“Have they been this noisy the whole time?” Persephone wondered out of nowhere. She glanced down the hall, probably seeing glimmers or vague outlines of heads or shoulders.
“They’re always noisy,” Robin answered, since he never really saw the spirits and couldn’t tell her more than that. “This is their chance to live a little more, in a manner of speaking. Theirfriends and relatives took their ashes or spell books and brought them along to the New World, and then to here. They poke around and sometimes raise a ruckus, but it’s been so long, I don’t get any strong feelings or anything from them.” Mallory and Lucas probably could tell more, but if so, they didn’t say.
The ashes or fragments of bone of so many of Robin’s dead antecedents had been buried around the house, but the dead Blessings and Redfernes and the two spirits of no name or blood relation that anyone could trace were not bound here. They could leave if they wanted. So far, none had. Neither had any of the more recent dead chosen to stay. Robin’s family had lived happy lives, and none had died alone or miserable.
Robin obviously hadn’t been hoping for any of them to linger on with him. But sometimes, he did wonder about relatives from the Seventeenth Century choosing to hang around but no one he had known personally while they were alive.
“What a racket,” Persephone teased the spirits lightly, and didn’t seem to see her mother and Lucas glance at each other.
“They get excited for visitors,” Robin admitted, without mentioning the spiritual stampede at their arrival. “I’m rather boring.” Watching Robin do chores and slowly fall to pieces wasn’t much of a second life.
“They’ll have more to entertain them now,” Mallory said, smooth as butter. “Lucas, could you help your sister get all that into the car? Thank you.” She wasn’t really asking, though she smiled as her children went out the door. Then she turned to Robin. “He takes up room, even when he doesn’t mean to. But I think you’ll manage a whole house between the two of you.”
Robin was not going to ask what that meant and he wasn’t going to Look to find out for himself. Though it occurred to himthat only Lucas had actually asked him if this was okay, and that no one had asked Lucas. Not that Robin had heard.
“You’re sure Lucas is all right with this?” Robin pressed carefully. He didn’t want Mallory to get the impression that Robin was afraid of Lucas like Persephone had.
Lucas, coming back inside, stopped at the threshold. He gave Robin a puzzled, frowny look.
“Frowning again,” Robin huffed at him. He would have crossed his arms if he hadn’t been leaning against the wall to help him stay upright.
Lucas’ frown deepened.
“He’s the most familiar with the house,” Mallory went on. Robin shook his head before turning back to her. Whatever her mouth was saying, her eyes said something else. “He can fix most things on his own and handle any of the little things that need doing, shopping and errands, cooking, while you recover and meet your commitments. We’ll need him home for the day of Yule, but other than that, he’s all yours.”
Robin narrowed his eyes. “Surely, he has things he needs to do for the business. And he’s far too important of a person to be sweeping my floors.”
Lucas shocked him with a snort of amusement.
Robin turned to him. No frown at least. Robin had the frown this time.
Mallory cut in again, drawing Robin’s gaze away from Lucas. “Winter isn’t our busy time. And thisiscoven work, whatever you might think, Robin Blessing. Besides, it will give you strength to celebrate this holiday. Yule isn’t just about the light returning and the start of a new year. It’s about those we’ve lost.You should do something special. Or at least take the day off to rest. They would want that for you.”
Robin’s plans before this would have been to work more, if he’d remembered the day in the first place. He swallowed.
Mallory softened. “I’m sorry we weren’t here all these months. I suppose we thought at least some in the coven would step up to help you. Should’ve known.” She heaved a sigh. “I’ll come by in a few days, probably after the holiday, though I might send you some of whatever we bake up once we drive Connor out of the kitchen.” She glanced between them. “You figure out what needs doing,” she commanded her son. She then looked to the end of the hall, where she undoubtedly saw more than mere shapes. But she turned a critical gaze on Robin. “Don’t argue with him too much, even if he gets in your way. You’ll figure out how to be together in time.”
Robin spoke louder than usual, over the rush in his ears. It wasn’t spellwork she was doing, but it wassomething. He would have to ask Lucas if mothers were like this all the time.
“Lucas never gets in my way. If anything…” Well, there was no need to bring up Robin’s staring and stumbling from Lucas’ first time staying in this house. “And I don’t argue with him,” Robin continued loftily to cover his embarrassment. “It can’t be arguing if it’s just one of us. What?” He rounded on Lucas when Lucas’ frown returned. “If people come to you while you’re here, you’re welcome to use the office as a workspace. Or any room, really.”
“Except yours, or the workroom.” The soft words were still more factual than combative. Lucas didn’tneedto argue. That was his problem. He was justright.
Robin leaned harder against the wall. “Too tall. Always right. Cobwebs in his hair.” He sniffed haughtily and then gave in,again. “Come here and I’ll get them, though you’ll have to bend down.”
He didn’t think about how Lucas’ hair might feel, or how the entire exchange would look, until Lucas frowned even harder but stepped closer and bent his head.
“You would think,” Robin said crossly to hide his sudden dizziness, “that someone as powerful as you could keep webs out of their hair. I can’t even light a candle and I manage.”
The webs stuck to his fingers, so he couldn’t feel much of anything, which seemed a shame.
“Webs are your domain, weaver, not mine. And you don’t need to light candles if I’m here to do it for you,” Lucas answered, clear as a bell, and the noise Mallory made, like amusement or surprise, almost but not quite hidden, had Robin snatching his hand away to wipe it on his pants and quickly turning toward her.
Mallory gave him a radiant smile. “Now,there’sa child of the Blessing-Redferne line. You’ll take good care of him, I see.” She didn’t indicate who she was speaking to or whichhimshe meant. “I’ll let you rest.” As if that was all she had to say, she went to the door.
Robin followed after her. “You shouldn’t feel bad, about before.” He needed her, all of them, to know that. “I remember you bringing food in Marise’s last days.”
“You didn’t eat it.” Lucas’ interjection was somehow not a surprise.
