The Haunted Crib
Bingo. I clap my hands together, giggling. Picking up one of our video cameras, I set it on the dresser and press the record button. Everyone is going to want a copy of this.
The Story of Eros and Clio, a love that spanned multiple lives and thousands of years…
Bingo. I clap my hands together, giggling. Picking up one of our video cameras, I set it on the dresser and press the record button. Everyone is going to want a copy of this.
He nods silently, picking up the next gift and placing it in my lap. I kiss him hard again, not enjoying the silence he is providing. “I mean it, Eros. You are the best father one could ask for.”
“They are coming, Lykos,” I say, looking up at him in panic just as the first contraction starts.
The reason I say it to her so much…I went two thousand years without saying it to her. Then an extra thousand years with my mind wiped and her being trapped in a dagger. So, yeah, I’m going to say I love her at every opportunity.
Today is the day we announce the twins’ genders to the rest of the family, and my anxiety is nibbling at me. The babies squirm in my stomach as I pace the Gardens of Olympus, putting the final touches on our Halloween event.
Smirking, I pad back to bed, placing the golden necklace around Clio’s neck. I lock the clasp before sliding into bed next to her. It is more than just a pretty charm. If she has another episode, it will summon me. And…if I touch my quiver, I can summon her to me, from anywhere in the world.
But that’ll just be our little secret…
Hedone walks forward, lowering to her knees. She gently grabs my hands, her thumb rubbing over my knuckles. “Miteras…what I saw was strength. You came for me, you and Pater. That is great strength.”
Eros looks me up and down. “I want you to realize that you’re trying to change the past. You think you weren’t strong enough, and we lost our daughter.”
I open and close my mouth a few times, looking at him. I…I didn’t realize. Is that really what I am trying to do? Prove that I am strong enough now to protect our unborn children? I look away from him, staying silent.
It is like his eyes are looking into my soul. Impossible, right? I notice the glow around him. His aura is jet black, and it drips onto the floor. Unknown? I’ve never seen this before. I blink a few times, placing my hand on my stomach as one of the twins kicks. Danger.
She wouldn’t put our children in such danger, would she? It’s not just her life, which is already invaluable, but it’s our kids too. How dare she put herself in danger like this? We’re supposed to be married. Share everything. I have no secrets from her. She’s seen me at my darkest. My lowest. She saw me give up. And she kept this from me?
The entire walk has me thinking about tomorrow and what I am to do. I have no plan in place for what I am going to do when I meet L. What if I am captured? A shiver runs down my spine. That is a worse case scenario.
An opening appears, and I push through, Dorothy behind me. We arrive to chaos. People are pushing past one another, attempting to be the lucky ones to get on the lifeboat. I hold the boy closer to me, looking at Dorothy. Her face is not its usual joyful expression, but grim.
The barrette begins to glow, and I feel a strange energy pull at my soul. I try to fight against it, to stay in reality, but this power is stronger than I am. My eyes slowly close, and I slip into the darkness.
With Clio, I can never be sure. It would just be like my unpredictable wife to buy some fish and put them in the bathtub without telling me. She seems determined to turn our floor into a menagerie.
My face flushes red with embarrassment. He knew our children wouldn’t be dinosaurs…right? The doctor looks at my husband oddly, and I shake my head. “He is a special one…”