Page 77 of Death Dance

“Perhaps that dress she wore when she visited her father with you for the first time? She is stunning in it. Her gown need not be white. It needs to match her spirit and brilliance, which it does.”

I perked up at the thought of wearing a non-traditional gown.

The dress from that night had done a good job of holding Emerick’s attention while offering me a sense of empowerment.

“There. That problem is solved. Are there any other problems you need me to solve?”

“Her shifting back comes to mind.”

“Pepper, you will not like the helicopter as a bird. Shift; once they arrive, which won’t be in too long, the sounds will drive you to madness, then we’ll have to turn you into a living bird burrito, and while we will think it is hilarious, you will not.”

Emerick set me on the floor and stepped back to give me space. “Now I want to see the living bird burrito.”

“I am sure she will require such restraining in the future, but if she proves to be stubborn, I would be delighted to show you the art of safely transforming a bird into a burrito. This art is also useful on naughty kittens.”

“I do know how to turn naughty felines into burritos,” my husband confessed. “And when it’s a large naughty feline, it takes four of us to do, and we’re usually laughing our asses off at our victim.”

I made a mental note to never put myself into a position to be turned into a burrito, be it as a bird or a feline. As I had no doubt my husband would conspire with my father’s uncle, I concentrated, battled my innate desire to remain a bird, and forced myself to transform back into a human.

While I sat on the cool stone to regain my wits, Emerick handed over the little lizard. “Your job is to take care of her. We’ll handle the victims. We will want to move swiftly once the helicopters arrive. The sooner we get them into Mexico, the better off everyone is.”

Columbia sent a team of fifteen war helicopters to help transfer the women, careful to protect their fragile bodies from the sun during the loading process. Rather than send a team into Columbia, the Mexican government promised to send support staff, doctors, and extra blood to the casa along with hired helpers to give the families a chance to reunite without chores getting in the way.

Upon being told there were blue anoles in the area, we endured an additional half an hour of delay confirming we could take my little girl with us. Their response made me giggle: if we wished to take the female, we needed to catch a male to experiment and see if the lizards could be bred in captivity.

Columbia, much like the reformed necromancer, viewed the blue anole as sacred.

My father handled the hunt as a cat, and he brought back a male in a matter of minutes, which the priestess tended to before sending him off for a nap and leaving him in my care.

Sleeping lizards would not be stressed during transit.

That left us with the problem of Breckenan’s legacy and motivation. If the bones of his family had been located at the temple, they’d been removed and relocated elsewhere.

We made the flight back to the casa in Oaxaca in peace, landing just as the sun began to set. Diego and my father went to work identifying the women, and to my relief, we learned they were all either workers at the casa, members of the family, or friends of the family.

Robert confirmed the identity of the two Americans, and the Mexican government dispatched a helicopter to begin the process of returning them to the United States. The pair would remain sedated until in Robert’s custody, allowing them to wake up surrounded by their family and friends.

I ignored the sound of the man’s tears, asked him to give the girls a hug on my behalf, and promised his family would be home to him sooner than later.

Nobody was unaccounted for, and two of the victims hadn’t been associated with Breckenan. The two young women, family friends, had been assumed dead as a result of local gang violence. The men hovered while the Mexican and Columbian soldiers helped get everyone moved into their beds or guest bedrooms.

Much to my relief, nobody would need to be transferred to a hotel.

“We will go to one of the nearby hotels later tonight, sleep through the day and quite possibly the night, and head to Gorgona the following morning,” my father informed me in one of the lulls, where the men of the casa went to work preparing for when their loved ones stirred once the night deepened. Diego, upon learning the vampires had no idea what they could eat, had taken over the kitchen, ordered the ingredients he needed, which showed up within thirty minutes by helicopter, and prepared a meal for everyone. “I have been informed I am a tyrant, and that you, my precious little daughter, require rest.”

“Which one of your mean uncles decided we were all being put down for naps?”

“All of them,” he complained.

I laughed. “Just let them coddle you. Emerick can handle coddling me, I’m sure. But where are we going to put our lizards?”

“Diego has made arrangements for a temporary habitat for them. It will be in your hotel room waiting along with food for them and instructions on their care. I already contacted Eugene with their requirements and asked that they find a place in your estate for their permanent habitat. Ben is involving himself as Ben seems to do at his whim rather than your husband’s.”

Emerick sighed. “Ben!”

The vampire in question poked his head into the room. “If it’s about the lizards, it’s because someone has to do the import documentation, they’re on the endangered species list, and we need clearance. The Columbians have already put in paperwork registering us as working on domestication and breeding, which will make it simple enough to get the clearance we need to bring them in. I took care of it because I have the right contacts in my phone and it took me five minutes.”

I snickered. “Anything else I should know?”

“Your kittens are causing trouble and mayhem, and everyone at the estate is taking turns occupying them when they are not napping. You will return to spoiled kittens. Breanna is doing fine and is settling in her suite. I spoke to her on the phone while you were fretting over the women. She will be going on a shopping venture with the ladies of the brood to further settle, so all is well over there. Having a rest before heading to Gorgona is a good idea. I’m going to help Diego in the kitchen. To keep the showering of gifts to a minimum, I suggested they prepare wedding presents for your ceremony. I told them to do as their heart guides them. This has calmed the lot of them down, although I’m not sure why.”

“Their culture,” my father replied with a smile. “Crafting gifts is something they understand well, and your suggestion offered them an outlet. We will make certain everyone at the casa can attend the ball and ceremony, and I will arrange for caretakers of the casa while they are gone. Perhaps we can have Salina Cruz as our destination port; she can handle the Eclipse readily enough. Getting the Eclipse here will be a challenge, but she is built for it. Her first cruise after her visit to the dry docks will be a lengthy one, but a prestigious one, taking the same route as Titanic but during better weather. I will make the arrangements. Emerick, once you are satisfied with things here, we will depart and allow the families here to settle. There will be plenty of vampires, from both Columbia and Mexico, here to assist everyone—and those who aren’t vampires are vampire hunters armed with the appropriate stakes and an understanding everyone here is a victim.”

“I am satisfied. It’s best we give everyone here a chance to reunite without an audience. It will be shocking enough for the women to go from imprisonment to the safety and comforts of home. Should they need us, we will be close enough. How did you arrange for two governments to help with this, truly?”

“Money, power, and friendship,” my father replied. “I am a vampire of importance to both countries, and it is simple enough for them to set aside their differences for a good cause—and the destruction of Breckenan’s ambitions is a good cause. For Mexico, I safeguarded a cultural jewel of theirs. For Columbia, I would have said they enjoy holding a favor over my head, but the temple itself has thrilled them beyond words. They did not know it was there. In that, Breckenan has done some good. But only some.”

“I think, once we’re back in New York, we are going to have a talk about those empires of yours. It’s a little excessive!”

“It is,” he conceded. “But today, you understand why I do as I do. Because I have my empires, I can do things like this—and this was no small feat. New York will become a haven for the preternatural because New York is the home of your heart, just like France is the home of Benoit’s heart. And yes, I have worked hard to make France prosper in all ways so that Benoit returns to the home of his heart and has nothing but joy. Eugene is much like you, and he loves New York for all she is. As for Alisander, he is in love with most of Africa. That has been a challenge, but it is a challenge I enjoy. Thus far, we have brought prosperity to hundreds of villages without sacrificing their culture, their beliefs, and the lifestyle they wish. Where there are mines, we make those communities thrive. You’ll get used to it. Just be wary of those uncles of mine. If you think I’m bad, they are worse by far.”

“Your warning is noted,” I replied and grinned. “But should I need something conquered, I know who to go to now. I’ll make sure I have their numbers should I need it.”

“Good luck, Emerick. You will need it,” my father said before patting my husband’s shoulder. “Let’s help Diego in the kitchen before we go. With all of us working together, we can depart after making certain they have warm meals and know they are safe as they enter their new lives under our wings.”