Phoenix Inheritance Read online

  Beth settled in the chair. “So, do any of you have any questions?”

  Renee had so many questions, she wasn’t sure which one to ask first.

  “You said I’m the first person you’ve met who can talk to animals. Does that mean I’m the only one, ever?” Charlie asked through his mouthful of candy.

  “Good question. The answer is that I don’t know,” Beth said. “But I know some people I could ask.” She looked at Daz. “So does your father.”

  “You do?” Charlie said at the same time Renee did. Her son looked at her.

  “Jinx,” Renee said. Charlie laughed. Ah, if she could just bottle that.

  “So, Daz, who do you know?” she asked.

  Daz sat down next to Charlie. “You remember the job I told you about in Germany?” He tapped his scarred shoulder.

  That was his way of clueing her in without telling Charlie about the injury. “Yes?” she said.

  “It was to help guard an immortal,” he said.

  “An immortal? What’s that?” Charlie asked.

  “It’s someone who lives forever,” Renee said, as curious as Charlie to hear the full story.

  “Like the Amazons on Paradise Island?” Charlie asked.

  “Like that,” she answered.

  “Richard hasn’t lived forever, just about six hundred years or so,” Daz said. “He’s part of a group of immortals that have built a community of their own. They’ve met a lot of psychics over the last eight hundred years. If anyone has information about animal telepaths, they would.”

  “Six hundred years old?” Charlie asked.

  Right there with you, Charlie, Renee thought. Telepathy was one thing but immortals? What else would she learn was possible? That someone could fly?

  “How is immortality a psychic ability?” Renee asked.

  “You know how Alec moves things with his TK?” Beth asked.

  Renee and Charlie nodded.

  “Well, immortals use their TK inside their own bodies to heal themselves from injury or aging.”

  “Whoa!” Charlie said.

  “That was pretty much my reaction to it,” Daz said. “But Richard seems to believe immortality is kind of a lonely life. Or he did, until recently.”

  Daz grinned. Renee made a mental note to ask him about that later.

  “But, anyway, I will ask him about animal telepaths. Today.”

  “Because he’s your friend?” Charlie asked.

  Daz tilted his head and, for a second, looked so like Charlie that Renee smiled at the resemblance. “Yeah, I guess we are friends.”

  “Um, are there any other kinds of psychic abilities besides TK and telepathy that we should know about?” Renee asked.

  “Another excellent question. From what I’ve learned, all psychic abilities flow from either TK or telepathy,” Beth said. “It’s just a matter of learning how to control your unique ability. And that takes time and effort.” She looked at Charlie. “We’re going to have to work on your ability, Charlie, so you can control it with ease.”

  “How come?” Charlie asked. “I can already do it.”

  “Telepathy is like any other natural talent. You get better the more you practice. For instance, there’s a woman who can walk through walls by using TK to control the molecules of her body.”

  Renee’s mouth dropped open. “Really?”

  “Cool, isn’t it?” Beth said. “Marian’s ability is something special. And while she could do it on instinct when she was your age, Charlie, she had to train for years to have full control of it. Like I had to do to control my own telepathy, as I told you.”

  “I already know how to talk to animals. What else is there?” Charlie asked.

  “Can you shut out the animals when they pester you?” Beth asked.

  “Pester? You mean like how animals talk to me really loud and I can’t make them be quiet? Like Odin did?”

  “Odin was really loud?” Renee asked.

  “Extre-me-ly loud. He kept bugging and bugging me. At one point, he wanted me to go with him somewhere. He said it was important. I was kinda surprised he wanted to stay at the house without me,” Charlie said.

  “Huh,” Daz said.

  “And that’s why you rushed off after him in the storm?” Renee asked.

  “Uh-huh.”

  “And there you go,” Beth said. “If you can learn to tone down what animals are telling you, you’ll be able to think more clearly instead of rushing off.”

  Renee put a hand on Charlie’s shoulder. “That sounds great, doesn’t it?”

  “Sure. But do I have to do it right now?”

  “Why do you ask?” Renee said.

  “Because I’m tired.” Charlie glanced at the monitors. “Hey, I never finished my log house. Can I go back and do that?”

  Renee recognized the signs of Charlie being restless. “Do you have more questions?”

  “Not right now,” he said. “I like those Lincoln Logs.”

  Beth put out her hand. “I have one more request. I want to go into your head and talk to you, mind-to-mind, for a few minutes. That’s so I can start trying to figure out a way for you to train your ability. Then you can go play.”

  “Will it take long?” Charlie said.

  “No,” Beth said. She glanced up at Renee and Daz. “And I need your parents’ permission too.”

  Renee just nodded. “Fine by me,” Daz said.

  Beth took Charlie’s hand. Both their expressions went blank.

  Daz reached for Renee’s hand. “Beth won’t be in his mind any longer than she has to be to get a diagnosis. She’s very ethical about it.”

  “That’s fine. I’m not worried about that,” Renee said. What was one more thing impossible among all the rest? Renee trusted Beth, if only for the way she’d interacted with Charlie just now.

  “So what’s wrong?” Daz asked.

  “I’m just overwhelmed at the moment.”

  Daz put his arm around her waist. “No wonder.” He spoke in a low voice. “But this is all great. Beth can treat Charlie and he won’t have fits anymore, plus she’ll train him how to use the animal telepathy.”

  Renee lowered her voice even further. No telling if Charlie could overhear them when he was in a telepathic conversation. “I thought she said she’d train his telepathy. Are you saying she can somehow cure his autism too?”

  “Yeah, sure, why not?” Daz said.

  Renee frowned. She could think of many reasons, including that Charlie’s autism was as ingrained as his animal telepathy. And she wondered if Daz’s desire to cure him showed that, even now, he didn’t want to fully accept everything about their son.

  New York City, Nine Years Ago

  Their first official date was in Greece, at a small hotel that also accepted her dogs.

  They only left the room to walk Thor and Loki.

  Their second date happened six weeks later when Daz called, said he was in London and could she come right away? Renee dropped everything, made sure someone would watch her dogs, and used her frequent flyer miles to take the next flight to England.

  That time, they got sightseeing in. Well, some.

  But as Renee checked in at the Bryant Park Hotel in New York, she knew that their whole crazy, oddball courtship was over.

  What if Daz blamed her when she told him about being pregnant? She’d tried so hard to reach him before she passed the three-month mark but he’d been out of touch, probably on some mission. Now there was nothing for him to do but accept her decision.

  She took her key from the hotel clerk, tossed her backpack over her shoulder and made her way to the elevators, ignoring the crowd of Asian tourists who’d just arrived and were ogling the gilded lobby.

  “Batgirl!” one said, pointing at her.

  Renee tapped her Batman logo T-shirt. �
��Yep.”

  Before she knew it, they wanted photos. She indulged them for a few minutes before she was able to extricate herself and head to the room. They were probably here for New York Comic Con tomorrow. She had tickets as well. Before she found out she was pregnant, the plan had been for her and Daz to go together. He’d never been to a con. He said he was looking forward to it. Or maybe he was indulging her. Sometimes with Daz, it was hard to tell.

  She opened the door to her room and, before it could close behind her, Daz lifted her up and kissed her.

  “You’re here early.”

  “Yep, got a flight out faster than I thought,” he said.

  She let her pack fall to the floor and let him sweep her away, one last time. She wanted to touch him, be with him and hold that close to her heart, whatever happened. As he set her on the bed, she reached for his belt buckle.

  “Let me.” She tossed the belt off to the side and unbuttoned his jeans.

  “As you wish, Wonder Woman.” He smiled.

  She knelt on the bed and ran her hands under his T-shirt. He sighed, a happy sound that quickly turned to a moan as she pulled down his pants and went to work on his erection with her mouth.

  “Oh, that’s perfect,” he mumbled and entangled his hands in her hair.

  All she kept thinking was Be with me over and over. Her hands dug into his hips. He came, faster than she expected.

  After, he pushed her back on the bed, slowly removing each item of her clothing. “I missed you,” he said.

  “Same.” And she reached to stroke his penis again but he grabbed her hand.

  “Your turn,” he said and he went to work with his mouth on her as expertly as she had done on him.

  Outside the window, the city twinkled with glittering lights. New York never slept. They could sleep when they wanted, go out when they wanted, though she did want to see the Con tomorrow.

  But what she wanted now was to curl up next to Daz in the bed.

  “Room service or should we go out? It is New York, after all,” Daz said, tracing his fingers down her back. “Anything’s possible.”

  “I don’t…” She closed her eyes. “I don’t want to move.”

  “You got it. Unless you want another go-round?”

  “Not yet.” Argh, she had to tell him. What if he was called away unexpectedly? He’d had to leave London twelve hours early. She laid her head over his chest. He stroked her hair.

  “Your breasts look somehow bigger,” he said. “Absence really does make the reunion so much better.”

  “Yeah.” Her breasts were already showing signs of the pregnancy.

  “Daz, did you ever wonder where we’re going with this?”

  She stiffened, expecting him to put her off.

  “Sure, I did, on the flight over.” He tangled his hand in her hair. “This is…well, I’m not usually good with relationships. But you’ve been great, I miss you, and I want to see more of you, any way I can. But you know my time isn’t always my own.”

  “Will your schedule ever slow down?”

  “I have another two years before anything changes. I’m locked in right now.” His fingers drifted down her back. “I wish I had a better answer for you.”

  “What happens in two years?” she asked.

  “I’ll have a chance to either re-up or get out. But I already know I’m going to stay with the Navy. They trained me for a specific job. No sense wasting that.” He rolled over so they were face-to-face.

  “I see.”

  “Are you worried I’m seeing someone else?”

  “Absolutely not. What made you ask that?”

  “I’ve seen a lot of guys, even those with steady girlfriends, date other women when they’re stationed or assigned far away. I thought you’d be worried about that.”

  “No, I trust you. If you wanted to see other women, you’d tell me.” No, she was worried about a far bigger problem.

  “I don’t want other women. I want you. I want to keep seeing you. So I guess it depends on how flexible you can be.”

  She sat up. She’d delayed long enough. She walked over to stare at the window, hoping for inspiration.

  “You’re upset.” He put his hands over his head and stretched out his full length on the bed, watching her. “I’m sorry I don’t have a better answer. You knew what you were getting into with me.”

  “I did. It’s not that, Daz. It’s…something has changed.”

  His casual pose disappeared. “What? What’s wrong?”

  “It’s… I’m having trouble saying it.” She turned to face him.

  “Does it have anything to do about why you were trying to reach me last month?”

  She shook her head. “It was urgent. Then it wasn’t. And now we have to talk about it.”

  “Have you met someone else?”

  “No way.”

  Daz walked over and opened a bottle from the six-pack he’d brought. “Want one?”

  “No.” She couldn’t have one even if she wanted. Another adjustment.

  He put down his beer, enclosed her from behind and kissed her neck. “Look, this is good, really good, with you. I thought you were happy with it too. Are you sure there’s not someone else?”

  “No.” Never.

  “Renee, what’s going on?”

  She sat on the bed. She was confusing him. “Daz, I’m pregnant.”

  His eyes widened and then his face lost all expression.

  Her throat closed up. No, no, no, this wasn’t the reaction she’d dreamed about. She closed her eyes. Give him a few minutes. She’d been shocked. He must be too. He wouldn’t be human if it didn’t take a few minutes for him to absorb this news.

  “Oh,” he finally said.

  She dared look at him. He’d faced bears and gunmen with little change in expression but now his eyes were open wide, ranging about the room, as if searching for an escape.

  She’d known he’d be surprised and shocked but she’d thought, maybe, there would’ve been some joy mixed in, somehow…

  She hugged herself tight and stared at the floor. She had to swallow three times before her throat had enough saliva to speak. “That was what was urgent. I wanted to reach you when it was still possible to make a decision about it. I figured you should have a say. But it’s too late now. We’re having a baby.”

  He knelt in front of her. “How far along are you?”

  He’d said five words and she strained to read the emotions in every single one. At least there was no anger but she didn’t hear any joy either.

  “I’m three and a half months along.” She slid back on the bed, away from him, and drew her knees up to her chin.

  “London, then.”

  Again, no telling what he was thinking or feeling. Her fingers dug into the covers.

  “Yeah, London,” she said.

  He sat beside her and put his arm around her shoulders. Yes, do that. Yes, this is good. Maybe this would work out, somehow.

  “I appreciate you tried to reach me, Renee,” he said.

  How careful he was being with words. Dammit, she’d have preferred him getting angry to these mealy-mouthed statements.

  “I wish I had reached you. It’s pretty obvious what you would’ve wanted. Obviously, the pregnancy doesn’t thrill you.” She’d known instantly, even in her shock, that she wanted this baby. That had surprised the hell out of her. She’d never expected to have a family, at least not right now.

  She’d hoped desperately that Daz would have the same reaction.

  “Wait a minute, when did I say that I didn’t want the baby?” Daz asked.

  “You’re right, you never said that. You’ve been very, very careful not to say it.”

  She stood and started plucking her clothes off the floor to get dressed. In her worst nightmares, Daz walked out on h
er. But this cold reaction was just as bad.

  “Wait a minute, Renee. Stop that. I’m surprised. I’m trying to sort it out in my head.”

  “Everything you’ve said makes it clear you don’t want this.” She finished dressing. “If you were in the least bit happy about it, something would’ve come out. You’d have reacted differently. But you’re not. You’re confused and worried but there’s not even a small spark of happiness.” Her voice broke.

  He stood up and took her hands. “You’ve had at least a month to go over this in your head. Give me more than fifteen minutes to get used to the idea.”

  I knew the minute I found out I was pregnant that I loved you and wanted our baby.

  She closed her eyes once more and could feel the tears building. If she said that, now, in this moment, she would sound clingy. She’d be damned if she would ever sound that needy.

  “A baby wasn’t in your plans. I kinda figured that would be the case but…I hoped…I thought you might be a little bit pleased.” I thought you might love and want me the way I love and want you.

  A tear slipped down her cheek. No, no, she wouldn’t cry.

  He hugged her. She sniffled and let him hold her.

  “I’m not going to desert you, Renee. You won’t be alone. I’m going to live up to my obligation to you and the baby.”

  Obligation. Ouch.

  She stepped back and wiped the tear away from her cheek. “Yeah, sure. Thanks,” she mumbled.

  I love you, Daz. God, I love you.

  It was so stupid. They barely knew each other. They’d spent less than a month in each other’s company. But she did. No one ever looked at her the way he did, as if he believed she were capable of any task, as if she were the most powerful person in the world. As if she were Wonder Woman.

  But he didn’t love her back, at least not the same way. Obligation, my ass.

  “Renee, it’s complicated.” He sat down and pulled her next to him. “Family is something I thought about as happening in the far future.”

  “Did you ever think of a family with me?” she asked.

  He cleared his throat. “I hadn’t got that far.” His voice. “I was just having a lot of fun and hoped to keep it going.”