Free WickedBeast by Gail Faulkner

magics.” Minuet frowned at her mother.
    “Yes, baby, I did. It wasn’t safe for us. Weren’t you afraid
of the loud birds?” Kelly paused as Minuet nodded. “Cord is here to help us
now. It’s okay to do exactly what he shows us how to do. Do you understand,
Minuet? No trying anything unless you tell Mommy or Cord. No matter what.”
    Minuet’s eyes glanced between them and a huge smile appeared
on her face. “Cord make daddy?”

Chapter Six
     
    He couldn’t say Little Miss Miracle was slow on the uptake.
She nailed them with the one question he was more than willing to answer but
suspected he shouldn’t.
    Kelly hesitated a moment, glancing at Cord. “He is our very
good friend. It takes time to be a daddy.”
    “How much?” Minuet wanted to know.
    “Honey, being a daddy is about loving us, loving us with all
his heart. You can’t expect it from someone who just met us and it’s not polite
to ask,” Kelly explained as she fed another spoon of food into Minuet.
    Minuet frowned and chewed. Taking a big swallow, she leaned
toward Kelly and whispered loudly, “How we see him love us?”
    “Let’s just be happy we have a new friend. Okay?” Kelly
stated, trying to cut off the endless questions.
    Cord decided it was time to give Kelly a break and distract
Minuet from the subject. “Minuet, I have a very important question for you.
Don’t be afraid of answering honestly. Taking responsibility for what we do
makes everything much better. You know you can tell me anything. Right?”
    Serious little face chewed and nodded as she looked into his
eyes.
    “Why do you think the loud birds followed the truck that
brought your boxes? Was there magic they could feel in it?” Cord asked.
    Minuet looked down at her bowl but answered clearly. “I not
magic anyting we pack. Mommy said no-no. So I magiced truck, no breaking. Maybe
birds feels it.”
    “Minuet.” Kelly frowned at her daughter. “You know that was
wrong.”
    Minuet defended. “No magics our stuffs. Smelly man’s truck
is all.”
    Cord interrupted. “When does the magic end, honey?”
    “End?” Minuet asked puzzled.
    “You didn’t put an end on the magic?” he asked.
    “No. How do dat?” she wanted to know.
    “Mommy didn’t teach you to end the magic?”
    “Mommy not like magics,” Minuet explained seriously.
    “I didn’t teach her to spell either,” Kelly said calmly,
“she knows how though.”
    Cord looked at Kelly. “A natural gift. She’ll be fine with a
few lessons,” he stated as if it were a simple thing. “The smelly man’s truck
just became his best machine. It will never break. However, someone felt
Minuet’s power. They will follow the truck for a while, but eventually they’ll
give up and backtrack. I’m guessing we have maybe two months.”
    “Two months before what?” Kelly asked then glanced at the
little face swiveling between them. “Never mind. So we might move again?”
    “This is a good place for a while. You two can learn how to
handle the craft. That’s the most important thing,” Cord emphasized seriously.
“Especially Minuet. She has to be taught, Kelly. Next time she could
unwittingly cause damage. You can’t act like she doesn’t have the gift.”
    “I know. It’s just, well, things have changed,” Kelly
finished softly while she pasted on a smile for Minuet, who was watching the
adults with sharp eyes. “What about my job, our life?” she couldn’t resist
asking in the next breath.
    “You’ve recently came into a huge inheritance,” Cord informed
her with a half smile. “From a great-aunt. She left you everything. Quitting
your job will be understandable. Besides, you just moved here, right? No big
deal.”
    Kelly frowned. “Do not think I’m about to become dependent
on you. I can support my daughter, thank you very much. Molly got me the job at
the place she works. I do not want to make her look bad. Besides, it’s a very
good position.”
    “Molly inherited more than you