New Blood

Chapter 4

Everly bypassed the landing circle and gracefully dropped down in the yard next to the patio off the living room at her parents’ house. Ashton deftly slid from her back, holding Darcy in one arm and the bag containing the leftovers in the other. Before Everly had even shifted, her father was stepping outside to check on her.

“Everly? Is there a problem?” Tyson asked as he took Darcy from her father’s arms and watched Everly shift.

“I don’t know,” Everly admitted.

Tyson stood taller and kissed Darcy’s cheek before saying, “Darcy, love, why don’t you go on in and help Lucy and Miranda in the kitchen?”

“OK,” Darcy nodded as Tyson sat her down, and she ran inside to join the fun.

“Does your mother need to join us?” Tyson asked.

“No. I don’t think so. At least not yet,” Everly said. She was frowning, and her brow was furrowed as she tried to think of a way to explain what had happened to them in the forest. “I don’t know how to explain things without sounding crazy.”

“Don’t worry about that. I know you, and I know you are not crazy. If I made a list of family members from craziest to sanest, you would not even make the top one hundred,” Tyson chuckled.

“Kevin would,” Ashton nodded. “ And so would Jules and Logan.”

“Kevin is number one, Jules is two, and Logan rounds out the top twenty-five,” Tyson grinned.

“You have actually thought about that, haven’t you?” Everly said, shaking her head and chuckling.

“I have,” Tyson admitted. “So tell me what is bothering you.”

Everly looked at Ashton, trying to find a way to put it into words. She gave Ashton a shrug. That was his cue to take over and try to explain what they had experienced.

“We took a snack into the forest and were going to recharge a little before dinner.” Ashton paused and sighed, continuing, “The problem is, we don’t know what the problem was. The forest was too quiet. We saw and scented nothing out of the ordinary, but it was as if something had frightened everything into being silent in a fifty-yard radius of where we were. There was no sound coming from inside that circle, not even a hint of a leaf wrestling. It was strange.”

Tyson grew concerned as he listened. The wildlife was accustomed to the residents of Obsidian and often approached them. It was not uncommon for animals, insects, and even plants to seek out Ashton and Everly. Ashton was a full fairy, and Everly carried so much fairy magic that they were naturally drawn to the pair. For everything to be silent and still was odd and needed to be addressed.

“You’re quiet. I don’t like it when you’re quiet. That means you are worried and thinking about what it could be,” Everly said as she folded her arms over her chest. “Do you know what could have caused that?”

“I have no idea what it could have been, but I don’t like it,” Tyson grumbled.

Everly sighed, “Neither did we. That’s why we flew here. We didn’t want to say or do anything that would upset Darcy. So, we subtly challenged her to a contest to see who could eat the fastest, so we could fly here and not be late for dinner. When I took off, I did several circles, working my way out from where we were to work up our appetites. I looked for anything that might have been there, but I didn’t see anything.”

“Good,” Tyson grinned. “I raised you right. The top priority is to keep the children calm and safe; everything else follows. And neither of you saw, smelled, or heard anything out of place?”

Ashton shook his head and replied, “Nothing. It was like someone turned down the volume on the forest right where we were. We could hear things further off, but nothing near us. It was like when a predator or someone who doesn’t belong walks into an area, and there is a resounding hush that falls over it.”

“That’s why we left as quickly as we could without raising suspicions. It had my wolf and dragon both on edge, but neither could tell why. They did not see, smell, hear, or sense anything that was out of the ordinary. Even with that, they did not like it. None of us did,” Everly explained.

Tyson pulled his hand down over his face and sighed. “As much as I hate to do it since whatever this is might get passed on to you and Logan, we need to have a meeting before dinner. I’ll let Kevin and Jules know since Kevin is only three days from retiring and still wants to know everything. You can tell Logan. Apologize to him for me. I know he hasn’t been home that long and needs to spend time with Gabby and the kids.”

Everly giggled, “It’s fine, Dad. Logan left early today. He was trying to struggle through the financial reports since Damian is staying home with Roni and the baby. As soon as I finished with the testing I had scheduled, I rescued him and sent him home. That was part of why Ashton and Darcy took me for a picnic in the forest. I needed to relax after staring at numbers half the day.”

“Thank you for that. I hadn’t even considered that when I told Logan that he would be on his own today,” Tyson sighed. “We should probably include your mother in this meeting. She plans to do some photography in the forest over the next few days. If she does, I need to send some extra people with her. I might even go with her to be on the safe side.”

“I’ll go with Mom if she does. It will give me an excuse to sneak out of the lab. I’m sure I can come up with some kind of study to justify it,” Evelry grinned.

“Good. Go on in and let your mom know about all this while I tell Jules and Kevin. After you tell your mom, you can break the news to him and Gabby that they need to come over a little early for dinner,” Tyson instructed.

“While the two of you do that, I will check on Darcy and Miranda. Between the two of them, they might have worn Lucy to a frazzle,” Ashton grinned as she kissed Everly’s cheek.

She laughed, “Good idea, but that is the last thing you need to worry about with Lucy.”

“True, but if I’m nice, she might let me taste a few things before they hit the table and disappear before our eyes,” Ashton laughed as he went inside.

Tyson waited until the man was inside and out of earshot before he spoke to his daughter. Something about what she had told him put him on edge, and he could feel that she felt the same.

“Dad? Why are you so worried? Do you have any idea about what is going on out there?” Everly quietly asked.

“I have no idea. Kevin connected just about every sensor and camera known to man out there to keep watch over everyone, especially you kids, as you started to roam. Maybe he caught something on them, and there is an easy explanation for things,” Tyson tried to assure her.

“And if there’s not?” Everly questioned. “What do we do then? I can’t let them be put in danger, and I can’t lock them inside. Ashton and Darcy need that connection to nature even more than I do, and my need keeps growing. How do I deal with that?”

“I wish I knew. That is what we are going to work on tonight,” Tyson said as he pulled her into a hug. “Go talk to your mom. I will notify everyone else, including Logan. We will meet up before dinner, and then we will have a nice long one after dinner. That way, everyone has time to process the information and decide what to do after we eat.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Everly sighed as Tyson released her. “How much do you want me to tell Mom?”

Tyson chuckled and said, “Everything. But please let her know that I am telling everyone else. That is why you are telling her and not me. Also, tell her that means she will have extra time with the grandkids since Logan and Gabby will be coming over early.”

“You got it,” Everly giggled. She turned to go inside, then stopped and turned back to her father. “Do we need to tell the wolf pack about this now, or do you want to wait a little while longer?”

Tyson sighed and said, “I would like to wait until we have a few answers if we can. Chances are that Logan will tell Damian, Damian will tell Roni, and Roni will pass it on to both the current and future Alphas and Betas. Dinner might be crowded by the time it is over.”

“You act as if that is different than any other meal in this house,” Everly smirked.

“It’s not, which is why you need to quit worrying. Go talk to your mother and let her know I will be in to join you soon.”

“Sure,” Everly nodded as she gave her father a final smile before turning and going inside.

Tyson let out an explosive breath and dropped his head after she closed the door. Something about what Everly and Ashton described made him uneasy. The first thing he needed to do was inform Kevin and Julian and let them begin tracking down what could have caused the silence around Everly, Ashton, and Darcy.

Tyson scowled as he mumbled, “Now, how do I explain this to Kevin and Jules?”