reaction, and he found the man beaming. Had Ethan not been in his way, he was certain he would have already scooped Cori up in his arms and spun her around. Belus even had a smile on his face that he was doing his best to hide.

“Ethan,” Danato shook him from his vacuous thoughts, “Say something.”

Ethan looked back at Cori. She looked shattered by his non-reaction. He couldn’t muster the strength to stand and twirl her as Danato would in countless seconds. All he could do was slip off the bed to his knees and bury his face in her lap.

Cori naturally started to pet his head and when he looked at her through stinging eyes, she frowned. “Tell me this makes you happy,” Ethan said drawing her hands to his lips to kiss them.

“Yes,” she stated with a small smile not unlike Belus’s.

He touched her belly, but so far nothing was different. A thought occurred to him and he stood up. “We need to check the baby! You lost a lot of blood, plus the trauma!”

“The baby is fine.” Cori stood and pressed her hands to his shoulders. “Nevia confirmed that I’m about two months along. I trust her.”

He calmed considerably since he also trusted Nevia, but he now had a new number in mind. Not nine months, but seven. In just over two seasons he was going to be a father. “Belus,” Ethan cornered him before he could escape the festivities. “We need to warn the nurses. She’s going to need an ultrasound and pre-natal vitamins.”

“Easy sport,” Belus said, “let’s just get through one day without panic, shall we.”

“But we aren’t prepared for a baby.”

Belus smirked, “Speak for yourself.” He nodded back to Danato who had finally scooped Cori up into his arms.

Ethan watched the burly man weep over the news just as he had a moment ago. He assumed it was all from joy, but when he nearly dropped Cori and reached for his cane, he thought otherwise.

“Danato!” Ethan rushed over to help him. “What is it?”

“Too long of a night,” he said waving him and Cori away. “I should get home and rest. You two probably want some time together. Belus will hold off on the tests until later.” Belus gave a disinterested nod and held the door open for Danato to pass through. 

When they were gone, Ethan kissed Cori the way he wanted to from the moment he walked in the room.

59

Danato rested against the glass wall near the nurse’s station while Belus found a nurse to help him. He returned with a large chested, giggling blonde. She eyed Danato woefully before raising her needle and instructing him to lower his trousers. With a quick swab of alcohol, a prick of the needle, and a wink for Belus she was back to her work in one of the labs.

“Why do you get all the winks?” Danato grumbled as he tried to walk again.

“Because I’m reliable and funny.”

“I don’t remember you ever being funny.” Danato smirked at him.

“That’s because you have no sense of humor.” Belus smirked back. “How are you doing?”

“It’s coming along. You mind walking me home.”

“That bad?” Belus stopped in his tracks. If Danato gave the word, he would call the nurse to bring him a wheelchair.

“No, I mean yes, but...I thought we could have a drink.” Danato wasn’t sure what thought had passed through Belus’s mind at that moment, but he could have guessed. The discomfort was there and gone. “Unless you promised that voluptuous young woman your time,” Danato added in case he wanted to make an excuse to get out of it.

Belus glanced back at the door the nurse had passed through. “She’ll keep. We should probably talk about what just happened in there anyway.”

“Which part?” Danato raised his brow.

Belus scoffed. “Take your pick. Fuck she’s a pain in the ass.”

Danato couldn’t help laughing, but only because he knew that Belus was just as fond of Cori as he was.

Danato let Belus pick the liquor, partially because he didn’t want to move from his chair. Belus paused in front of the cupboard for a long time, before he pulled out a cognac that was half gone. He recognized it instantly. 

Belus paused holding it in view, as if he were waiting for an objection. When he didn’t give one, Belus poured a shot’s worth for each of them. They raised the glasses and clinked them. Neither of them offered a toast, but they already knew what they were drinking too.

After they gulped down the swallow, Belus put the bottle back and pulled out a less expensive bottle of rum. He poured them each a half glass and settled himself on the couch to sip the drink.

Danato imagined that he might have stayed silent for hours, if he didn’t have so much on his mind to discuss. As it was it took nearly ten minutes for him to speak. “What was that back there?”

“Care to be more specific?” Danato asked poking his cane at a fallen log in the fire.

“The part where you just threw the reigns at me.”

“Cori is your responsibility now, isn’t that what we decided?”

“Yes, that’s what we decided, but we both know that you were never comfortable with that arrangement. It’s unfair to Cori to be bounced around like this: me to you, good guy you to bad guy you, and back to me again. She isn’t a natural soldier like Ethan.”

“I agree. That’s why I’m giving you the reigns, or back the reigns. I’m done trying to be her slaver and her savior.”

“We’ve had this conversation before, Danato. What’s different this time around?”

“A lot and nothing. I walked into that room today with a measure of control on my anger per Jordan’s request. Which I’m glad she made, since Cori is likely to think twice about raising a child around a cantankerous ill-tempered old man.” Danato smiled again thinking about a baby coming into the house. “I sat down next to her to talk. I moved my hand to brush her hair from her face, and she recoiled.”

Danato took a drink and thought about that moment, and how offended and hurt he was by her reaction. Since it was an honest reflex, he only had himself to blame for losing her trust.

“I don’t want to be that man, Belus,” Danato mumbled staring into the fire. “I don’t know where it all went wrong…I mean…I do, but…”

“Cori’s been through a lot, the past couple of days,” Belus offered.

“I would never hurt her. As angry as I’ve ever been, I would break my own hand before I would allow that.”

“She knows that.”

“No, she knew that, but everything has gotten confused.”

“She is still to blame for a good amount of that confusion,” Belus pointed out.

“Yes, but I am to blame for her. I’m not saying you shouldn’t do as you see fit to amend her…character flaws, but I am saying that you should bear in mind that I let things get this far, and it’s not her fault that I lost focus with her the minute she was no longer going to be my successor.”

Belus poured himself another quarter glass of rum and leaned over his knees on the couch examining the liquor. “We’ve got seven very long months ahead of us: elementals, baby proofing, and trying to avoid an audit—which most likely isn’t going to happen,” Belus grumbled. Danato nodded. “I better get back in there, before Ethan tries to break her out. I’m starting to think you’re relinquishing your authority, just to ease your workload.”

Danato smiled broadly. “Damn right. I’ve got to make myself available to babysit.”

Belus chuckled and swallowed down his drink. “You need anything?” He motioned to his leg, but Danato shook his head. “You know it’s only going to get worse?”

“It’ll be worth it.”

“If you say so.” Belus looked down at his leg. “I’m not sure a wheelchair isn’t in your future seven months from now.”

“It’ll still be worth it,” Danato reiterated. Belus may not have agreed, but there wasn’t much he could do about it. By this point, the only hope to reduce the pain in his leg was amputation and he wasn’t that desperate yet.

60

Cori jerked up from her hospital bed gasping for air and clasping at her throat. “Easy kid.” She heard from the corner of the darkened room.

“Belus?” She focused on his shadow as her eyes adjusted to the night lighting in the infirmary. There was a distant light at the nurse’s terminal, but otherwise, it was dark.

“Nightmares?” he asked moving over to the bed.

She nodded covering her face. “Fresh ones.” The words came out muffled, but she didn’t move her hands. She could feel him sit down on the bed next to her. “I’m okay,” she said sniffling.

“Sure, kid.” He tugged back her hands, and she rested them on her lap. “You want to talk about it? Sometimes it loosens the dream feeders grip.”

“I killed her Belus,” she said wiping away her tears. “I’ve never intentionally killed anyone, but she killed you and she was killing me, so I stabbed her.”

“Yeah, you always do get bent out of shape when someone kills me.”

“It’s not funny, Belus.” She pulled her blanket back up to cover her. “What are you doing here? It’s the middle of the night.”

“Checking in on you.”

“You should be sleeping. Sleep is good when you can get it.” Cori yawned and rolled over and huddled into her blankets. Her eyes dropped shut, but Belus didn’t get the hint.