CHAPTER 121

"Hmm." Mike looked at Jenny, who was once again scribbling circles on the paper. Life in the house was becoming quite the juggling act when it came to everybody's needs. How had Emily found the time to travel the world in search of other creatures to come live with her? "Tell you what, I'll take Quetzalli tomorrow. That should give you plenty of time to yourself. But I'm going to need something from you in the next couple of days."

"Oh?" Her interest piqued, she leaned forward against the desk. "Like what?"

He explained the discovery of the gate and how Ratu was working on making a key to let him in. "So, in short, it looks like I'm headed off to the Underworld in the next few days."

"Do you need help with your research?" Beth asked.

"No, I have Sofia helping me. I actually need something from my lawyer."

"As long as it doesn't involve another discussion with the faerie queen, I'm all ears."

"Actually, it's something way easier than that. I've been thinking a lot these last few days, ever since the incident with the queen. When I look around this house, I feel like I'm in the middle of a storm just waiting to happen. Emily was involved in some weird shit; the Society, or whatever is left of it, is still out there; and only god knows what is waiting for me around the corner. I'm trying to treat this more like a chess match now, maybe move my pieces the way they were meant."

Beth nodded. "I know how you feel. My life has never felt so out of control. Trapped in a mirror world, seduced by faerie magic, soul spliced to a demon. I don't even get to brag about these things at my next high school reunion."

He chuckled. "I doubt anyone would even recognize me at mine. I transferred to my last school halfway through my senior year."

"So what do you need from me?"

"I need you to help me draft my will."

Beth frowned. "Okay, that's not what I expected you to say."

"Well, hear me out." He let out a long sigh. "So many of my problems were caused by my predecessor, and the geas hasn't helped me by shielding memories from everybody. And here's the other thing. The geas activates when the current Caretaker dies, right? Well what happens if I take two steps into the Underworld and somehow trigger the spell? Like, do I qualify as dead, or does the geas keep operating? I really don't know."

"Hmm. I see your logic. I guess there's really no way of knowing." She tapped her fingers on the table. "Damn, that would be pretty bad, wouldn't it? You would step through that gate and this place would shut down until next of kin could be found."

"And everyone inside would forget. This whole thing is about memories, Beth. It isn't just that the home closes up, it's that we all forget each other as well. Would I forget everyone? I really don't know."

"Wow." Beth leaned back in her chair and contemplated the ceiling while twirling her hair. "I guess there's always the fact that you might actually die while on this trip of yours, if we're being honest about it."

Mike gulped. "Yeah, there's that, too. It's not something I like to think about, but it's possible that it could happen."

"Okay then, estate paperwork is fairly standard. I could have something ready for you in a couple of days—unless you need it right away?"

He nearly laughed. He could tell from the way she asked that she was hoping he didn't need it right away, no doubt exhausted from her morning with Quetzalli.

"No need. Jenny, can I get one of those papers, please?" He looked at Jenny, who was busy doodling a storm cloud. A piece of paper near her foot moved toward him, as if pushed by an invisible hand. He trapped it under his left hand and grabbed one of the spare pens with his right. He scribbled a quick sentence and then signed his name and dated it, then slid it across. "I'm sure this is perfectly legal, since I did it right in front of you, but if you could please have it converted to fancy lawyer speak, that would be great."

Beth picked up the paper, her eyes sliding across the text. He could see the slight tremor in her hands as she lowered it to look him in the eyes. "You can't be serious."

"I am dead serious," he said in his best Death voice, then spoke normally. "I want to leave everything to you and Dana. You both live here already, which means if something happens, the house should remain as is, and nobody gets locked away. You both become Caretakers, I imagine, but that's something you'll have to figure out with Naia. I have no next of kin that I'm aware of, and I'm fairly certain the law doesn't recognize goblin marriages as legally binding, so Tink is out."

Beth's face had clouded over, and she read the paper again. "You really think that Dana and I can handle it?"

"I think you could handle it all on your own, to be honest. You know everybody, and they respect you. This decision feels right and is the best way to protect the house. I don't want the next Caretaker to make Tink live in the garage again, or to force Jenny back into the Vault. So much progress has been made, and I want it to remain, and that's why I chose you. I believe in you, Beth, even if you don't believe in yourself anymore."

He sighed. "I know you've been struggling with what happened with the queen. And maybe even Oliver, too. I'm sorry I haven't been a better friend about it, and I think part of that is because of who I am. When I see the others, I feel an immediate responsibility to do everything I can for them. Maybe that's who I am, or maybe it's the house, I don't know. I share souls with half of them, so they're like an extension of who I am.

"But you? You're different. I knew you briefly before this whole mess, and I've always just thought of you as someone who got sucked in, just like me. You seem like this woman who is so far beyond anything I have ever accomplished. Smart, strong, and definitely loyal. You could have bailed long ago, or even sold us out to the Society when things got hard. But you didn't. You've fought alongside us, forgiven the others when they were wrong, and, well...you just fit in here.