***
Everyone seemed to be in good spirits. Conversation flowed so easily it seemed as if they’d all known each other for years. Even when the door to the conference room opened later to reveal Jeremy, Ryan, and the three elders, the calm atmosphere remained. Ryan went to sit beside Enzo and picked up Sylver whose arms were stretched out towards him. The boy had clearly missed his dad. After a quick nod at Philip, Jeremy asked for everyone’s attention.
“I apologize to all of you, especially our guests, for losing my temper out there.” He began in a quiet voice. “The thought of not seeing my child made me see red…literally. I’ve arranged for a chopper to take you to your…”
“No need for that.” Piero cut in. “I’ve already called for another to pick us up.”
Jeremy nodded. “I will replace or pay for the one that I destroyed.” He said. “Whichever you prefer.”
“You don’t have to do that, Jeremy,” Enzo said. “What I said was wrong. Your reaction, although extreme, was only to be expected of any parent. I apologize too. In as much as Sylver and I are soulmates, he’s your baby. And I need to respect that and allow you to make the decisions that affect his life.”
“I appreciate that, Enzo.” Jeremy nodded. “But I insist. I need to pay for what I destroyed.”
Ryan touched Enzo to stop him when he started to protest. “Allow him.” He said softly. “It’s the right thing to do.”
“Thanks,” Enzo said with a nod at Jeremy.
“Thank you, Prof.” Philip threw Ryan a grateful smile. “Gloria has something important to tell…the two families.” He said. “So I’ll ask the others to please excuse the original group.” At his words, the vampires who had accompanied the Jilani family quickly left the conference room. “Mama G.” Philip gestured for Gloria to proceed.
“Thank you, Philip,” Gloria said as she got to her feet. “A lot has happened since you got here this morning. Some fun, some not too pleasant. But at the end of the day, we each have an idea what the other is like.”
“We sure do.” Gaia chuckled. “He, for instance, is a clown.” She pointed a thumb at Stan, making everyone laugh.
“A sexy clown.” Stan drawled, wriggling his eyebrows at Gaia who couldn’t seem to hide how much Stan fascinated her.
“Personally, I’m so thrilled to see that my grandson’s mate is no pushover.” Gloria gave Enzo a smile. “With a mate like my grandson, you can’t afford to be a softie. I think you’re perfect. Welcome to the family, sweetie.”
“Thank you, ma’am.” Enzo choked.
“Time to address the main problem.” Gloria sighed. “How to prevent Sylver from popping up wherever Enzo is. That is a big problem, folks. Imagine what will happen if Syl shows up when Enzo is amongst humans. It might even be worse if he pops up when Enzo is with his own kind. Only God knows what some vampires will do if they suddenly find a werewolf in their midst.”
“No one will dare touch him,” Enzo growled.
“I know you will protect him,” Gloria said softly. “But why take chances? The best thing to do, for now, is to cast a spell to get you off his mind.”
“No…” Enzo gasped. “Please don’t.” He looked like he was about to be sick. “Please…” Everyone watched as Sylver, who had been cackling happily till that moment, left Ryan’s lap with a pitiful whimper, for Enzo’s. It was obvious he felt the vampire’s pain.
“Is that necessary?” Aurora hissed as she and Gaia quickly went to Enzo’s side.
“At this point, we need to think about Sylver,” Deloris said. “He’s just a baby, Enzo. You don’t have any choice but to wait until he comes of age to make things solid between the two of you.”
“He’s yours and you’re his. That will never change.” Gloria gave Enzo a helpless look. “But for now, he needs to be a child.”
“This will not affect you,” Deloris added. “You can visit him. It will be better if he doesn’t see you often though.”
“This is just sick.” Piero breathed. “Put yourself in my nephew’s shoes. How would you feel if…”
“He’s just a baby.” Jeremy rasped. “This is not going to be permanent. The spell will lift of its own accord when he’s old enough to take a mate.”
“Enzo, please,” Gloria whispered, clearly blown away by the tenderness with which the vampire held a restless Sylver against his chest. “Sometimes we need to make sacrifices for the people we care about.”
“She’s right, son.” Aurora sighed, watching as her son tried to soothe the fretful baby in his arms. “We need to think about little Sylver first.”
“So he’s not going to know who I am at all?” Enzo’s voice was barely above a whisper. His arms visibly tightened around Sylver.
“The problem is he’s a powerful little kid,” Deloris responded. “So although the spell I’m going to cast is a potent one, there’s a high probability that the more he sees you, the weaker the spell would become. So it will be best if he doesn’t know who you are. That can only be accomplished if you don’t visit often.”
“My god!” Enzo moaned miserably, his eyes glistening with unshed tears.
“You can visit as often as you want, Enzo,” Ryan said quietly beside Enzo. He couldn’t mask his compassion for the dejected vampire. “We just have to ensure he doesn’t see you all the time.”
When Sylver began to cry, Aurora, Gaia, and Paige began to cry too. Even Gloria wiped at her wet eyes. But when Ryan tried to take Sylver from Enzo’s arms, the baby wouldn’t budge. Ryan could only look on helplessly as his son clung to the vampire and cried. Every mother in the conference room looked stressed. Even Jeremy and Philip stood and came close to the crying baby.
“Enzo, your mood is affecting him,” Aurora said shakily through her tears.
“I can’t help it, mother.” Enzo groaned, looking down at Sylver with worried eyes. “Maybe…”
“I think you need to cast that spell now,” Aurora said urgently, her tear-filled eyes trained on Deloris. “That child is suffering. Enzo can handle it. Sylver can’t. Do it now.”
“Yes, please. Do it.” Enzo whispered, his tears finally spilling down his cheeks.