The next few days were a flurry of activity. Manny knew he couldn’t just walk away from everything despite the fact that his job was over. He needed to know that the boys would be all right and, if it came down to it, find them good families to be placed with.
As it turned out, that wasn’t going to be necessary. Manny was shocked to find out that, against all reasonable expectations, Cerdic had made provisions for the boys. He had willed the house to Gebhard and Mr. Shadrick equally, with the proviso that they were to take care of any of them who were in residence at the time of his death until the boys reached eighteen.
What surprised Manny even more was the return of Hamlin. When the young man heard about Cerdic’s death he was on the next plane back to the city. He showed up at the front door and was immediately surrounded by the boys. Jakie refused to let go of his hand, as if, if he did, Hamlin would somehow vanish.
It wasn’t until several hours later the Manny got a chance to be alone with Hamlin.
“So, are you planning on sticking around now?” were the first words out of Hamlin’s mouth as he perched on the edge of what had been Godric’s bed just a few days before.
“I was going to ask you the same thing,” Manny retorted from his seat on his own bed.
“I probably am. There’s nothing holding me in London now. It’s a great city, and I’ll miss it I suppose, but when it comes down to it this is home.”
“Meaning New York or here at the house specifically?”
“Both, I guess,” Hamlin replied with a smile. “Now, your turn. Staying or going?”
Manny dropped his gaze. “Going.”
“I see. I suppose I should have expected that.”
“It’s not by choice.” Manny looked over at him again. “There’s somewhere I have to be.”
“Family?”
Manny just nodded, because in some strange way he supposed that being a Caomhnóir made him part of a very unique kind of family, one whose purpose was to keep humans like Hamlin and the boys alive and safe.
Hamlin stared at him for a long minute before getting up. He crossed the room slowly to sit down beside Manny. “Will you come back again?”
“Yes,” Manny replied with a smile. “For you, when I can, I’ll be back as often as possible.”
“That’s all I ask, other than that someday, when you feel comfortable about it, you tell me exactly what is really going on with you.”
Wrapping his arms around Hamlin, Manny said softly, “I will, when the time is right.” And then he kissed his lover deeply, all his feelings for the man poured into it. And Hamlin returned it with equal fervor and love.
The End
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