Page 8 of The Banning of Bath Bombs
“I know how that feeling well. Mine are also a handful. Ross takes better care of them than I ever could.”
“My children are wonderful,” Declan murmured. “But they keep trying to take my books and stop me from buying more! They say they will not fit, but I know better. Well, I resorted to hiding the fact I keep buying books. It never works, mind you. They dislike my resourcefulness, you see. Especially my daughter, Kassandra. Oh, she’s a sentient library, you know—one who throws books at my head! Howdareshe—”
Glenn cut Declan’s tirade short with an elbow to his side, just a gentle nudge. “Do you remember the songs from centuries ago? I remember many, but some are simply various snippets, but rarely in their entirety.” He began singing a tune Ross had heard him hum on occasion.
Declan gasped. “Wait, you know this song?! I wrote down what I could of the lyrics ages ago, but I could never remember the last part. Do you?”
This was an age-old problem with the older generation of vampires and supernats. They’d lived centuries, but music came and went. Of course, in the past, there was no such thing as recording. They often walked around with snippets of a tune in their head and no hope of ever remembering how the rest of the song went.
Glenn possessed a pleasant singing voice, so he started the tune, which made Declan incredibly happy, as he started singing along. They were two men enjoying a nostalgic moment.
It was honestly sweet to witness. Ross rose from his chair, deciding that if they were going to be cute and all, he might as well come in closer and enjoy the scene. Why not get a good story out of it if there was going to be random craziness in the house, right?
Hopefully, they could get Declan back to his family without any further incidents.
Such thoughts felt like tempting fate, and Ross made a gesture to ward off bad luck. Then did it again for good measure.
Hopefully, he was just being paranoid.
Chapter 3
Ivan
Now, Ivan knew for a fact he was home alone. His darling husband was at work, and their daughter Anna was at a sleep over, so he should be quite alone in the house.
Except, y’know, thesplishy splashycoming from his master bathroom said otherwise.
Ivan couldn’t fathom how any such sounds could occur when that particular bathroom hadn’t been used since a steamy shower session with Aiden last night. But he’d heard distinct water sounds. Having been friends with Glenn and company for years, he knew the world was not as it seemed on the surface, so wild shit could definitely happen.
Were there bathroom shenanigans in the world of magic?
Ivan decided caution was due, so he retreated enough to pick up his Glock, slipped an earbud into his ear, and called K. Let’sface it, if shit went down, he’d need someone to call in the right person for the job, and he didn’t know who that was—yet. Or if he even needed backup.
K sounded grumbly as he answered, “What, Ivan?”
“I have odd predicament. Is age-old question, da? Do you really want to know what the weird sound is behind the bathroom door?”
“Ivan, if you’re trying to be cryptic, congrats, you’ve succeeded. What the hell are you on about?”
“I do not know what this is yet, hence why I call. I am home alone, but my bathroom is making sloshing noises.”
A long pause. “Did you leave the bathtub full?”
“Njet, no one has taken a bath in a week, just showers.”
“Okay, first, I’m so proud of you for calling me and not just opening the door. It shows amazing growth on your part.”
Ivan snickered quietly. “I can make responsible choices.”
“Lies. Lies and slander. All right, you armed?”
“Da, with Glock. I open door now.”
“I’m poised to send in help depending on what you see next.”
He grunted and eased the bathroom door fully open, Glock coming up.
Only to stop dead.
