The Fae Book 3: Butcher and Raine

Chapter 29 (Raine): Living In Fog

When I woke up, my mother and Butcher were in my room, speaking quietly. Since there were no dead bodies littering the floor, I assumed Butcher had listened to me and not shot anyone. Either that, or the bodies had already been removed and disposed of. The latter thought didn't even faze me, so I wasn't sure what that said about me as a person.

Of course, my mother, being my mother, knew the second I woke up and came floating over to me. Calypso Caroline was an incredibly graceful woman, and even on my best day, even as a yoga practitioner, I would never achieve her level of float.

"Maman," I smiled as she kissed me on the cheeks.

"Raine, your friend Butcher and I were getting acquainted. He was telling me about Alexandre's night."

I knew my mother and could read her face, so I also knew she had questions about why this man, who had struck such fear in me previously, was here now holding my child while I slept. Perfectly normal questions that I wasn't sure I had the answers for.

"Butcher, while I feed Alexandre, would you mind getting me some hot tea from the cafeteria? Anything herbal."

Butcher pressed a button on his phone, and then spoke into it.

"Need a hot, herbal tea from the cafeteria."

OK, he was supposed to have gone to get it so my mother and I could interrogate each other. "I was hoping for tea sooner rather than later," I improvised. "By the time someone gets here..."

"Oh, I'm sure one of his many friends patrolling the hospital is near the cafeteria," my mother said meaningfully. "It shouldn't take any time."

Had my mother just informed me that the Lords of Mayhem had invaded the hospital? Patrolling?

The baby was snugged tight in Butcher's arm, just beginning to fidget and smack his lips. My mother helped me adjust the bed and sit up, and I held my arms out for Alexandre.

"I don't know how to shift him from my arm to yours," Butcher said.

"Easy," I explained. "I do all the work. I'll take him from you, putting my hand under his neck to support it and my other hand under his bottom like that. Now he's in my hands and I have him, so you can step back."

Butcher watched as I adjusted our son in my arms and started feeding him. I gently stroked the tip of my finger against his chubby cheek while he nursed and murmured soft nonsense to him. While I was happily distracted with our beautiful baby, Butcher got a text, went to the door and opened it just enough for a hand to reach in with my tea.

"Do you want anything else?" he asked after he set the tea down on the rolling tray at the end of my bed.

"They should be bringing a tray with my breakfast soon, so I'm good, thanks."

"They tried to bring in a tray of the shittiest looking food I've ever seen while you were sleeping, and I told them to fuck off. Tell me what you want and I'll get it. Chocolate croissants?"

My mother raised an eyebrow at me, her lips just slightly twitching for a moment.

"Croissants would be good, but I also need more healthy foods, a balanced breakfast, since I'm nursing."

Once again, he pressed a button on his phone and rumbled out orders. "Get me healthy breakfast shit to eat. And chocolate croissants."

Butcher stationed himself by the door, his eyes on me the entire time. As Alexandre finished eating, a nurse came in with some paperwork and Butcher gave him a nod. 

"Time to name baby Alexandre the rest of the way," he said. "You said to come back today to finish the birth certificate."

He began running down the birth certificate checklist. "OK, first, baby's full name. Alexandre what what?"