Chapter 3.6: The Stork Arriveth

Carrying his middle child in his arms, Nassor led Effie into the queen’s suite, where all three of them were silent, yet smiling. Even Ceres seemed to sense that something big was about to happen, and kept uncharacteristically quiet in her father’s arms.

“Well,” he said quietly, breaking the silence as he squeezed Ceres in a little hug. “Say hello to your baby sister, lassies. This is Astoria McKenzie.”

Effie peered into the bassinet, her breath catching as she looked on the face of her newest sister.

She beamed, looking up at Nassor proudly.

“She’s the most beautiful baby in the world,” she declared, making Nassor chuckle.

“I’m afraid to say that perhaps you might be right, if a bit biased,” he agreed with a laugh, smiling at Ceres.

“What do you think of your baby sister, lass?” he asked her, lowering her to the ground.

Cautiously the toddler approached the sleeping form of her new sister, looking warily this way and that before taking another step closer.

Effie watched as she pondered the little one, trying to make sense of it. At last, she let out a laugh, pointing to the baby and babbling excitedly in C-speak. Nassor laughed, taking this as a good omen.

“A whole ‘nother princess,” Effie said in a hushed voice. She looked up at Nassor seriously. “My tribe is growing fast, isn’t it Papa?” she asked, her voice somewhat heavy.

Too heavy, Nassor thought, a jolt electrifying him as he heard the defeat in her voice. This little one is not even 13 yet, and she sounds like she’s more weighed down than any 50-year-old would sound!

“Aye, lass,” he told her tenderly, crouching slightly to be at her level. He noted her words, my tribe. “And what an opportunity for you, to have so many sisters to help you when you become queen!”

She smiled slightly, though her eyes were still a little sad. Nassor’s heart ached for her, but he wasn’t exactly sure why. Was the girl worried about leading such a large tribe? For indeed, what she had said was true.

Baby girl Skylar had been born the week before—a bit premature, but a healthy baby regardless. She had been the delight of the household; Jade’s first child was another daughter for the tribe!

And yet for some reason, that was stressing out his poor baby girl. Pulling her into a hug, Nassor kissed Effie on the forehead.

“Come, then. Jade said something about pancakes with sprinkles,” he told her, smiling mischievously. Effie cheered, blew a kiss to the baby, and scampered out the bedroom door.

Nassor, scooping a now-fussy Ceres into his arms, smiled contentedly. There was the smile he was missing from Effie.

Perhaps she hadn’t been as anxious as he had thought she was after all.

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Jade sighed as she loaded the dishwasher, feeling dull and annoyed. She had felt that way quite often, in fact, since Skylar’s birth. Every day it was a struggle to get out of bed, especially she was up every single night feeding a screaming baby.

And yet dutifully she had gritted her teeth and done it, insisting to herself that Castor was not needed, that she could care for Skylar entirely on her own.

Even now, she felt a headache beginning to pound in the back of her eyes, and she closed them briefly. When she opened them, she was pleasantly surprised to see a fresh pot of tea had recently been brewed—chamomile, by the smell of it.

Gratefully she poured herself a cup, a contented smile immediately washing over her at the soothing taste. Castor did have some redeeming qualities, she supposed; the tea brewer he had insisted upon was turning out to be a good investment for the entire household, for example.

But, she reminded herself stubbornly. He knew what he was getting himself into. He has no right—NO right!—to raising Skylar, or any involvement in her life whatsoever! She’s mine!

The sudden burst of anger flooded through Jade’s brief moment of contentment. Quickly she feigned a smile and walked to the study, where she knew he would be molding a lump of clay and trying to align his chakra. She stifled a groan at the idea, but even so, did not allow the smile on her face to vanish.

“Hi, handsome!” she greeted him sunnily, pulling out the chair beside him. He smiled.

“Hey, beautiful!” he greeted her back, catching her off guard. He wasn’t normally so—so cutesy, She blinked, dumbfounded, for a few moments before remembering her mission at hand here.

This is YOUR DAUGHTER. He has no rights to her!

“Well, thank you, first off, making a fresh pot of tea,” she began cordially. He smiled kindly, again catching her off guard.

“You’ve been so stressed out when you’ve been getting home from work,” he explained almost shyly. “And I know chamomile is your favorite.”

Jesus Christ, who IS this guy?! Where is the arrogant pendejo I met at the bar that night?! However, she merely closed her eyes and smiled again, willing herself to keep her wits about her.

“Noted and appreciated,” she said as pleasantly as possible. “And while I appreciate you being thoughtful and offering me all those amazing tips and advice, the thing is—it’s way past time for you to go now.” Any semblance of a fake pleasant smile was gone now; her words came out in a tumble and she became more agitated.

“I told you I didn’t want anything more than a sperm donor, and you agreed with me. It’s just—you need to leave now and let me raise my daughter.”

Castor listened respectfully the whole time, nodding along and not interrupting her. As soon as she finished her little speech, he waited a moment before replying.

“Yeah…I thought about that too,” he confessed, shrugging his shoulders. “And…well, Jade, I—I don’t think I can just let her go now that I’ve met her.” A little smile came across his face. “She’s just so amazing. And I know this is some independence thing for you or whatever, but Skylar is my daughter too. I need to stay in her life, even if it’s a co-parent thing like Nassor and AJ are doing.”

Quickly, Jade reached for her cup to cover her rage. He acted as though he had a choice in the matter, damn him! He had agreed over nine months ago that this was what he wanted—to get her pregnant and them leave her be. How dare he presume so boldly that this was something in which his voice would ever be heard?!

“Look, I just feel like I didn’t understand what I was agreeing to. I couldn’t have known. I had never met my own child before that.” He was seemingly taking her overlong sip of tea as an indication that he should continue to flap his jaws.

“I love her. And I want to help you raise her,” he finally said, simply. He looked satisfied at his words. Jade felt her hands shaking with the effort of holding back every curse she knew.

“I don’t want to repeat myself, Castor,” she said, her movements and smile exaggerated. “Skylar is not our child, she is mine. You knew this going in. I’ve already been way more generous than I should have been, by allowing you to hang around for the entire pregnancy and even now, three months later. Don’t make me get a lawyer involved, because I know you don’t have a penny to your own name beyond your Ray-Bans; you’re lucky I’m not asking you for child support—yet.”

Even creepier than her exaggerated, cartoonish pantomime the moment before was the sudden brutally smug grin across her face. Jade looked as though she had already won this imaginary custody hearing.

Castor felt ice prickling his back, causing his arms to break out into goosebumps. He had never seen this side of Jade before, and he had lived with her for a year now. This was a cold, manipulative version of the Jade he knew.

If she wanted a custody battle, so be it. He would sell every pair of Ray-Bans he owned if it came to that. Anything to be able to have a hand in helping his incredible little daughter grow up.

“If that’s how you feel,” he said quietly, making her think she had won. She smirked again, standing up from her chair and smoothing the front of her godawful ruffled mustard dress. If he had been feeling a bit pettier he would have spat some insult out at her about it, but now was not the time to be a smartass.

He’d need to be very, very careful from here on out if he wanted to win a court case.

“Well, I suppose mija needs a fresh diaper,” she said smoothly, pushing the chair back in. Without another word, she strutted out of the study, radiating confidence.

Heart pounding, breath shaking, Castor stared unseeingly straight ahead, wondering what to do. Help me, please, his mind whispered to Someone, Anyone.

As if a warm breeze, Castor felt a sense of peace washing over him, feelings of well-being. He raised his eyes heavenward, smiling slightly. Thank you, whoever You are.