Page 87 of Death Dance

“And if there are any problems where you would need to safeguard the brood’s children, we would be taking up residence and keeping a close eye on things,” my father promised. “Now that you’re grown, my house down the road will be my primary residence, and I’ll only be using my penthouse when I need to be in the office, which will only be once a month for a week. I’ll be doing the rest of my work from here—or traveling as needed. Also, Emerick, Clarke is looking for a residence in the area. Consider yourself warned.”

“I’m considering that to be a notable part of this dowry.” My husband sighed. “He’s going to be breathing down our necks. This is your fault, Pepper. You need to console me tonight.”

I snickered, accepting the blame with a nod. “If my mother even hints at being worried about me, he’s going to be checking. She’s going to worry.” She’d especially worry once she found out about the twins, and we’d be drowning in parents and other relatives making certain nothing went wrong. “The only reason they aren’t breathing down our necks is because she’s sleeping, which means your maker is hovering over her.”

Emerick grinned and nodded. “It’s great. They’re keeping each other on their toes, just as it should be. All right. Honestly, I’m eager to get boarded, so can we do a sneak peek now and save the best for after the honeymoon?”

My father raised a brow. “Why are you so eager to board?”

“Naps,” my husband replied in a solemn tone. “I want to be settled and enjoy a nap before we have to get dressed and engage in chaos.”

After shaking his head and rolling his eyes, my father pulled out his phone, dialed a number, and held it to his ear. “Alheen, it seems you have won the bet, as the children are overwhelmed. The groom is ready for a nap so he can come to terms with his new mansion and the approval of my daughter’s entire family. I’m going to humor him, so if there are any small gifts any of you desperately want them to see today, just bring them with you. I did tell them about the nursery and play area, and they are both pleased. I’ll herd them to the ship while you take care of everything here.” With a smile, my father hung up. “I was told I should wait for after the honeymoon to be bothered with the dowry. It seems my uncles were right.”

Emerick took a few moments to take in the foyer and the house beyond, which had been decorated with comfort in mind rather than extravagance.

Outside of the mansion’s size, everything I could see within it seemed to have been selected for turning the place into a home.

“No, you were right. Knowing we’re coming back to a home like this, one where we can bring the brood’s children and better meet their needs, is one of the most precious gifts you could give to me. Your daughter, of course, being the most precious gift of all.”

“She did that all on her own. All I’m giving you is my approval, which you earned. You make her happy, and that’s what I care about most of all. And yes, your brood is the home of your heart, and we decided on this house knowing that. Now, come along. I’ll see you to the ship and get to work with the rest of the preparations. Just try not to cry when you see her, Pepper.”

I wrinkled my nose. “Why would I cry? I’ve seen her before.”

My father smirked. “You will see soon enough.”

I didn’t cry when I saw my ship, which had undergone repairs at dry dock and sported a fresh coat of paint. However, when my father handed over a rather thick envelope, and I understood what I beheld, I burst into tears.

Eclipse was mine in all ways, and not only was she mine, my father had gone ahead with his plans, commissioning her sister ship, which had been named Moonlight.

Alone, those two facts wouldn’t have caused more emotions than I could handle, but the cover letter of the documentation he’d given me indicated both ships belonged to me.

As I couldn’t blubber and explain to my husband why I cried, I thrust the set of papers at him so he could read for himself what he dealt with and why I felt zero shame for my tears.

“Ah. I understand. You went ahead with the second ship, and you named her after Pepper’s first thought for the ship, which you put on a show of doubting. Clever. Considering how much Pepper loved the design sketches of the ship, I’m not at all surprised she’s crying over this. However, I’m also aware of how much that ship costs. She’s going to be over a billion to build to your first round of specs.”

“She’ll be closer to two billion, and what we didn’t use on the house, the furnishings, your herds and farm operations, and so on for the dowry went to the ship’s building costs. She will hit the water free and clear of debt, and she will be a crowned jewel of the seas. I’ll run her as part of my operations, but you’ll always have your statehouse available for all sailings. Part of the documentation is the operational agreement for this ship, which gives my company a ten percent cut of all profits, puts ten percent into escrow for unexpected repair expenses, and gives the rest to you. There’s no overhead on the operational expenses beyond that, and standard ship maintenance is included; the repair fund is for unexpected dry docking and emergency repairs. I recommend that you offer the stateroom as a reward for enterprising members of the brood when you aren’t using it. I’ve also set aside staterooms for your brother, your mother and her husband, and for myself. There’s one stateroom put aside should any of my irritating uncles decide to sail as well. But she will bring in far more than she costs to operate. Your Eclipse should be profitable as well, especially now that I was ‘convinced’ to spare her from being scavenged.”

I wiped my face, giggling at the thought of my father profiting off our scheme to end Jeremy Breckenan’s life and make certain we had a safe and bright future. “And the cost for this voyage?”

“That’s coming out of my pocket, as is proper for a doting vampire father with a beautiful daughter wedding her groom.” My father snickered and herded us to the gangway, which his employees opened for us upon seeing our approach. As we got closer, he said, “My daughter just found out the ships are officially hers, so there’s no reason for alarm.”

The men and women grinned, shot my father a salute, and welcomed us aboard.

Once aboard, I vanquished my tears, stole Emerick’s handkerchief, and blew my nose. As I wasn’t evil, I shoved the despoiled cloth into my purse. Since I’d last been aboard, just before Breckenan’s death, every surface had been refinished, with new floors installed, fresh coats of paint, and all the trim renewed. “You completely refitted her?”

“For some odd reason, there was unusual amounts of bloodshed across the ship, so I had all the wood removed and repurposed. It was time for the decking to be redone anyway, and it let me test just how fast we could handle a complete refit of this beauty. It turns out when you offer lucrative bonuses for speedy but quality work, you get exactly what you pay for. The dockworkers love me, they love you, and they love this ship, for they now have unexpected good fortune.” My father shrugged. “We had a few delays along the way, but that involved needing to purchase some replacement parts we hadn’t expected. But she’s in pristine condition, and she’s ready to visit much of the world. I question how you’ve managed to give the entirety of your brood three months off, Emerick.”

“They’re not getting three months off; that’s why I was so picky about the internet. I’m making them work four hours a day while sailing the world. The days we’re on shore, nobody is working. But on sailing days? They know how much they need to get done before they can go out and play on the ship. Those who didn’t want to come on the venture are holding down the fort with the help of hired helpers from other broods.” My husband paused to regard a vase on one of the end tables. “We just have Ming vases sitting around?”

“It is heavily guarded with magic, so don’t fret about the antiquities aboard the ship. Alheen wanted to have a history tour on the ship, and he provided most of the pieces. Protecting it was the least I could do.”

“Your uncles are crazy,” I informed him. “Thank you for serving as a buffer from their crazy.”

He laughed. “You’re welcome. Now, let me deliver you to your stateroom so you can get to the serious business of napping and relaxing before your big evening. Just try not to indulge in unnecessary fits of anxiety. You’re not going to forget your lines. The officiators are going to coach you on what to say. And Pepper? What I haven’t handled, your mother has. And yes, that is as threatening as it sounds, because your mother is not going to tolerate anyone ruining your special evening.”

“Please just remind my mother I love my ship and will become overwhelmed with sadness should she be harmed in any fashion.”

“That much I can do."