Page 15 of Flock This

I opened my mouth to tell him yes, he was imposing, but my mother spoke loudly as if she expected me to say something inappropriate. “Please, we’d be happy for you to stay. Right this way.” She waved him forward, and when she turned her back, he gave me the worst ‘I win’ look I’d ever seen, the smug bastard.

My mom made another bowl of food and set it at the spot to my left. Her matchmaking was less than subtle.

He sat, and I took my seat as well.

The conversation I’d wanted, something worthy of what might be my last time seeing them, seemed impossible all of a sudden.

No words came, because what if he used them against me? What if he found something he could twist, something that could end up hurting me or them in the future?

“So what do you do for a living?” my mother asked.

“I’m a bail bondsman.”

I snorted at the oversimplification. He was a hired gun for the vampire council, belonging to no family so he could operate between them.

“Like that handsome bounty hunter on TV?” My mom fanned herself as if his words had brought on a hot flash.

My dad didn’t bat an eyelash, chuckling. Then again, when people were together so long, they didn’t worry about one thinking someone on TV was good-looking. Besides, my father had always been steady, more charmed by my mother than annoyed by her.

“Something like that,” Kelvin said. “Of course, it isn’t as glamorous as they like to make it out.”

“You want to regale her with the story about that time you tracked down that poor delivery girl? The one who was just trying to do her job?”

After I spoke, I realized that as funny as it was, I wasn’t even talking about this time. I was talking about when he’d hauled me before the vampires a few years before over a missing package that, as it turned out, I’d delivered and their precious fledgling vampire had stolen.

“Ah, yes. As I recall, I brought that woman to her accusers safely, so she could clear her name. I also remember that she bit me.”

“And you deserved to be bitten.” At my mother’s sharp look, probably for being rude to a guest at her table, I muttered, “At least, I assume you deserved it. It wasn’t like I was there.”

Kelvin didn’t look sorry, but then again, he never did.

Because he wasn’t a member of any of the families, he had more freedom than others. He was the vampire equivalent of me, with more leeway for his movement and actions because he didn’t have anyone looking over his shoulder.

“Your sister wants you to come to Amy’s party next week,” Mom said, as if trying to steer the conversation back on track.

“I don’t know if that’s possible,” I said, trying to keep things vague, not wanting to give Kelvin anything he didn’t already know.

Though it seemed like he knew a whole fucking lot.

“You have to. Amy was talking about the last time, about when you—”

“I remember,” I snapped, trying to silence her before she said anything.

“What did she do?” Kelvin asked.

“She always dresses up for them,” my mom offered up like the best piece of blackmail. Thanks, Mom. “The type changes, depending on the kid, but I don’t think she’s missed doing a character in the last six years or so! Her nieces and nephews love it.”

“She dresses up?” Kelvin repeated the statement slowly as if it took a second time hearing it to really let it sink in.

“Oh, yes, let me show you!”

“For the love of everything holy, Mom, please do not get the scrapbook.”

But, of course she did, because I had the unfortunate luck of having a mother who actually loved me and was somehow still proud of me.

Which meant ten minutes later, Kelvin snorted at picture after picture of me dressed up as every recent kid’s movie character. The robot from Ryan’s party, the talking kangaroo from Paxton’s—all the big hits were there.

I ate my soup through my pouting, watching Mom and Kelvin become chummy, my dad polishing off his food then starting the dishes.

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