Page 31 (1/2)

"I can&039;t believe you&039;re babysitting me"

"Hey, you didn&039;t have to co around that mausoleum you live in was a much better plan"

"Mom, can I have some more paper?"

Jeannie and Lara Wyndhaht was the first night of the fullwas in four days

Denial? Was that why I was here? Pretending everything was fine and I really was getting married next week? Well, yeah Besides, if Sinclair did show up (or if I was ever able to figure out where he was), I had no plans to walk down the aisle naked

Given that I&039;d been planning htly insane that I&039;d left the dress for so late Not only did it have to be The Dress, but at this stage of the game it needed to require few if any alterations

The florist was taken care of, ditto the reception menu The justice of the peace was booked-he was a friend ofbefore Sinclair had disappeared It was a small civil ceremony, so there&039;d be no rehearsal No bridesner suits for s, all jewel colors

Speaking of jewel colors, Lara was lying on the floor, draith Crayola Sparkly Markers Jeannie was slu And, what came as a pleasant surprise, she wasn&039;t ar not to remember the last tis had been al for the clerk to haul out some dresses

She snorted "I didn&039;t have one The day I ot knocked up with this one" She nodded at her daughter "As far as olves are concerned, that was the wedding"

"Really?" I was interested in spite of my own probleot this thing called The Book of the Dead, which foretold- uh-ured ere married, too Even when I couldn&039;t stand hi"

"Say it twice Anyway, the last thing he wanted was a real wedding with a dress and a caterer and a cake we can&039;t eat"

"Oh And now he&039;s gone?"

"Yeah"

Jeannie was probably a lousy poker player I was grateful she was too tactful to suggest Sinclair hadn&039;t been kidnapped She looked at

"I hope we get this cleared up sooner rather than later," she fretted, shifting in her seat Her shoulder-length hair, nor on frizzy, thanks to the humidity, and she shoved a wad of it behind one ear and crossed her legs "I haven&039;t seen my son in a week"

"Oh? How many kids do you have?"

"Lara here, and hed "Obviously this trip was too dangerous for a toddler"

"Uh" I glanced at Lara, reassuringno attention "Not to tell you your business, but I think it&039;s too dangerous for anybody under thirty"

She smiled thinly "Lara will be the next Pack leader The more she knows about the world before she has to take over, the better"

"Yeah, but-notBut I could tell she didn&039;t like it What must it be like, I wondered, to be a human in the middle of a bunch of olves? In love with your husband and glad enough to have kids with hiht up in a society with completely different rules?

I could so totally relate

"So even though you have a little boy, Lara will-?"

"The ender"

"How refreshing!" And I ot all the breaks

"Yeah But I see where you&039;re going with all this And yeah, I wish I could protect Lara fro But a olf cub isn&039;t like a huhter They&039;re bolder than we are, and faster, matic andwell, crueler, in some ways From the day she was born she was different than any huene"