One guard stared at the TV, his posture suggesting he was ready to fight it. “This is Earth?”
“Yes,” I said patiently. “My home realm. Welcome.”
The guard pointed at the TV. “What is that glowing rectangle?”
“A TV. It shows images. Stories,” Bella explained.
“Magic?”
“Technology. Kind of like magic.”
His hand moved toward his sword. “It looks threatening.”
“It’s showing a cooking competition,” Bella said flatly. “Very non-threatening.”
Another guard picked up a phone from the coffee table, turning it over suspiciously. “And this?”
“Don’t touch that,” Krystin said quickly, taking it from him. “It’s expensive.”
The guard looked offended. “I was merely examining it.”
“Examine with your eyes, not your sword hands.”
A third guard was poking at a lamp, flinching when it turned on. “Sorcery!”
“It’s a lamp,” Daphne said with the patience of a saint. “You push the button, light comes out.”
“But WHERE does the fire come from?”
“There’s no fire. It’s electricity.”
The guard looked at her like she’d sprouted a second head. “Elect-what?”
Bella sighed. “This is going to be a long night.”
Bella was organizing sleeping arrangements, pulling out extra blankets and counting heads. Daphne was explaining Earth technology to bewildered guards. Krystin had Killian on her lap, feeding him more chocolate despite Sorcha’s protests.
“That’s his fourth piece,” Sorcha pointed out.
“It’s medicinal,” Krystin said without missing a beat.
“Medicinal chocolate?”
“For his soul. Very important.”
Sorcha sighed. She knew a losing battle when she saw one. Just like I hadn’t even bothered arguing with Krystin.
“Can we make cookies, Auntie Krystin?” Killian asked hopefully, chocolate still smeared across his face.
“Of course we can!”
“After you say goodbye to your parents,” Sorcha interjected gently.
Right. I knelt down to Killian’s level, and suddenly it was real. We were leaving him. My throat tightened.
“Be good, baby,” I said, pulling him into a tight hug. I breathed in his little-boy smell of chocolate and something uniquely Killian. “Listen to Grandma and your aunties.”
“I will, Mama. I promise.” His little arms wrapped around my neck.
