Red Phoenix

sister.’
    I followed Jennifer inside.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
    J ennifer sat on one of the couches in the living room, looking out the bay window towards the street. She had another tissue in her hand. She wasn’t crying; she just stared out the window.
    I went in and sat across from her. We watched each other silently for quite some time. ‘I’m sorry, Jen, I should have told you,’ I said softly. ‘But the whole thing is so weird…’ ‘When’s the wedding?’ she snapped. ‘I have no idea,’ I said. ‘There may not even be one, ever.’
    ‘And he’s a king, is he?’ ‘No.’
    She glanced sharply at me.
    I sighed. ‘Yes. No. To tell the truth, he’s more like a god.’
    She turned away. ‘I suppose I should be glad for you.’
    ‘You know what, Jen? I don’t care if you’re glad for me or not. Frankly, I don’t think there’s much to be glad about. But I am glad for you. You have a wonderful husband who adores you, two healthy little boys of your own, and a fabulous life here in England. I wouldgive anything to have what you do,’ I sighed at the stab of pain that went through me, ‘because I will probably never have anything as good as this.’
    ‘Oh come on, Emma,’ she said. ‘What did Leonard call you? Dark Empress? And that’s not better than this? You’ll be leading this jet-set lifestyle, rubbing shoulders with anyone you want, as much money as you want—’
    ‘You know what it’s really like for me right now?’ I let it all out. All of the pain. All of the frustration. All of the anger at the situation that I found myself in. ‘All right, let me tell you. I love that man,’ I pointed towards the back door, ‘and we can’t touch each other at all, because he could kill me.’
    Jennifer opened her mouth to say something but I cut her off. My voice went fierce. ‘It’s because he’s not a human being. He can’t touch me. He’s going to leave both Simone and me in about two years. He’ll be gone for a very long time. Maybe more than a lifetime. He’s promised to come back for me but there are no guarantees. Even if he does come back, it will be years from now.’
    I dropped my head. It felt good to be letting it out.
    ‘There is a constant stream of monsters attacking us, all the damn time. That fireball stuff? That wasn’t for fun. I use it all the time to kill the monsters that want to hurt that delightful little girl.’
    I looked at my hands, then back up to glare into her eyes. ‘The black guy, Leo? The one you don’t like the look of? He’s my best friend. The monsters got him the other day and cut his tongue in half. That’s why he doesn’t talk much. He’ll die soon anyway, you know? He’s terminally ill. He’ll leave us all alone as well.’
    My throat thickened. I didn’t want to be left alone; I wanted those wonderful men with me.
    Jennifer’s expression started to change from anger to anguish.
    ‘Jet-set lifestyle? I spend most of my time teaching, looking after Simone, and doing budgets on damn spreadsheets that I hate the sight of. And all of this, Jennifer, for the love of a man who can’t even touch me, and will leave me in a couple of years, perhaps never to return.’
    I slapped my hands on my knees and turned away. The street was deserted. I pulled myself together. I didn’t have time for this. I looked at Jennifer. I don’t know why I’m wasting my time on you, I thought. And then I felt a pang: yes, I do.
    I moved to sit next to her and put my arm around her. ‘Jen, you’re family. You’re the most important thing in the world to me. Please forgive me. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.’
    ‘Why can’t he touch you, Emma?’ she said quietly, her face expressionless.
    ‘It’s a very long story. That energy stuff I threw around? He’s drained. He’ll suck it all out of me and kill me if he touches me, because of the love between us.’
    She snorted. ‘Yeah, right. You sure that isn’t a story he’s spun?’
    ‘It’s true, we have to be very careful.’ I ran my hands through my hair. ‘Do you have any idea how lucky you are?’
    She didn’t say anything. She put it together in her head. She smiled slightly. I breathed a quiet internal sigh of relief. I’d done it.
    ‘I’ll tell you what, Jen. When his palace is rebuilt, I’ll see if we can arrange for you to see it. I haven’t even seen it myself. The monsters broke into it at the beginning of the year and destroyed most of it. Burnt to the ground. Come over to