Page 18 of The Monster's Mate

“Oh, good, I won’t worry about her then,” Isabel says. “Here, take my key. You can bring it to me later when you get home.” She hands me a strange metal object.

“Good for you two,” River says, waggling her hairy brows.

“I hope you will figure out a way to bring her home. She belongs with us,” Maman says, and that makes everyone go quiet.

A rustle comes from Lucy’s bedroom, and I know she’s headed into the bathroom to clean herself up before meeting the others.

“Good news,” Maman says as soon as Lucy makes an appearance. “Mikhail is nearly here to pick us up, but you won’t be alone, my daughter. I leave with you”—she waves her hands with a flourish toward me— “my precious son.”

Lucy’s jaw drops.

A moment of panic hits me. Doesn’t she want me? Was she hoping for just one experience? Sure, I’d teased about that interspecies kiss, but perhaps she’d decided a Pimeon was a notch in her belt. A one and done.

“Not forever,” I rush to explain. “But I will make sure you’re safe for a few days. In case anyone has gotten wind that you’ve had guests.”

“Oh, okay,” she says, and her smile is somewhat relieved. Just like that, my stress melts away.

A light flashing on the com box lets us know Mikhail has arrived. His ship is cloaked so we wait until we hear a rap on the glass. River slides it open, and his image appears when she does.

“How was your vacation day?” Mikhail asks. “I’m sorry I had to cut it short. I’d hoped to give you another day, but your mates are struggling without you.” His benevolent smile makes the ladies titter.

“I hope we can do it again? Now that we’ve gotten to meet Lucy, we want to keep in touch,” Maman says.

“Yes, once things settle down a bit. There’s a political uprising going on here, so we need to lay low.”

“Politics?” I ask. “Isn’t Lilaina the first lady?”

“Yes. But there’s always an uprising to overthrow that. A crowd who thinks a woman isn’t enough and needs to have a strong man there instead.”

Lucy has gone quiet.

“The man they’re preparing to run against her is gaining in popularity so we’re working on what to do about that,” Mikhail continues. “In the meantime, we’ll need to make sure people don’t realize that Lucy and Isabel aren’t two different people living in this house.”

“Can we make sure she has food at least monthly, so she doesn’t have to go out to market and expose herself?” Isabel asks.

Mikhail nods. “We will keep an eye on her.”

I’m not sure but I think Lucy looks a little wary. I’m not sure why unless she values her privacy. Or perhaps it’s because she goes out so rarely she values each excursion, even going to market.

“Well, let’s get you back to where you belong,” Mikhail says. “Make your goodbyes and then you can follow me out.”

Maman heads to Lucy, cups her face in her hands, and presses her forehead to hers. “You will always be my daughter. And though I may seem far away, remember I am not.”

And then River hugs Lucy. “You’ll be fine, Luce. We’ll find a way to come back and visit, okay?”

And then Bel hugs her friend and the tears stream down Lucy’s face. She will really miss Isabel.

“I’ll think about you every single day.”

“Same,” Lucy says.

As soon as the four head outside, their images waver and disappear. Lucy’s jaw drops as she stares.

“Mikhail has the entire back area cloaked,” I say. “So that no one knows a Britonian pod landed. But they have to leave quickly in case someone decides to take a walk and bumps into the pod when they can’t see it.” I can’t help but wind my tentacle around her waist, offering her comfort when she is so down.

“Sorry,” she says wiping her cheeks with the backs of her hands. “I didn’t think it would be this hard to say goodbye.”

I know I will do everything in my power to stay or find a way to get her to Pimeon so she’ll never have to be alone. For now, the best I can do is distract her from her misery. “Look,” I say. “Watch your back patio.”

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