That’s fine. It would have been cold after my shower anyway.
Or maybe I’ll send Morpheus to Italy,I decide.If he’s going to stay here, he might as well be useful.
Energy surrounds me as I engage my misting ability, my mind set on sending my cousin on an errand, when a flicker of blue causes me to still.
It’s barely perceptible and in the corner of my vision, but as I slowly turn toward it, the color becomes more vivid.
My eyebrow arches, a rare emotion stealing through me—surprise.
I felt it earlier when I first heard of this little soul and his link to my mate.
And I feel it again now as Pip—the name Serapina has apparently given him—wavers in the in-between, his fiery eyes peering at me with tiny nervous flickers.
“You’ve come to guard your ward?” I guess.
He cants his head at the term, like he’s not sure he understands.
“Serapina,” I say slowly.
Her name causes his glowing orbs to crease into whatappears to be a smile right before he executes an odd little twirl.
“I assume that’s a yes,” I murmur.
He nods and starts toward my cavern.
I step into his path, which causes him to backpedal. He’s smart to do so. While I may be in corporeal form, I command the in-between. That makes me impenetrable in both realities, no matter what form I choose to take.
“It’s dangerous here,” I tell the lost soul. “You can’t let anyone other than us see you. Do you understand?”
Pip glances around the vacant beach.
“I’m talking about the human visitors,” I elaborate. “There may not be any right now, but they do frequent this cove in their yachts.”
Twin flames blink at me.
“They won’t be kind if they see you,” I go on. “They won’t understand what you are, and they will fear you. So don’t interact with them.”
I’ve had this conversation with Ossa, Howl, and Mort before. Of course, they ignored me. Hence, the legend about a three-headed creature named Cerberus was born. No idea which mortal coined that title for my beloved familiar, but he or she is long dead.
“You must stay hidden,” I reiterate, then look him over. “Actually, you might be quite useful out here, if you want a job.”
Pip drifts a little closer, his eyes widening with what I presume is an indication of interest.
So I tell him what I would like him to do.
And watch as his chest puffs up with purpose at the request to essentially guard the coastline.
By the time I’m finished elaborating, he’s nodding eagerly.
I smile. “Serapina is lucky to have you.”
He executes another twirl.
Then he bows and scurries off to protect his ward while lurking in the in-between.
His existence is another layer of proof that Serapina isn’t Persephone.
Because my Omega would never have a soul as a familiar. She adored life too much for that.
