“Sure, no problem. I’ll bring some clothes over tomorrow morning. Are you staying at the sheriff’s house?” she asks me.
For some reason, I blush. “Yeah, for now.” I glance at Otis.
“For as long as you need to,” he says gruffly, not quite meeting my eyes.
“Get him to cook you his chewy chocolate chip cookies.” Arlo laughs.
“Oh yeah, and his apple strudel cake.” Sammy rolls her eyes blissfully. “It’s unbelievablymoist.”
She gives me a saucy eyebrow waggle, which I pretend not to notice.
Meanwhile, Otis stares at the tablecloth, a twitch in one tusk the only sign of discomfort as the banter continues.
“Enough guys, enough,” he mutters finally, with a raised hand. “How about we focus on the excellent food at Digger’s instead, eh?”
Tippy grins. “Right-oh, Sheriff, I’ll take the orders.”
Twenty minutes later we’re all tucking into our meals. Mine is a juicy burger loaded with a delicious pickle called tantarillo and green goddess mayonnaise.
When Sammy says, “Okay, guess it’s time to share our big news with you, Clem,” I put my burger down and look at her. “You’ve been dropping hints all evening,” I say. “Time to come clean.”
Sammy reaches for Arlo’s hand across the tabletop.
“Arlo and I are having a youngling.”
I blink, unsure what she means.
“Ababy, Clem. I’m expecting Arlo’s baby.”
My jaw drops. “Oh, that is amazing!” I burst out. “Like, super-amazing!”
Itisamazing. A miracle in fact. And not just because Sammy is pregnant by a minotaur, which up until now I hadn’t known was even possible.
The fact that Sammy is pregnantat allis a miracle.
Here’s the thing. The population of Sparkle City has been dropping dramatically over the past fifty years. Not that it was ever great—humans have struggled to have babies since the apocalypse. But nowadays, getting pregnant without fertility treatments is almost impossible, and even with treatment it’s not guaranteed. Every couple’s journey is overshadowed by the worry of whether they will conceive. If you are wealthy enough, or you win the ballot every year, you might get onto a fertility program. You might get a baby, but the odds are still low.
My bestie came to the Labyrinth a mere three months ago and now—already—she’s expecting a baby. With a minotaur!
I jump up and hug her and then I hug Arlo, the proud father. When I sit down again, it dawns on me why Sammy is wanted so badly by the human authorities.
“When… when you were back in Sparkle,” I say, remembering how Sammy got really sick in the Labyrinth and had to return to Sparkle for treatment, “did you know then?”
“No, the humans found out by doing tests on me, and after that, they wanted to keep me to experiment on our baby.”
That whole story sure was a nightmare; one none of us need to relive.
But now, the upside…is ababy. With Arlo.
Wow, justwow!
I glance around the table. Everyone is looking dewy eyed. Even Jax’s eyes have gone kind of hazy. I inhale softly as I glanceat Otis to gauge his reaction. All his fierceness is erased and his eyes glow from within.
My heart flip flops in my chest. I keep getting glimpses of another side to Otis: the occasional smile that lights up his features, the way he greets the public so warmly, a guy who bakes cookies just for the love of it. He sometimes gets the gentlest, kindest expression on his face.
I wonder what has happened with his family to make him seem so… alone.
It doesn’t feel right.
