Theoren and Nara, along with her baby brother Zachary, were waiting for her when she came out of her bedroom for breakfast that morning. There were three boxes on the table, each of them colorfully wrapped with pretty bows.

"Happy Birthday!" Theo and Nara said in unison, smiling happily.

"Thanks." Kiara said. She started unwrapping the presents. The first box contained a beautiful sweater from Nara. The second contained a beautiful gold locket with matching earrings, her gift from her father.

Inside the third box was a note from Lucas asking her to meet him outside the Student Union Building of the college at eleven a.m.

Kiara checked the clock, saw she didn’t have much time and scooted out the door to go meet him. She arrived on time and was rewarded with a gentle kiss.

"Happy birthday, chere. How’s it goin’ so far?"

"It’s going good. I slept in, got some beautiful presents from my parents and now I’m with you."

Lucas smiled. "It’s about to get better." He opened his jacket and revealed a very furry, very tiny and very wriggly puppy.

"Awwww...!" Kiara melted when she saw the pup.

Lucas handed the eight-week-old puppy to her. "Your parents and I have been keeping her a secret since she was born eight weeks ago. We lucked out in that I was allowed to take her today and give her right on your birthday."

"She’s beautiful! What kind is she?"

Lucas was thrilled that Kiara liked her gift. "She’s a mix of Pomeranian and Shih-Tzu. So she’s not going to get very big."

"Wow. That’s good though. Oh Lucas I love her! Thank you!"

"You’re welcome."

Danielle had known all her life that she was the product of an affair her father had with one of the assassin women, but she never knew which one. One of the pieces of information she learned was which assassin woman was her mother. Pierre lived by the rule of "go big or go home" in everything he did, and his affair was no exception. His affair was with Elena Boudreaux, wife of the Assassins’ patriarch, Marius. Elena was also the mother of Julien and Bella Donna.

When she had learned she was pregnant, Elena disappeared for several months, until after Danielle was born. Then she returned, without the baby, whom she left with Fagan’s Mob. The only person who knew about the whole thing aside from Pierre and Elena herself was Gris-Gris, whom she swore to secrecy. Marius figured it out when Elena disappeared, but said nothing. No one really knew the truth until Danielle learned it in her birth records. But that wasn’t the only secret Danielle learned.

Pierre’s first wife, Yvonne, had had an affair of her own, right around the time she got pregnant with Genard. For a few hours after learning that, Pierre was ready to disown Genard, based on a letter from his best friend Thierry, telling about the affair. Pierre eventually apologized, having realized that even if they weren’t related by blood, Genard was still his son in every way that mattered.

Pierre went to Bella Donna after patching things up with Genard, and told her of his affair with her mother. He explained that Danielle was her half-sister, and apologized for not having told her sooner. Bel was shocked, and angry at Gris for not telling her the truth, but she also understood the reasons, in a way, and after talking about it to her husband, she calmed down somewhat.

But Danielle and Genard were having serious identity crises, and dealing with them in very different ways. Genard, after telling Singer he needed to get out for awhile, left the tunnels and drunk himself into oblivion. Danielle went to the library, put on some depressing music and read murder mysteries. This is why Grace was talking to herself in the bedroom she shared with Danielle. Once again, Danielle was choosing to deal with things by herself instead of at least discussing it with her partner. She always did that, and Grace was staring to feel unwanted and unloved. She was awake all night, crying.

Genard rolled in at dawn, so drunk he could barely stand up. He was dangerously close to killing himself with alcohol poisoning. Meanwhile Danielle was literally not in her right mind. When Emil telepathically told her to go save Genard’s life, she went, as if in a daze, and did so. After he woke up, they got into quite a discussion about things, and especially how Genard wasn’t sure who he was anymore. In a rather insane moment, Danielle took out a knife and cut her wrist quite effectively, telling him that if blood was so important, he could have hers.

For a few moments, all Genard could do was panic. Then he shook himself and raced Danielle to the hospital. In order to get them to really consider it an emergency, he told the doctors and nurses, including Dr. Samson, who was on call, that his sister had tried to kill herself and needed help. It was a little white lie, but it bought them the time they needed.

Danielle lost a lot of blood, and even after she was patched up, she needed a blood transfusion. Genard, with type O negative blood, could have donated, but he wanted to do something first. He called Bel and asked her to come to the hospital. She did, and when she found out what was going on, she willingly agreed to donate blood to save Danielle’s life. The sisters had the exact same blood type.

A few hours later, Danielle was fine, and Genard was learning the full, real truth of his paternity. He had called Pierre and suggested they do a paternity test just to see for sure.

Not long after Danielle woke up, Dr. Samson came to give Genard the paternity test results.

"Genard, can I see you in the hallway for a moment?"

"Sure." He followed the doctor into the hallway, prepared for the worst. "Well...?"

Dr. Samson handed Genard a piece of paper with the results on it. "The test proved that you and Pierre are related by blood. He’s your father. And that girl lying in that bed really is your sister."

"Oh t’ank God..." Genard nearly cried he was so relieved. His identity crisis was over, and so, he hoped, was Danielle’s. Plus he’d helped bring Danielle and Bella Donna closer together as sisters, which is why he suggested they call Bel before he agreed to be the blood donor.

They returned home a few hours later. Genard gave Pierre the good news, and Danielle went to see Grace, who was nowhere to be found. Travis was asleep in his bed, but even Pierre said he hadn’t seen Grace in a couple of hours.

Danielle found Grace sitting in the closet of their room. It was obvious Grace had not slept and had spent the majority of her time crying. She’d been hurting for months and it was getting to the point where she was starting to emotionally crack.

"I’m so sorry Grace...I never meant to hurt you…I tried so hard not to..." Danielle whispered.

"But you did...just like you’ve done before. I feel like I'm nothing to you, does that make any sense? We hardly spend any time together, you seem to always be worried about what's going on with your father an' G and when things bother you, you don't come to me, you hide away without sharing it with me or letting me try to help you..." Grace said, as honest as she could be.

Danielle looked away, the truth hurting. It finally dawned on her that while she loved Grace, she was unable to give the other woman what she needed and deserved. "I’m sorry..."

Grace could do nothing but cry. "I love you...but this is so hard..."

"I love you too...but I can’ give you what you need." Danielle admitted, crying. "You need someone who will love you no matter what an’ not let anythin’ get in the way of dat."

Grace remained silent for a few moments, not letting on the things going through her mind.

Danielle continued briefly. "I can’ change, Grace...an’ I don’ wan’ keep hurtin’ you..."

Finally, Grace spoke, as the tears rolled down her cheeks. "I know...I’ll pack..." She got up and started to haul out the suitcase, but then she stopped and turned back to her wife. "What am I supposed to do? I had nothing before I came here. I don't want Travis to live like that, but I'm also not sure you're capable of giving him what he needs too...he keeps asking me why you're never around, why you're always so distant from us. I just tell him you're busy, but even busy mothers find time to spend quality time with their children."

Danielle pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Grace. On it was an address. "Go to dese guys. Dey’ll set you up...help you get a home, a job...help you get back on your feet. Take Travis with you." Her words broke her heart, but she had to do what she felt was in the best interest of all of them. And she didn’t want to hurt either of them any more than she already had.

The paper shook in Grace’s hand, but she nodded.

"I guess dis is goodbye..." Danielle said softly before she left the room so Grace could pack in peace.

Grace packed what she could for herself and mostly for Travis. Then, suitcase in hand, she picked up her sleeping son and walked out of the Alouette home in the tunnels, crying.

Stefan and Jean-Louis were very, very ill. Jean-Louis had picked up a nasty bug in Paris that nearly killed him, and he never recovered. Plus he passed the bug onto Stefan, who had it to a lesser extent, but was still dying from it even if he didn’t know it.

Jean-Louis opened his eyes weakly. He was lying on the bed. It was getting very hard to breathe and he knew he wasn’t going to live to see the sun set that night. "Stefan..."

Stefan joined him. He’d been feeling worse and worse as time went by, and now he was coughing almost uncontrollably.

"It’s gettin’ harder to breathe...my heart is slowin’...I don’ t’ink I’m gon’ live to see de sun set tonight..."

Stefan sat down beside him on the bed and held his hand. "I won’ leave your side."

"Hold me...mon amour..."

Stefan nodded and wrapped his arms around his frail husband, not really noticing just how frail and weak he was himself. He didn’t say a word, knowing that Jean-Louis had things he wanted to say and didn’t have much time in which to say them. He was right.

"I jus' wan' you to know dis...to remember dis...Je t'aime, Stefan...Mon amour...my husband...my life companion...I love you...for all eternity..."

Stefan choked back the tears. "I love you too…I always have an’ I always will. Wait for me at de Gates. I won’ be too far b’hind you, y’know."

Jean-Louis smiled a little. "I’d wait for you...even if it took a thousand years. Don’ you fret. I’ll be dere."

Stefan coughed and nodded. "You’re de best t’ing dat’s ever happened to me."

"Ditto..."

He gently stroked Jean-Louis’ hair. "Rest now. You need it. I’ll be right here."

Jean-Louis closed his eyes. He knew he would never open them again, and whispered as he closed them, "Je t’aime, Stefan..."

"I love you too..." Stefan whispered through his tears. He knew the same thing.

Several moments later, Jean-Louis’ heart stopped beating and the life drained from his body. As it did so, Stefan sobbed, his heart broken.

He sat there for what seemed like a very, very long time. He cried his heart out and coughed in between his sobs, as he held the lifeless body of his love in his arms. Finally he picked up the phone and called the Guild, knowing Theoren had to be told that Jean-Louis had died.

He couldn’t even get the words out, but somehow Theoren understood.

"Sit tight, Stefan, I’ll be right dere."

In the ten minutes it took Theoren to gather Danielle, Claude and Fifolet, all of whom wanted to go with him to help take care of Stefan, the illness took over Stefan’s body completely and he too closed his eyes, never to open them again.

When the four Guild members showed up, Stefan was dead; he’d already joined his husband in Heaven. They took the bodies back to the tunnels with them to be prepared for burial, but not before Theoren saw a note that was left for him. In it, Jean-Louis and Stefan told him to take what he wanted of their belongings and divide the rest up between Claude and Danielle, who had always been there for them, even before they got sick. Theoren made sure the wishes of his brother and his brother’s partner were carried out to the letter and then took them home.

She peered into the alley and saw a small girl, about nine-years-old, wearing ragged clothing. What looked like the remains of a straight-jacket flopped around her, and her dark hair was a disaster. Zoë started to approach the child, but something about the look on her face made her stop. She realized she wasn’t the best person suited to dealing with this, and left, praying that the girl was still there in a little while.

Zoë went home and after putting away the groceries, she went to visit Questa. She told him about the strange girl and asked him to go see her.

Questa went willingly, his curiosity piqued by the things Zoë told him about the girl. As luck would have it, she was still right where Zoë said she was, in the alley shadows. Questa imagined she was hiding from someone, but he didn’t for the life of him know who.

He barely entered the alley when he stopped and sat down, acutely aware of the girl’s presence. He knew she was watching him and he wanted to prove to her he meant her no harm.

After a few moments, she moved closer to him. He still didn’t move. He watched, still and silent, as she moved closer and closer, until she was literally right in front of him. Then he smiled and spoke softly.

"Hi."

The dark-haired girl could have been him at that age, he realized. She had the same look to her that he did sometimes. And she was very, very wary. "Hello."

He smiled even more. "My name is Questa."

Her voice was still very quiet. "I’m Robin."

"It’s very nice to meet you, Robin. What are you doin’ in here?" Questa asked.

"Hiding."

"From who?"

"From them. The men in the white coats."

Questa nodded. "Ah. I see."

Robin tilted her head. "Hide me?"

Questa figured this is what Zoë wanted him to do when she asked him to come talk to the girl. He nodded again. "I can take you to a place where dey’ll never find you, but I can’ look after you myself; I’ve got my hands full as it is."

"Okay."

Questa stood up and looked down at her, hoping she thought he was trustworthy. He extended his hand so she could take it, and she did so cautiously.

Questa smiled softly at her. "I promise you, where we go, de men in de white coats will never find you."

Robin went with him to the tunnels; she put her trust in him that he would keep his word.

Emil met them at the entrance. He wasn’t sure he liked the idea of them bringing this obviously troubled girl into the tunnels. He had warned the others that he was unable to get a clear emotional reading on her, just that she was very troubled and potentially dangerous. Unfortunately, in a rather heated mental discussion, Zoë overruled him. Everyone agreed to keep an eye on the child, but they didn’t think one little girl could be that dangerous.

Questa stopped when he saw Emil, who smiled at them both. "Hey Red."

"Hey."

Questa looked down at Robin. "Robin, dis is Emil. He won’ hurt you. No one here will."

Much to the surprise of the two men, Robin glared at Emil as fiercely as a nine-year-old child could. It was obvious immediately that she didn’t like him one bit. This knowledge hurt Emil somewhat, since no one except Gris-Gris ever openly hated him before, and even Gris didn’t hate him anymore.

Robin tugged at Questa’s hand. She wanted to move on. He shrugged at Emil and kept going. He tried to introduce her to several members of the Guild family, but she was disinterested. Gris and his younger daughter Kali held her interest for a brief time, but it was Zoë she wanted to see.

Zoë appeared at that moment, outside the Neville home, after Emil told her that she was wanted.

Robin looked at her. "Hello, Lady."

Zoë smiled. "Hello."

Robin reached her hand out, wanting Zoë to take it. Zoë did so, her smile widening.

"My name is Zoë."

"I’m Robin. I’m nine."

"Would you like to come with me, Robin? I have some delicious soup on the stove, and something I think you might like quite a bit."

"Okay."

Zoë took her to the section of the tunnels she shared with her husband Marcel. "When I was your age, I lived in Japan. And my best friend in the whole world was this." She got out a stuffed dog. "His name is Rufus. My brother named him after he heard the name on a television show. Would you like to have him?"

Robin smiled. "Yes, please."

Zoë handed her the stuffed dog. "Then he’s yours. Now, would you like to have some soup? My husband will be home momentarily, but he won’t mind if we start without him."

Robin hugged Rufus close to her. "Yes, I would."

"Good." Zoë poured two bowls of soup, one for herself and one for Robin. They ate in silence, with Zoë watching Robin closely.

Just as they finished, Theoren showed up to offer his assistance to Zoë in getting the child settled.

Zoë smiled at him. "Hey Theo! Robin, this is my friend Theoren. He lives in these tunnels too. He has a new baby, just like Jovan does."

Robin simply looked at him.

Theo smiled. "Hello dere, little one. Welcome to de tunnels. Dey ain’ much, but dey’re home."

Robin remained quiet. If they could hear her thoughts, they’d hear a male voice telling her that Theoren was going to drag her back to the men in the white coats. When she got a moment, she slipped out of the room and waited.

"Do you need any help here, Zoë?" Theo asked.

"No, I think I’m okay, Theo, but thanks. Marcel will be home soon."

"Okay. Jus’ be careful..." Theo warned. He had figured out, as the others had, that the girl had been in an asylum of some sort. The ripped shreds of straightjacket told them that much. They just didn’t know why. He walked out of the room, to find Robin standing in front of him.

"Hello."

"Hi. I was jus’ goin’ home. It was nice to meet you."

Robin looked at him. Her eyes took on a wild, animalistic quality that somehow scared Theoren more than even seeing Gris before his morning coffee did. He realized very quickly that the child was quite possibly crazy and tried to walk around her peacefully. He didn’t want a confrontation. Robin, however, had other ideas.

She launched herself at him, biting, scratching and clawing. She drew blood in several areas before he was able to pry her off him and hold her at arms length in the air. He didn’t want to hurt her, but if she kept attacking him he might not have a choice. He hung her by her shirt on one of the hooks on the tunnel walls. Her response was to growl fiercely at him.

Zoë heard the commotion and came out. "THEOREN! What on earth?! Let her down this instant!"

Theo looked at his friend, bleeding from several wounds inflicted on him by the girl who’s still trying to get at him from her spot on the wall. "Sorry Zoë. No. She’s a crazy animal."

"Theo..."

Robin continued to try to get him, kicking and clawing into the air. Zoë watched this with a sad expression on her face. Theoren left to get his wounds tended to by Danielle. Just before he left, Robin blinked, and looked around, instantly calm.

"Why is the floor down there?"

Zoë got her down and took her back inside. "Robin, why did you attack my friend? He wasn’t going to hurt you."

Robin looked at her. "Eddie told me he was gonna take me back to the place with the white walls."

Zoë nodded and sat down with Robin on the couch. She understood, as they were all starting to. "Can I tell you something about us?"

Robin nodded.

"Some of us who live here in the tunnels are criminals. Some of us, like Questa and Jovan, are assassins. Professional killers. And some of us, like myself and Theoren, are professional thieves. We are unable to live in society as normal people because the government wants to arrest us and kill us for what we've done. Even if one of us wanted to take you back to that place you spoke of, which none of us do, we couldn't without risking every single one of us being arrested. We have families. We just want to live and do our jobs. There is nobody here who would make you go back if you don't want to. Ever." Zoë explained.

"Oh." Robin said quietly. She’d had no idea.

"No matter what Eddie tells you." Zoë finished.

"Okay." Robin decided to tell Zoë some of her story, since Zoë was honest with her about the people living in the tunnels. "Mommy and Daddy died when I was a little baby. They crashed into a tree and died. Auntie and Uncle didn't like me. They took me to the place with white walls when I was three. They knew I was sick and didn't want to take care of me. One nice lady cared for me, but the nice lady went far, far away. Eddie was the only one to keep me company. The men put me in a white room with pillow walls. They also put me in this tight jacket." She waved the remains of the straightjacket. "It was scary, and I didn't like it. Eddie kept telling me to do bad things that I didn't want to do. So I ran away when they took me on a walk."

Zoë hugged her impulsively. She was starting to love this troubled little girl already. "You can stay here, but you have to stop attacking us..." Zoë stopped. It occurred to her that maybe Robin had no control over it, and didn’t know what she was doing when it happened. She knew they’d have to figure out how to get Eddie to stop telling the little girl what to do.

"Okay." Robin said. She leaned against Zoë and was asleep in moments. Zoë laid her down on the couch, covered her with a blanket and put Rufus in her arms. Then she went about getting a bedroom ready for her.

Marcel came home a little while later. He saw the girl on the couch and went looking for his wife. "Zoë?"

Zoë looked up from making up the bed in Robin’s room. "Is he okay? He was bleeding when he left..."

"I don’t know. I just heard what happened. News spreads like brushfire around here."

Zoë nodded and went to him. "I don' think she realizes she's doing it when it happens. It's some kind of mental illness...a voice in her head tells her to do it and she does it. Her parents are dead, her aunt and uncle didn't want to deal with her so they stuck her in an asylum. She told me that. She ran away recently. She's only nine..."

"It’s quite sad...she’s probably as much of a threat to herself as she is to anyone else." Marcel commented.

"It’s not her fault..." Zoë said. "She’s just a little girl, and she needs help. But most of all I think she needs love and security."

Marcel wrapped his arms around his wife. "I agree."

"Can she stay here with us? Everyone else has other responsibilities."

"Certainly." Marcel smiled.

Zoë hugged him back. "Her name is Robin."

"What a pretty name."

Zoë smiled. "She’s a pretty girl."

Mercy was starting to wonder what was wrong with her. Alan had ignored her for weeks, and she thought perhaps it was something she had done. Things had been going well between them, and Mercy didn’t think she’d said or done anything to make him be so distant. But maybe she had and just hadn’t noticed.

Jessica was starting to think that if Alan didn’t call her mother soon, she was going to have to track him down and beat some sense into him. Mercy was starting to show signs of being depressed again and it alarmed Jessica more than anything else in the world. But she didn’t need to be so worried. Alan finally called, and asked Mercy to meet him at the Starbucks. She did so. It was then that Alan came clean and told her why he hadn’t been calling.

"Before I met you, I had a girlfriend named Adina." Alan began. "I wanted to abstain until marriage, but she didn’t. Our relationship was troubled...but I eventually got engaged to her. A week after that, she broke off the engagement and ran off with some Puerto Rican man. That’s when I came down here and met you..."

"Dere’s nothin’ wrong wit’ abstinence. Henri an’ I did." Mercy said softly. Sure she was horny and lonely, but she had to be honest.

Alan continued. "About two months after you and I met, she started calling me again. Constantly...five or six times a day, sometimes more. I... He looked towards the door and his jaw dropped in shock. "Dear God she’s stalking me!"

"She’s here? Now?" Mercy demanded.

"And she’s headed this way..." Alan nearly whimpered. "Hide me?"

"How do you feel ‘bout her?" Mercy whispered quickly.

"She terrifies me." Alan said.

"Okay. Den I’ll get rid of her." Mercy said.

"Please do...!" Alan said just as his ex arrived.

The lady was gaudy in every sense of the word. She had on way too much jewelry and makeup and her hairstyle was in a style that hadn’t been fashionable in at least twenty years. She stopped at the table. She addressed Mercy.

"Who are you?"

Mercy gave her a cold stare. "Mercy LeBeau. An’ you are...?"

The woman stared. "Adina Larson. His fiancée." She grabbed Alan’s wrist and tried to drag him away. "Come on sweetie, I have a hair appointment in fifteen minutes." When he resisted she stopped. "Alan Marcus Gray!"

"Uh...huh. Right." Mercy got up and stepped between them. "I don’ t’ink you recognize de name. I am de sister-in-law of the current patriarch of the Unified Thieves an’ Assassins Guild. An’ if you do not let him go right dis second you will regret it. He is not wit’ you."

Adina let him go abruptly. "Fine. Take your cheap-ass ring back, you cheater!" She tossed the ring at him. "I hope you have fun with that slut!" She exclaimed before she flounced away in a huff.

Alan whimpered softly as they sat back down. "Thanks, Mercy."

"No problem. What did she mean?"

Alan studied the ring and spoke softly. "I broke the bank to get her this…and I was always loyal to her." He chuckled. "Adina was always a chronic liar."

"Wit’ no taste in hair, clothing or accessories." Mercy observed.

"I think she was a hooker at one point..."

"Dat would explain it."

Alan hugged her. "I’m so sorry I didn’t call you sooner..."

Mercy spoke softly and honestly. "I was ‘bout ready to give up. I’ve been alone for so long…lonely for so long...an’ I t’ought you weren’t interested."

"How could I not be interested in you?" Alan wanted to know. "How could anyone resist such a beautiful and charming woman?"

Mercy blushed deeply. It had been a long time since anyone complimented her like that. It felt good. In fact, it made Mercy feel like a teenager again, falling in love for the first time. And she liked that feeling.

She hoped that from now on, nothing would come between them so they could actually build a relationship without having to worry about something happening to screw it up on them.

On this particular morning when Emil woke up he knew something was very different. Grace was dead. She had gone to bed the night before with the intent of waking up to give her son breakfast, but Fate had another idea. She fell asleep and would never wake up again. What nearly made Emil cry was the fact that he had been woken up by the very alarmed Travis, who had discovered his Mommy was dead. He sat by her side for several minutes, crying. He was only three years old and he didn’t know what to do. But Mommy had taught him that if anything happened to her, no matter what it was, he was to go back to the tunnels and get Mama.

So that’s what he did. He climbed off the bed, left the apartment and wandered all by himself back to the tunnel entrance that was the closest to where he and Mommy had been living.

Emil met him there. He knew the child wouldn’t be able to open the entrance on his own, so he’d need help.

Travis looked up at Emil, his dark brown eyes filled with tears and his lower lip trembling. He reached his small arms up. "Mama."

"Yes, sweetie, I’ll take you to Mama." Emil picked him up and nearly cried again when those arms wrapped tightly around his neck. He could feel the boy’s body shaking.

Emil took him to the Alouette home. Danielle, who had worked hard and eventually taught herself how to walk again, was sitting at the table with her father. Her dog Duke was lying at her feet.

Danielle and Pierre both looked up when Emil entered the room. Both turned visibly pale when they saw who was with him. Pierre got up and went to tell Genard what was going on.

"T-T-Travis...?" Danielle gasped.

Travis started crying again the second he saw her. He reached out to her, the way he had reached out to Emil at the tunnel entrance.

Danielle got up and went to them. She took him in her arms and held him close to her, unable to stop the tears that fell from her eyes.

"Mama." Travis said, clinging to her.

Emil felt he should explain what he knew. "He found Grace dead in de apartment dey were livin' in. She tried to move on...I know she did, b'cause I kept tabs on dem. G asked me to. She tried...but she couldn'. Everythin' she did, she did it for him, but she had nothin', no food or anythin', for herself. She was depressed. It killed her."

Danielle was filled with grief and anguish. In her eyes, she was solely responsible for Grace’s death. She cuddled her son in her arms.

Travis continued to cling to her, crying. "Mama...Mama..."

His grief was breaking Danielle’s heart. She whispered softly to him. "Travis...I’m so sorry...je t’aime, mon petit."

"Mama..."

Emil had something else to say before he left them alone. "I know you feel very strongly 'bout de Guild an' your place in it...but it's not de be all an' end all of everythin' in dis world...as dedicated as we all are, our fam'lies have to come first. Wit'out dem, dere's no point. He needs you."

Danielle sat down with Travis in her arms. He nuzzled against her, crying and trembling. "Mama...Mama...Mama..."

She cuddled him close. "Shh...I’m here...I’m not leavin’ you alone again."

"Mama...Mama..."

"I’ll take care of you Travis. T’ings will be okay." Danielle assured him.

Travis rested his head on her shoulder. "Mama..."

Danielle continued to cuddle him. "Shh...rest, petit..."

He whimpered softly as he closed his eyes. "Mama."

Genard joined them moments later. His heart broke when he saw his young nephew. "I’m so sorry, ma soeur."

Danielle looked at her brother sadly. "Dis isn’ how it played out in my mind for all dese months..."

Genard sighed. "Non, I know. I’m sure she didn’ t’ink it would end dis way either. But she loved you more’n her own life, an’ I don’ t’ink she could get over dat."

Her voice was barely a whisper. "I killed her, didn’ I...?"

"I t'ink for all dese months she hoped t'ings would change...dat you'd come find her...she would have come back in a heartbeat, even if t'ings hadn' changed. It would have hurt, but I t'ink she would have come back. She loved you." Genard told her.

"I loved her too...On some level, I loved her..." Danielle admitted through her tears.

"I know." Genard said. "Do you remember when I said I hoped you wouldn’t regret your decision?"

"Oui..."

"Well, Papa had told me de look on her face was somethin' heartbreakin'. I feared from dat moment dat somethin' like dis would happen. Dat's why I asked Emil to keep an eye on her."

"If I’d known..." Danielle whispered.

"But you didn’. No one did. An’ now you’ve got dat little boy who needs you more’n he’s ever needed you b’fore."

"I know."

The next morning Travis woke up in his old bed, confused. At first he didn’t know where he was or what had happened. But then he remembered, and started crying. "Mama..."

Danielle was sitting right beside him. She hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep all night. "I’m here, Travis."

Travis reached out to her, the tears rolling down his chubby cheeks. "Mama."

Danielle moved closer to him and pulled him into her arms, cuddling him close. "Shh...I’m here for you, Travis."

Travis cuddled against her, crying and sniffling. "Mama."

As they sat there, Emil appeared in the doorway. "You look like you could use some help."

Danielle looked at him. "Oui, I could..."

Emil sat down in the chair. "I could tell you dere's no point to bein' guilty, but I know you too well. I know you're gon' feel dat way anyway. But to enlighten you 'bout him...he's traumatized. I don' know when he'll start sayin' somethin' other'n "Mama" 'gain. When Grace took him an' left, all I got from him was major confusion and hurt. He kept t'inkin' "Why did we leave Mama b'hind?" He found her yesterday mornin' dead. Dat's prob'ly one of de mos' horrible t'ings for a child to face. In his mind, she left him. She abandoned him. He doesn' know how to see de diff'rence. So be prepared for him to be very, very clingy to you. He is not gon' wan' let you out of his sight."

He watched Travis for a moment. More than anything he wished he could ease the boy’s pain but he knew he couldn’t. Only time could do that. Once he felt Danielle had absorbed that information, he continued.

"An' until he's older...you're gon' have to put him first. He needs you, full time, especially right now. If you leave for a job or somethin', he's gon' get it into his head that "Mama might not come back. Mommy fell asleep an' never came back. It can happen." So he'll freak out."

Danielle nodded. She understood exactly what he way saying. She knew she was going to have to put her son first before anything else in her life from now on and she was prepared to do it, but she didn’t know how.

Emil kept going, addressing something he knew Danielle would need to be prepared for in the future. "De time will also come when he'll want to know why. Why did Mommy and I move out? Why was Mommy so sad after we moved out? Why could I never make her smile? Why did I always have t'ings to eat, but she didn'. Why did she not wake up when she fell asleep dat time? Why did she die? An' you're gon' have to be prepared to answer him as honestly as you can. It's not gon' be a good conversation, b'cause chances are he'll get quiet upset 'bout it an' blame you an' everythin'. But he'll get past it. You both will. But you need to be here for him. Yes, de Guild is important, but right now, for however many years it's gon' take, he mus' come b'fore it. Yeah we need you, but we can get by without the extra help. He needs you an' he can' get by without you. He could b'fore, b'cause he had her. Now he doesn'. I know Genard an' Singer will do what dey can to help out, but dey've got three children of deir own. I also know Pierre is ready to forgo everythin' in his life to help you raise him. De rest of us, myself included, are on standby, twenty-four-seven if you need us. Dat's a guarantee."

Danielle nodded, taking it all in and trying to remember it all. "T’anks."

Emil nodded. "He’s scared. He's absolutely terrified that you're gon' walk out dat door for somethin' an' never come back. An' dat's gon' be de main focal point for him for a very long time."

Travis had been watching Emil closely and listening to what was being said. He didn’t understand most of it, but he knew it had to do with him. He whispered softly.

"Mama."

Danielle cuddled him. "Shh, honey...I won’ leave you."

Travis snuggled closer, her clothing clutched in his small fists as tightly as he could get them. "Mama...Mama..."

"I promise." Danielle said.

"Can I give you one more piece of advice b’fore I go?" Emil asked.

"Okay..."

"Bein' a single parent is not easy, especially in de Guild. I suggest dat if you really want to make good on dat promise you jus' made to your adorable little boy, you should go to Remy an' make arrangements to take a leave of absence from Guild activity. Not a permanent one, just until he's old enough to understand and be okay with Mama goin' to work. B'cause right now I'm not too sure you're gon' be able to go to de bathroom alone." Emil chuckled softly.

Danielle nodded. "You’re right. T’anks." She got up, Travis in her arms, and headed to Remy’s office.

Once there, she knocked on the door. Remy looked up from the paperwork he was doing and smiled sadly at them. "C’mon in."

Danielle entered and sat down, Travis in her lap. "I need to take a leave of absence."

Remy nodded in response. "I've been expectin' dis visit since Emil told me de petit toddled back to de tunnels on his own yesterday. I'm sorry 'bout what happened..."

"So am I..." Danielle replied.

Remy made a note in his files. "You need to focus your energy on him now. I understand dat. I can put you on a leave of absence for an open-ended amount of time. When you...an' Travis...are ready for you to come back to work, you come an' let me know, okay?"

"Okay. T’anks."

"You’re welcome. Is dere anythin’ else I can do?"

"Not at de moment, but t’anks." Danielle said. "See you later." She got up and took Travis back home, where her father was waiting. When she got there, she found herself unable to look at her father and turned her head away, trying to hide her tears of shame and guilt.

Pierre noticed anyway. "You did what you t'ought was in de best interest of Grace an' your son. Yes it hurt Grace deeply, but no more than de life you an' she were livin' together. You do not know what would have happened if she'd stayed. De outcome might very well have been de same."

Danielle replied quietly. "All I can say is I hope she’s in a better place now..."

Pierre nodded. "I have a feelin’, ma fille, dat she’s right by your side an’ always will be."

"I won’ doubt your words." Danielle admitted. Somehow, she knew her father was right. The guild all believed that the spirits of those who had gone before spent a great deal of time with their loved ones, watching over them like guardian angels and protecting them when they needed it. She knew that Grace would be there as much as she could, keeping a close eye on both Travis and Danielle, and it was a nice thing to think of. She just wished things could be different.

Kiara couldn’t believe what had just happened. She had been the last to leave her class when it was over; even the professor had gone ahead of her. She had wanted to stay behind for a moment to organize her things. She wasn’t in a rush to get out of the room, since she knew there wasn’t another class coming in. So she sat there in her seat near the front of the class, minding her own business, organizing her bag, when he had arrived.

He was her uncle Bastion, her mother’s brother. He was a bible-thumping religious fanatic who believed that everybody who lived south of the Mason-Dixon Line was in cahoots with the Devil. He had always hated the fact that Kiara’s father was a southerner, and from Louisiana at that. Worst kind of southerner in Bastion’s eyes. So the idea that Kiara had left the home he and her mother had made for her and moved down to New Orleans to live with her father and go to college was unacceptable. When her mother asked him to go bring Kiara back, Bastion agreed willingly, thinking maybe a little accident to get rid of Theoren Marceaux wouldn’t be a bad thing either.

So Bastion had tracked her down and was now standing in front of her in the otherwise empty classroom. They argued, and he ended up beating her before quickly leaving the premises. Kiara gathered her belongings and wandered out of the classroom in a daze.

Lucas was waiting for her down the hallway, just outside the next class, which they were in together. He saw her black eye and bloody lip and freaked out.

"Kiara...what happened?" He asked, digging a Kleenex out of his pocket and using it to clean her up a little. "Who did this?"

"My uncle..." Kiara was having a hard time thinking straight.

Lucas was confused. "I thought both of your dad’s brothers were dead..."

"He’s my mother’s brother..."

"Is he still in there?"

"No, he left..."

Lucas hugged her briefly. "Okay, honey, forget class, we have to go see my father."

"Okay..." Kiara agreed, and let him take her away.

They went to the police station. As usual Sergeant Marks was on duty at the desk. Lucas asked him to get his father. Marks picked up the phone and told the Chief that his son was there to see him.

Chief of Police Jean-Auguste Howard came out immediately. He knew if Lucas was there, something important had happened. His jaw hit the floor when he saw the state his soon-to-be-daughter-in-law was in. He led them both into his office so they could sit down.

"Dear God, what happened?"

Lucas replied first. "Her uncle beat her up. Her mom’s brother. I don’t know anything else."

Chief Howard looked at Kiara after handing her another Kleenex. "Tell me everything you can about your uncle and what happened."

Kiara nodded, casting Lucas a grateful look when he took her hand. "My uncle Bastion is a priest...hellfire and brimstone and such. Really crazy. He believes the Devil rules south of the Mason-Dixon Line...My mother sent him here to convince me to go back North. He tried to beat the Devil out of me."

Shocked, Lucas squeezed his fiancée’s hand gently. Kiara continued.

"He’ll try again...after he’s done stalking my father." She turned to Lucas, nervous. "He saw the ring. He said ‘I’ll kill the Southern bastard that tries to put the Devil into your heart.’ I’m afraid...for you...for us..."

Lucas turned back to his father. "That’s why we came here."

Meanwhile, Theoren was home with his wife and young son when the phone rang. He answered it, assuming it was Kiara, since no one ever calls them.

"Hello?"

"Hello Theoren Marceaux." The voice on the other end of the line said.

Theoren immediately flipped a switch on the phone, taping the conversation. "Who is dis?"

"Does the name Bastion ring a bell, sinner?"

Theo swallowed. "You’re Stephanie’s brother..."

"That’s right."

"What do you want?" Theo was determined to keep him on the phone as long as he could. It would give him more of a tape to give to the police.

"I’m just wondering who Kiara’s fiancé is."

"Dat’s not for me to disclose. If she wanted to tell her mother an’ you...an’ it’s obvious she doesn’...she’d tell you." Theoren said, not losing his cool.

"You’ve been poisoning her mind with the Devil, haven’t you, sinner?!"

Theoren rolled his eyes. "Nope. An’ jus’ how’d you know she’s engaged?"

"I have my ways. God sees all."

Before Theo could get another word out, Bastion hung up. Theoren did as well, after flipping off the tape recorder. He told Nara he was going to the police station, took the tape and went, still unaware that Bastion had already confronted Kiara. He walked to the police station; during the entire walk, he felt like someone was following him, and the feeling didn’t surprise him in the least.

When he got to the station, he asked to see the Chief, and Sergeant Marks led him in to the office. Theo was very surprised to see Lucas and Kiara there with Chief Howard. "What in de...?" Then he saw Kiara’s injuries. "He did dis, didn’ he...?"

Kiara nodded.

Theoren handed Chief Howard the tape. "He called me. Dis is de entire conversation except for the hellos."

"Thanks."

"No problem. I got de feelin’ he followed me here, to be honest. He knows where we live...an’ he knows de phone number."

"Be wary of Bastion. He’ll play simple and harmless, then turn around and hurt you." Kiara warned. She knew her uncle better than any of them. Theoren had never met the man, only heard of him from Stephanie during the brief time they were together.

"I got dat impression." Theo replied.

Kiara rested her head against Lucas’s shoulder. Lucas wrapped his arms around her while the four of them continued to talk about Bastion. It was agreed that both Kiara and Lucas should have bodyguards until Bastion was caught and dealt with. Chief Howard provided one of his officers to protect his son and offered one for Kiara as well, but Theoren turned him down.

"If it’s all de same to you, Chief, de Guild protects it’s own. I will ask one of de Assassins to watch over my daughter."

"That’s fine, Theoren."

While they spoke, Bastion watched through the office window. He saw the closeness of Kiara and the young man and decided that he must be the Devil’s Advocate. Once he decided that, he left, determined to destroy Lucas.

The following Sunday, Lucas attended church as he often did with his parents. Bastion was the guest preacher that day, and gave a tame but passionate sermon. Because all he knew was Kiara’s uncle’s first name, Lucas had no idea that Reverend Lexton was the man they were trying to avoid. When the service was over, Lucas and his parents went home.

Bastion followed, took note of where they lived and then went back to where he was staying.

The next day, Reverend Lexton was a guest speaker in one of Lucas’s classes. Lucas was curious as to why the priest seemed to be everywhere he went, but didn’t think too much of it. He also didn’t plan on sticking around after the class to ask questions.

When class was over, Lucas left, but was quickly followed by Bastion. "Mr. Howard?"

Lucas froze, took note of where his bodyguard was and made sure to stay in the middle of the crowded hallway. "What is it, Reverend?"

Bastion was as nice and concerned as he could pretend to be. "I’d just like to speak with you in private for a moment, and offer some counseling. I heard a friend of yours was abused by a priest recently."

An alarm went off in Lucas’s head and he raised an eyebrow. "Yes...thank you for the offer, but we’re fine."

Bastion nodded. "I’ll be here for a few weeks, lecturing at the nearby colleges." He slipped Lucas a piece of paper with a phone number written on it. "Please, do contact me if you feel the need to talk to someone."

"Thank you. Excuse me; I have a meeting to get to." Lucas said.

"God bless you, sir." Bastion said, and left.

Lucas hurried down the hall to meet up with Kiara, his bodyguard following.

Kiara was just coming out of her class. She was jittery and pale. Lucas caught up to her and nodded at Gris-Gris, who had agreed to act as Kiara’s bodyguard. Both he and the officer kept watch over the young couple.

"Kiara?"

"What is it Lucas?" Kiara asked.

"This is going to sound strange, but what does your uncle look like?"

"Tall, stately...thinning grey-blond hair...always scowling..." Kiara replied.

"Oh dear lord..." Kiara almost panicked. "What is it?!"

"He was the guest preacher at church yesterday, plus he lectured in the class I just had! He came up to me afterward and offered his counseling because he heard that a friend of mine was abused by a priest! I declined and he gave me a number where I could reach him if I changed my mind! We need to talk to my father." Lucas explained.

"Dear God..." Kiara looked around wildly, fully panicked.

"C’mon we have to go now. He’s still around here somewhere." Lucas said.

The two of them, plus their bodyguards, went to the police station immediately, and asked Sergeant Marks to get the chief. He did so.

The moment Chief Howard saw the four people assembled, he knew. "This is about Bastion. What happened?"

Again, Lucas spoke first. "He was the guest priest at church the other day. He also lectured in my class a few minutes ago. After class he came to me and offered his counseling in dealing with the fact that a friend of mine was abused by a priest. I turned him down, but he gave me this." He handed his father the paper. "He said I could call him anytime if I changed my mind."

Kiara looked at the paper. "That’s his private counseling number. You’d be more likely to get an answering machine than him."

"What do we do?" Lucas asked.

Kiara’s voice was soft. "The only way to get to him is with a personal meeting."

Lucas shook his head. "That’s too risky. He’s obviously trying to get me to me...in order to get at you..."

Kiara shook her head. It finally dawned on her. "It’s not me he’s after right now. He wants you dead."

"There is no way on earth I’m meeting with him." Lucas said, his voice shaking.

"Then I’ll do it." Kiara stated, her voice and eyes filled with sadness. "I’ll tell him I’m ready to go back North with him, trick him out."

Lucas freaked out. "Kiara no!"

Kiara looked at him sadly. "What other choices do we have that he would actually fall for?"

"It’s too risky..."

"I’m willing to take that risk for you." Kiara said, resting her head on his shoulder.

"If he hurts you..."

"I don’t want us to live in fear anymore, Lucas. Please."

"Me neither." Lucas admitted, his arms wrapped around her. "But how will it work?" "He gets on one track and keeps going. So once I’ve convinced him I wish to ‘repent’ and go back North with him, he’ll walk blindly into any situation."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

Lucas was still uncertain. He really didn’t like the idea of his fiancée going into that dangerous a situation with someone so violent. "Dad what do you think?"

Chief Howard was honest. "I don’t want to see either of you get hurt. But this is the only option we’ve got so far."

Lucas nodded. "Okay...but your father has to agree too."

"Alright." Kiara said.

Gris-Gris escorted Kiara back to the tunnels, where she spoke briefly with Theoren. He agreed to let her do it on the conditions that Gris and the police always be nearby and that she never be in the position where she doesn’t know what’s going to happen. Once she had his approval, Kiara and Gris went back to the police station where Lucas and his father were waiting.

"He says it’s okay." She told them.

"Okay good. Now here’s how this is going to work..." Chief Howard said.

Later that day, it was time to put the plan into action. The police had the building Bastion was staying in surrounded, but Bastion didn’t know that. Kiara stood with Lucas and took the engagement ring off her finger. She handed it to him and whispered. "I’ll be wanting this back later."

Lucas nodded and went to wait with Gris and his father. Kiara went inside to meet up with Bastion.

"Uncle Bastion? I’m ready to go home." She said when she got to him.

Bastion raised an eyebrow. "Well this is a change of events. You know that liars go to Hell, Kiara. Tell me the truth. Did you give up that bastard boy?"

Kiara nodded and showed him that she wasn’t wearing the engagement ring anymore. "I don’t wish to stay in this den of sinners."

Bastion’s next question caused her to blush. "Are you pure, child?"

In spite of her embarrassment, Kiara nodded. "Yes, Uncle."

That’s all Bastion needed to hear. He grabbed her wrist and started dragging her out the side door. Kiara quickly contacted Lucas telepathically with that information, which he relayed to his father.

Bastion didn’t make it past the side door. The officers surrounded him as Kiara freed herself from his grip and raced to Lucas. Lucas wrapped his arms around her and held her close, silently thanking God that she was okay. He had been worried sick about this whole plan and was glad to see his father’s officers putting Bastion in handcuffs and into a squad car to take him away.

Lucas smoothed Kiara’s hair and whispered. "It’s over. Dad’s got him now, handcuffs and all."

"Oh God..." Kiara said, her voice soft. "I don’t ever want you to let me go..."

"Don’t worry, baby, I won’t. I promise." Lucas said.

Kiara cried softly into his chest. Although she would never admit it, she had been terrified that she’d never see him…or live to see him…again. Lucas just held her close and slipped the ring back on her finger.

"I love you, Lucas." Kiara whispered.

"I love you too, Kiara. With all my heart." Lucas replied.

Kiara looked up into his eyes and as the police took Bastion away in the squad car, Lucas leaned down and caught her lips in a gentle, loving kiss.

The more time that the Guild spent with Robin, the more they realized that she wasn’t mentally ill, she was possessed. She told Questa and Danielle that the voice she called Eddie was that of her cousin who had died when she was three. She explained that her aunt and uncle, Eddie’s parents, blamed her for his death, even though she had nothing to do with it. She told of her treatment by them before and after Eddie’s death. And when Eddie showed up in her head and started making her do things she didn’t want to do, they sent her to the asylum. She was a very hurt, very scared little girl who just wanted the voice in her head to go away and let her live. He wouldn’t though, and it was starting to take a toll on her.

She had nightmares every night, in spite of the comfort she got from being with Zoë and Marcel, and from having Rufus with her. Zoë and Marcel had no idea what to do to help the girl, although it was obvious their love wasn’t going to be enough. They loved her and wanted to legally adopt her, but they couldn’t even consider that until she was better. Getting her better was a problem they weren’t sure they could do without professional help.

One night, Emil, who had been trying to keep an eye on the little girl, showed up in their section of the tunnels after Robin had a nightmare. He knew Robin didn’t like him or trust him, and he figured it was because of his powers. Children could sense things adults couldn’t sometimes, and he had come to the conclusion that she knew he could sense her feelings and thoughts.

"Come on in, Emil." Zoë said softly when he knocked.

He entered cautiously and noticed immediately how Robin glanced at him warily. She definitely didn’t trust him, at all.

"You don’ trust me. I get dat." Emil said to her. "But let me ask you somethin’. Do you want Eddie to go away for good?"

Robin nodded.

"Well I might be de only one capable of helpin’ you do dat. But I’m gon’ leave it up to you. It’s your choice. But if you want me to help you, you’re gon’ have to trust me an’ let me in your head b’cause dat’s where Eddie is." Emil said, leaning in the doorway.

Robin was silent for what seemed like a very long time. Finally, she spoke. "Okay."

Emil nodded. "Are you sure? I’m askin’ you dat b’cause I really hate invadin’ people’s heads. It freaks me out. You need to be sure."

Robin looked at him, her eyes pleading. "Please make him go away..."

"I’ll do what I can." Emil said. He mentally asked Bella Donna to keep a telepathic eye on him in case he needs help, and then uses his powers to enter Robin’s troubled mind.

Once there, he whistled softly to try and get Eddie to show himself. It worked. Eddie was busily torturing Robin’s young mind, trying to bend her will to do what he wanted.

"What do you want?" Eddie demanded when Emil whistled.

Emil raised an eyebrow. He was feeling obnoxious. "World peace would be nice. But I’ll settle for you takin’ a hike."

"Not gonna happen."

"No? Dang. Why not? Why are you torturin’ her like dis? She’s jus’ a little kid, an’ I bet she never did a damned t’ing to you to d’serve dis."

"She is my cousin. She’s my only link to the mortal world, unless you’d give up your body in her place." Eddie said.

"Uh-uh. No way. What is gon’ happen is, you’re gon’ leave. An’ if you don’ go willingly, I’ll force you to go."

"I am not leaving."

"Fine." Emil said. He reached out and did the only thing he could think of to do. He used his powers to disable Eddie mentally, while at the same time protecting Robin’s mind. Eddie fought, but was unable to withstand Emil’s mental assault on him. He collapsed, screaming in pain and Emil used that moment of weakness to rip him out of her head and throw him as far into the oblivion of the Astral Plane as he could. Then he asked Bella Donna to put up mental shields in Robin’s mind to protect her from ever being taken over by Eddie or any other ghosts ever again.

Once that was done, Emil left Robin’s mind and smiled at the little girl. "It’s over. He can never bother you ‘gain. You’re free of him."

"He’s gone?"

"Oui, he’s gone. An’ t’anks to Bella Donna an’ me, he can never come back."

Robin smiled, alone with her own mind and thoughts for the first time in years. "Thank you."

Emil smiled back and ruffled her hair. "You’re welcome."

He walked out of the room, glad to have been able to help her and do some good in her life. He knew she would trust him from then on, and there wouldn’t be any animosity. He also knew she’d no longer attack the people who were trying to be her new family. And it felt good.