But not for Jonesy. He was consumed.

Determined.

And he was in good company as Alex and John were constructing matching towers. I looked at my own artistic rendering and shrugged, stabbing the goodness with a fork.

What was priceless was the Terrans had elected to accept the invitation to attend the huge Thanksgiving feast for the first time. Mrs. Terran had her lips pursed in a line that could have cut paper, watching Jonesy's disaster disappear into his mouth like a magic trick.

She then looked at Helen who looked back unblinking. As if on horrible cue, Micah let out a huge belch. It was guy worthy.

I was sorta hoping these two wouldn't talk the entire evening.

Of course, that couldn't be a possibility. Joan Terran started right in on Helen Jones. 'Cuz... why not?

"So Helen, tell me how old your new addition is?"

That must've been code for baby. I shifted my eyes in Mom's direction and she looked vaguely green.

Helen was too slow and Jonesy wasn't going to let a mouth full of food stop his conversational urges. "Five months," the mashed potatoes looking very white in his brown face. "Right, Mom?"

Helen ignored the manners and beamed at him because he actually knew how old his little sister was.

For Jonesy that was pretty impressive.

I could see that Joan was trying to restrain herself but she was compulsive and said, "Dear boy, could you not show us the bowels of your mouth and what it contains?"

John's face flushed a deep crimson as he sat opposite Jonesy, very much wishing he could have parents that would overlook small things like food in the mouth. Mom would have thought it but she wouldn't have said it.

Helen pasted a fake smile on her face that somehow went with her helmet of hair and said, "Thanks, but I think the bigger deal is Jonesy remembered his sister's age. That's not really a detail all teenage boys care about." And she was back to beaming at Jonesy.

Joan narrowed her eyes into unattractive slits and John turned more red, growing alarm taking up residence on his face. Obviously his mom was not Done with her Point. I recognized that expression. Mom and I gave each other a look and I saw she was going to try to deflect the mess when Micah chose that time to spew barf and take a baby nuclear warhead at the same time.

It was an explosion. Micah sprayed a stream, exorcist-style, behind Helen's shoulder, plastering Gramps' wall while crap shot up out of the back of her diaper, coating her pink baby outfit a dull and penetrating mustard.

Dijon. But not in a good way.

Then the smell hit us in a steamy vaporized wave. The girls stood up out of their seats, their hands covering their mouths.

Gramps started laughing and Joan turned red in the face but recovered saying, "You cannot control the children?" through clenched teeth, beyond offended. In fact, I'd say it would be a lifelong scar for old Joan.

Helen recovered, she was Jonesy's mom after all. "I think you can do a better job," she leaned across the table, dangling baby Micah across the scattered and empty plates that lay between them and continued, "by taking her while I get a change of outfit."

Jonesy stabbed his spork in the air, having never paused through the whole organic explosion, "Totally legit plan, Mom!" he sounded off.

Joan grappled and stood, backing away from the squirming baby, warding her off with a stretched out palm, the other hand covering her nose.

Helen watched her with a smirk then turned to Bill. "Honey, hold Micah while I fetch her diaper and stuff."

Bill looked so happy to have Poopy Baby, clutching her gingerly around her torso, careful not to stick a thumb in the crap.

Joan knew she had lost that round. Getting owned by a five month old. She pursed her lips again.

Mom had weaseled away like a coward and now returned with the peace offering. "Pie?" she asked the room, hoping to distract. The poop fumes mingled in a nauseating surge with the smells of pumpkin pie.

All the men, unfazed when faced with dessert, gave sounds in the affirmative and Jonesy asked, "Can I have seconds of that too?"

"Thirds, Jones," Gramps said, eying him critically. Jonesy hung his head. "Okay, Mac."

Gramps nodded and pounded Jonesy a good one and Jonesy's eyes bulged, barely hanging on to the load he had in his mouth. Gramps walked into the kitchen and I heard the tap turn on at the sink. He returned with a bucket and washrags.

Helen returned and gasped. "I'll clean that up, Mac."

Joan wrinkled her nose.

"Nah... I've cleaned up my share of puke in my time." He gave a covert glance at Joan.

I was amazed. Helen and Gramps had joined forces and were tag-teaming John's mom.

Nice.

Mom sliced the pie while Gramps cleaned up the baby puke and Jonesy plowed through the remains of his plate, his forearm circling it protectively.

Jade smiled and I noticed with some relief that she looked almost healed. She should be with the daily healing sessions she was getting from Jezebel. This would be the only day she got off. Her last session was tomorrow.

We walked over to the couch, leaving the adults to mess around with each other. Pie could wait, I wanted to hang with Jade.

Alex came over with John. Jonesy was still eating.

"I have another session tomorrow," Jade groaned and John frowned.

"You don't like them? I hear that they feel great."

"Not so much for an Empath," she said and he nodded. It would be pretty intimate to be paired with somebody even if they were an Organic.

"Don't complain, Jade. Remember how it used to be? Surgeries were the norm, infection rampant, lawsuits, common," Alex said.

She nodded. "I know, but it takes so long. I just want it to be over. Every time she does another healing, I get reminded about... everything." She suddenly looked at Alex. "How come you're not with your grandparents?"

"They're out of town, John's parents are in charge."

We looked over at the Geritol pair. Brother.

Alex saw our expressions. "I can handle them. They're the same age as my grandparents." He shrugged then looked at me.

"How come your grandpa is so cool?"

I didn't have a clue.

We sat their contemplating Gramps' impossible adult category.

Then Jade said, "I guess I could go with you to judo, then you could drop me off at the healing clinic?" She flicked her black hair behind her shoulder and I stuffed an insane urge to bend down and wallow in it.

She smiled at my dazed pause and waited.

I nodded then remembered my friends, we'd want to do something later. I lifted a chin to Terran. "Come with us and wait out the class and we'll go to the dump or something after."

Alex nodded. "Yeah, my grandparents didn't make me go to my lame cousins house, it's better here." He rolled his eyes and Jonesy walked up.

"The ones that live on a farm?" Jonesy asked.

Alex nodded. "Yeah."

Jonesy waggled his eyebrows.

Alex scowled and Jonesy said, "See. Now that's what I'm talking about. That's where Alex gets all his first hand know-how about the animals."

We all looked at Alex hoping he'd elaborate.

He turned red instead.

Jonesy began nodding his head, a big grin slapped on his face. "Now that's what I'm talking about. Bestiality my ass."

Jade shook her head with a laugh. "No! He doesn't dig ducks and stuff, he likes Randi."

The blush went from pinkish to a deep red.

Gotcha.

Jonesy looked on with interest. "That little tiny girl?"

Alex glared at him.

"That chick you just about squished when you were klutzing around? Nice." Jonesy smiled. He loved making Alex froth at the mouth.

Actually, that applied to everyone. Universal Jonesy protocol.

Alex clenched his hands, embarrassed about his gracelessness in the Presence of Hotness.

Alex forced his face into smoothness then said, "Do you think your sister's nasty ass has been contained so we can go have pie?"

Jonesy shifted his weight. "Probably. She can't help it dude. She's like totally ignorant of the bowel process."

"Ignorant but efficient," I corrected.

"Yes," John agreed, giving Mrs. Terran a covert eye shift.

Jade laughed again. "You guys and babies! God, get over it. Someday all you guys are going to have to suck up diaper duty."

I saw matching looks of horror on John and Alex's face. Jonesy was grinning big now. "Yeah. I'm gonna pull up a chair and watch you guys do the fanny fat finger on a diaper change. Front seats for that one baby!" He fist-pumped and Helen looked over at him. "Jonesy, get over here and hold your sister, she's fussy."

Alex smiled. Jonesy scowled and ran his ass over there to soothe a now-clean Micah.

As we followed him over to the table, I could hear the dishes clanking around in Gramps' sink basin and the low voice of he and Mrs. Terran talking. Hand washing the china Gramps insisted on using every year.

It made me nervous.

We sat down and porked through the pies. When we were done, there were eight empty dishes, a mix of anal adults with a few loose cannons ready to go off.

Typical holiday gathering.

CHAPTER 24

I pulled up to Sophie's house, the neighborhood like a ghost town. The day after Thanksgiving was either 1) an excuse to do nothing and recover from the trough gorging of the night before or 2) get trampled to death shopping at some horrible store for Black Friday. Or you could be like me, I recovered after my swine behavior and was now going to judo practice to work out my aggression.

Which I'd noticed was pretty profound lately. Gee, I wonder why.

I saw the front door open and Sophie stood in the sliver of interior that it revealed, her pajama bottoms pink sparkly unicorns.

Huh.

Her mom appeared behind her and I noticed that her skin was almost black compared with Sophie. Her mom's eyes met mine and I gave a small flick of my fingers in greeting. She turned to Sophie and I could tell they were having Words. I knew her mom was strict, that's why I wasn't getting why Buddy was such a great guy in her eyes. Didn't she know he hung out with Carson's crowd? That should send her adult radar into a tailspin of worry. It'd do it to my parents. Of course, it didn't take too much to get Mom spun up.

Jade slipped out from between them as their arms were flailing about. Sophie's mom called out and Jade raised her hand in goodbye, skipping down the stairs and to my car. I watched as she moved toward my car, looking completely well. Healthy. I got out of the car and ran to the other side, opening the door for her.

She looked up at me and put her small hand on my chest for balance and kissed me. It was brief 'cuz of the audience, I got that. I wrapped my arm gently around her waist, pulling her in. "That okay?"

She nodded. "I feel great again."

"No dreams?"

She shook her head. "No...but... "

"What?"

"I'll need a little extra sleep. Jezebel said that helps the healing sessions. That I will want a little extra sleep."

"So what you're really saying, is you want to take a nap during judo? You're not going to see me own my moves?"

She laughed, scooting in the car. "No, I think I saw plenty of your moves the other day with Buddy!"

Yeah, there had been that. I smiled at her and closed the door. I whistled to interrupt Sophie arguing with her mom.

"We meeting you after?" I asked loudly.

She crossed her arms and glared at her mom. "We'll see, I have a big buttload of chores to do before I can go."

Okkkkaayy.

"K, about an hour or so."

She nodded, stalking into the house. Her mom rolled her eyes, the whites showing like twin orbs in her black face.

The door slammed and I gave a chuckle. I was so glad I didn't have two females in the house. Like a sister.

With a little shudder I hucked myself into the Camaro and pulsed on the engine to start, giving a sliding glance at Jade. Her neon green zip up framed eyes that no longer held bruises marring their beauty. She looked like herself again, abuse-free.

I took a deep breath, trying to shake the vague unease I felt. It was just residual. I just wasn't over the crap with LeClerc.

We drove to judo, my mind brushing superficially along the edges of recent events. My unease grew instead of lessening.

"What's wrong?" Jade asked, as we turned onto the road judo was on. It used to be a ballet place. An image of pink tutus came to mind and I laughed.

Her brow arched.

"Nothing. I'm just thinking." Not going to tell my Empath girlfriend I had a creepy vibe. Not happening.

"Share it," Jade said, not letting go of wanting to know my amusement.

"My dojo used to be a ballet place."