Page 37 of Dark Awakening: Hidden Currents

Then again, she wasn't an expert.

She wasn't even a mother.

Maybe some kids were born with a predisposition towards violence. It was an interesting question, one she'd never really considered before. Maybe she could find a book about it, something with solid research backing it up, and not religious preaching or pseudoscience with an agenda to push, but real, empirical data.

Jasmine chuckled to herself, realizing how much she was starting to sound like her father. Maybe he hadn't been as extreme as she'd thought when she was a naive young girl herself. As an adult who had to earn a living and pay bills, she was seeing things through a different lens.

She lifted her hand and glanced at her watch. It was nearly four in the afternoon, and Margo's mission to expose Lynda's betrayal should have been over by now.

Was it too early to check?

Or was the fallout so bad that Margo couldn't contact her?

Curiosity getting the better of her, Jasmine pulled out her phone and typed out a simple message:Updates?

The response came a minute later, but to Jasmine it felt like forever.Not yet.

Jasmine let out a breath. Maybe Lynda hadn't shown up for lunch with her ex after all. Maybe she'd smartened up and told the guy that she was getting married in a few days, and it wasn't appropriate to keep seeing him like that.

On the one hand, it would save Rob a lot of heartache. But on the other, he'd miss out on his opportunity to become immortal. Jasmine didn't know what the clan's policy was, but she was quite sure they wouldn't allow him to bring his human wife to the village when they turned him immortal.

They would probably not allow Margo to even tell him that he was a Dormant.

A sharp knock on the door startled Jasmine from her thoughts.

For a moment, she thought it might be one of the lunch guests coming back for something they'd forgotten, but when she opened the door, she found herself face to face with Edgar.

"Edgar?" she said, surprise coloring her voice. "What are you doing here?"

He flashed her that familiar charming smile of his. "I came to see Frankie and Dagor. Angelica and I are going on a double date with them."

Jasmine blinked. The other three couples had all made plans for today.

"I don't think they are back from whatever they have planned. Where is Angelica?"

"We are picking her up from her nail salon." Edgar looked inside the room over her shoulder. "I came a little earlier because I wanted to see how you and Ell-rom were doing."

It felt odd to keep him standing in the vestibule, but given what was going on with Rob's fiancée and her ex-boyfriend, perhaps she shouldn't hang out with her ex, either. There was nothing going on between them, and they had both moved on, but Ell-rom might not see it that way.

Still, she couldn't tell Edgar to go away.

Stepping back, Jasmine gestured for him to come in. "Ell-rom's resting," she said, closing the door behind him. "We just had a big family lunch."

"Ah, yes. Frankie told me about it. How did it go?"

Jasmine led him to the living area, settling into one of the plush armchairs while Edgar took a seat on the couch across from her. "It was nice," she said. "Everyone was very welcoming to Ell-rom, but it has exhausted him."

"I bet." Edgar glanced at the glass she was still clutching in her hand.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I should have offered you a drink. What would you like?" She started to rise.

He motioned for her to remain seated. "I can pour a drink for myself." He got to his feet.

"So," she said. "How are things going with Angelica?"

Edgar's face lit up. "It's great. She's fierce, funny, and she doesn't put up with any of my nonsense."

Jasmine smiled. "I'm so happy for you."