Immortal Blood by Magen McMinimy, Cynthia Shepp Editing Page A

Esperanza had scrutinized every move, every word, and every glance her son made. Izzy had a feeling she was walking away with mommy’s little boy.
    Bain looked down at her, seriousness to his tone when he spoke . “So, no fear of the Fae?”
    Izzy chewed on her cheek . “No, not really. I will confess… it’s still surreal and amazing the different things your people can do.”
    Bain had to admit everyone was very forthcoming; Izzy didn’t have to ask anyone what they could do . As the stories flowed, most everyone’s abilities were revealed.
    “So , I got the impression that you and Kale were troublemakers as children.”
    “Kale and I, we were … free spirits,” Bain amended her troublemaker comment.
    “Ah , so that’s what you call it here? Well, sounds like you’re really close with your family that’s important. My family is everything to me.”
    “I know . I could see the twinkle in your eye when you spoke of them, plus I’ve seen you with them.”
    They walked quietly as they made their way through the castle’s keep and the main living quarters . Bain pointed out a few things as they meandered through the stone walls of his home.
    “This is the main living area, the hole, that myself and my brother’s share, though Cree rarely uses it . He and Rowan have their own separate apartment—if you will—on the top floor of the keep.”
    The living room—as she would call it—was large , with polished marble floors and a few intricate wool rugs. Izzy ran a manicured finger over the felt of a billiards table and raised a brow at Bain. “Pool? Didn’t expect that.”
    “Do you play?”
    “I can, I’m not that good, though I do enjoy the challenge.”
    “We’ll have to practice ; I’m a good teacher.”
    Izzy smiled , heat rising in her veins. “I bet you are.”
    She did a turn to take in the rest of the room : bookshelves, a large, plasma TV, a bar, couch, another massive fireplace, and a round table with a deck of cards.
    A bachelor pad.
    “What’s out there?” she asked, gesturing to a set of glass doors.
    “The gardens and a pool . Come on, I’ll show you.”
    Izzy followed him out into the crisp, but comfortable fall evening. The stars were bright, and looked the same as they did at home—in the Human World. She even saw the Big Dipper; it was the one constellation she knew and could almost always find.
    “You have the same constellations ,” she said it more to herself than to Bain, but he nodded.
    Bain led her deeper into the gardens through a hedge maze that led out into a large , grassy area. Bain set his jacket down on the grass and sat next to it. He patted the material for Izzy to sit next to him. She smiled and sat.
    Bain lay back in the grass , and Izzy followed suit. Bain took her hand and slid his head close to hers in an effort to gain the same line of sight that she had. He wrapped his hand around hers and traced the Big Dipper with her finger in the air.
    “The Big Dipper, as humans tend to call it.”
    “That’s the one and only one I can ever find.” She smiled and laughed softly.
    “We call it Ursa Major or the Big Bear, but yeah it’s the Big Dipper and there’s the Little Dipper.” He gestured to the smaller set of stars creating the same shape.
    Bain then moved her hand to the right and traced out a triangle with two bright stars at its base . He drew a line down from each of them, to two other bright stars, with another, slightly dimmer one between the two, and then followed down to two other stars.
    “That’s The Hunter,” Bain whispered.
    “ Orion ?” Izzy asked softly. She was pretty sure people referred to Orion as The Hunter.
    Bain nodded and continued to point out constellations and tell Izzy the stories behind them . Most of them were of Greek origin.
    “They’re the same stories I remember from Mythology back in seventh grade.” She was surprised they would share the same legends.
    “They are the same stories; we share the same skies. The