Marriage is Murder

"Yeah," Marcus said. "Our twins were earlier than they expected, even calculating that into it. I know she's been having some false labor pains. You do realize, though, that James attacked her in September and Robert told us then that he believed she was two months pregnant. He told us that in the emergency room. If that's the case, she's in her ninth month now. With twins. And that could well mean she's due any day or even overdue."

He felt her cheek with the back of his fingers. It was very warm from the afternoon sun. "I think I need to get her in out of the heat." He woke her gently. The minute he woke her up, she was uncomfortable, nauseated.

"I know," he told her. "I've let you sleep too long. You need to be out of the sun, and we need to get you something tall and icy cold to drink. You'll feel better."

"I don't want anything," she sighed. He picked her up, knowing that it was taking more and more for her to actually stand up, and if she didn't feel well, he wasn't going to push it. It was more important to get her inside.

"Jess, can you find something cold? If there's any lemonade, that will reduce the nausea. Or at least my mother and my mother in law always said so," Marcus asked.

He carried her inside and put her on the sofa in the house. It was definitely cooler out of the sun, and he debated on whether or not she would feel better if he got a cold compress to sponge off her face and her neck.

"Nothing is going to happen while I'm able to do something about it," Marcus said. "That's just not an option."

He took the lemonade glass and insisted she took a few sips of it. Even that much seemed to help.

"Better?" he asked.

"Getting there," she said. "Thanks. Jess, if something happens, it does. Its just part of being a Lupin, unfortunately."

"I'm sure the pie is fine," Angus said. "Pie is a nice change from some of the other things I've made lately. Its a good thought."

Khaat saw the blanket Cassidy had. "Its Abbey's," she said. "It was the first thing Abbey ever owned, and Brian bought it for her. I...had a hard time in delivering her."

"She almost died," Brian said, coming inside and accio'ing a beer from the fridge. He popped the top on it and took a drink from the bottle. "Abbey went home from St. Mungos long before Khaat did."

"Rob let me the night Abbey was born," Khaat said. "Abbey wasn't supposed to live, and neither was I. My father called Brian from Paris to help deliver Abbey so that perhaps one or the other of us, Abbey or I, would have a chance to survive. When Abbey was ready to be released, I had no place to go. Brian bought that blanket to take Abbey home in, picked her up, took her to his house--the estate, and she and I never lived any place else."

"I didn't give Khaat the chance," Brian said. "I moved her out of the cottage in Hogsmeade before she was released from St Mungos and took her home with me. She needed a lot of care for weeks--couldn't work for months. She couldn't begin to manage on her own, and she certainly couldn't take care of a premature newborn. I think everybody knows the rest of the story."

"We have several really nice baby blankets," Brian said. "Khaat has tried to buy a new receiving blanket for every child. She's kept them stored someplace or another."

"I thought you knew I wasn't a healer," Marcus said, not understanding. He thought it sounded like she was taking it rather personally that he had said he was going to keep Khaat safe,and he wasn't sure why it was an issue.

"I have twins, though. I was there when my twins were conceived and through my wife's pregnancy and when they were born. And I took care of them most of their infancy. I'm a good father. I was right from the start. And I did learn a few things about pregnancy, labor and delivery."

"If you're asking if I've ever delivered a child under an emergency situation" he said, "the answer is yes. I've been the primary bodyguard for royalty for many years. Some training in all sorts of situations is required. But the point is that I'm a bodyguard, and I'm a good one. My job is to make sure that nothing happens to my clients and that they stay safe.

"I had no intention of delivering the babies--not unless there is, by some odd fluke, no other choice.

Marcus simply nodded as Jack seemed to reel in Jess and make off with her. He turned his attention to Khaat, who had listened to the whole thing.

"You know there isn't technically a lot to do in a standard delivery," she reassured him. "Even if you had to do it, you're just a catcher, really."

"You don't strike me as a woman who does anything in a standard fashion," he laughed. "Seriously, you do know that you could deliver those babies at any time now."

"Yes," she said. "I do. I'm not entirely blind to it. I've been thinking that perhaps its not good to strain Brian by going home and just let nature take its course here."

"Don't you think you should discuss that with him? He has some very firm ideas on that. He is very biased that his children shall all be British by birth."

"A fine thing for someone Irish by birth to be saying," she rolled her eyes.

"He's Irish? You'd never know it," he laughed.

"No, not really," she said.

"He wants to go home, Khaat," Marcus said. "He wants you safe at the estate."

"He can want it all he likes. But in the end, he's not doing this. I am," she said.

"Talk to him," Marcus said quietly. "Don't just wait on happenstance.

"I only want my father to deliver them," she said.

"And now you're asking more than Brian is," Marcus said. "That just doesn't seem to be very realistic right now. I'm sure he'll be there, but I doubt he'll be doing the delivery."

Brian, who had gone outside for a moment, wandered back in.

"Sorry. Thought I heard something. Was only a couple of odd tropical birds making some sort of a fuss," he said. "So, wait...who's missing the birth of my children?"

"Me," Khaat said dryly.

"I didn't know that was an option," he laughed. "Seriously, though, what are you stewing about?"

"It doesn't matter where I have them. It does matter that Daddy delivers them," she said quietly.

"No," he said. "I'd prefer them to be born in England. That matters to me. Its not a game changer, but it is my preference. However, your father isn't going to endanger you or risk you getting his curse. The only thing that really matters, as much as we both have preferences, is that you and the babies are safe and healthy. For all I care, we have enough healers that you could have the babies at home. What's going on here? Do you know something I don't know?"

"Only that I'm getting restless. Tired and restless. And I'm enough of a healer to know that it means this isn't far away."

"Then I think we need to head for home in a day or two," he said. "I'll send Jack and Steven and Jim back after dinner tonight to check on the estate and make sure that its secure--especially the house. With the time change, it will be morning there. They can work in daylight if they want."