CHAPTER THREE

As luck would have it, Ryuu had left an empty seat for her next to Darian. Keelan sat on her other side and gave her winks of encouragement.

Rheia turned to her. "Amelia, this is my mate, Colton Albright, and this is my daughter, Penny Carmichael." The tiny child waved at her, a bright smile on her face. She waved back. Rheia continued. "Elizabeth's mate is Gavriel Ambrosios, and the auburn-haired man to your right is Keelan Ashwood. Across from you are Jaxon Darrow and Noah Caraway; they are studying computer science with Meryn to better support the different units."

"Who's the sprite?" Amelia asked pointing to Meryn's shoulder.

Rheia turned to her. "You can see him?"

Everyone turned to Meryn. The tiny sprite on her shoulder waved to her and turned the pendant on his necklace.

"Hey, Felix," Colton said.

Amelia turned to Colton. "You can see him now?"

"Yes. We gave him that pendant so he could make himself visible to us, although most of the time, he likes to stay invisible. He's really bonded with Meryn, so much so, he left his colony at the fae elder's estate," he explained.

Felix waved at everyone and turned to her. "My name is Felix Skysong. Pleased to meet you." When he went to reach for the pendant again, Elizabeth held up a hand.

"Felix, actually, could you answer a question for me?"

Felix nodded shyly.

Beth smiled. "When Penny and the Carmichaels were attacked, you were able to create a shield to protect them, but when Meryn told me about her attack, she said you left to go get help. Why didn't you create a shield then?"

Felix pointed to his wrist.

"Time?" Elizabeth asked.

He nodded.

"What about time?" She asked looking confused.

Felix kept edging into Meryn's hair. He didn't look like he wanted to be the center of attention.

Amelia spoke up. "I think I get it. At home, the sprites can do their versions of spells, but since they are so small, there is a limit to what they can do. In Penny's attack, was help nearby or on the way?"

"Yes, the Gamma Unit was assigned to the house. They arrived in under a minute," Aiden explained.

"In Meryn's case, was anyone nearby that could help?" Amelia looked around the table. Everyone was shaking their heads. "There's your answer; he could have shielded Meryn for a couple minutes, but then what? He would have ended up exhausted, and the attacker would have still been there. Leaving to go get assistance was the only way he could help."

Beth smiled gently at Felix. "Thank you for answering, I was just curious since I don't know much about your people. I know you did everything you could to help. You're an amazing member of this family."

Felix turned ten shades of red before he activated his pendant and hid in Meryn's hair.

"Have you always been able to see sprites?" Rheia asked.

Amelia nodded. "When I realized my mate was over seven feet tall and blond, I put two and two together and figured out he was fae. I would visit the fae council member at Storm Keep regularly. He said my ability to see sprites made sense considering I was going to be mated to a fae." Amelia stared at the side of Darian's head. He still ignored her. She stuck out her tongue at him and Keelan laughed.

Elizabeth continued the introductions. "I am creating a census program for the council so we can better track our citizens. Rheia is a doctor and works with Aiden's brother, Adam, in what started off as the warrior clinic but has grown to support all of Lycaonia. Meryn is working on integrating updated technology throughout the city, not only to help the citizens but also to provide surveillance to help keep the city secure."

Amelia was about to reply when Ryuu walked out of the kitchen rolling a mobile taco station. Her mouth began to water as the smell of tacos and refried beans hit her nose. "Gods! That smells incredible!"

Rheia kissed Penny on the forehead. "Okay pumpkin, bedtime."

Penny hugged and kissed everyone at the table. When she got to Amelia, she mimicked what Rheia had done to her and kissed her on the forehead.

"Thank you, Penny." Amelia said giving the child a hug.

Penny gave her a thumbs up and walked out of the dining room.

Amelia turned to Rheia. "She puts herself to bed?"

Rheia nodded with pride in her eyes. "She said she had to hurry up and be a big girl so she can help me when her baby brother or sister is born. She's taking her role as big sister very seriously. Besides, she knows we give her a kiss every night when we go to bed, so she's happy."

"When does she eat?"

"Since we don't eat dinner until eight p.m. she eats earlier so it doesn't affect her bedtime. Colton and I will grab a snack and sit down with her in the kitchen while she eats her dinner. She loves getting our undivided attention. We're trying to indulge her as much as possible before the baby arrives," Rheia explained.

"You're pregnant, too! Congratulations!"

"Thank you. I have to say, it happened quicker than I thought," Rheia admitted.

"We had a lot of practice," Colton teased. Rheia turned pink as everyone laughed.

Meryn was served first and she immediately began to inhale her food. When Ryuu started to place something different on her plate, she swallowed, quickly frowning. "Ryuu, what the hell are these?" Meryn asked pointing to the newest addition as Ryuu continued to place dark green crispy leaves on her plate.