Eve was the first to notice Jenkins' wide eyes, red face and dangerous scowl.

"Whoa, Jenkins – who put salt in your tea?"

Jenkins slammed the newspaper down on the large table, around which everyone was standing. It was already folded in such a way to reveal the article that he'd stumbled across barely two hours ago. He'd been enjoying his tea and perusing the paper when he came across it.

"Why don't you ask Miss Cillian?" Jenkins spat as all eyes focused on Cassandra. "More specifically, why don't you ask her how she helped her cousin?"

Flynn glanced at the others uneasily. "Um…I'm not sure that it's our – "

"Ask her!" Jenkins thundered.

Looking at Jenkins only a moment longer, Flynn hesitantly turned towards Cassandra. "Um…okay…how did you help your cousin?"

The young lady was fidgeting and playing with her hair where she stood; her eyes were full of guilt.

"I thought of everything to help her," Cassandra explained quietly. "I can't tell you how dire her situation was. Credit cards were maxed, water and power were days away from being shut off, she'd already sold her car and was taking the bus, and she was months behind on the mortgage. Not to mention that she didn't have medical insurance anymore, and one of her boys has Type 2 Diabetes and has to have insulin. I couldn't very well let the family continue to suffer, could I?"

"So, what did you do?" Eve asked.

Cassandra grimaced as she looked at everyone. "I used my gift."

"To do…" Jacob prompted.

Cassandra bit her lip before speaking. "To help her win the lottery."

Jaws dropped and eyes enlarged at her admission.

"You did what?" Jacob exclaimed, grabbing the newspaper then to read the article for himself.

"I figured out the highest probabilities of what numbers would win, and then I sort of put them in her head to play."

Flynn crossed his arms. "And I'm guessing that she – "

"Won the damn lottery!" Jenkins bellowed, lifting his hands in the air in exasperation before turning away from the group. His heart rate was dangerously high and uneven, and while he was used to having thoughts vitriolic in nature, he was not accustomed to having them towards Cassandra. Nauseousness didn't even begin to describe how he felt, and he hated it.

"I can't believe you did this," Jacob grumbled, handing the paper to Eve for her to read. "How many times have we talked about not using magic, Cassandra?"

"What was I supposed to do?" Cassandra shrieked, her eyes filling with tears. "Let them get kicked out of their home? Allow her son to die?"

Jacob opened his mouth to answer, but Jenkins spoke first.

"You cheated the entire system!" he yelled, spinning around to face Cassandra. "That's not the way to help!"

"I was desperate, and they were out of time!"

"Okay, guys, hang on here. Didn't she qualify for some sort government assistance?" Eve asked, handing the paper to Flynn. "Sounds like she should have qualified for whatever was available."

"She did qualify for a couple things, but it wasn't enough," Cassandra answered, swiping her index fingers under her eyes to wipe away tears. "Some of the application processes are not quick, either. When I worked as a janitor, I applied for some financial help, and there were a lot of hoops to jump through. It isn't always timely, so if you have an immediate need, you're basically screwed."

"The processes exist for a reason," Jenkins barked. "You can't just disregard them. You do realize that she'll have to pay taxes on that money, yes? She'll also probably be hounded by strangers trying to swindle her out of some of it. In fact, people who win lotteries often end up wishing that they'd never won because of all of the hassles they go through."

Cassandra's hands landed on her hips as she narrowed her eyes at the caretaker. "Did you even hear what I said about her son? He would die without the insulin! She'd tried to apply for medical help, but the paperwork wasn't going through quick enough. She had to make two trips to the hospital with him as it was. Do you have any idea how expensive all of that is? No, you don't because you hide in here away from the world and have no clue what people have to go through to survive!"

"I think out of the two of us, I'm the one who knows exactly what people go through because I've watched them for centuries!"

"Watched them! Not lived with them!"

"Maybe we should talk about this later when – " Eve tried.

"I've seen more life than you could ever dream of, young lady," Jenkins chided, his teeth clenched. "I just can't believe that you would do something so…so underhanded like using magic for deceit! I could never be with a woman who would do such a selfish thing!"

"Um…actually you – "

"Eve, no," Flynn warned, clamping his hand over his fiancée's mouth and furiously shaking his head as he pulled her out of the annex. Ezekiel and Jacob had already left unnoticed.

Cassandra's face was flushed, and her eyes were brimming with tears again. "My cousin is the only one in my family, including my parents, who accepted me for exactly who I was," she cried angrily. "But what would you know about that? You've always been the great and mighty Galahad, perfect in every way. You're like – " She shook her head trying to find the right words. "You're like a male Mary Poppins!"

Jenkins' eyes narrowed as he glared at Cassandra. "A male Mary – " he began, indignant at what he was hearing. "I am not nor have I ever been perfect. I have flaws just like everyone else."

"And yet you can't accept mine," Cassandra fumed, tears cascading down her cheeks. "My flaws of being mortal and trying to use my gift to help my family!"

"I've done nothing but accept you!"

"You kept our bags packed the first month that we were here!"

"That was three years ago!"

"And just for the record, my gift is not a magic artifact," Cassandra continued, pointing to her chest for emphasis. "There are lots of people in this world who have unexplainable gifts and use them for good. That's all I did!"

"You – " Jenkins began but stopped, his lips pressed into a thin line. His head felt like it was about to explode, and he needed to get away from Cassandra immediately. He hadn't been this angry in years, and he knew that he needed to end their heated argument before he said something that he may – or may not – regret. "This conversation is over," he hissed, turning away and storming towards his lab, his fists clenched so tightly that they hurt.

"Fine! And that's not all that's over!" Cassandra shrieked as she ran out of the annex.

"Fine!"

Jenkins slammed the door behind him when he burst into his private rooms, having used his secret entrance through the lab. His heart was still racing, and he was physically trembling from anger. The rage inside him wanted him to pick up everything breakable and smash it into bits, but the knight inside him wouldn't allow it.

Sitting down on the couch, Jenkins rested his elbows on his thighs and covered his face, trying to calm himself with deep breaths. He just couldn't believe what Cassandra had done. He tried to make sense out of what she'd said in explanation, but he couldn't. Regardless of how she rationalized it, having her cousin win the lottery in order to fix her financial issues was beyond wrong. He was certain that there were better options.

Rubbing his face, Jenkins stood to pour himself some scotch. He rarely drank it, but he needed to calm down; the deep breaths weren't working. In addition to being upset, he was also embarrassed at his argument with Cassandra being public; he hadn't intended for it to be. He was usually so adept at keeping himself in check. But he'd completely lost it when he saw her.

Jenkins decided to take a long, hot shower. He didn't know what else to do.

"Has anyone checked on Cassandra?" Eve asked at dinner after everyone had started eating.

"I haven't seen her all day," Jacob answered. "Figured she was still mad and needed some time to herself."

Eve's focus turned towards the caretaker. "Have you talked to her, Jenkins?"

Dropping his gaze to his plate full of food that he wasn't very hungry for, Jenkins shook his head. The truth was he'd stayed out of sight most of the day, as well, thinking a little distance might be the best option for both of them.

"Come on. Let's go check on her," Flynn suggested to Eve, both of them leaving the kitchen.

Jenkins pushed the broccoli around on his plate. The night before, after his shower, he'd had a bit more scotch. It had taken hours for his anger to dissipate, and he wasn't sure how he felt now. Cassandra's words repeated over and over in his head. He was hurt – he knew that. And disappointed. He was reminded of why he'd always preferred to remain in the annex away from the public. His pride was wounded, as well. It had been damn hard to face everyone earlier in the day, and he was still having a hard time looking anyone in the eye.

Flynn and Eve ran back into the kitchen a couple minutes later. "She's gone!" she exclaimed, tears filling her eyes. "She took all of her things!"

"She left this, though," Flynn added, holding up a note.

Jenkins was grateful that he hadn't eaten much yet because he was certain that the knot that had just formed in his stomach would have caused him to lose all of it, anyway. She couldn't be gone.

"What does it say?" Jacob asked, exchanging a worried glance with Ezekiel.

"To those who might still care," Flynn read. "Apparently, I'm unworthy to be a Librarian, so I'm resigning. I will miss you all. Being a Librarian made me happier than anything else ever has. I thought I'd finally found a place that accepted me for who I was. However, I will not tolerate being berated for using my gift for something good."

Jenkins felt his face flush in shame. How could Cassandra just leave everything? The Library? Her friends? Him? He knew their argument had been intense, but even he was regretting some of his reactions. He'd been hoping they could talk more once they'd both had some time apart.

"All of her things are gone?" Ezekiel asked sadly.

"Everything," Eve answered, wiping tears. "Her photos, her clothes…everything."

A perilous combination of fear, anger and panic began bubbling up inside the caretaker again. The thought of Cassandra being gone was simply not something that he could accept. Slamming his fists down on the table, Jenkins stood and rushed out of the kitchen.

Two days later, there was a knock on Jenkins' door. After discovering Cassandra's departure, he'd sequestered himself inside his personal rooms and hadn't left since. He'd cried…he'd ranted….he'd thought….he'd driven himself crazy trying to figure out what he should do. On a whim, he'd checked her Instagram account and had been heartbroken when he saw that she'd already changed her name; Gifted Girl it had read.

With a heavy sigh, Jenkins stood and walked to the door to open it. "Yes, Colonel?"

"I just came from talking with Cassandra. Can I come in?"

"You spoke to her?" Jenkins asked, his eyes full of hope as Eve entered. "Yes, sit down, please. Where did she go?"

"She's with Estrella," the Guardian began as they sat down on Jenkins' couch. "Apparently, she stayed up all night packing her things, stowed most of them in a nearby storage unit and was on the first flight out that she could get. I had to convince Estrella to let me talk to her. She's really upset with us."

Jenkins was nodding, forcing away emotion that wanted to surface. "I suppose she is," he agreed. "And rightfully so. We – well, I – was especially cruel. Do I want to know what she said? Has she left us for good?"

Eve breathed deeply and then shrugged. "Honestly, Jenkins, I don't know," she told him. "She feels like we all attacked her, and I guess we did in a way. I mean, was she totally in the wrong for what she did? What would any of us have done if it had been our family?"

"I've asked myself the same questions a hundred times," Jenkins admitted. "I still believe that it was not the best choice, but I can't say that I don't understand to a certain point." He paused and shook his head. "She must hate me."

"You know Cassandra isn't capable of hating you," Eve reminded him gently. "She is extremely hurt, though, by all of us. I apologized profusely and then sent the guys over to talk to her when I got back."

"You want me to talk to her when they return."

"Don't you want to?"

Jenkins hung his head. He wasn't sure if it would make a difference; he knew how headstrong Cassandra was. He supposed that he needed to try, though. He'd said things that he shouldn't have said, and he knew he should apologize for them.

"Yes, I want to. Please let me know when they return."

As Jenkins stood in front of the magic door, his stomach was churning with nervousness. He held a bouquet of Edelweiss in one hand, and in the other was a bag of Cassandra's favorite chocolates from a nearby store in Portland that she frequented. He wasn't sure that the gifts would make a difference, but he didn't think it would be appropriate to arrive empty handed.

Someone clearing their throat interrupted the caretaker's thoughts.

"Um…Jenkins?" Flynn asked. "The door?"

With a grimace, Jenkins nodded, not realizing that the Librarian had already dialed up the door to the spa. "Right…my apologies…well…wish me luck."

"She seemed to accept all of our apologies," Flynn shared. "I think she's ready to come home. Bring her back, would you?"

Jenkins met Flynn's steady gaze. "I sure will try, Mr. Carsen."

After passing through the magical threshold, Jenkins quickly looked around. He wasn't completely sure what part of the spa he was in, but he guessed by the couches and tables around that it was probably where guests checked in.

"I've been expecting you."

Jenkins immediately turned towards the soft voice behind him. "Estrella," he began, a little relieved to see her first. "May I please see Cassandra?"

Estrella was dressed in tennis shoes, loose-fitting khakis and a sleeveless cotton blouse. Guessing from the gloves that she wore and the fact that her hair was up, Jenkins assumed that she'd been out in the garden. He watched as she visually scrutinized him, her gaze lingering on the flowers and candy in his hands.

"I'm going to tell you the same things that I told the others," Estrella began, crossing her arms. "All of you hurt her. I held her for hours as she cried. She was devastated. If I hadn't already witnessed your concern for her when she collapsed in front of me, I probably would have refused to let any of you see her."

"We didn't mean to – "

"I don't require amends from you," Estrella snipped, her accent strong. "She does."

Jenkins swallowed his defensive pride that wanted to lash out. Remembering the kiss, he understood that Estrella felt something special for Cassandra, so he reminded himself that the two of them were on the same side. "Point taken," he acquiesced with a nod. "May I see her?"

"You may," Estrella answered as she stepped closer to Jenkins. "But I have one last thing to say to you specifically. She loves you, and I know you love her, but I care a great deal for her, as well. In fact, before her surgery I offered to turn her so that she could stay here with me forever. I have never rescinded that offer. It stands to this day and always will."

Jenkins hoped that his face didn't give away his surprise. He knew that Estrella was a vampire, of course, but he did not know that she'd actually offered to turn Cassandra to save her. "I understand," he replied, uncertain as to what a proper response to her statement was.

Estrella eyed the caretaker a few moments longer before instructing, "Follow me."

Jenkins followed Estrella in silence as she led him down a long hall and then around the corner to another hallway. She stopped at a door and opened it for him to enter.

"I'll get Cassandra. You can talk in here."

Jenkins started to tell her 'thank you', but Estrella disappeared in a flash, using her vampire speed to depart. He looked around the small room. It appeared to be an office of some kind with a desk and two chairs near the window and a small couch against the far side wall. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly in a poor attempt to calm his nerves. He was truly terrified that he'd caused irreparable damage to their friendship – not to mention their relationship – and even though he'd tried rehearsing what he wanted to say, nothing seemed good enough.

Hearing two sets of footsteps, Jenkins turned around to face the door as Estrella stepped in with Cassandra following. The Librarian did not look at him, and he thought for a moment that Estrella was going to stay. As Cassandra headed towards the window, the lady vampire left, closing the door behind her.

"Cassandra, I – "

"Stop," Cassandra told him with a shake of her head as she looked out the window, keeping her back to him. "I have some things to say, and I want to say them first."

Jenkins' heart hit the bottom of his stomach, or at least it felt like it. She was done – he knew it.

"You hurt me," Cassandra began, her voice soft. "Everyone hurt me, but your words and behavior hurt me the most. I didn't ask for this gift, and I certainly didn't ask for it to intensify after my surgery. But I have it, and it's mine to use as I see fit. It is not a Library artifact to be put under glass and hidden away. I'd hoped that my friends knew me well enough by now to know that I wouldn't use it to do something truly unscrupulous. I'd hoped that my friends trusted me." She paused to take a few deep breaths. "I don't have a close knit family. You know how my parents are. You know how I hardly ever talk to them because of how they treated me. My aunt and uncle – Emily's parents – they passed years ago. It's a long story, but my parents don't talk to Emily, so they couldn't help her, either. Just me. And Emily and I have always been close. There was no way that I wasn't going to help her. And if helping the one family member that has always been there for me means that I can't be a Librarian anymore, then that's what it means."

Jenkins started to speak, but when Cassandra turned around to finally face him, he refrained.

"I will not apologize for what I did," she continued, her voice steady and gaze hard. "Perhaps I should have asked for help or other suggestions or whatever, but I didn't think that it was a situation that warranted it. I was quite capable of helping my cousin by myself. I will not live in fear of getting berated every single time I decide to use my gift."

When Cassandra quieted, Jenkins waited for a few seconds to see if she would continue, but she didn't. "Do you wish to say more?" he checked.

"No. That was it."

Glancing around, Jenkins asked, "Could we sit on the couch?"

"Of course."

Jenkins had to admit that he was disappointed when Cassandra waited for him to sit and then made sure she was at least a foot away. Remembering that he still had the flowers and candy in his hands, he held them out for her. "Um…I brought these for you," he said as she took them from him, immediately smelling the flowers.

"Thank you."

Jenkins wasn't sure that he'd ever felt more awkward in his life. In fact, dancing naked on stage hadn't felt as awkward as this moment did. "Cassandra, I don't know how to express the depth of my shame for how I reacted," he began, his hands in his lap. They both sat stiffly on the edge of the couch, but he made sure to keep eye contact with her. "I still feel like it wasn't the best option, however, it was completely wrong of me to act the way that I did. And you are correct – your gift is not an artifact, and it is your business what you do with it. I know it doesn't seem like it at the moment, but I assure you that we do trust you, Cassandra. You have to know that."

Jenkins watched as Cassandra's gaze fell to her lap. "We miss you so much," he continued, wishing he could hold her hand but not daring to try. "I said some things in the heat of the moment that I didn't mean, and I was hoping that once we cooled off some, we could talk again. I sincerely apologize for everything. The last thing that we want – the last thing that I want – is for you to leave. Cassandra – " When his voice cracked due to his rising emotion, he cleared his throat and tried again. "Cassandra, loving you has brought out a side of me that I thought I'd lost forever. I thought I would never love again, but I am. I thought I'd never enjoy sharing my time with another, but I do. I thought being close to another – even intimately – was impossible, but it isn't. And you are why. Only you. Every single day when I wake up, you are my first thought. I can't wait to see you…to see which cute outfit you'll be wearing…to see if the paint on your fingernails will match or not…to talk with you…laugh with you…to see the happiness that lights up your eyes." He leaned forward, his expression pleading. "Please come home. Please."

Cassandra's eyes were full of tears, and her bottom lip was trembling. With one blink, the tears spilled down her cheeks. She looked down at the flowers and candy when she spoke.

"Jenkins…I…I need a couple days to think about everything," she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. "I have to go."

Jenkins stood as Cassandra rushed from the room, but he didn't go after her as badly as he wanted to. They'd all made their apologies. All they could was wait. And hope.

Jenkins was in his lab, but his heart was heavy. It had been a couple days since he'd spoken with Cassandra, and he'd hoped that she would already be back at the Library by now, but she wasn't. He still hoped that she'd return, but a small voice in the back of his mind said that she wouldn't. They'd all gone too far – reacted too harshly to what she'd done – and he supposed he couldn't blame her for staying away. He couldn't help but feel cheated, though. Just when he'd decided to open his heart and love again, he had to go and screw it up. Maybe love just wasn't in the cards for him.

Three days later, Jenkins was sitting on his couch in his personal rooms. He hadn't left them for the past forty-eight hours. Usually, he could push away whatever was bothering him and focus on his latest project, but he couldn't push this away. He hadn't showered since yesterday, and he was still in his robe. It was nearly dinner time, but he wasn't hungry. The only food that he'd eaten all day was a few tea biscuits. He just felt empty, and he didn't like it. Prior to Cassandra, 'empty' had been his norm. He'd enjoyed it…looked forward to it even. Now he hated it.

A knock on the door interrupted Jenkins' thoughts. He sighed and shook his head. It was Eve trying to get him to join her and the others for dinner as she'd done the last couple days. He appreciated her efforts, but he wasn't in the mood.

"Colonel Baird, I thank you for checking on me, but I'm not hungry," he called out, not even bothering to get up and open the door.

When Jenkins heard the rattle of the doorknob, his ire grew exponentially. "I told you I didn't want any dinner," he growled as he stood, ready to give a persistent Guardian a few more choice words.

The door opened, but it was not Eve standing there. "Cassandra!" Jenkins exclaimed. "I didn't…I thought…Colonel Baird has been on me about eating and – "

"I – um – brought you some of those wasabi chips from that little shop in York," Cassandra said with a timid smile.

"You went to York? To get me chips?"

With a shrug, Cassandra answered, "Well, they're your favorite. So yes."

Jenkins took the bags from her and put them on his coffee table. "It's good to see you," he said, uncertain what Cassandra's presence meant and afraid to assume too much. "I…uh…hope you've been well."

A myriad of emotions flashed across Cassandra's face as she struggled for what she wanted to say. She bit her lip briefly while wringing her hands together before she exclaimed, "Oh Jenkins…I missed you so much!"

The caretaker wasn't prepared for Cassandra to jump into his arms, but he nearly wept for joy when she did. "My love," he breathed, hugging her tight and then picking her up. "I missed you every second that you were gone. I was so afraid that you weren't going to come back."

"For a while, I thought I wasn't," Cassandra admitted, her voice muffled from where it was buried against his neck. "I was so hurt. But then I realized that I've overreacted and hurt some of you all, too, and…well… everyone said such nice things to me. I couldn't leave my home. We're a family, and sometimes families fight, right?"

"Yes, sometimes they do," Jenkins agreed, setting Cassandra down and cupping her face in his hands.

"Do you still love me?" Cassandra asked, her voice shaky as she looked up at him. "I mean, you said you could never – "

"I didn't mean a word of that," Jenkins assured her, rubbing his thumbs along her cheeks. "I spoke in anger. Of course I still love you. I'd understand if you didn't love – "

"I love you, too," Cassandra squeaked with a smile. "I never stopped. I probably should have come to you for help or something. I just thought – "

Jenkins quieted Cassandra with a quick kiss. "It's over. Let's just promise to try to do better next time, all right? I'm not used to discussing things with others, either, but I can try."

"Me too," Cassandra said with a nod.

"What about your things?"

"I'll go get them and start moving them back tomorrow," Cassandra answered.

"We could go now," Jenkins suggested. He didn't want to waste any time getting Cassandra settled back in.

"Right now?"

"Right now."

Cassandra thought for a moment as she wiped tears from under her eyes. "Can we do something else instead?"

"Anything. What?"

"Can we visit the fire gods?"

Jenkins grinned. "We can definitely visit the fire gods. Let me take a quick shower and change first."

Jenkins and Cassandra snuggled down into the plush cushions in the middle of the fire room with their arms wrapped around each other and their legs stretched out on the ottoman. They didn't need to talk…they just needed to hold each other.

They were asleep in minutes.

Someone moving woke Jenkins. He was momentarily confused, but when he opened his eyes, memories of the night before came rushing back.

Cassandra was home.

They both stretched and slowly sat up.

"What time is it?" she asked, covering her mouth when she yawned.

Jenkins glanced at his watch. "Little after nine," he answered, gently touching her cheek with his fingertips. "Did you tell the others that you were here?"

"No, I wanted to see you first."

"They'll be very happy to hear that you're staying."

"Let's go tell them."

"Anything you wish, milady."

After stopping by both of their rooms to freshen up, Jenkins and Cassandra walked into the kitchen hand in hand. Everyone stopped what they were doing to stare at them.

The guys began to ask questions, but Eve held up her hand to silence them.

"All is well?" she asked simply.

When Cassandra looked up at Jenkins and squeezed his hand, he looked at the group and smiled.

"All is well," he confirmed proudly, feeling better than he'd felt in a week.

"So – " Jacob began, but Eve cut him off.

"Then that's all we need to know," she told them. "I just made fresh coffee. Who wants some?"

Hope everyone enjoys this chapter. Please understand if there is a delay before the next one gets posted. I lost my father a week ago, so things will be hectic for a while.