CHAPTER 227

Zel made a sound like a balloon deflating as her shoulders drooped. "It's not that. I enjoy your touch, but I don't deserve it, not when you hear what I have to say." Her face scrunched up as she took a calming breath. "Mike. There is no centaur in my life. I made him up. There's only ever been you."

"But I don't get it. What about..." He gestured toward her equine belly, his lips suddenly numb.

The look on her face spoke volumes. She turned away from him, her arms crossed her stomach. "I lied. That was the choice I made, and I regret it."

So many questions raced through his head, he couldn't figure out which to ask first. "How?" was the best he could manage.

"Humans and centaurs can't interbreed. But I was using a potion to make myself human, remember?" She shook her head, the feathers in her hair fluttering wildly in the breeze. "My best guess is that we crossed whatever line that separated us biologically. The child won't be human or centaur, but something in between."

"But why keep it from me?"

She shrugged. "Fear. Not for you, but for our child. I had become a leader to my people, which comes with responsibilities. You are the Caretaker. How many times have you almost died? How many times has the house been attacked?"

"You spoke with Eulalie about this, didn't you?" He thought back to what the Arachne had told him. Zel was saying a lot of the same.

"She figured it out on her own. Snuck into my home in the middle of the night and confronted me where nobody else could hear us. Scared the crap out of me when she dropped out of the shadows." Zel shivered. "It was a heated conversation at first, because I tried to deny it. She had plenty of evidence, then told me about the egg, so I finally caved and admitted it. All my thoughts and fears came spilling out that night. It was the first time I had told anyone the whole truth of the matter."

"So why wait until now? Why not tell me sooner?"

She sighed. "I wanted to see how you reacted to the news about Velvet's egg first."

"Why, to see if I would be a good parent?" He felt his anger rising as he cradled the egg protectively. "I mean, yeah, I'm essentially doing the egg-baby project from middle school, but I think it's real shitty that you were trying to vet me before informing me we're having a child together."

"That's where you're wrong." She moved toward him and put her hand on his chest. "I wanted to see if you would force traditional human customs on Eulalie. Make her give the egg to you, demand that your daughter live in the house full-time instead of taking her advice. I can't blame you for holding to human norms for child-rearing, but our foal will require their connection to the herd. The herd raises all offspring together, it's the centaur way. Yes, we have parents, but this child will have hundreds of parents watching out for them, all day long. If you made them live with you in your house, they wouldn't have that direct connection to their own tribe, and would never be more than a visitor." She paused for a second and smiled wistfully. "It would also be hell on your wooden floors."

Mike contemplated her logic, his anger at her deception fading. The realization that Zel's choice had been more about the child than him tempered his feelings. His own damaged childhood had been the result of destructive selfishness, and he had vowed long ago to be different.

"I still don't like that you lied to me," he muttered. "You make good points, but I really wish you had more faith in me as a person. I don't know the first thing about being a parent, especially one that isn't fully human. I would have deferred."

"And for that, I'm truly sorry." She moved her hand to his cheek. "And I want you to be there for our foal, but we both know you can't be around full-time. You're the Caretaker, your role is so much bigger than either of us realize. After what happened with the horsemen, I can't help but feel you have a bigger destiny waiting for you."

"I certainly hope not." He patted the egg. "I've got enough excitement in the near future as it is."

"In just a few more months, actually." Her lips were now next to his. "That is, if you can forgive me."

When Zel moved close, he felt the egg vibrate against his chest. Waves of heat traveled through his chest to his hands.

"Oh!" Zel's flanks rippled and her eyes widened in surprise. "It just kicked! Want to feel?"

He paused, taking in the excitement in her eyes. Nothing about his life was ordinary, and it never would be again. As waves of heat pressed into his fingertips, he shifted to the side so that he could place his hand on Zel's horse-stomach. A sharp poke hit the palm of his hand, like a high-five.

A feeling of recognition radiated from the egg in response.

"We're going to be parents." He took Zel's hand in his and squeezed. "I'll try not to fuck it up."

"So you forgive me?" Her eyes were full of shimmering hope.

"We're both going to make a lot of mistakes." He placed his hand on the egg and smiled. "Maybe forgiveness is a great thing to have in common."

"Thank you." She kissed him lightly on the cheek.

"Do you want to hear something funny?" A small grin broke through his lips.

"I would love to." She hugged his arm and laid her head on his shoulder.

"I'm going to have two kids with a total of twelve legs, yet will never have to spend money on socks, shoes, or pants." He waved his hand dramatically at the sky. "Just think of the savings."

She rolled her eyes. "I thought dads were supposed to be funny," she said.

"I've still got a lot to learn about being a dad," he replied with a grin. "But I'm looking forward to the challenge." It was going to be hard, but worth it. He stood there with Zel, their gazes on the horizon as the egg pulsed in its carrier, filling him with love and light.

The steady thump of rain on the roof was punctuated by distant thunder that made the old plantation house's bones creak. Moonlight reflected in the dozens of puddles that had formed in the front yard, making it look as if hidden creatures watched the home in anticipation.

A cry of agony fluttered down the hall, making Elizabeth shiver. She ran her hands down the long braid of her hair and turned her attention away from the window toward the small figure who sat across from her reading a book. It was a young man with bleach-blond hair and a tattoo on his wrist. The skin around his hairline was peeling away to reveal gray patches underneath.

"You're going to need a new body soon," Elizabeth said. "That one doesn't have much time left."

"Tell me something I don't know." Sarah's voice was husky, a result of male vocal cords. She adjusted the glittering stone that hung around her neck. "With this weather being so shitty, my options have been limited, Mother."