The pain in Lucien’s eyes made Imari hurt for him. She listened intently as he explained what had happened.
“All reapers take a sabbatical. It’s more than a recommendation, it’s scheduled. The council believes it helps those of us in the especially difficult divisions to balance out the work we do. You can opt out, and some do, but I didn’t.”
His gaze went to a distant place. “I wanted a family. I wanted to bathe myself in life. To remember that there was something good in the world. I saw so much destruction and carnage, I needed the other side of the coin.”
She nodded, unable to imagine how hard his job had been. “I would have too.”
“I’d already met Pavlina. She was a wild creature. I was captivated by her. She was a vampire, but she was more alive than anyone else I knew. She lived life in such a big way. By her own rules. If she wanted something, she took it.” The faintest hint of a smile bent his mouth. “That’s how she ended up with me.”
“She pursued you?”
“No.” He laughed. “But she whipped me into such a frenzy that I went after her like nothing else mattered. And it didn’t. I was under her spell. We married two weeks after we met. The day I began my sabbatical, actually.”
He shook his head like he was trying to rid it of memories. “Everything was such a whirlwind. The courtship. The marriage. Kora.”
Imari thought about that a moment. “I don’t mean to be indelicate, but I didn’t think vampires could procreate with any other kind of supernatural, so how did Kora happen?”
His gaze had slipped to some random spot on the cushion between them. He raised his head to look at her. “Reapers are a loophole, you might say. We’re so closely associated with death that we’re one of the few supernaturals compatible with vampires. In that way. Our powers don’t pass on, only the vampire’s do. That’s why Kora is so much her mother’s daughter.”
“I see.” For a second, Imari wondered if Pavlina had known that. And had possibly sought Lucien out for that purpose. But she didn’t know the woman or her motives, so Imari didn’t want to speculate. “Were you happy at all? You must have been at some point if you married her.”
“I guess I was. Caught up in her whirlwind is more like it. When Kora was first born, things seemed perfect. A happy little family.” His expression darkened, underlining how that happiness hadn’t lasted.
“So what happened? How did it break down?”
He sighed, a deep exhale of breath that roared out of him like a storm of emotion. “Pavlina had a short attention span. Everything and everyone was attractive to her. She wanted it all. Having a child only temporarily slowed her down.”
“What do you mean she wanted it all?”
“The attention I gave her wasn’t enough.”
“She…cheated?”
“Repeatedly. I lost track, actually. I stayed for Kora’s sake.”
Of course he had. Because that’s who Lucien was. A good man with an incredible heart. She couldn’t help but think he must have been an amazing father. The very idea got her maternal instincts all hot and bothered. Could a reaper and a genie have children? It was something worth finding out.
He rubbed his hand over his face. “It’s a terrible thing to feel betrayed by someone you love.”
She sniffed. “Don’t I know it.”
He looked stricken. “I’m sorry. That was insensitive of me. Of course you know how it feels.”
“Don’t apologize. It’s something we share now. An awful something, but that kind of understanding makes for a good bond.” And because he understood that feeling, he’d think long and hard before betraying anyone himself. Not that she thought he would betray her. But it was like extra insurance.
He smiled. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Now, tell me the rest.”
“Pavlina. She did what she wanted. Disappeared for weeks on end. Ignored both of us. Lived, essentially, like she was single again. And somehow, despite all of that, I became the bad guy in Kora’s eyes. In fact, the older Kora got, the more distant she became with me. She wanted her mother. But her mother was rarely there. And when Pavlina was there, she was never engaged. Never the doting mother Kora wanted her to be.”
Imari tapped her fingers on the back of the couch. “I’d guess that what Kora wanted was not only her mother’s attention but her mother’s approval. She saw her mother treating you badly, so she thought that was how to get it. She followed in Pavlina’s footsteps.”
“Yes. That’s exactly how it was. She had anger toward her mother, too, but she took it out on me. Maybe because I was usually the only one there to take it out on.” His gaze shifted away again. “I’m as much to blame, though. I thought I could win her affection with things and leniency.”
“What parent wouldn’t feel that way?”
His laugh was bitter. “You see how that worked.”
“No one would blame you.”
“Kora does. For everything.”
“Why? How are you responsible for Pavlina’s choice to meet the dawn? At least, I’m assuming that’s what she did.”
“It is. And I don’t know.”
“You must have some suspicions. What has Kora told you?”
“Nothing. She refuses to talk about it.”
Imari lifted her brows. “And yet you continue to fund her lifestyle?”
“I…yes.” He closed his eyes for a moment. “I’ve been afraid that if I stop, I’ll never see her again.” He looked away, a battle of emotions raging on his face. Then his jaw tightened. “She’s still my daughter.”
“And you love her.”
“I do.” His voice was strangled when he answered, thick with pain.
Imari went to her knees and leaned forward, cupping his face in her hands. “I’m so sorry.”
He bent toward her so they were forehead to forehead. “I have to be firm with Kora. I know that. And with you in my life, I can be.”
It thrilled Imari to know she gave him that kind of courage. “I’ll do anything I can to help.”
“Thank you. But my conversation with Kora is probably best had alone.”
She kissed his forehead before sitting back. “Whatever you think.”
He sighed, sounding very much like the most exhausted man in the world. She felt for him. For everything that weighed upon him. She hoped that she could ease those burdens a bit. Maybe not with Kora. That relationship wasn’t Imari’s to get involved with unless Lucien asked. But surely there were other aspects of his life she could help with.
She could, at the very least, bring him some fun and joy and lightness. The balance of his life was sorely lacking in that area.
He got to his feet. “I should go talk to her now. No point in putting it off.”
Imari stood up next to him, then picked the bottle off the side table where she’d put it before sitting down. “Can we put this in the safe first?”
“Yes, of course. I forgot all about that.”
“With good reason.”
He walked over to the Klimt painting and opened it like a door, revealing the safe behind it. “Watch now and I’ll show you the combination.”
“You don’t have to do that, you know. I trust you.”
“And I trust you. Which is why you should have the combination. It’s your bottle, after all. You should be able to access it whenever you want.”
“Thank you.” That was quite a statement coming from the man who’d been so closed off when they’d first met.
He punched the numbers into the key pad.
She watched, memorizing them. “Do those numbers mean anything, or are they random?”
His smile was melancholy. “Kora’s birthday.”
Her heart clenched at that. How sad that the petulant woman-child in the other room was so blind to her father’s love. “That’s sweet.”
“That’s one word for it.” He opened the safe door. “I am aware of how much of a weakness she is for me.”
“I think daughters are that way for fathers.” She thought of her own father. “Most of them, anyway.”
She put the bottle inside, then stood back, lost in the thought of her parents’ betrayal.
Lucien closed the door and reset the lock, then he pulled Imari close. “Don’t let it eat you up, or you’ll end up as bitter as I am.”
She shook her head, a little too choked with emotion to answer. She cleared her throat and found her voice. “I won’t. I’ll go see what Hattie’s rustled up for dinner while you talk to Kora.”
“Perfect. I’m sure you’ll hear the yelling just fine from the kitchen.”
“You think it’ll be that bad?”
“When I tell her she’s cut off? Absolutely. But if she wants anything from me, she’s going to give me some answers.”
She slipped her arms around his waist. “Are you prepared for her not to say anything? For her to walk away and not look back?”
He hesitated. “She won’t do that. She’ll yell and scream and carry on, but at some point, she’ll give in. She’s relied on me too much.”
For his sake, Imari hoped he was right.
They walked out to the living room together. Kora was settled on one of the couches, scrolling through her phone.
She didn’t look up when they came in. “Took you long enough.”
A dark cloud seemed to appear around Lucien.
Imari squeezed his arm, then excused herself to the kitchen.
Hattie was hovering, nervously. The table’s surface was covered in dishes. “There you are.” Hattie’s smile didn’t quite reach her eyes. “I got the leftovers out.”
“I see that,” Imari said. “Thank you.” She picked up a plate and started helping herself to the food that was laid out. “It all looks great.”
“It’s just leftovers. I could make you something else.”
“I love leftovers.” Imari knew how concerned the woman must be. Maybe she should ask for something else just to give Hattie a task to be distracted with.
“What’s he going to tell her?” Hattie whispered.
“That she’s got to talk to him if she wants any more money,” Imari whispered back.
Hattie’s brows rose. “That’s not going to go—”
The crash of something ceramic interrupted them, followed by some yelling. Kora’s yelling.
Hattie flew to the kitchen entrance, but didn’t go any farther. She spun around to face Imari again. “Should I go in there?”
“I don’t think so. He wanted to do it alone. But I’m sure if he needs you, he’ll call for you.”
Hattie sighed. “I’m sure you’re right. I just wish they could get past whatever it is that’s keeping them apart.” She hovered back by the table, twisting her hands together. “He loves her, you know. He really does.”
“I know.” Imari took a seat at the table. Her appetite had waned since returning, but eating gave her something to do. She picked up her fork and was about to take a bite when Lucien walked into the kitchen.
He looked at Imari, the most desperate expression on his face she’d ever seen. “I need your help.”
Imari got to her feet. “Anything. Just tell me what you want.”
A second of silence passed before he spoke again. “I have a wish I want granted.”