"So, ah, you've got to be 18 now right?" asked Ethan after they'd left the parking lot.
"17," said Stone as she gazed out the window at the blackest time of night.
"Of course, I heard when your mother died. I'm sorry, Love."
She wanted to rail at him, yell and ask why he didn't call or try to find her. Why didn't he ever try to find her? Her mother didn't want him to come around but she'd longed for a father and the man now sitting beside her didn't exactly seem fatherly.
Ethan reached over and patted her knee. "It'll all turn out all right, Stone," he said as sincerely as he could manage to sound. "So, ah, where'd you get the sword?" It looked familiar to him and she confirmed his suspicion when she told him it was her mothers.
"Marian taught you how to use it then, ah?" Ethan kept glancing at her sideways from his driving.
Stone wasn't exactly comfortable talking about her mother with him yet. He didn't have to know everything about the training and learning from her mother and the tutors she'd hired. Ex-watchers and martial arts experts had taught her to defend herself and to kill. Her mother's paranoia about vampires, demons, and men like Ethan had driven her to drive her daughter. Stone only replied with a yes and left it at that, but Ethan insisted on keeping at it.
"Your mother was good at that," he smirked, "among other things."
Store looked at him disgusted.
"Magic I mean. You know spell casting."
Stone was intrigued. Her mother had never let her near the stuff. "She never told me that."
"Really?" Ethan feigned surprise. Of course she hadn't. Marian would never have drawn her daughter into the world that had cost them the lives of so many of their group. "She was quite good, in fact. But the past is the past, and I wouldn't want to upset you with old tales of your mother so soon after her passing."
He glanced over at her and she looked duly disappointed, "Some other time," he promised with a charming smile. "Besides it's late and we'll be where we're going soon."
"Where are we going?" she asked.
"It's a nice place really once you see past the present condition. The previous owners roughed it up a bit I'm afraid."
"17," said Stone as she gazed out the window at the blackest time of night.
"Of course, I heard when your mother died. I'm sorry, Love."
She wanted to rail at him, yell and ask why he didn't call or try to find her. Why didn't he ever try to find her? Her mother didn't want him to come around but she'd longed for a father and the man now sitting beside her didn't exactly seem fatherly.
Ethan reached over and patted her knee. "It'll all turn out all right, Stone," he said as sincerely as he could manage to sound. "So, ah, where'd you get the sword?" It looked familiar to him and she confirmed his suspicion when she told him it was her mothers.
"Marian taught you how to use it then, ah?" Ethan kept glancing at her sideways from his driving.
Stone wasn't exactly comfortable talking about her mother with him yet. He didn't have to know everything about the training and learning from her mother and the tutors she'd hired. Ex-watchers and martial arts experts had taught her to defend herself and to kill. Her mother's paranoia about vampires, demons, and men like Ethan had driven her to drive her daughter. Stone only replied with a yes and left it at that, but Ethan insisted on keeping at it.
"Your mother was good at that," he smirked, "among other things."
Store looked at him disgusted.
"Magic I mean. You know spell casting."
Stone was intrigued. Her mother had never let her near the stuff. "She never told me that."
"Really?" Ethan feigned surprise. Of course she hadn't. Marian would never have drawn her daughter into the world that had cost them the lives of so many of their group. "She was quite good, in fact. But the past is the past, and I wouldn't want to upset you with old tales of your mother so soon after her passing."
He glanced over at her and she looked duly disappointed, "Some other time," he promised with a charming smile. "Besides it's late and we'll be where we're going soon."
"Where are we going?" she asked.
"It's a nice place really once you see past the present condition. The previous owners roughed it up a bit I'm afraid."