I woke to Suri's cries and sick rising in my throat.
"Here's a bowl," Carla's voice whispered as she put it in front of me.
I was sick as a pig and dry heaving like a cat with a fur ball until my body shook violently to ensure I had every last drop out and that included the stomach acid. I hated being sick... hated it!
"Where's Suri?" I asked breathless and exhausted as Carla took the bowl and I lay my spinning head back down.
"She is in her room," she replied with a disapproving tone. "Give yourself a minute to rest."
"Can you fetch her for me?" I asked.
She looked reluctant but left with the bowl and, I hoped, to fetch Suri as I could hear her crying and it was heartbreaking. A few minutes later she was still crying and I figured Carla had gone to empty the bowl or got caught up with her kids and the twins. I dragged myself up unable to listen to Suri anymore and my calling her name to tell her to come to me had not been answered. I decided to go fetch her. I staggered like a drunk woman down the hall following the sound of crying. I tried the door, it was locked.
"Suri?" I called. She stopped crying for a minute. "Baby, are you in there?" I asked.
"Yeah," she whimpered.
I tried the door.
"They locked it," she cried from the other side.
"What the hell?" I said feeling enraged. Locking my baby in a room! "I'll get you out just wait there," I said looking for a key but it was gone.
I stormed into the adjoining room and opened the double doors onto the balcony. "Suri," I called. Her face appeared seconds later at the window. "Are they open?" I asked and she tried her doors. To my relief and hers they were. "Come here," I said as she rushed over and I lifted her over the balcony wall to mine. She clung onto me like a baby chimp as I felt faint. I took a few deep breaths and half staggered back to my room with her.
"She won't be happy," Carla said appearing and seeing Suri in bed with me having snuggles as I tried to calm her down.
"Who won't?" I asked.
"Her grandmother," she replied.
"Well she can fuck off, Suri is my daughter. She gave her up and if she has issues with that she can take it up with me," I replied. Suri became very still as she listened and I knew she was scared. I would not keep her like this. "Whilst I appreciate Uncle's offer I believe we have outstayed our welcome so I'll pack the car up and take the children home."
"Back to your old house?" Carla asked.
"Yes, Stephanie won't come near me now and I object to my child being locked in a room and left to cry," I replied.
"I don't think you are fit to drive at the moment," she replied.
"Not at the moment but as soon as I have had something to eat, I will feel better and we will leave," I said rubbing Suri soothing with a promise. "Where are the twins? I need to get them ready."
"Down stairs, I'll bring them up," she offered and left.
I lay cuddling Suri who had calmed down but still had a few shuddering breath moments which upset her.
"Don't worry we are going home," I promised.
"I see you are awake," Lee's mother said disapprovingly as she appeared in the doorway. Suri started to cry again and ducked under the blanket to hide.
"I see you punished my daughter," I countered.
"She has broken rules," she replied.
"Then I will be told and I will deal with her as her mother. A title you gave me, when you forced your son to give her up," I sniped.
"But he didn't give her up did he."
"Of course he did! I've been her mother for nearly a year and he has only seen her once at the hospital..."
"And once to fornicate with you!" she glared.
"Fornicate! You say that like it is a disease. We had sex, memory loss and now I'm pregnant. I've had similar weekends due to alcohol and partying just without the pregnancy," I replied. She looked disgusted.
"She!" she said pointing to the Suri shaped bump in the bed. "Did this!"
"She is a baby," I replied rolling my eyes.
"She is a little witch," she glared.
I tutted. "Watch your mouth when you talk about my child, and 'she' has a name it's Suri."
"Do you even care what she did?" she asked her nostrils flaring in anger.
"No," I replied.
"Well I am going to tell you any way. That day when she was ill she had been casting," she said and glared at the Suri shaped lump in the bed. "We are not taught magic, it is born within us. She is too young to be spelling and exhausted herself. That was the reason for her fever," she said and Suri clung onto me extra tight. "She spelled the cookies, and made a wish. All she needed was her father to come home. She caused the storm by casting as she kept calling him to her. That is not a power she should have yet and is very dangerous as she can call other things which will take advantage of her."
I could see the seriousness and concern on her face. I had no reply. All cockiness gone.
"She was sent to her room as punishment..."
"Locking the door is imprisonment not punishment," I snapped. "She is 5 years old."
"The locked door is a test to see if she can get out."
"She was crying her heart out and you all ignored her. That is not a test that is torment!"
"She roused you to consciousness to go rescue her. She has only just started crying. You have been out of it for a day and a half, which I apologise for I forgot your frailty in a moment of weakness. However, the issue is still that Suri is casting and that has caused her to drain you and she could even be taking energy from the twins."
My face dropped and my heart stopped.
"Think of how weak you are feeling, and how Willow and Bay have been unwell. They can't fight the urge to help her anymore than you can."
I didn't know what to say as my mind was trying to work out whether the twins and I had been more tired around Suri's illness.
"Suri has been calling her father to her. He has been trying to resist but it is draining him too. So she began calling Stephanie as she knew that he might be with her."
I was astounded.
"They didn't just arrive at your supermarket out of the blue, Suri was summoning her. Stephanie tried to stop it when she realised what was happening, as Suri summoned her to the party so her father could dance with her, but Lee wasn't with there. Stephanie challenged her..."
"Stephanie attacked her, you've seen her face," I snapped.
"No, Stephanie defended herself..."
"Bullshit..."
"I have already told you that things can attach themselves to power and especially a new one. Suri was attracting something she shouldn't and it attached itself to her. You may think she is speaking to herself or her toys when playing but she is not. Stephanie fought it off and yes she may have done it to win favour with Lee and Suri was injured in the process but that is nothing compared to the damage that would have been caused should she have left the child open. When she ran from there, she wasn't afraid of you, it was of the things you do not see with human eyes and she was chased from there. That is why she faked her demise, she drew it to a physically similar being and it took hold. She didn't expect it to go after Lee to spite her for tricking it but it did so out of anger as Suri was not able to fight Stephanie off and it knew she would tell Lee. For that we should be grateful and it will hunt for Suri again which is why Lee told you to run. You cannot return to that house."
I hugged Suri tight at the thought of something harming her.
"She is already more powerful than most witches I know. She is 5 years old and able to command you and her father to make a baby so you can get married like Glenn and April," she replied glaring at the bump as Suri hugged me and whimpered. "I believe she was helped to some degree but don't not how and she won't tell. Lee doesn't remember either."
Oh great! I thought but then figured it was better as I we were even now.
"I will speak with her..."
"About what? You don't even know what we are..."
"I assume she is a Witch, isn't that what you just said? Witches, possession, demons etc" I asked feeling as though she was going to call me an idiot.
"Yes, her ancestry has a linage of witchcraft which she seems to have inherited but there is a whole lot more she could develop aspects of which you will not be able to cope with."
"Well you gave her to me. She is mine and we will work it out together and should the twins start to levitate things I will deal with that too."
"You are human. They will deal with you," she replied.
"Suri does as she is told..."
"I wasn't referring to the children," she said with a smug grin.
"Every time I got to ask what you are I think forget about it, I have enough to deal with and I will find out soon enough."
She nodded at the bed. "And that is how she likes it," she said fighting a giggle.
I rolled my eyes and sighed... Suri you little minx.
"You are doing a wonderful job as a mother to these children and I am sure you will make Lee a fine wife tomorrow but you need..."
"Tomorrow!" I said my eyes half popping out my head.
"Yes, there is no waiting around when you are with child and Lee was already due to wed Stephanie so people are coming, we have just changed the venue to here," she replied.
"My sister waited and I need to speak to Lee first."
"You will not see him until the ceremony. He will wait for you at the altar as a groom should..."
"I haven't even got the paperwork to get married..."
"You will have a ceremony tomorrow, here in the grounds and sign the documents then," she said walking to the window and looking out.
I sighed exasperated! "I need to speak with Lee. I know all this claiming stuff apparently happened but I need to discuss things with him to see if he wants to marry me..."
"There is nothing to discuss. In the olden days when a man raped a woman he was forced to marry her. The same stands today in our culture in respects of Heirs. If a man lies with a woman, neither are married and she conceives an heir they are to marry. Neither has a choice, you should have thought of that before sleeping with my son..."
"I didn't think of anything. I have no memory of it."
"You were told about the attraction between you and the danger held there," she snapped. "Since the moment you both met it has been stolen glances, giggles, smiles, hand holding and flirting. You share food and I dare say there has been stolen kisses..."
"No there has not!" I half yelled.
"Well congratulate yourself because you have achieved something Stephanie couldn't no matter how hard she tried to seduce him. You are carrying a Grayson," she said with pride at the name.
"I already have three Graysons, this is not a hobby. I am not collecting stamps and I did not purposefully seduce your son..."
"No he seduced you, Cookie Monster," she said smiling holding up her two fingers.
I frowned.
"Twice. You know of the pantry..."
"Utilities room," I replied.
"Well it was a pantry in my day but there was also the night you were concerned over his popping over and Suri not seeing him."
"He didn't come over, I feel asleep on the sofa and..."
"The sofa," she replied with an 'I know what you did there' look.
"Why does everyone around here know more about my sex life and children than me! Gah, Lee has a gorgeous body why don't I get to see it!" I fumed.
"You will tomorrow night, the wedding is at noon," she said leaving the room as I blushed crimson.
"I haven't even got a dress!" I yelled after her.
She ignored me so I lay there having a mini panic attack as Suri popped her head out and gave me a sorrowful look.
"NO CASTING!" I growled.
She whimpered.
"It is dangerous. Do you understand?" I asked.
She nodded her pouty lipped face.
"Promise me," I said.
"Promise," she said.
"I am not saying you can't do it ever again. I am just saying you need supervision, like some Harry Potter training or something," I said reassuringly.
Her eyes perked up a bit at the thought and I couldn't believe that sentence had just come out of my mouth.
"Hermione eat your heat out," I said giving her a hug.
Carla entered with the twins who both gave me a very excited squeal.
"They are fed, changed, played with and look no tubes," she said to Willow.
"Where are they?" I asked a bit worried that her oxygen levels would be low.
"Uncle is very clever," she said and Willow made an excited squeal at his name.
"Did it hurt?" I asked remembering Lee.
"No but you watch how quick they will grow now," she said passing my over Willow from her hip.
I was rewarded with cuddles and baby chomping sloppy kisses as we played with them on the bed for a while and were joined by her little boy as the eldest brought him in saying he smelt of poo. Boy did he ever! Toxic to the point Suri got sick in the toilet.
"One special delivery," Lee's mother said appearing in the doorway with a clothes hanger.
Suri scrambled under the blanket again causing Carla to giggle as her chubby baby leant over to chew on the Suri shaped lump making her squeal.
"One wedding dress for the blushing bride," she said holding it out.
I may have looked like a tramp with bed hair but I dove out of the bed to go see. What is it with us girls and trying on wedding dresses. I had never been that interested but knowing it was mine, I wanted to see it and unzipped the bag like I was opening Pandora's box. Desperate to see what was inside but shitting myself in case it was horrid.
It was amazing and there was a tag 'set aside for the future Mrs Lee Grayson'.
"Was this what Stephanie is supposed to wear?" I asked full of dread but in love with the dress.
"No this is the one your sister picked out for you," his mother replied.
I stared at it, how the hell...
"She found it whilst looking for her own. She tried it on and said you should wear to marry Lee. Glenn had always teased her about her visions but on the night of their wedding he showed it her to prove he believed her. He had brought it for you as a gift from them and said he would help set you and Lee up on a date," she replied getting all teary eyed.
That was it, full water works from me and hug from Carla.
"I may not seem like I want you to marry my son but that is not true. I am very anxious to get it out of the way and to ensure your safety. When Lee kept failing the test to marry Stephanie, I knew why. I knew it was because he should be with you as your sister had foretold not because of the guilt he feels for Suri's mothers passing."
"Well lets try it on," Carla said excited and pulling the rest of the dress out of the bag.
"WOW!" I said as I took in the simplicity of the white wedding gown and the beauty of the lace jacket. I loved it! It was so me... so, so me! My sister knew me well.
"It is certainly that and the last person to try it on was your sister so that is a blessing. I bet it fits like a glove," she replied excited.
"Wait let me shower so I don't get it dirty," I said hurrying off to the bathroom. "Somebody watch the babies!" I yelled as an after thought and heard them all giggle.