Author's note: Sorry this has taken so long. A combination of writer's block and real life getting in the way sort of messed things up. But to make it up to my wonderful readers, this is a rather long chapter. So enjoy and please remember to review. The more reviews I get the faster I write.
The next morning finds Maggie up by six o'clock despite Abe having woken her up every couple hours during the night to make sure the concussion wasn't that serious. She and Susan are saying their goodbyes to Sharon and Ron as the couple gets ready to leave, assuring them that Vicki will be fine for the few days that they're going to be gone while Steven stands to the side waiting to take them to the airport. Maggie gives Sharon the remainder of the cash she withdrew from the bank three months ago before heading west, telling her cousin that if she runs out that she will be reimbursed.
Everything seems to be fine until they open the front door and are suddenly blinded by a multitude of spotlights attached to the news cameras waiting. Microphones are shoved into their faces and the reporters try yelling over each other to get Maggie's attention. Steven and Ron bulldoze their way through the crowd with Sharon sandwiched between and race to the car while being chased by a couple of reporters and their cameramen. They manage to get into the van that Steven drove the day before and start the engine. They make their escape just as Maggie and Susan finally get the door slammed in the faces of the reporters.
Maggie makes sure there are no intruders in the house before sealing all of the doors and windows shut. Then she and Susan quickly go around to all of the lower floor windows and shut all of the curtains, blocking out any curious eyes. Fortunately and unfortunately, Abe is still out in the ocean for his morning swim, but now it is too dangerous for him to return. Maggie puts in a call to the police to have the trespassers removed from the property while Susan goes and wakes the others.
Guillermo volunteers to go down to the beach and make sure that Abe doesn't return to the house until the coast is clear, taking a travel mug of tea with him. About half way down the path a reporter spots him and chases after him with her cameraman in tow. Guillermo ignores them as he continues on his way despite the bright spotlight and the microphone shoved in his face as he carefully picks his way along the unpaved path so as not to twist an ankle.
Eventually they arrive at the beach where Guillermo finds a rock to sit on and drinks his tea. He continues giving the reporter the silent treatment as he watches the waves. Eventually he sees a blue head break the surface of the water which quickly disappears back under the waves. Satisfied that Abe has now been warned, Guillermo finishes his drink, gets up and retraces his steps back to the house still refusing to acknowledge the presence of the other two people with him.
When they return to the house, they're greeted by a police officer who escorts the reporter and her cameraman back to their van. Guillermo and Maggie help the police find all of the interlopers, including the ones who are trying to hide on the property. By the time the last trespasser has been herded off, the twins are wide awake and extremely hungry. Maggie sits down to feed them as Guillermo makes the return trip to the beach to give Abe the all clear and taking Abe's disguise with him.
About midmorning the long anticipated and much dreaded phone call from Manning finally comes.
"What are your plans?" he asks by way of greeting as soon as Maggie picks up the phone.
"I'm planning getting the house and grounds ready for my parent's return," she answers, not really in the mood to play games.
"You're not planning on introducing them to Abe or the kids are you?" he demands.
"Yes, I am," she replies.
"I forbid it," he nearly snarls.
"Tough," she snaps. "My parents already know they exist so there's no way I cannot introduce them. You had no problem introducing him to the rest of my family, so what's the problem now?"
"It's not a controlled situation," he retorts. "Anyone could just walk in and see them. There's going to be reporters everywhere."
"We're already dealing with that," she assures him. "Guillermo, Steven and I have been checking to make sure that no reporters step onto the property. If they do, the police are notified and they're removed. Abe will only go out if he's disguised now, so any shots they do get of him will be too far away to be able to tell that he's not perfectly normal. If you don't like it, then I suggest you send out some agents to help us."
"How many more people in your family are you planning on introducing him to?" he inquires, only slightly appeased.
"Just my parents, why?" she responds.
"From what I understand your mother's side of the family is rather large," he informs her. "They'll probably want to see her. This means they will probably see Abe and the kids, I won't allow it."
"What am I supposed to do, Dr. Manning?" she demands. "Tell them that they can't see or meet their long lost relatives. And once again, I'm going to remind you that my father's side of the family has already met Abe. So why not let my mother's side also meet him?"
"What's in it for the agency?" he asks.
"The same thing that was in it the last time," she reminds him. "A whole slue of Mages that you might be able to call on for help, only this time it's Earth Mages instead of Air."
Manning mulls this over for several moments before answering.
"I'll be sending out agents ASAP to help with security," he tells her. "I will be arriving in a day or two too oversee the introducing of Abe and the kids. Please try and keep your family at bay until then."
"I'll see what I can do," she replies with an eye roll. "Anything else?"
"Not right now, I'll let you know if I think of something," he states just before hanging up.
Manning is slightly startled by the large red figure standing in his office doorway when he looks up. With a resigned sigh, he scowls at Hellboy from across the room.
"So, when do we leave for California?" Red asks almost pleasantly.
"I'll be leaving for California in a day or two," Manning answers, leaning back in his chair. "You'll be staying here."
"Oh, really?" Red smiles.
"Yes, really," Manning retorts with a scowl.
Hellboy closes the door to Manning's office. Office workers scurry past the closed door as loud noises and shouting are suddenly heard from within the room. When the door reopens a couple of minutes later, Hellboy has a self satisfied smirk on his face as he exits, giving a slight nod to the agents that came running with guns drawn. Manning looks like he's about to have a coronary as the John briefly checks in on the director. John stays long enough to make sure that Manning isn't really going to go into heart failure before returning his gun to its holster and going back to his duties, shaking his head.
"That man is a royal pain in the behind," Maggie growls as she places the handset back in the cradle great care.
"He does excel in driving people crazy," Abe agrees as he steps up behind his wife and wraps his arms around her.
"At least he's sending out agents to help deal with the reporters," she sighs as she turns around and lays her head on his chest while circling his waist with her own arms.
"That will be good," he replies as he rests his cheek on the top of her head. "What else needs to be done around the house?"
"The rest of the rooms need to be cleaned," she starts closing her eyes and just relaxing into him. "I'll need to furnish most of them. I'll leave my parent's personal rooms to them. We'll also need to move my stuff and the twins stuff into my old bedroom. It has a tub, but it's not as big as the one in my parent's bathroom."
"I'll manage," he says as his hands start to rub up and down her back.
"And then there's the outside," she continues. "The area around the barns looks like a jungle, the trees need to trimmed along the drive and the area just behind the house is a giant weed patch. All of the buildings need to be painted, the driveway needs to be repaired, the fences need to be fixed and the pasture's umph…"
Her litany of things that need to be done is cut short by Abe's kiss. When he finally lets her up for air, she can barely remember her own name, much less what needs to be done.
"Your parents are coming home to see you, not the house or the grounds," he quietly tells her.
"But I want everything to be perfect for when they get here," she nearly whines.
"And as long as you are here, it will be," he assures her.
"But…," she starts only to be stopped by Abe's lips making it impossible to talk again.
Small whimpers escape her throat as the kiss deepens and intensifies to the point where she has to cling to him to remain on her feet. When he finally breaks off the kiss, her eyes are glazed over; she's gasping for air and has a blank look on her face.
"Now, what needs to be done?" he asks again.
"The b-b-bedrooms…," she stutters, still panting.
"Mmm, a bedroom sound good right now," he murmurs as he starts to nibble on her neck.
She lets out another little whimper as he scoops her up into his arms and carries her upstairs. A couple of minutes later, he sets her on her feet as he closes the door to the master bedroom behind him. She's so blind with the need to be touched by the man she loves that all rational thought is gone.
His lips capture hers again and he gently starts to push her across the room. She willing goes until the back of her legs bump into the bed and she suddenly sits down. He towers over her for a moment as he removes his gloves and then he starts to herd her towards the center of the bed with his body. He once again goes for her neck and she gladly leans her head to the side so he can have better access. She lazily opens her eyes and suddenly she stiffens.
"Oh my god," she gasps in fear. "We're in my parent's room. We can't do it in here!"
"You didn't have any problem the other morning," he points out.
"That was before I knew they were alive," she reminds him gruffly. "Oh my GOD! We had sex in my parent's bedroom. Ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod."
As frustrated as he is, he knows it's not a good idea to hold her down as she quickly squirms out from under him and off of the bed. By the time her feet hit the floor, her face is a brilliant shade of crimson and her mind is in full panic mode. She starts pacing around the room as her brain careens from one crazy idea to the next.
"No opening a hole in the ground and closing it in over yourself," he tells her, still sitting in the middle of the bed. "And I prefer to think of it as making love to you, not just sex."
She turns towards him and glares at him with a wild eyed stare for a good thirty seconds in disbelief before she charges out the door and heads down the hall. He's off the bed and out the door a split second later. She hasn't gone very far before he catches her and pins her to the door of another room.
His lips are on hers before she can protest and while he has her immobile, he opens the door. He holds onto her to keep her from falling, but not enough to keep her from suddenly moving backwards. She pulls away and looks around the room before looking back at him and smiling her approval.
He closes the door and pushes her towards the first bed she bought for the house in the first room she ever slept in. Within a few minutes both of their tops are gone and his respirator has been removed. Hands randomly roam as the kissing reaches a fevered pitch and her breaths come in ragged gasps.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
They both nearly jump out of their skins and it takes them several moments to calm down enough to realize that Steven is waiting on the other side of the door. Abe gets up to get the door while Maggie scrambles to find where Abe threw her top. Luckily, she finds it and gets it on just before Abe opens the door.
"Sorry to interrupt," Steven starts. "But the twins are awake and hungry and there are no bottles in the fridge."
"Thanks, Steven," Maggie replies. "I'll be right down."
Steven turns to leave and Maggie starts to follow him only to be stopped by a blue arm wrapped around her middle. Abe pulls her against his chest and nuzzles her ear through her hair.
"I'm not finished with you," he softly growls. "When they're done, I expect you to come back up here."
"I have too," she responds, trying to fight the shivers and goose bumps that he's causing. "The bed still needs to be made, my stuff and the twins stuff needs to be moved and the master bedroom needs to be cleaned. Especially the sheets on that bed. Come to think of it, it would probably better to burn those sheets."
"A good washing will take care of any suspicious stains," he chuckles as he hold on her relaxes. "I'll do what I can up here before you get back."
"Thank you," she replies as she quickly turns her head back and gives him a peck on the cheek. "I'll be back as soon as I can."
With that, she quickly leaves the room and heads down the stairs. Steven is not that far in front of her by the time she reaches the bottom of the stairs.
"Steven, was it really necessary to pound on the door so hard?" she asks as she catches up with her uncle.
"Well, I tried quietly knocking but that didn't get your attention. And with the amount of noise you two were making, I'm not too surprised," he grins as Maggie's face starts to turn red. "I remember when Sean was a baby. It seemed every time Cathy and I started to get cozy he woke up screaming. That might explain why there's a five year difference between him and his sister too."
She smiles appreciatively as they come to the door to the family room and the cries of the twins become a bit overwhelming. Maggie quickly settles down on the couch as the babies are brought to her. As they start to nurse, her world once more shrinks down to these two precious beings getting everything they need from her milk.
When Maggie returns to her old bedroom, she finds Abe standing in front of the disassembled crib with the instruction sheet in one hand, a screwdriver in the other and his back to her. She quietly closes the door, sidles up behind him and starts to play with the buckles on the sides of his top.
"I can translate ancient texts written in dead languages," he growls. "I can beat Guillermo at chess and I can solve logic problems in minutes, but I can't for the life of me figure out how to put this thing back together."
"Just do what you did in reverse when you took it apart," she replies as the last of the buckles are released.
"I didn't take it apart," he grumbles not even noticing her undoing the zippers along the sides. "Steven disassembled it."
"Then I guess we'll have to let him put it back together," she purrs as she slides her hands under his top and starts to gently caress his very well defined back muscles.
"Ok," he whimpers as the screwdriver and the instruction sheet slip from his nerveless fingers.
"Unless, of course, you want to keep trying to work on it," she teases as her hands slip around to his front and start to explore his chest and stomach.
"No, that's ok, I could use the break," he replies with a hitch in his voice.
She quietly smirks as she steps closer and leans into his back. He grabs an arm and drags her around until she's standing in front of him. Before she has a chance to go for the buckles on his shoulders, his mouth is on hers and all coherent thoughts stop. She's just glad that breathing and keeping her heart beating are automatic, because otherwise, she'd be in big trouble.
His fingers pull up the edge of her shirt out of her sweat pants as cool lips work across her jaw bone towards her ear. She lets out a moan as her head lolls to the side and he takes advantage of the now exposed neck. She some how manages to get the last two buckles and zippers undone on his top and the pieces fall to the floor as he starts to pull her top over her head.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
They both jump as she lets out a startled yelp and a growl of frustration reverberates from his chest. They stand there for several moments trying to regain their composures, ignoring the insistent pounding at the door for the time being.
"Margaret, I know you are in there, now open this door this instant," Susan's muffled voice can be heard through the door.
With a resigned sigh, Maggie steps away from a very frustrated Abe, pulls her shirt back on, tucks it in place and answers the door.
"Yes, Grandmother, what is it?" Maggie asks in the most pleasant voice that she can muster.
"Don't you use that tone of voice with me, young lady," Susan snaps. "Sharon is on the phone for you. It seems there's a problem with the hotel you booked for them."
"Great," Maggie grumbles. "I'll be out in just a moment."
Maggie turns back to Abe who's an interesting shade of blue and is in the process of putting his top back on.
"I'll be back as soon as I can," she assures him.
"If there's blue goop on the walls when you get back, it'll be because I finally exploded in frustration," he huffs while redoing the zippers.
"I'll be sure to bring a rag with me then," she snickers just before she exits the room.
As Maggie steps off of the last stair, Vicki goes running by with the cordless phone clutched to her little chest and Steven and Peg in hot pursuit.
"NO! MINE!" Vicki shrieks as she disappears around a corner.
Steven continues chasing the twenty-two month old child while Peg stops, leans against the wall with one hand as the other clutches her side and she pants for air.
"Vicki wanted (gasp) to say, 'hi' (pant) to Mommy," Peg wheezes. "Foolish me, (wheeze) I didn't see any (gasp) harm in it. Now she won't (pant) give back the phone."
Maggie shakes her head and chuckles as she follows the sound of more screaming. After a lot of begging and even more yelling, the phone is finally wrestled away from Vicki. Susan tries to comfort the child as Maggie gets the phone to her ear only to get that annoying beeping sound that you get when the other end of the line has disconnected.
Maggie hangs up the phone and heads back to the kitchen where the base resides. Just as she's putting the phone away, it rings.
"Hello?" Maggie answers.
"Thank goodness," Sharon sighs. "I've been trying to get through for almost ten minutes."
"We just got the phone away from Vicki," Maggie explains. "So what's wrong with the hotel?"
"They can't find our reservations," Sharon replies.
"Hold on, I wrote the confirmation number down here somewhere," Maggie responds.
A few minutes later, Maggie is hanging up the phone and Ron and Sharon are on their way up to their hotel room. Maggie passes by the parlor on her way back up the stairs and sees that Vicki has calmed down and is quietly playing with Susan. Maggie gets about half way up the stairs when she hears the phone ring. Saying a quiet prayer to whomever may be listening, she keeps going up.
"Maggie, phone!" Guillermo calls out from the family room. "It's your parents."
Maggie makes record time going back down the stairs and into the family room. She snatches the phone from Guillermo's hand just before plopping down onto the couch to talk to her parents.
Scene change
Over an hour later, Maggie is finally hanging up the phone and she gets up to leave only to be assailed by the wailing of two babies. With another resigned sigh, she sits down, gets ready and then begins to nurse the twins. A little while later, the babies are nursed, burped, changed and checking out the world around them. The great-grandmothers gladly take charge of them as Maggie all but runs upstairs.
When she gets to her room she finds that the crib is now fully assembled but the room is lacking a husband. She turns to leave but suddenly notices the sound of water splashing coming from the bathroom. She peeks in and sees Abe resting in the tub. Not wanting to disturb him, she turns to go.
If you leave so help me I'll tackle you to the bed without bothering to dry off first, he fiercely thinks at her.
She chuckles as she turns back around, grabs a dry towel and waits for him to unfold himself out of the tub. She lovingly dries him off as he stands there sending her some very naughty thoughts that cause her cheeks and her nether regions to heat up. But before she can finish drying him off, he loses his patience so he grabs her, pins her to the wall and kisses her. Even though she's now damp from his bath, she doesn't care as the kiss intensifies and hands start to roam and caress.
"Maggie?" Peg calls from the bedroom.
"Yes?" Maggie manages to reply as Abe lets out a growl and latches onto her neck.
Maggie closes her eyes and tries not to let out a moan. She manages to succeed, but only barely makes it.
"There are a bunch of men here saying they were sent by Dr. Manning," Peg says, keeping her distance from the bathroom after hearing that growl. "Were you expecting them?"
"Oh, jeez, I totally forgot about them," Maggie gasps as her eyes snap open and she attempts to push Abe away. "I'll be right down."
"Ok, I'll let them know you're coming," Peg responds and a second later they hear the door click close.
"Abe, I've got to go down there," Maggie states as she once again tries to push him off.
He just holds her tighter and admittedly, she's not trying all that hard to get away. At least not while he's doing whatever it is he's doing to her neck. When he finally releases her neck, she's clinging to him to stay upright.
"Have to go," she whispers, barely even managing to string those words together.
"I know," he replies, barely containing his frustration. "I might as well go down and start getting dinner ready. There's going to be a lot of mouths to feed tonight."
"Take out?" she suggests, still struggling to make her brain function properly.
"Hm, that might work," he responds just before he kisses her ear.
She lets out a whimper and he lets her go as he turns to get his gear. Without even bothering to look back at her, one of his arms snakes out and catches her before she can collapse into a heap on the floor. He waits until her legs are a bit stronger than Jell-O before he releases her once more.
A few minutes later, they make their way down the stairs hand in hand and are met by the sight of several men in black suits turning to look at them. There are so many agents in the entryway that it takes her a moment to count out a dozen moving bodies. One of the men breaks away from the rest and steps up to the bottom of the stairs.
"Good evening, Agent Slate, welcome to my home," Maggie greets as she stops on the last step.
"Good evening, Mrs. Sapien, Abe," Agent Slate replies with a nod to them both. "Dr. Manning gave us rather vague instructions. He said that we are to keep the property secure and to make sure no one sees Abe."
"There's a lot of property to cover, but there are three Earth Mages here, so that should help," she states just before taking that last step. "Come with me and we'll discuss what needs to be done."
She, Abe and Slate head off down one of the hallways as the rest of the men remain behind, milling around the foyer waiting for orders. Maggie leads Slate to the den while Abe heads off to the kitchen to see about dinner. Some time later, Slate returns to his men with a hand drawn map of the grounds and orders. Eight of the men leave, heading off to the hotel that has a couple rooms reserved for them while the other four stay behind and take up their posts at various areas around the property.
Several hours later, Abe and Maggie are finally putting the twins to bed. Without saying a word, Abe takes Maggie's hand and leads her back to the bed. She willingly follows though she's not sure if she has the energy for what he has in mind. A few moments later, they're lying in the bed together gently kissing and touching. He desperately tries to get her interested in a little marital bliss, but after a few minutes he knows it's pointless. She's fallen asleep in the middle of kissing and to top it off, she bites his tongue when sleep claims her.
The next several days are a blur as the house and grounds are brought back to their former glory. Though Maggie talks to her parents every day on the phone, it just doesn't seem to be enough. To make matters worse, Manning arrives as planned and is in the middle of everything. As if that wasn't enough, both sides of Maggie's family decide that there needs to be a huge party in celebration of Maggie's parents returning home which causes Manning to go ballistic.
"This is getting totally out of hand," Manning snaps. "I will not allow this flagrant breach of security to happen."
"What am I supposed to do, Dr. Manning? Tell them no?" Maggie demands.
"Yes," he retorts.
"Not going to happen," she replies, her eyes narrowing.
"Fine, then Abe and the kids are getting on a plane ASAP and heading back to headquarters," he states.
"You will not be taking my husband or children anywhere," she replies in a warning voice.
"Try and stop me," he growls as he starts to stalk out of the room.
He gets no more than two steps before he collapses, clutching his chest and gasping for air. As quickly as the pain started, it suddenly stops. He lies there for several moments panting before he turns and looks back at her with fear in his eyes.
"My powers may not be as flashy as Liz's, but they're just as deadly," she says in a quiet deadly tone of voice.
She goes to leave the room, stepping over the prone director only to be faced with a couple of agents with guns drawn. They stand there dumbfounded when the clips fall out of the bottom of their guns as she finishes exiting the room. Abe starts chuckling from where he was standing across the room.
"I told you it wouldn't work," he quietly reminds the director. "She has something planned to keep unwanted eyes from seeing what they shouldn't. You need to learn to trust her."
Abe leaves, walking past the two agents who are trying to figure out why their clips fell out. Manning finally gets up off of the floor, brushes himself off and then goes off in search of Maggie to find out what she has planned.
By the end of the week, just about everything is ready and Maggie is about at her wits end with impatience. Saturday night the call that she's been waiting for comes in. Her parents are to be released the next morning and will be returning home. They'll be coming home on Maggie's birthday.