Page 19 of Transfiguration
Sam grinned. “Badass, right?”
“Strength of power, perhaps? Or a certain kind? External power versus internal? We don’t know,” Hart said. He waved at them. “Take Bella with you.”
“But…” Con said, thinking there was probably a better place for her than with their haphazard trio.
“Is there a safer place for a child that others with power might seek?” Hart asked. “Perhaps Rou?”
“He has kids,” Con pointed out. They seemed well-rounded and definitely cared for.
“And he is still adjusting to learning about the darker magics, and the return of Santini. Do you wish to have any danger directed at Bella suddenly pointed at the Pillar of Earth and his family? His patience is thin these days, and the past few weeks have seen him nearly lose himself to the earth several times. I’d prefer not to end the world. What about you?” Hart asked.
Con didn’t really want to be around Rou when he went all Father Earth and decimated them all. “Um no… but…”
“It’s okay,” Sam said. “Hey, Bella, I’m Sam. Let’s get you to our place for some sleep, yeah? We have a big TV, Disney+ and a lot of game consoles. Sounds good, right?”
“Con will come with?” she asked.
“For sure,” Luca agreed. “We are a trio. You don’t get one over-protective daddy, you get three.” He looked cheerful when he said it, but Con blinked at him like he was crazy. What was even happening right now? They couldn’t take care of a kid. Sam was a monster killer. Con was a retriever who spent a lot of time breaking into people’s houses and occasionally killing traffickers. And Luca was a business shark who could tear anyone up in a fighting ring. Who knew what other skeletons might be in his past? They weren’t exactly cut out to take care of kids.
“This is not a good idea,” Con said.
“We babysit Rou’s kids all the time,” Luca said.
“That’s temporary. Hours.”
“We’re on the list to take care of them permanently if something happens to Rou and Browan,” Sam pointed out. “Ronnie wouldn’t have us on backup if he didn’t trust us with his kids.” He smiled at Bella. “And you want to hang with us, right Bella?”
“Only if you promise not to bite me,” she said tartly.
“I only bite him,” Sam said, waving at Luca. “’Cause who wouldn’t? He’s like way hot.”
She wrinkled her nose. Luca looked offended. “I am hot.”
“Con’s prettier,” Bella said, gazing up at Con. “Like a manga character.”
A bad guy in a manga, maybe. “Um…”
“Con is hot,” Sam agreed. “I kiss him all the time. Is that okay?”
“On the mouth?” Bella asked.
Sam frowned. “Not always. But around you, yes, only on the mouth… or the cheek or something like that.”
“Nothing gross in front of me?” She asked.
“What do you consider gross?” Sam wondered.
She opened her mouth to respond and Con didn’t really want to know what inappropriate things she had seen, or read, or done.
“Get out of my office,” Hart demanded, obviously annoyed. “I’ll have more information delivered tomorrow. The new assignment and paperwork for Bella. Page will work on scheduling appointments for her, the psychologist, and likely a few different doctors. To review her physical and mental health.” His gaze narrowed on her. “There are some things I haven’t been able to track down from the past three years.”
Bella went still, and Con sucked in a deep breath. What wasn’t he saying? What was she hiding? She was only nine. How many secrets could she possibly have?
“Are there books,” Con wondered out loud, “about familiars?” The Fellowship archive was huge, but even with his constant reading of something from the library, he was barely scratching the surface of the knowledge they’d had. And familiars had not come up in more than general passing.
Hart stared at Con for a moment, then his scrutiny fell to Bella. “Why?”
“Show them,” Con whispered to her. Because he didn’t know what to do about it, or even what familiars did. Was it draining the life from her? Giving her strength? What did they do?