Page 19 of Pregnancy Pains & Mystic Chains
I froze mid-chew, phyllo dough flaking onto my shirt. "The babies were hungry," I mumbled around my mouthful.
“They’re always hungry,” Nana countered. “Where’s the feta?”
Mythia produced a bowl of feta with a theatrical flutter of wings that sent more rainbow refractions dancing across the walls. “Maybe we should put this one out of your reach," she teased me. "At least until everyone fills their plate."
“I’m sure there is more in the fridge,” I replied as I made room for Stella.
Everyone converged on the kitchen island then and began filling their plates. The warm aromas of oregano, garlic, and fresh-baked phyllo dough wrapped around us. Nina squeezed in next to me, hip-checking me gently away from the spanakopita. Selene was still muttering about magical theory while spooning tzatziki onto her plate. Mom swatted Aidon's hand away from the baklava. "That's for dessert!"
Nana cackled at his shocked expression and beamed at Mom. “You show that god who’s boss, Mollie.”
Aidon quirked a brow and shot me a look. I smiled at him and continued eating. It was chaos, but the good kind. The kind that meant home and safety and love. Mythia darted overhead with more serving bowls. The triplets seemed to settle contentedly as I filled my belly with all my favorites. Their usual acrobatics calmed to gentle movements.
"Can someone pass the dolmades?" I called out, watching as three different hands reached for them at once. This was how dinner should be. Noisy, messy, and absolutely perfect.
"Oh!" Stella brightened as her phone rang, grabbing it with a grin. She'd been checking it every few minutes, waiting for Todd's call. "That should be Todd saying he's picked up the kids from soccer practice.”
But something changed in her face as she answered. The warm anticipation draining away so fast it made my tattoo pulse with warning. Her smile crumpled at whatever she heard on the other end.
"Wait, what's—" Stella's voice cut off, her fingers whitening around the phone. "When? ... Hold on, let me put you on speaker."
I exchanged worried looks with Mom. Todd was supposed to be bringing their kids for a family dinner night. Nina was looking forward to practicing spells with Charlie and Reece later. Something must be very wrong.
Todd's voice filled the kitchen. His tension was evident even through the phone's speaker. "The station got a call about suspicious activity at Mrs. Stavros's place on Maple. I responded after Stella shared with me earlier that she was magical. When I got here..." He paused, and I felt my skin prickle with foreboding. "She's dead. And Stella, there are symbols carved everywhere. They resemble Phoebe's mark."
The room went silent except for the steady thrum of my magical tattoo. Mom set down her oven mitts with the kind of careful deliberation that meant she was trying very hard to stay calm. Aidon looked like he was ready to blow something up.
"When did this happen?" Stella asked.
"The neighbor called it in about an hour ago. Said she heard weird noises and saw lights. I've cleared the scene of regular officers. They think it's a normal break-in gone bad, but..."
"We'll be right there," I said as I stuffed my feet into my slip-ons.
"I'm coming with you," Aidon informed me. His power crackled around him like a Tesla coil that was about to go nuclear.
“Me too,” Nana announced as she climbed off her stool.
I shook my head. "Stay here with Nina. We don't know if this is a trap." I headed for the door. Walking while pregnant with triplets was more of a determined waddle.
"Mom—" Nina started to protest.
"No arguments," I cut her off, channeling my best mom-voice. I turned to face her. "Stella and I will check it out first. The rest of you stay alert. If anything feels off – and I mean anything – call us."
"Take this," Selene pressed a crystal into my hand. It hummed against my palm like a tuning fork. "It'll mask your magical signature. You know, just in case someone's trying to collect pregnant ladies with weird tattoos."
"Your timing with dark humor really needs work," I told her as I tucked the crystal into my pocket.
Twenty minutes later, Aidon pulled up to a large Victorian that screamed ‘magical practitioner lives here’ in about twelve different languages. To normal people, it would look abandoned. Maybe even slightly creepy. To magical eyes, the place practically vibrated with disturbed energy. Police cars lined thestreet. Their lights painted everything in alternating slices of red and blue.
Todd met us at the yellow crime scene tape in his pristine uniform. His face was grim as he lifted the tape for us. "Thanks for coming. I knew this was our kind of weird as soon as I walked in."
"Good thinking, sweetie. We just saw her at the hospital earlier. This is so unreal," Stella said as we followed him up the front walk.
"It's..." Todd ran a hand through his hair, messing up his perfect appearance. He and Stella were like Barbie and Ken but in a good way. "You need to see it. Nothing's touched downstairs. There was no forced entry, no signs of struggle. But upstairs..." He shook his head, his face grim. "Someone wanted to leave a message."
My gut twisted into a knot, and I clasped Aidon's hand as we entered. The front hall looked normal enough, but everything felt wrong. It was like walking into a room where someone had just popped all the balloons at a birthday party. Whatever protective spells Mrs. Stavros had maintained were now broken and unstable. Fragments of her magic sparked like dying sparklers.
"Something tore through these wards like tissue paper," Stella murmured as she touched one wall.
