Hidden Talents

Blade to the front door to tell him about the possibility of an impending invasion,” Roland explained. “Caleb said that it was only fair to warn the man about the risks of living here.”
    “You sent Blade in?” Serenity looked startled. “But Lloyd has never met him. He wouldn't understand. You know how alarming Blade can be on first sight. I hope you went to the door, too, in order to sort of explain Blade to Lloyd.”
    Caleb smiled at Roland across the wood stove. “Damn. We didn't think of that, did we?”
    “Nope, sure didn't. Don't exactly know how you'd go about explaining your friend Blade, anyway. Kind of unique.”
    “You don't explain Blade, you experience him.” Caleb headed for the kitchen. “I believe the news that we're not going to be invaded tonight calls for a beer. Want one, Roland?”
    “Why not. Not every night a man gets to celebrate an invasion that's been called off.”
    Serenity's smiling eyes met Caleb's as he opened the refrigerator. “You two can sit out here all night, drink Old Hogwash and tell each other how you stopped the invasion of Witt's End. As for me, I'm going to bed. I need my sleep.”
    “Yeah, I know.” Caleb picked up two bottles of Old Hogwash and closed the refrigerator door. “You're in training.”
    “That's right. Good night, gentlemen.” Serenity smiled serenely at both men and went down the hall to the bedroom.
    A heady rush of emotion filled Caleb as he watched her disappear. He turned his head and saw Roland regarding him with a peculiar expression.
    “She'll make an interesting granddaughter-in-law, all right,” Roland said as Caleb handed him one of the bottles of Old Hogwash. “But promise me one thing.”
    “What's that?”
    “Try to keep those photos Asterley took of her out of the Ventress Valley News , will you? I'm not sure your hometown is capable of appreciating that sort of fine art.”
    Caleb thought of the negatives he had found in Firebrace's desk drawer a couple of minutes before the Seattle police had answered the 911 summons. “Don't worry. I think I can promise you that those pictures are going to stay in my private collection. There's only one person who may still have copies, and I believe we can get hold of those.”
    “Who's that?”
    “Franklin.”
    “I'll get them back from Franklin,” Roland said grimly.
    Caleb took a swallow of Old Hogwash and considered how to say what had to be said. “There's a couple of things you should know about the past.”
    Roland sighed and sat down in the overstuffed armchair. “I'm listening.”

    The gentle clink of beads awoke Serenity an hour and a half later. She stirred amid the covers as Caleb parted the curtain and got into bed. He reached out to pull her into his arms.
    She touched his face gently. “How did it go?”
    Caleb threaded his fingers through her hair and leaned over to nuzzle her ear. “How did what go?”
    “Your talk with Roland.”
    “Fine. He's bedded down on the sofa.” Caleb kissed her throat.
    Serenity tried to evade his mouth. “Did you tell him everything? About how your parents died? About Firebrace?”
    “Uh-huh.” Caleb eased his leg higher between her thighs.
    “Did you tell him about Franklin's affair with Patricia?”
    “No. Like I said earlier, there's not much point.”
    “Well?”
    “Well, what?”
    “Well, how did he take all your news?” Serenity asked, exasperated.
    “He took it,” Caleb said. “As he himself reminded me, he's eighty-two years old. He's had a lot of experience at taking whatever life hands him.”
    Serenity thought about that. “And he's capable of changing, Caleb. He's proven that.”
    “Yeah.” Caleb moved his hand up along her leg to the top of her thigh.
    “For your sake.”
    “Yeah.” He squeezed gently.
    “He didn't come here tonight because I coerced him into it, you know. He came because of you.”
    “I know.” Caleb pulled her down across his chest.
    “He came here because he wanted to do things differently this time,” Serenity said earnestly. “Because he didn't want to repeat the mistakes of the past.”
    “If you say so.” He curved his hand around the back of her head and pulled her mouth to his.
    “And you care for him,” Serenity mumbled against his lips.
    “He's my grandfather. I'm his grandson. We didn't get all mushy about it. We just decided that we both have a hell of a lot of bits and pieces of each other stuck to us.”
    “Caleb, I'm sure that what you feel for your