Free Portals by Maer Wilson Page A

had before.
    Jones had also brought dessert, something chocolate and fluffy and sweet and utterly decadent, made by his chef, Raoul.
    By the time we were done with dinner it was almost Carter's bedtime. I gave him a small bit of dessert before I took him upstairs and filled the tub for his bath, making sure I had the right amount of bubbles that he liked. Before long, I had him dressed for bed and snuggled down with a stuffed toy. Thulu came upstairs and the two of us sat beside his bed as Thulu read a bedtime story to Carter. We each kissed him good night and went back downstairs.
    The others had been putting the food away and getting the dishes loaded into the dishwasher. By the time we came downstairs, everyone was ready to move to the family room to have our dessert and try the Yquem.
    Jones was right. It was absolutely wonderful, a honeyed apricot wine that was sublime. I sighed as I inhaled deeply and sipped my wine. I opened my eyes to see Jones with a self-satisfied smile on his face.
    “Okay, Jones, you can bring this every time you come to dinner.” I smiled contentedly at him.
    I thought he choked a little. “Very funny. Always the joker, La Fi.”
    That probably meant it was horribly expensive and he had a limited store. I made a mental note to ask Thulu later.
    Jones leaned back in his chair, took another sip of his wine and savored it before he said, “I have a proposal for you.”
    Thulu and I exchanged a glance, Reo raised an eyebrow and Sloane looked mildly interested. For Sloane that was a lot of expression.
    “I have no choice but to bring Satorah up on charges before our Royal court. However, I am not quite sure what the current feeling is back on my world. We have come a long way in rebuilding what we once had. My people are not as militant, nor as vengeful, as in times past. This does not mean that we are back completely to what we once were.
    “Our numbers were severely diminished by the wars with the Light Ones. Each time we would rebuild a little, only to go back to war and need to start over again. The process to rebuild our losses is a slow one. Also, we have never been a people who had many children. Being immortal comes with a price and our children are few and therefore cherished.
    “So, you can see why rebuilding our population would take time. Yet, we have rebuilt. We have undergone our own Renaissance, as any people who have been oppressed will. In fact, we have gone through several.
    “We have not had open warfare with the Light Ones in almost a thousand years. The hostilities remain and there have been minor skirmishes, but not outright war and not on our home worlds. I had hoped with the news that Gabriel was gone, my people could relax for the first time. Michael is and always has been far easier to deal with. I have great hopes that we can put hostilities aside between our peoples once and for all.
    “But if Satorah is not an aberration, if she does represent an actual faction within our ruling class, then I must be prepared to deal with that.” Jones sipped at his wine thoughtfully for a moment.
    “Regardless of the situation there, I must return to my home world. After careful consideration, I have also decided to take the Light Ones who need to be returned to their own world with me.”
    There was a silence as we all took this in. I really hadn't expected Jones to do it. I fully expected him to leave the Light Ones to their own devices at best. Or put them out of their misery at worst. An altruistic Jones was something I didn't completely trust, but perhaps I was being unfair. After all, he had promised to cut back on the killing.
    Jones intrigued me, but his actions were unfathomable at times. No matter how human he appeared, he was not human. He was ancient, he was a killer and he could be ruthless. I'd also seen him be kind, generous and charming. Those were the times when I could see why the ancient Greeks had considered daemons to be benevolent beings.
    “Wow, Jones,”