Turning to her with surprise, she asked, “What was the first?”
“Robert wanted to take me to his country estate to turn me. But I didn’t want to be that far from Joshua.” Sighing, she confessed, “I was a hovering type mother, always afraid of losing him to some accident like his father. If Robert hadn’t come along when he did, I’m sure Joshua would have ended up a neurotic boy.”
That idea seemed absurd to Ildaria. She couldn’t imagine G.G. as neurotic. Wouldn’t have happened, she decided.
“But the point is,” Mary continued, “if I had allowed Robert to take me to the country, Millie, the neighbor, couldn’t have brought Joshua home. He never would have witnessed my turn, and wouldn’t now be refusing to turn.” She shrugged unhappily. “So you see, it is my fault. Not yours. Joshua would already be turned and safe if it were not for my mistakes.”
Unsure what to say to that, Ildaria concentrated on doing up the buttons of her blouse. It was true that performing the turn at Robert’s country estate would have prevented G.G. from witnessing and being traumatized by it. But she suspected the woman had been flagellating herself for that every day since G.G.’s eighteenth birthday when he’d refused to turn. Ildaria wasn’t one to kick someone when they were down. Besides, her abuela had always said that mistakes were part of living, and the important thing was to learn from the mistakes you made so you didn’t make them twice, and to forgive yourself for those mistakes, as well as others for the mistakes they made. She said not forgiving led to bitterness, and a bitter heart was good for nothing.
“But I promise you—” Mary caught her hand as she finished with her blouse, capturing her attention along with it. “I promise I will fix this. I will convince Joshua to turn. I couldn’t before, but I can now, and it is only possible because you are his life mate,” she added, a brilliant smile blooming on her face.
Ildaria stared at her with confusion. “I do not understand. He knows he is my life mate and still refuses. You can’t use that to convince him to agree.”
“Yes, I can,” she assured her, and then grinned and said, “Because I know something about him very few people do.”
“What is that?” Ildaria asked with curiosity.
“As a child, Joshua hated to share his toys,” she announced, her eyes dancing with glee, and then, her tone turning triumphant, she added, “And he is no better at it as an adult.”
Ildaria still didn’t see how this was going to help them with the matter, but before she could say as much, the woman with black and fuchsia hair appeared in the bedroom door.
“Hello, Mirabeau, dear,” Mrs. Guiscard greeted her, still smiling widely. “Are the men getting restless?”
“No,” Mirabeau said, and then grimaced and said, “Well, yes, but that’s not why I came to fetch you.” Taking a breath, she shifted her gaze to Ildaria and said, “Lucian just called. He wants us to bring you to the Enforcer house.”
“Me?” Ildaria asked with surprise, wondering what she’d done wrong now.
“Is Villaverde there?” Mrs. Guiscard asked, her hand tightening around Ildaria’s.
Ildaria turned on her sharply, noting the sudden steel in the woman’s expression.
“Yes,” Mirabeau said grim-faced. “Apparently, his plane landed shortly after yours. Lucian and Scotty have talked to him and now they want Ildaria there.”
“Why?” G.G.’s mother asked sharply.
Mirabeau shook her head. “We don’t know. He just called Tiny and told him that we were to bring her there. When Tiny got off the phone and told us what Lucian had said, Mr. Guiscard, Robert,” she specified since both Robert and G.G. were Mr. Guiscard, “He called Lucian back, but all he could get out of him was that he and Scotty had spoken to Villaverde, but now they need Ildaria there.”
“Juan’s convinced them to execute me,” Ildaria said, sure that was the only reason they’d want her there.
“Of course, he hasn’t,” Mrs. Guiscard said at once. “An immortal cannot be executed for biting off another immortal’s bits. Especially when defending themselves against rape. If anything, he should be punished for his behavior.”
Ildaria turned on her with dismay. “You know about that?”
Mary patted her hand, sympathetically. “Joshua had to tell Robert everything so that he could convince Scotty to help him help you, and of course he told me.”
“Oh. Si,” she muttered and wondered that the woman still welcomed her as G.G.’s life mate.