CHAPTER 111: SEVEN NIGHTS.

It was 10:30 p.m., and Hades Quinn was wondering if it was too late to drive out and bring his wife home. He had read three bedtime stories, put on a full sock puppet show and tried the milk trick.

Castiel, all tousled curls, pouted lips and wild defiance kicked his feet on the bed, denying everyone the chance to close their eyes. The stuffed rabbit Sunshine had given him had lost its tail this very night. Robo-dog had nearly lost an eye.

Two blankets were on the floor; one rejected small sized tub of ice-cream which had been rejected was sitting on the table. Two heavy eyed brothers were lost for words as they watched their youngest brother descend into chaos.

"Cass," Hades pleaded, picking up the blankets and bunny tail for the second time, "You need to go to sleep. It is bedtime."

Castiel narrowed his eyes. "But mommy is not here, and she did not kiss me goodnight."

Hades sighed. They had been over this many times, but his son refused to listen. In such a short time, Sunshine had Castiel wrapped around her fingers. "Buddy, mama’s helping Aunt Nimo look for her brother the same way Echo bat helped Freckle Peggy find her missing sheep in the story. Mama will be back in seven sleeps."

Castiel folded his arms. "I want my mommy now."

Hades wanted her too. He almost said this much to his son. He missed her laughter, her calm voice as she got Castiel to accomplish impossible tasks. Her giggled as she plotted with Earl the different ways to annoy Ariel. He was not happy that he would be going to bed alone and her warmth which was also cold-ish was missing.

Ariel stood up and took the ice cream back to the freezer. Earl turned on a laptop that Sunshine had given him. It had some prerecorded videos of them playing and hers singing to Castiel. Maybe it would help.

Robo-dog growled and dogs on the base barked fiercely. The watcher bird was back outside the wall.

Castiel burst into tears.

Ariel returned and sighed helplessly. "Cass, you promised mom that you would be good. You are not being good right now. I will hug you to sleep, come here."

Castiel ignored his brother and threw himself into Hades’s arms as Sunshine’s voice filled the room. Hades stood up, hugging his son, forgetting his defiance and the tantrum he had thrown over dinner. He climbed onto the bed and hummed along to the song Sunshine was singing, cradling Castiel in his arms.

Earl moved to his left side and Ariel remained on the right. Both boys were being brave, but it did not mean they did not miss Sunshine. The house and everything else were different without her.

"Seven more sleeps." Hades whispered.

His whisper was not meant just for Castiel, it was meant for his older sons as well. Earl had cried during his shower and Ariel had been very quiet at dinner. Hades had seen him giving the wrench and toy hammer Sunshine gave him as a gift.

Ariel had never played with them, but he kept them safe. Tonight, they were on the bedside table on his side of the bed.

"Seven more sleeps." Hades whispered again.

God, he hoped he survived them.

Sunshine could not sleep as well because she was thinking about Hades and the children. What were they up to? Had Castiel eaten his dinner? The boy was very picky about what went into his mouth. He had expensive tastes at his age, like his father.

Sunshine sat up and looked around. Some people were asleep but those on watch duty were awake. The fire Siegfried started was still going and the rain was still falling.

Since she could not sleep, she figured that it was best to go into the car and then vanish into the space and do some repair work.

The soldiers that were awake figured that she wanted to sleep inside the car. Only Major Elio noticed that the car was empty even with her inside.

It seemed like she had many secrets not just on the base but on her person.

"No wonder she doesn’t like me." He muttered.

****

Jon Kingsley was also awake. After trying to coax his wife into eavesdropping more on the happenings in Fortress four, she had finally delivered some news other than Bob’s daily activities.

"Honey repeat what you just said to me." He held her shoulders.

Tracy sat up straight, Bob’s framed picture clenched in her hands. "Someone at Fortress four has said that the president left in search of something." She paused, raising her eyes rolled the ceiling trying to sort out useful information from the sea of voices. "This is hard, I am not listening anymore." Her shoulders dropped as she gave up.

It was not as tiresome when she was just listening to Bob. It was like they had a special connection. Tracy sincerely believed that her cat was sending messages to her. Language barrier was their only problem as she could not understand cat.

Her husband was having different thoughts. He was a little worried about his frenemy. This was not exactly tourist friendly kind of weather. What kind of person would go out in acid rain?

He invaded his wife’s space and pressed for more information eagerly. "The president? Is it Hades? Where would he go off to in this acid rain?

This is what happens when you marry a woman that is irresponsible." He looked into his wife’s eyes. "You would never let me go out in acid rain. That babysitter should have stopped him from going."

He leaned away from Tracy, frowning. "Unless this was an unexpected situation, something to do with life and death or a treasure. Whatever it is it has to be of great importance. If only I had the means to follow them out and see what they were up to."

He rubbed his hands, clearly challenged. Unlike those at Fortress Four he had no means of driving around in the acid rain.

Tracy’s eyes lit up like a great idea popped into her head. "This is it! If Hades really is not at that base, we can go there now and bring Bob back. We just have to say that he is already aware of this and in support of it." She made a suggestion.

"And how are we supposed to go over there, honey? It’s not like we can sail on a boat." Jon answered.

"Then come up with another suggestion." Tracy snapped at him. "If we cannot take a boat, maybe we can fly over the wall."

Jon sighed. His wife was pretty but not very intelligent. To fly over the wall, they needed a helicopter that would not be eaten by the acid rain. Also, they would need to get rid of the bubble first and when that happened, they would be vulnerable to those huge birds that kept appearing outside the wall.

One thing was for sure, he had to get his hands on of those formidable vehicles at Fortress four.

It was the only way he could up with Hades.

Also, if his base was compromised, having an upgraded vehicle would not be such a bad thing.