Marriage is Murder

Robert looked up from his place at the table. He was finished and simply drinking a cup of tea. He saw they were anxious to get to work. He scanned he faces of those at the table, to make a choice.

He pointed to Jack and Steven both. They knew the grounds and knew them well. With two of them working, they'd be done in half the time, and normally, they worked well together. He didn't have to give them any more instructions than he already had. They knew their jobs. And he trusted them to bring him the word of even the slightest irregularity at the estate before they moved anyone back.

"I can go with them," Brian said. Robert shook his head. He definitely didn't want Brian going. Khaat had already had a scare at thinking she had lost him once already today. He didn't want any chance of that happening again.

He motioned to the rest of them to clean up from dinner and put the kids to bed. He looked at Marcus, but he knew immediately that Marcus did not need to be told anything. His task had not changed one bit.

Jack looked at Steven and nodded " come on you go east I'l go notify the guards " he said and together they ported back to the estate Jack went down to the closest guard house checking the security as he went finding it just as tight then he haded back to the main house and entered to find the house elves. "Were coming back here make sure Khaats room is warm with fresh sheets please" he said as Steven walked in soon after.

" Alls good west, the plants have recovered too, almost double our crop too" he said showing Jack a large red apple as he bit into it. Jack sent word back to the safe house. Jess saw the note and took it to Robert.

"This came from Jack " she said handing it to him just as Catlin ran out in just her pajama top laughing as Cassidy dove after her. " she,s a fighter" Jess said and slipped the top on her as she saw Abby peeking around the door " do you want papa or mama?" she asked.

Once they were gone, Michael set spells in place to clean up after dinner. Angus began to prepare a rather light breakfast for them in case they wanted to move rather quickly. Then he considered some of the finicky appetites of those in the crew and simply put his ingredients away. He didn't want to deal with it. He would consider that in the morning when they knew more about what the plan was.

"I think I'll head to bed myself," Angus yawned. He was up earlier than anyone ever was typically, and he was tired. "Goodnight, Everyone." He headed off to bed.

Marcus had drawn Khaat a bath with the lavender bath oil and made sure she was safe and comfortable with a cup of chamomile tea. While she was in the tub, he got Brian to listen for her and Marcus apparated out briefly.

It was then that Abbey peeked out of the bedroom. When Jess asked whether she wanted Mama or Papa, Abbey dashed over to Robert and climbed up on his lap. Robert frowned, not sure why she was up. Abbey motioned to him to lean closer. He complied and she whispered in his hear. He frowned at her deeply. She whispered some more to her and then cuddled tight into him. He picked her up and carried her to the rocking chair and simply sat with her and rocked her.

Marcus came back with two white cardboard boxes and put them in the kitchen. He opened one, revealing one of two tropical cheesecakes, cut one, plated two pieces, and took them to where Khaat was soaking.

"Clever man," Brian said with a slight smile, after watching Marcus with the cheesecake. "He learns fast. He's found a way to get her to eat, one way or the other. He's figured out that she'll eat cheesecake when she won't eat anything else. Good man."

Jess chuckled as she saw the cheese cakes and watched him head for Khaat " well he does know her " she said as jack picked up James carrying him back to the bed room to put the rest of his pj's on as he giggled being carried over Jacks shoulder. Cassidy and Jim cleared the table and wiped it down washing the dishes as they looked over at Robert and Abby.

Cassidy walked over to them "Everything okay? " she asked softly looking at Abby " its nice to see the two of you together" she said smiling.

Robert shook his head. Everything wasn't alright. Abbey was having bad dreams. She didn't want to go to sleep. Didn't want to leave her Papa. And from what she had whispered in his ear, he didn't like the sounds of it.

He wasn't accustomed to working with a 4 year old who sometimes had bursts of baby magic. His granddaughter did seem, though, to have inherited her mother's and grandmother's energy working skills. Whether Abbey would inherit any of his energy working skills would remain to be seen.

The nightmare she was having tonight was not an average nightmare for a four year old, and that alerted him. It caused him concern. It made him wary because there hadn't been enough information in it for him to know where the danger was or precisely what it was, if it were really a premonition of some sort.

Jess walked over to him and knelt in front of Abby as she spoke softly to her " Abby what did you see in your nasty dream" she asked softly hoping to know so she could calm her fears. " will you tell me?" she asked again this time acciong a cookie with pink cherries in she smiled at her and hoped she would.

Jack walked in and watched from where the checkers board was laid out still. " Must be bad for her to want Robert, I checked her room but found nothing that could scare her" he said but Jess looked back at him.

"This was a night mare Jack" she looked to Robert and sighed " baby magic?" she asked softly.

Robert nodded. Abbey took the cookie. She didn't want to talk, didn't want to tell. It made her feel confused. It was so vitally important, in her dream, to be silent.

She looked at Robert, afraid to talk about it, except to whisper in his ear. She hadn't even wanted to talk about it out loud to Papa. She could only whisper it.

"I no tell, Papa," she said to him. Robert brushed Abbey's cheek affectionately. He pointed to Jess and nodded to try to tell Abbey that it was okay to tell her. Abbey hid for a moment, afraid. "You keep it away, Papa?" she asked softly, looking up into Robert's face. Robert looked at her with absolute strength and conviction. Nobody was going to touch her. Nobody. He nodded. He would protect her, at every cost. Abbey reluctantly looked up at Jess, huddling closer to Robert, as if she expected something from her dreams to reach out and snatch her away from Robert.

"We gots to be quiet," Abbey whispered. "It a secret. No noise. Noise is bad. Light is bad. Dark is good. We needs to hide."

Jess listened to her and whispered. "why is the light bad Abby?" she whispered to her softly "Can you tell me what were hiding from?" she asked again trying subtly to find out what had her so scared as she was. Jack moved to the kitchen to get a soda passing Robert and Abby together. Jess looked at Robert hoping even a little information could prepare them for what ever it was she had seen and had scared her.

Jack stood and opened his soda taking a deep long drink he watched just as confused as Jess was at what had scared Abby.

"I no know," she whispered. "But we gots to hide. In the dark. And we gots to be quiet. Mama no is quiet. She noisy. She cry. She no hide. We hide. She puts us in the black. She no hide. She want them find her, not us."

Robert tapped Abbey's tiny hand. She looked at him. He gestured to the house. He wanted to know if they were hiding here, at the house, and who was with them.

"I no know," she said, "I no like it. The rocks are cold, Papa. Mama cold. She cry."

Robert accio'd a photo of Khaat from the fireplace mantel. He showed it to Abbey and then held the photo close to his heart to show Abbey that he loved Khaat and would protect her.

"You can't come," she said. "No grownups allowed. Just us and Mama in the dark."

Jess looked at Robert and sighed " could be a cave of some sort." She said as Abby had said rocks to them both. "Shes keeping them hidden from something" she said and sat back and looked as Robert told Abby he would protect Khaat come what may and she smiled.

"I guess we just have to be on our toes" Jack said finishing his soda and placing the empty can in the trash as he walked back to Jess. "Could be...you know who or the other one?" He said not wanting to scare Abby with names.