The Poison Season(94)

Leelo nearly choked on her last bite of bread. “What?”

“He moved away from Bricklebury a few years ago,” Marta explained. “After Tate told us about him, my husband went to see if he could find him. That was four days ago now, so I expect he’ll be returning soon.”

Tate, who only moments before had been scarfing down his own slice of bread and honey, glanced at Leelo. She couldn’t tell what his expression meant, if he was ashamed of discovering that he had a different father or perhaps worried that Leelo would be ashamed of him.

“It’s okay,” she said, covering Tate’s hand with hers. “I know about Nigel. Nothing has changed. You’ll always be my brother.”

While they waited for Oskar to return, Lupin and Story filled in the holes of what had happened while Jaren was gone. Story had had adventures of her own while searching for Jaren, including meeting a group of incantu who lived in an underground den near Lake Luma. Leelo and Jaren couldn’t help noticing the way Story blushed every time she mentioned their leader, Grimm.

In less than a day, Leelo’s world had grown in scope to an almost overwhelming degree. But every time she started to feel like it was all too much to take in, Jaren took her hand under the table and squeezed it, and she remembered that she was not alone.

After they finished eating, the front door opened, admitting two men. The first was clearly Mr. Rebane. He went to his wife and daughter, embracing them, then gave Tate’s hair a warm ruffle. A narrow figure stood behind him in the shadows.

Marta cleared her throat and nodded at the man, and Oskar turned to look behind him. “Goodness, I nearly forgot! Everyone, I’d like you to meet Nigel Thorn.”

A man with shoulder-length raven hair parted down the middle stepped forward. He was fair, like Tate, with the same nearly black eyes. Is that what Tate will look like when he grows up? Leelo wondered, trying to come to terms with the fact that this man had fallen in love with her mother once. That her mother had loved him.

“You must be Tate,” Nigel said, approaching the boy who looked like a miniature version of himself.

Tate nodded and stepped closer so he could shake Nigel’s outstretched hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Thorn.”

Nigel smiled down at him. “It’s nice to meet you, too. A little strange, considering that up until two days ago, I had no idea you existed.”

Tate ducked his head. “I know what you mean.”

“Well, then, I suppose we’re both new at this.” He crouched down so that he was eye to eye with Tate. “How is your mother?”

Tate glanced at Leelo, looking a little desperate. “She...”

Leelo rose and went to stand beside her brother. “She’s as well as she can be,” she said gently, for Tate’s sake. “I’m Leelo. Fiona’s daughter.”

Now Nigel was the one to look a bit helpless. “Leelo? Saints. You were just a little girl...” He seemed to catch himself and glanced around at the other people in the room. He straightened and turned to Mr. Rebane. “I clearly have some catching up to do. I don’t think I’ll make it back to the farm tonight. Is there an inn I can stay at? One that allows dogs?”

For the first time, Leelo noticed an enormous animal with shaggy gray fur who had snuck in behind Nigel and made himself at home on the sofa. For a second, she thought it was a wolf, and she nearly leaped into Jaren’s arms.

But Jaren didn’t seem afraid. “Is this your dog?” he asked Nigel.

“Wolfhound, yes.” He whistled, and the dog placed his front legs on the floor, pausing to stretch before trotting over to Nigel. “This is Percy.” He turned to Tate with a wink. “Your little brother.”

At that, the massive creature jumped up and placed his paws on Tate’s shoulders, nearly knocking him over.

“Sir Percival!” Nigel grabbed the dog by his leather collar and pulled him off Tate. He smiled sheepishly. “Apologies, Tate. He gets a little excited when he meets new people.”

Leelo was still reeling from the fact that this man had referred to the dog as Tate’s brother. As in, they were both Nigel’s sons. She didn’t know what she’d expected, but she certainly hadn’t expected him to accept Tate quite so readily.

“Tate,” Lupin said. “Why don’t we go and get some blankets? Mr. Thorn can sleep in your room. You can sleep on the floor of mine, if you like.”

Tate looked to Leelo. She took his hand and followed Lupin to the hall cupboard, where the linens were kept.

“You look a little worried,” Lupin said softly to Tate. “Are you nervous?”

He took the blankets from her. “A bit.”

“He seems like a nice man, but I understand if you need more time.”

“But what about your parents?”

“My parents will let you stay here as long as I say. All right?” She must have seen Leelo’s expression, because she cleared her throat. “Both of you are welcome, of course.”

“Oh, I think I’ll be staying at Jaren’s house for now. But Tate can choose.” She turned to her little brother and managed a smile. “Don’t worry, Tate. Things are a little confusing right now, but we’ll get it sorted out.”

Lupin smirked. “Besides, how dangerous can a man who names his dog Sir Percival be?”