CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Mama just killed a man,

Put a gun against his head, pulled my trigger, now he's dead

Mama, life had just begun,

But now I've gone and thrown it all away

Mama, ooh, Didn't mean to make you cry,

If I'm not back again this time tomorrow,

Carry on, carry on as if nothing really matters

Too late, my time has come,

Sends shivers down my spine, body's aching all the time

Goodbye, ev'rybody, I've got to go,

Gotta leave you all behind and face the truth

Mama, ooh, I don't want to die,

I sometimes wish I'd never been born at all

Bohemian Rhapsody – Queen

"Are you ready, Angel?" Wesley asked, resting back against his couch pillows, exhaustion radiating from him like light.

"No," Angel replied. How could he be ready? He was giving his son away. Yes, he was turning him over to trained mental health professionals and an old friend had promised to go with them to help as much as he could. But that didn't change the fact that he didn't know when he would see his son again. Would he be able to look at Connor without seeing his dead friends in his mind's eyes?

This was so hard. Harder even than what he had endured in the last few days and Angel wouldn't have thought that possible. After he forced the cops to shoot him the real ordeal began. It lasted for hours while the uniformed police managed to locate some detectives. They pulled apart the hotel searching for clues. They found Wesley's phone number and summoned him to identify the bodies. It was torture trying to ignore Wesley's pain as he had to see what was left of his friends once more. Wes disavowed any knowledge of who the man the police had killed was. He even went so far as to suggest that maybe Angel was one of those people who had grotesque cosmetic surgeries.

Finally, the detectives released Angel to the morgue as a John Doe. Angel had judged by the sheer number of corpses that he would go straight to a pauper's grave sans autopsy. He had dug out of a grave once before. He could do it again. And if they did slate him for an autopsy, he'd just disappear. They probably wouldn't even miss his body. All he had to do was pretend to be dead until he could escape and pray that Connor didn't come out of it and go after his remaining family.

It hadn't worked out quite as he'd expected. When all was said and done, Angel was forced to escape the morgue before the medical examiner took him apart. At least Connor hadn't gone after Wesley or Faith. His poor child was still catatonic.

Angel glanced at Wesley. "I'm not ready."

"This is the right thing to do, Angel," Wesley said then jumped when someone knocked on his apartment door. Angel had heard the approaching footsteps.

Wesley let Giles into the apartment. How old the Watcher looked struck Angel. The lines in his face seemed to cut through to the bone and silver dominated his hair. His blue eyes screamed with exhaustion from behind his glasses. He moved slower than Angel could ever remember him doing.

"Hello, Giles, thanks for coming," Angel said. "Are you certain you shouldn't stay in Sunnydale instead of going with Connor to help me?" He paused for a moment. "Can I get you anything?"

Giles shook his head. "Thank you, no. And things are all right in Sunnydale, thanks to the help you gave us with that demon blade. Buffy can handle herself without me, Angel. It's the Council that need my attention now. I've already sent Kennedy to London just to be sure she got on the plane. She was hassling everyone about staying with Willow. It's just not possible. The other two Potentials will join her soon."

"And Buffy is okay with this?" Angel glanced at Giles, surprised.

Giles sagged, looking almost basset hound like. "She'd rather I stay, of course but the truth is, Angel, I'm getting too old for fieldwork. I'm becoming a liability." Giles paused, the air rushing out of his nostrils. He looked suddenly older. "I can do more good helping rebuild the Council and training the next generation." Giles gestured towards Wes. "Wesley, they're talking about inviting you back. You're probably of a mind to tell them to go to hell but I thought you should know."

Wesley's eyes opened wide. "Thank you."

"But you'll help with my son, too, if your time isn't completely taken up by the Council?" Angel heard the worry in his voice. Had he misunderstood why Giles was going with them today?

Giles' pursed his lips, obviously instantly gone somewhere in deep thought then asked, "Do you honestly want me to?"

"Giles, I couldn't imagine a better person. You weren't just a father to Buffy. All of them saw you like that and that speaks volumes," Angel said without hesitation.

Giles smiled, pulling off his glass as a hint of a blush crept up his cheeks. "Thank you. When you told us that you even have a son…stunned isn't the word for it."

"I know." Angel rolled his lip between his teeth. Wesley had taken a call from Giles to tell them the First had been vanquished and that Buffy and her friends were all safe only hours after they had found their friends dead. Yesterday, Angel had called Sunnydale to talk to Buffy and the others himself, to tell them that Cordelia was dead and lie to them about how it had happened. He had asked for Buffy and Giles to stay on the line without the others listening in and he told them both about having a son. He could hear the tears in Buffy's voice; a sense of betrayal that he hadn't told them earlier. He couldn't blame her. She made a lame excuse and left him talking to Giles. He told Giles that he needed help, told him about Connor's mental state but not how the boy had become catatonic. He told Giles there was more but he couldn't tell him over the phone. Giles told him that he didn't know what he could do to help.

Twelve hours later, Giles had called back having spoken to Wesley and Angel presumed Dr. Savage since Giles knew more than Angel had told him. He agreed to come to L.A. to meet with them and said he planned to go with Connor and watch out for him.

"May I see him?" Giles asked.

"Of course. Faith and Wesley have been watching him here. Faith's gone out for the day. Connor follows her around like a puppy. We thought it might be easier on him if she weren't here since I'm not sure he'd understand why she can't go with him. I don't want to confuse him," Angel said, heading for the bedroom.

"Hold on, Angel, they're arriving," Giles said.

Angel felt a hint of something like electricity lapping over his skin. Tiny sparkles danced in the center of the room like living opals. They expanded and burst into prismatic light. Out of it stepped two people. Both were clad in dark brown leather jackets and non-descript blue jeans and dark shirts. Both were tall. The buxom brunette had her thick wavy hair pulled back and she hadn't really changed much in the few years that had passed since Angel had last seen Dr. Saeth Maddoc. The man with her, whom Angel assumed to be Dr. Savage, had warm blue eyes that invited people to truest him instantly. Angel hoped they'd work on Connor.

Saeth shook her head, looking exhausted. Savage put a hand on her shoulder to steady her. "That never gets any easier," she muttered, managing a smile for Angel. "Hello, Angel. Sorry to see you again under these conditions."

"I'm glad you're willing to help, Saeth," Angel said. She looked perplexed for a moment and he remember she went by the nickname Mad Dog but right now he wasn't in the mood to hear the word 'mad.'

She went over to Wesley and Giles, kissing both men gently. "Nice to see you two again. My house is ready for your stay, Ripper and we've got a sturdy room ready for the boy."

"Then Wesley told you what Connor is and what he can do," Angel said. He had wanted that to be secret but he knew that Giles, Savage and Saeth would need to know in case anything went wrong.

"Yes, he did. Angel, I'm sure you've guessed this is my partner, Dr. Stiabhan Savage," Saeth said, patting the thin man's shoulder.

"Thank you, Doctor, for agreeing to do this," Angel said.


Savage smiled and held out his hand. Angel shook it. "I'm sorry this happened to your son, Angel. And I'm glad to help. This will be an interesting challenge if you'll forgive me for saying so."

Angel could hear his homeland in Savage's lilt. He knew it was irrational but he felt somehow better knowing that Savage was an Irishman. "That's all right, Dr. Savage. I understand how you might see it that way. Please, have a seat. I was just about to call Connor out here."

"Please do," Savage said, sitting on Wesley's couch.

"Can I get you two anything first?" Wesley asked. "I know teleportation spells drain you, Saeth."

"Orange juice if you have it or just water if you don't," she replied, collapsing in a chair.

"Of course."

Angel waited for Wesley to get it for her and everyone settled before going to the next room. "Connor, son, come with me." After a few moments when Connor didn't appear, he waved for him to follow. "Come on."

They watched as a scrawny kid wandered out of the room waving back. Angel gave them an odd look. "Sorry, he's been doing that, mimicking us ever since Wesley brought him here." Angel looped an arm around Connor, pulling him closer. Connor's eyes canted up at his father as he staggered a bit against him. Angel saw a small flash of blue out of the corner of his eye and he glanced at Saeth. He remembered her wardings, anything demonic nearing her set off the spell. That was the blue flash. "So…it's true. Connor isn't human." He could hear his own heart breaking with those words.

"Angel, we knew he had to have…" Wesley trailed off as Angel's eyes fixed on him.

"Wesley said he was the son of two vampires. I wouldn't have expected him to be entirely human," Saeth said, her eyes not leaving Connor.

"And if he was, he wouldn't have set off your alarms," Angel said, feeling even more defeated.

"No. There's a touch of demon in him," she said, glancing over at Angel.

Angel sagged a bit. "Like Wesley said, we knew it had to be true even if we didn't want to talk about it. Connor hates demons. You might not want to mention this to him when he's able to understand clearly."

"We'll never mention it again unless we have to," Savage said, matter-of-factly.

"And what about the spell?" Angel gestured at it and Connor did likewise. 

"I'll attune it to his harmonics and it won't go off again," Saeth assured him.

Giles got up, studying the boy. "It's amazing. I didn't actually believe it completely, that you could have a son. He looks…nothing like you."

Angle smiled faintly. " I know." He smoothed Connor's hair. Connor reached up and did the same to him. Angel caught his hand. "Connor, this is Giles and he's going to be keeping an eye out for you. Can you say hello to him?"

Giles inched closer as Connor turned his gaze away from his father to him, his head wobbling like a newborn kitten's. He smiled vacantly, his lips pulling wide, showing teeth.

"He hasn't spoken a word since we found everyone dead," Wesley said.

"How did it happen? What did he see or do?" Giles asked, touching Connor's arm as if to prove he was real. Connor poked Giles' arm right back.

"Before we get into that, I'm more interested in what Connor's been doing since he entered this state. You said he's not talking," Savage said, leaning forward, staring intently at Connor.


Angel wagged his head. "He's not talking. He doesn't do anything other than follow Faith around and mimic whatever he sees any of us doing."

"And he's otherwise nonresponsive?" Savage asked.

"He'll do what we tell him to but otherwise he just sits and stares," Angel replied. "He won't eat or drink. It's been three days."

"I've gotten sips of water into him. So has Faith but he won't do more than sip at it. He won't really drink and he won't touch food," Wesley added.

"Has he been voiding at all or has his body total shut down?" Savage pulled a notepad out of his jacket pocket and started jotting things down.

"I think he did once on his own…properly but I'm not entirely sure," Angel said, wondering why he hadn't thought about it. The fact he had been lying in the morgue and didn't know didn't matter to him. He should have known.

"All right, let's see if he takes some. Go ahead and give him a glass," Savage said.

Angel went and got his son a glass of water. He sat with Connor but the boy wouldn't even look at the offered drink.

"As for the mimicking, it's called echopraxia and it's a symptom of catatonia. It can be rather common but you don't find it usually in literature available to the public so people trying to fake catatonia don't know to try this," Savage said, making more notes.

"We don't think Connor has the knowledge to even try to fake it," Wesley said. "He's been in this dimension less than a year. He was raised in Quor-toth and doesn't know much about Earth."

"Quor-toth?" Saeth's jaw dropped. "How did he survive?"

"The man who took him, who raised him from a baby, managed to keep them both safe but Connor is wholly uneducated. He can read some but that's it as far as we know," Angel said, trying to press the glass into Connor's hand. "Take a drink for me, son." Connor didn't take it nor did he try to drink when Angel touched the glass to his lips. Angel set the glass down. "He doesn't like me very well. I don't know if that has anything to do with him refusing me."

"It could. We'll try later. You mentioned Connor had something to do with the deaths," Savage said.

"I was curious about that. I know why you didn't want to talk over the phone but it made me wonder if I'm doing the right thing by helping," Giles said frankly. He shot Angel a penetrating look that the vampire met without flinching.

"He killed Cordelia, Giles. And if you want nothing to do with this, I'll understand. I should have told you that before you came here but you are going back to Wales to help rebuild the Council anyhow," Angel said, stroking Connor's arm.

Giles' eyes went wide and for a moment he was silent. "Do you know why he did it?"

"From what we can piece together, he and Cordy were fighting," Angel said softly.

"Was this common for them?" Savage broke in.

"Lately yes. They had a…well, one-night stand. Cordy told him they couldn't be together and I think he was honestly in love with her. She crushed him and he didn't understand but he wasn't trying to force her back with him. In fact, he was doing his best to avoid her. He resented her trying to run his life even if she didn't want to be in it. We know that last night she pulled a knife on him and he pushed her. We think she hit her head and died instantly," Angel said as Connor rested his head against his father's shoulder.

"Connor is as strong as a vampire or possibly a Slayer," Wesley said. "He forgets that. He never had to pull his punches on Quor-Toth."

"Lorne overhead the fight. He's demonic, from Pylea, and Connor didn't see any reason not to kill Lorne like he would any other demon. Like I said, Connor hates demons. He was raised to kill them. He was obeying our ruling that he leaves Lorne alone. Lorne saw Cordy was dead and Connor crying he didn't meant to do it. Lorne provoked Connor somehow and went for the weapons and that's when Connor beheaded him," Angel said.

Saeth's head came up sharply at that. "That won't kill a Pylean."

"No, but Connor didn't know that. Still Lorne was unconscious for what came next," Wesley said.

"All we can guess is our other friends came home and saw the bodies and attacked Connor or maybe he went for them immediately. Either way, he killed them. When Wes, Faith and I returned we found Connor huddled around Cordy's body and our friends had been slaughtered." Angel paused, seeing Wes go pale.

"We think he killed Gunn first as the biggest threat," Wes said, forging on. "Then Fred. She took the worst of his rage. He didn't just dismember her. He chopped her into tiny bits." Wesley gulped for air at the memory.

"God," Giles whispered.

"Connor's been like this since we found him," Angel said. "When the cops came I pretended to be the killer, in full vamp face. They shot me and officially the case was closed.  It'll get no further than this. I know I'm asking you to participate in a crime by helping my son and if you tell me no, I'll understand."

"I can see why you'd want to protect your son, Angel but Wesley, tell me why you think that this is better than a jail cell." Saeth glanced over at her friend curiously.

"Partly this is our fault. We didn't give Connor enough support and he makes it hard to be friendly with him at times. But still we are the adults. We should have tried harder to take care of him. He's still a boy," Wesley said as Angel paced through Wes' small living room. The others pulled into themselves as if Angel's very motion could burn them. "And by his own admission, once we reunited his head with his body, Lorne called Connor a murderer. The boy panicked. If Lorne hadn't done that, maybe it just would have ended with Cordelia's tragic death. Connor was still coherent then. From what we can tell, the mental breakdown happened after he attacked Lorne. If only he had taken Connor at his word, it might not have gone this far." Wesley stopped, looking up at Angel who had paused in his stalking in front of him.

"I see. I'm willing to take him into my home, Angel, if Savage wants to help," Saeth said.

"I want to try this more than ever," Savage said with the eagerness of a professional with a new meaty problem. "Angel, I get the sense you're holding something back."

Angel shifted uncomfortably. "Can we talk where Connor can't hear us?"

"Of course." Savage said. "Would you like to stay here with Connor, Saeth?"

"Certainly," she said, sitting next to Connor, taking his hand. He smiled at her.

"Wes, Giles, you might want to hear this, too," Angel said, leading Savage into the library.

"Do you think Wesley's assessment is wrong? Do you think Connor purposely cut them all down?" Savage asked, leaning on the desk as Angel shut the door.

"No, that's not it," Angel said. "I don't think Connor knew the truth about Cordy. She was going to wait for me to tell him, if she even was going to. That one night stand happened when the sky started raining fire and Cordy wasn't thinking about…um, protection. She was carrying Connor's child. He killed his own baby and if he doesn't know it, I don't want him to."

"She was…" Wesley ground a fist into his leg. "Of course. Why didn't I even think of that when she started getting so sick."

"I think you're right. He doesn't need to know," Savage said.

"It's worse than just that," Angel said. "Wes, when I had you pull up the autopsy report on Cordelia…"

"And asked me not to read it," Wesley broke in, an irritated look in his blue eyes.

"There was a reason. Kate had gotten in touch with me yesterday to bring it to my attention. She still has contacts with the police and the coroner's office. The autopsy showed Cordelia was pregnant. I was expecting that but the fetus wasn't just a few weeks old. Its size suggested a few months."

"That can't be, unless it was from when she was in a higher plane," Wesley said, his nose wrinkling.

"Cordelia was certain it was Connor's. It doesn't matter. The baby wasn't human." Angel paused, rocking back on his heels, uncomfortable with what he had to say next. "It was demonic. It was probably growing at an exponential rate."

"Demonic?" Savage's dark brow raised. He scribbled something in his notebook.

"Cordelia was melded with a demon to help her survive the visions," Wesley said and Giles made a startled sound.

"And I've always feared Connor wasn't entirely human and tonight that was confirmed. We never spoke of it since he hated demons so much. I think he knew he had some demon in him, feared it but he doesn't talk to me about well, much of anything." Angel scrubbed a hand through his messy hair, feeling dull and numb at this point.

"And the demon aspects came together in this baby." Giles plucked off his glasses and started cleaning them fiercely with the hem of his shirt.

"Yes and we would have had to destroy this baby even if Cordelia hadn't died," Angel said. "So I don't want Connor to ever know there was a possibility he had fathered a child."

"Yes, that would be for the best," Savage said.  "From what little I've observed, I think Connor's symptoms are very real, Angel. As it is now, even if you had taken him to the authorities, he would have been put in a psych hospital until his mind cleared. They wouldn't jail him in this condition. Tell me, is there anyone particularly close to him? It might help to have them with him."

Angel shook his head. "No. Wesley barely knew him. Lorne would only make him worse. He was only close to Cordelia."

"What about Faith?" Wesley asked. "He has been following her around since this all happened."

"I don't think she'd be a good choice to help an unstable boy," Giles said. "Even if she knows how it is first hand."

"She'd help but their closeness was…inappropriate," Angel said grimacing, unsure if he should even mention it.

"How so?" Savage asked, pouncing on that.

"They met in an alley fighting vampires. Faith is…um."

"Highly sexed," Giles supplied.

"Yes, and just released from prison that day. I'm not sure if Connor is just a typical horny teenager, very open to seduction or if he was out to piss off Cordy for dumping him but I caught him in bed with Faith." Angel slumped against the bookshelves. "I think she understands him well but she's the Slayer. She would be a help if Connor got physical but I can't have her with my son when there's work out there for her to be doing."

"Fair enough. You mentioned he dislikes you," Savage said.

"Hates me. He was raised his entire life with one purpose, to kill me for killing the family of the man who kidnapped him. Connor lives to irritate me as much as possible. That's why I won't go to Wales with you. I might just make him worse," Angel said miserably.

"Good idea and I'll keep you up to date on his progress. When I feel it would be beneficial to have you there, I'll let you know," Savage said. "If you want to move in with us for a while, you can but if Connor's got that mind set against you, you might impede his recovery. Is there anything else you needed to tell me that you don't want him hearing?"

"No."

Savage headed back for the living room. Saeth sat with Connor on the couch, studying the boy with a half-lidded gaze. 

Angel looked at his son's vacant eyes and felt his world tipping sideways. The reality of what had happened came rushing back once more, nearly overwhelming him. "Do you think you can help him, Savage?"

"I can't make promises. That's the thing with mental illness. Catatonia tends to go into periods of remission. It does respond to drugs." Savage smiled encouragingly.

"And if it doesn't my son spends the rest of his life staring into space?" Despair colored Angel's words. He felt the bite of tears but managed to cap them off.

"This is the better stage of catatonia. He could be in the excited stage where he could be dangerous to himself and others. Some people have used electroshock therapy for this but I prefer not to do that," Savage said. "And even if he does come out of this, Angel, it doesn't mean he'll be healed. So long as he's non-responsive and non-verbal, I can't tell what other damage has been done to his mind but we won't give up easily. Right now, I'm most concerned with him refusing nourishment. If he doesn't start eating and drinking soon we'll have to take heroic measures but we'll talk about that later. If Saeth's ready, we should get Connor back to Wales."

"Where exactly is your home, Saeth?" Angel asked.

"Crug Hywel. My home is old, over five hundred years, very sturdy stone and all that. The room I have for Connor isn't the nicest, doesn't really even have much of a window but given his condition Savage thought that was for the best. My great grandmother, Rhiannon, lives nearby to help if we need her. My binding spells should be enough to handle Connor if he gets physical. And if he comes out of this fugue, I have a lot of land for him to exercise on. I'm sure he'd like that. And my brother's family tends to pop in a lot. He has four kids right around Connor's age," she said.

Angel's eyes widened. "Four?"

"Two his own, two adopted. Evan has nine kids of his own. My family is sort of like a rich version of the Weasleys." She grinned but Angel just gave her a puzzled look. "Sorry, Harry Potter joke. Let's just leave it as there's plenty of us and we're all mages. Dylan, my eldest nephew is a fairly strong mage, perfectly capable of binding Connor if need be."

"I like the idea of Connor having someone his own age around. He's never had that, not ever." A hint of a smile touched Angel's lips at the thought of his son having something normal like friends his own age. "Thank you for helping me. I know how much I'm asking of you all, the risk I'm putting you at."

"I'm not very easy with this," Giles admitted. "But I'm willing to believe he never meant for it to happen. He wouldn't be like this if he did. I'll be living with Savage and Saeth and I'll do what I can to help with Connor. I'll have to give much of my time to rebuilding the Council but I'm sure I can help with your son, Angel."

"Thank you, Giles. You have no idea how much this means to me." Angel shook Giles' hand, sorrow reflecting his dark eyes. "Could I have a little time alone with him?"

"Of course."

Angel waited until everyone went into Wesley's library before  pulling Connor up into a tight hug. The boy was limp in his arms. "Connor, I want to believe you can hear me and understand. These people are going to help you. Giles is one of the finest men I know, you listen to him, okay? I forgive you for what happened. You're going to get better. I know you're in pain now but it will get better. They're going to take you to Wales. That's a long ways away from here and I can't go with you. We'll be apart for a while but that doesn't mean I don't love you. I'll call and talk to you, I promise. I can be there whenever you need me and you will sometime. I know that you will because I know you'll get through this. You let them help you. You can make amends. I know this better than anyone." Angel brushed Connor's hair back. His son's blue eyes were trained on him. He thought the boy was listening. He kissed his forehead gently. "Good bye for now, Connor. Remember that I'll always love you, no matter what."

Angel waited, praying for a response but Connor just shut his eyes, his breath escaping in a soft sigh. He patted his arm and led Connor back to the others. It was breaking his heart to let Connor go but he knew he had to. He could only cling to his belief that redemption was possible for himself and for his son. He would do anything in his power to make that happen and he knew that this was the first best step on that path.

Angel took Connor into the library. "He's ready. Saeth, at some point could I come to your home and be with him when Dr. Savage thinks it'll be good for Connor?"

"Of course. Once Connor starts speaking again, we'll arrange for him to talk to you regularly if Savage thinks it'll help him," Saeth said.

"Either way, we'll be in touch with you every few days, Angel," Savage said, "To keep you updated."

Angel nodded. "Thank you."

"Do you have any luggage you want to send along with him?" Saeth brushed Connor's hair out of his eyes and he reached up and did the same for her.

"Connor's not into belongings outside of weapons and he doesn't need those now," Angel said. "He doesn't have much of a wardrobe either. I have an overnight bag of clothes for him. I'll go get it."

Angel went more slowly than he knew was necessary as he fetched his son's clothing. Once he turned it over, Connor would be gone. He just wasn't ready to let him go. He was missing him already and the boy was still standing in the apartment. Angel had been hoping for a miracle, that Connor would come out of this on his own and none of this would be necessary. He knew it wouldn't happen and he knew he was doing what was best for Connor but it was torture.

He handed the bag to Savage. "This is all he has."

"Very well. Everyone join hands and hold tight. You don't want to get lost between worlds," Saeth said cheerily.

"Hold on, Connor. Don't let go," Angel said, hugging his son for all he was worth. He put Connor's hand in Giles'. The Watcher folded an arm around Connor then linked his other arm to Saeth. Angel kissed Connor's forehead then stepped back. "You be good for them, son. They're going to help you. I love you, Connor. Be well."

Angel wanted to say a hundred other things but the words wouldn't come. He watched as the sparkling opalescent lights danced in the air again. The staticy feeling crawled over his skin and then there was nothing. They were gone. He looked over at Wesley, reining in his tears with an iron hand.

"This is the right thing to do," he said softly.

"It is," Wesley assured him.


Angel looked back at the spot that had held the quartet just moments before. He could still smell his son's scent in the air. He didn't know if a deity existed or if it would hear prayers from a creature like himself. He could only hope God would. What was that prayer? Until we meet again may God hold you in the palm of his hand?  Angel didn't know if he had much faith in God but he did have faith in his son and in Giles. He was content he had done the right thing. Now came the hardest part of all, living with what had happened. He glanced over at Wesley and knew how difficult it would be.

Rejoin the series with story #2, Blood Sings.

"If we hurry we can get you to Savage's office before he gives up all hope," Giles said, herding Connor into the yew tunnel. The yew Connor had been perched in was the beginning of a project begun four hundred years prior. The landowner had sculpted and bent the yews into a massive tunnel. The effect was eerie and beautiful at the same time. Connor seemed to love it. It was the first place they thought to look for him when he didn't show to be taken into town. At least Saeth's home in Crug Hywel didn't have the huge amounts of land attached to it like her estate in the northlands. Giles wasn't keen on Connor having expansive desolate acreage to hide in if he got around to serious brooding as he was wont to do. Like father, like son.

Blood Sings excerpt.