Triplets For The Dark Elf by Celeste King

Author:Celeste King [King, Celeste]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Protheka Publishing
Published: 2023-03-27T16:00:00+00:00

18

MIOTHRO

“Mimi!” Maeve screams at the top of her lungs, holding two halves of a broken toy.

“It’s okay.” I try to keep my voice soothing as I twist Indie upside down in an attempt to wrangle my hair out of his grasp. “Maevey,” I soothe as I reach toward her, but Indie is cackling in my ear as I feel strands rip free of my scalp.

I swipe for something else, anything within my grasp, and when my hand closes around a book discarded on the floor, I thrust it up in front of Indie. Instantly, he lets go, ripping the book from my hands and I set him down as he flips through the page.

Maeve is still screaming, and I scoop her up in my arms, moving us to the couch so that I can’t be ambushed by my son again. I take the two halves of her toys, and, with a little transformative magic trick I learned as a teen, I fuse it back together.

She screams in glee – I think – and snatches the toy out of my hands. Scrambling out of my lap, she goes back to her place on the floor.

I sigh as I tip my head back, sucking in a deep breath. It took all of thirty seconds for this house to descend into madness.

With Annalise, the kids are so well-behaved. No, they don’t always listen, and yes, they are rambunctious. But they don’t rip my hair out – literally – and bounce off the walls. She has a handle on them I never respected before.

They were so sweet when I first arrived, wanting to talk to me and play games. I thought I had really gotten to know my kids.

But the second that door shut behind their mother, they whirled on me. It was like staring down the eyes of a beast that could sense its prey. They knew I was weak, and they pounced.

No wonder Annalise was so worried about me. She knew what little demons our children are, and she hid it from me.

I feel a tap on my shoulder and I roll my head to the side to see Hazel standing there. She regards me for a moment, and then twists her mouth to the side. “Smoke.”

“Smo…” My eyes go to the little kitchenette where there is indeed smoke coming from the grain I forgot I was steaming. “Shit, shit, shit!”

I rush to rip it from the heat, airing out the pot that I will have to scrub later. At least the meat and veggies survived. That should be enough dinner for the triplets, especially after I let them fill up on cookies – parenting mistake one.

“Shit, shit, shit,” Maeve and Indie chorus behind me, and I shake my head. My hands grip the counter as I bow my shoulders forward and try to find the strength to make it through this evening.

Hazel walks up to me with that assessing gaze. “Bad word.”

“Yes,” I force out through my teeth. “Thank you, Hazel.”

“Don’t!” I shout over their screaming as I turn around, and they both freeze, wide eyed and open mouthed.

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