Marriage is Murder

Robert and Brian put Archangel in the barn and when they came out, they saw Jack coming back with a man thrown across his horse.

"Well, he didn't have to be undignified about it,' Robert said. Then he looked closer. "Oh. It's Steven. I had no idea he was coming today. I knew he was close to being discharged from Jeffrey but I didn't know he was doing it today."

"Steven, huh? This will be interesting," Brian said.

"He was bewitched, Brian," Robert said. "It will take some time, but we do need to help him mend some bridges with everyone. Khaat may take a little time to mend that. We'll just have to see."

"she's a healer. She understand hexes. She will try," Brian said. "It may take her a bit, but she will try."

"I know," Robert said.

Jack dropped Steven at Roberts feet, Steven grunted as he fell to the ground and sat up. “ Found this out there too.” He said and slipped from his own horse and leading it to the stable leaving Steven sat on the floor. Steven looked up at Robert and sighed shaking his head.

“He said he was going to owl you, I guess it got caught up in the storm” he said and sighed nodding at Brian's words. “ Do you have a comfortable bug jar handy, I think I might be using one after Khaat is done with me.” he said crossing his legs as he sat in front of them “ wouldn't blame her ether from what Jeffrey told me I was a right bastard and some towards her, what I don't understand is why her?” he frowned as he tried to figure it out.

"Who knows?" Robert said in answer to Steven's question. "I dont have any idea why certain spells work exactly why they do. I know Jeffrey said you were ready to be released but the last I knew he wasn't certain as to whether you were ready to work or not. What eactly did he say to you about that?" He wasn't going to acknowledge that Steven had indeed been cruel. What was important was figuring out how to move forward. "If I know Jeffrey, he either send a report to me with you or he's sending it separate. If you have a report, then perhaps you need to give it to me. We're not going to wake up Khaat to tell her you're back. It can wait. The kids all have measles on top of the green itch. She was up all night taking care of the. I suggest we let her find out when she's more rested than now while she's tired. Unless you see some reason why she needs to know now. "

Jack stood not far from them and listened as Steven looked at Robert and shrugged.“He told me that to and that it was down to me if I felt ready, I just would like to put this whole thing behind me and move forward.” He listened again as Robert reminded him of the large envelope in his pocket. Reaching in he drew it out and enlarged it. “ you mean this “ he said and held it out to him, Jack walked over and took it making sure it was just paper and nothing more. Steven looked at Jack before finally standing up to face them both.

“He told me to give it to you, but I saw Archangel and got side tracked.” He said glancing at Jack his face saying he still didn't like him yet.

"Well, must we stay out here?" Kate asked. "Or are we allowe back in the house?"

"As we came out of it, I presume we are allowed to go back into it," Robert said, taking the envelope. He read it over and put it in his shirt pocket. "Come along, then, all of you. All of this for an owl. Really."

"An eagle, I thought," Kate said.

"Bloody thing thinks its an owl. In this case, its the same thing." He led the way back into the house. Angus served a fresh tray of mugs of cinnamon tea and a plate of fresh cookies.

"These things usually are more civilized with a mug of tea, I think," Angus said, as he set the tray down.

"Thank you," Kate said, handing Robert a mug of tea and taking one for herself. Robert waited until everyone seemed settled and then he looked at Steven.

"What makes you think you're ready for duty again?" he asked.

Steven looked at Robert as he stood in the main room but some what at attention, He looked at him when Robert spoke asking why he felt he was ready to return to work . “ I'm not ready for duty until you to say I am ready, however I am physically and physiological fit and able when you say, from what Jeffrey told me at our last session.” He said looking at Robert straight in the eyes. “ But if I might make a suggestion, It might be an idea to get to know how and why this happened and who else its happened to, so we can stop it and who ever is behind it.”

"Ah, well. That," Robert said. "I think--or I--have that figured out. Why you, specifically, I don't know. But I do know their quarry was Khaat. And I am not entirely sure it was because of me. I think this man has designs of his own. And he appears to be infatuated with her."

"Oh. Him," Brian sighed. "And we didn't catch him, did we?"

"No. We did not. Not yet. In fact, she was rescued by a Death Eater from him in her last encounter."

"Escobar," Kate said.

"Indeed. He has been looking to get her into one of his bizarre collections for awhile now. I think it was him," Robert said.

"Beware of unwelcome bats," Brian told Steven. It was his only instruction to him. But he figured Steven would catch the reference.

Steven listened and sighed as he shifted on his feet he remembered a man being in the shop before he'd bought the ring. “Dark looking man pale skin, has some sort of dark heir about him?” he said then looked at Brian and nodded he got the reference. “Hum, I never liked that sort of bat. “He said now folding his arms across his chest. “ and you think the ring could have been one of his doings to get to her?” he asked the thinking about it he nodded “ I remember a dark man in the shop just before I bought the ring for Cassidy.” He told them both as he ”Should have known to get it checked out by you Robert first.”

"He's from Brazil," Robert said. "He's a bit unconventional, even for a vampire. But then again I suppose hundreds of years of immortality might tempt most souls out of being conventional."

"He hasn't got a soul," Brian said. "He gave that up for immortality."

"Technically true, I suppose," Robert said. "Still, he didn't live all those years being stupid. After living nearly half a century, I would expect him to be smarter than we are. Unless he just was dense to begin with."

"He hardly seemed dense to me," Angus said. "He's worth our being concerned about."

"Yes," Robert agreed. "He is. And planting a piece of jewelry is easy enough amongst the unsuspecting. We would not detect it since we were not looking for it. And it may well have been that he had it protected enough that we would still not necessarily been aware of the ring's true nature. Best that we just be aware of his nature and move forward, I think."

"Probably true," Brian said. "Khaat seems to have moved forward where he is concerned."

Steven stood listening with interest he looked at Angus and nodded, He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed “ yeah, I must've been having a really dense day that day not to spot it.” He said he glanced around but looked back at Brian when he spoke of Khaat and her moving forward he knew she might not be so forward when it came to him. He still felt bad about how he'd acted around her and Cassidy in fact all of them. “Hum, I think I'm still going to need that bug jar?” he said Robert halfheartedly as he knew Khaat knew the bug spell and if she did cast it he would accept it as penance for what had happened though he hoped she would understand he had no control over how he acted and would never have said those words or acted as brutish as he did to her.