Elspeth asked for a cheeseburger, fries and a chocolate shake before popping the bag to her mouth. Sam then took Alex and Wyatt’s orders before slipping out of the SUV.
Alex asked Wyatt questions about British Columbia while they waited for Elspeth to get through the three bags of blood, and then the trio exited the car to join Sam in the restaurant. The food was just being delivered as they arrived, and as Sam had claimed it was really good, and yes, the shakes were amazing. Sam had ordered dessert for everyone as well, but all but Wyatt were too full to eat it, so they had theirs boxed up while Wyatt devoured his, and then he ordered one to go too before they paid and left.
“Here we go,” Sam said grimly as she started the SUV engine. “Time to meet momma bear.”
Nine
“No. The girls and I are staying right here.” Martine’s voice and eyes dripped ice as she peered down her nose at Sam. “You, Wyatt, and Alex can stay in the basement apartment.”
Sam opened her mouth to respond, but Elspeth stepped up next to her and intervened. “That’s fine, Mother. The basement apartment has two bedrooms too, and is newly furnished thanks to Mortimer. I’ll stay down there with them.”
“You will not,” Martine said firmly. “You’ll stay right here with us.”
“I . . . will stay right here with you,” she agreed, her anger slipping away. In fact, she suddenly couldn’t remember what she’d been upset about . . . or why Sam, Alex, and Wyatt were all narrowing their eyes on her, their expressions turning grim.
“That’s fine,” Sam said after a moment, her voice cheerful. Pulling her overlarge purse around in front of her, she dragged out a stack of papers stapled together. It looked like a contract. “You just need to sign this release form and we’ll get out of your hair.”
“What? Release of what?” Martine asked, her eyes narrowing.
“It’s just a form stating that you’ve refused protection for Elspeth and release us from any liability when she’s killed,” Sam explained pleasantly. “Just sign here on the bottom line and—”
“I’m not signing that,” Martine said with dismay. “And I’m not refusing protection. I want you to guard her. Just not from here. She’s fine here. Go down and stay in the basement apartment and you can guard her when we leave the apart—”
“Now, Martine,” Sam interrupted gently. “Either we’re guarding her or we’re not, and you know we can’t guard her from two floors away. If you insist on staying here and making us leave, then you are essentially refusing her protection.” Holding out the papers, she said, “So, just sign this form acknowledging responsibility for her life, and refusal of our help, to ensure there can be no problem with the Council when Elspeth is killed.”
“Did Elspeth say there were two bedrooms downstairs?” Julianna asked, pushing the kitchen door open to peer in at them.
Obviously, she’d been listening from the living room, but that was no surprise, Elspeth thought.
“Yes, she did,” Alex said with a smile. “We stopped to see it on the way up here. One of the bedrooms has twin beds, and Mortimer had a big flat-screen television, and a computer put in it too.”
“Really?” Her eyes widened and she turned to their mother. “Come on, Mom. We can stay down there. That way Victoria and I will have an actual bed instead of having to sleep on the air mattress on the floor.”
“Please, Mom,” Victoria begged. “You were the one who insisted Mortimer put guards on her, and like Sam says, they can’t guard her from another apartment. Let’s just stay down there. You can always come up and visit all you want.”
Martine had opened her mouth on what no doubt would have been a refusal, but paused at Victoria’s last words. She was silent for a moment, her expression considering, and then she nodded. “Very well. We will sleep in the other apartment and visit up here.”
“Well, all right, then,” Sam said just as cheerfully, slipping the sheaf of papers back into her purse. “If you go pack, we’ll help you move your luggage when you’re done.”
Martine pursed her lips, and Elspeth was quite sure she was considering ordering the trio to pack and move her luggage for her, but then she apparently thought better of it and turned to leave the room. The moment she was gone, Elspeth felt herself again and knew her mother had released her. And for some reason Martine hadn’t taken the trouble to erase the moments since taking control of her from her mind. She remembered her mother’s comment about visiting, and she knew exactly what that meant. Her mother would move her luggage down to the lower apartment and spend all her time up here anyway.
“Well done, Sam. You actually won out over Martine,” Alex congratulated her sister.
“To be honest, I’m not sure I did win,” Sam responded thoughtfully. “She gave in way too easy.”
“But she gave in,” Alex pointed out. “She’s moving to the basement apartment.”
“Yeah,” Sam nodded, but then turned to Elspeth and asked, “She’s going to move her luggage down there and then come right back up until dawn, isn’t she?”
“Yes,” Elspeth said on a sigh and walked over to grab the coffee carafe. She turned to carry it to the sink, her gaze landing on the radio/CD player on the counter behind Alex. Pausing, she smiled suddenly. “Although, if you turn the CD player on, she won’t stay long. She hates the CD I have in it and simply refused to allow me to play it at home.”
“Really?” Alex turned to the CD player and opened it to retrieve the disc inside. Turning it in her hand, she raised her eyebrows. “Queen’s Greatest Hits?”
Elspeth noted the way Wyatt stiffened, his expression stilling, and it raised her curiosity, but she said, “Yes. She hates it.”
“You’re a Queen fan?” Sam asked.
“I guess I am,” she said with a faint smile. “At least, I love this CD. Other than that, though, I don’t listen to modern music.”
“Then why Queen? Where did you get this CD?” Wyatt asked quietly, walking over to peer at it over Alex’s shoulder.
Elspeth glanced to him and shrugged. “It just showed up in my player one day and I listened to it and loved it. It always makes me happy,” Elspeth admitted.
“It just showed up in your player?” Wyatt asked solemnly.
Elspeth nodded. “At the time, I assumed it was Julianna or Victoria’s, but they both claimed it wasn’t. So, I’m guessing it belongs to one of my cousins and they left it when they visited.”
“You didn’t get it when you went to the play?” he asked carefully.
Elspeth raised her eyebrows. “What play?”
“We Will Rock You,” he said. “It played at the Dominion Theatre in London for something like twelve years.”
Elspeth raised her eyebrows. “No. I’ve never seen it.”
Wyatt speared her with his eyes. “Are you sure?”
“Quite sure,” she said with amusement. “I’ve never been to any play. Mother doesn’t care for them, and she certainly wouldn’t let my sisters and me go without her. We were lucky to be allowed to go to university without her there holding our hands.”
“You really don’t remember,” Wyatt said with quiet amazement.
“Remember what?” she asked with confusion.
“Going to see We Will Rock You,” he said solemnly.
Her eyebrows rose slightly. “I told you I’ve never been.”
“You have,” he assured her.
“No, I haven’t,” she countered.
“Elspeth,” he said, his voice gentle, “I was there. I saw you attend. I took you. You loved it.”
“No, I—You’ve been to England?” she asked with surprise.
“Yes. Four years ago. I took you to that play.”
“What?” she asked with bewilderment, unconsciously shaking her head no. She’d remember if that had happened. She’d remember him.
“I did,” he said solemnly and reached into his pocket to pull out his wallet. Opening it, he retrieved a collection of three or four small photos. The first one was of she and Wyatt in front of the Dominion Theatre. We Will Rock You was on the billboard out front.