Jeanne Louise still couldn’t believe the girl had hung in there and survived the turn. Between the cancer, the blood loss, the gash and fractured skull . . . well, she’d been sure the child’s body wouldn’t be able to withstand everything. She’d feared she’d die before the turn really even got started.
“Eshe thinks that your bleeding yourself into the open wound on the back of the girl’s head probably saved her,” Armand said, obviously having read her thoughts. Tilting his head curiously, he asked, “How did you know to do that?”
Jeanne Louise tore away the now empty bag from her fangs and smiled wryly as she admitted, “I don’t know. It just came to me.”
His eyebrows rose, but he let that go and then moved to sit down at the dining table. “Lucian will be here soon. We have to talk.”
Jeanne Louise hesitated, not really eager to “talk.” She knew her father hated Paul for kidnapping her. They all did. And they were also no doubt furious on her behalf that she’d given up her one turn. She wasn’t too pleased about that herself and blamed Bricker for it.
“It was an accident,” Armand Argeneau said solemnly. “Bricker didn’t intend for it to happen. He says he tried to slip into the girl’s thoughts to stop her when she turned to run, but met resistance. That was probably the tumor.”
“Probably,” Jeanne Louise acknowledged, and moved to sit wearily at the table. She wasn’t really surprised to hear that Justin had found it difficult to penetrate the girl’s mind. It had gotten more and more difficult for her to slip into Livy’s thoughts with each headache. She suspected the tumor had grown each day and had been starting to interfere. Jeanne Louise had always managed to get through the initial block, but Justin wouldn’t have expected it, and may not have been able to push through in the short amount of time he’d had to do so.
“And I don’t hate Paul,” her father said quietly, proving he’d read that thought too. “I read his mind as I put him to sleep earlier. He loves you. He wanted to be your life mate. It’s tragic that it can’t happen now.”
Jeanne Louise peered down at her hands. She’d been annoyed with her father at first when Paul had suddenly collapsed in the bedroom and she’d realized her father had put him under. But then as the turn had progressed, she’d decided it had probably been a good thing. Livy’s turn had been fast and furious and incredibly violent. Probably because Jeanne Louise had bled into her twice, giving her twice the normal number of nanos and giving them two entry points. It was probably better that Paul hadn’t had to witness his daughter in such agony. Jeanne Louise wished she hadn’t had to.
“And I know you love him too,” Armand continued solemnly. “Which is why we need to talk. We need to come up with a strategy for presenting this to Lucian if you want to save Paul’s life.”
Jeanne Louise stiffened. “Lucian can’t—”
“Lucian does what he thinks is best for our people. Paul kidnapped you, hoping to get you to turn his daughter. Kidnapping is wrong even in mortal law, Jeanne Louise. But Lucian won’t stand for a mortal kidnapping an immortal.”
“Paul may have kidnapped me initially,” Jeanne Louise said carefully. “But as soon as I was fully awake and realized I couldn’t read him I was there willingly. And he was only hoping to convince me to turn Livy. He wouldn’t have forced me.”
“I’m not sure about that,” Armand said on a sigh. “Paul was originally hoping to convince you, but he was also desperate. I don’t think even he knew what he would do if you refused, or how far he would go.”
Jeanne Louise frowned at this news, but shook her head. “It doesn’t matter. The problem never came up and Lucian can’t punish Paul for something that might have happened.”
“Lucian might not agree with you on that.”
Jeanne Louise glanced toward the door at her cousin Etienne’s words as he entered the cottage with his wife, Rachel, and Jo, who was her brother Nicholas’s wife, on his heels. The trio had gone out for food and each carried a cardboard tray of drinks and a Tim Hortons bag.
Nicholas and Etienne and their wives had arrived shortly after her father had removed Paul from the room. With the added help available, her father had sent Etienne and Justin to see to the neighbors, to make sure they didn’t think anything of the pained shrieks and wails Livy was eliciting and were plainly heard outside. The others had stayed in the room, helping to hold down Livy and keep her from hurting herself as her struggles became stronger.
Even with the added help, it had been hard to keep the girl still and Jeanne Louise had been relieved when the Enforcer Anders had arrived with the drugs and IV. The drugs hadn’t stopped the pain for Livy, but they’d made it more bearable and stopped her from thrashing about.
“He can’t punish Paul for taking me. I was willing,” Jeanne Louise said firmly as Etienne and the women began to unpack the food they’d fetched. Nine sandwiches and nine drinks, she noted, and guessed they hadn’t bothered to bring Paul food.
“Anders doesn’t eat or drink,” Jo said quietly. She leaned sideways in her seat to offer a piece of her sandwich to Boomer with one hand and a pet with the other.
Not being allowed into Livy’s room, the dog was apparently mooching for food from anyone and everyone, Jeanne Louise thought, but then spotted his full food dish several feet away. He wasn’t going hungry, so perhaps he wanted affection and reassurance as much as food, she decided, and then let go of the concern as Jo straightened and reassured her, “One of the sandwiches and a drink are for Paul.”
“Oh,” she murmured and smiled at her sister-in-law with gratitude. She liked Jo and was glad the woman and Nicholas had found each other. As if called by her thoughts of him, Nicholas now entered the kitchen on Eshe’s heels and Jeanne Louise frowned at the sight of them. “Livy—?”
“Paul is with her,” Eshe reassured her at once. “I showed him how to change bags as necessary.”
“You were willing after you realized he was your life mate, Jeanne Louise, but not at first,” her father said, drawing her attention back to the matter at hand. He then added sadly, “And sweetie, your being willing or not doesn’t change the fact that he kidnapped an immortal with the intention of making them turn his daughter.”
“She was dying,” Jeanne Louise barked with frustration, and then asked grimly, “What would you do to save me or Nicholas or Thomas?”
That brought a moment of silence that she filled by adding, “Besides, he only kidnapped me because Marguerite told him to follow his heart.”
“What?” Etienne asked with amazement, head jerking up at the mention of his mother’s name.
Jeanne Louise nodded firmly. “Paul was going to try to convince a coworker who would have been easier to get alone, but Marguerite told him to follow his heart, so he took me.”
“You were his heart’s desire,” Eshe said softly, her gaze concentrated on Jeanne Louise’s forehead. She was reading her mind, of course, Jeanne Louise thought with a sigh, but didn’t fight it. Seeing everything that had taken place could only help her cause. At least she hoped so.