Avery giggled. "Thanks Kari." He turned toward the door and paused, looking at Law. "Will you be around later? I can do some more tests for you."
Law smiled and handed up a small charm. Avery's face brightened, and he clipped it on his belt. "I think I got the shoes worked out. Shift a few times and let me know."
"Will do!" Avery gave Law a mock salute and hurried out of the office. Kari knew that he was rushing so that he could catch the afternoon bus.
Kari looked down at the floor. She was glad she didn't like much on her desk, preferring an open workspace, so there wasn't much to pick up. She bent down and started to pick up her calendar, phone, desk blotter, and pen cup. Law knelt down beside her, picking up her scattered pens.
"So why are you really here?" she asked.
Law didn't say anything for a moment. One by one, he picked up her pens and dropped them in the cup before placing the cup on her desk. When they both stood, he looked down at her, his forehead creased with worry.
Kari put the rest of her things down. "It cannot be that bad," she teased. When he didn't respond, she frowned. "Can it?"
Law took a deep breath. "You know I travel a bit, taking missions." She nodded, and he continued. "I get updates from certain active warriors in the pillar cities. They told me to get anyone that I cared about to a pillar city. Outside of my squad and my family, you and Avery are the only people I care about. It's not safe for either of you to be on your own."
"But I have always taken care of myself; that has not been an issue before now," she pointed out.
"Things have changed."
"You are not referring to the notice that Prince Magnus sent out are you?"
Law nodded. "That's the one. There are things going on that they are not telling everyone. It's not safe for you to be by yourself without the protection of a larger family unit, like a coven. So I'm evacuating you and Avery to Noctem Falls. They are taking in another batch of refugees the day after tomorrow."
Kari felt a ball of ice start to form in her stomach. She shook her head. "No way. No way in hell am I going to Noctem Falls! You know how I feel about their discrimination against anyone who was not born five thousand years ago. Ageism. That is what it is: ageism!"
Law rubbed the back of his neck. "I would send you to Lycaonia, but time is of the essence. Noctem Falls is closer."
Kari shook her head again. "No Law, no way. I have worked too hard for too long to establish myself. I have finally got everything up and running; there is no way I can just abandon everything because of some sort of dictate from Prince Magnus."
"Kari, people are dying. Vampires, shifters, paranormals across the country are being murdered." Law's voice was quiet but firm.
Kari blinked. "Why have they not told us? If it is that bad, should there not have been... I do not know, one of those emergency broadcast system alerts or something?"
Law looked at her, sadness and pain filling his eyes. "Kari, paranormals have grown so much since the Great War. There has been no fighting or territory disputes; because of that and our long life span, our population has experienced a boom over the past couple hundred years. The elders that were wiped out in the Great War have been replaced by the younger generations."
The weight of his words was starting to sink in. She collapsed into her chair. "The pillar cities are not big enough, are they?" she whispered in horror.
Law shook his head. "No, they're not. I don't think any of the Founding Families realized how much we would grow. That's why they're evacuating small pockets of people, anyone who would be easy pickings for these guys. I want you to go. Even the large families that are sticking together have more protection than you do."
Kari stared down at her desk. "I just got my business going. Everything is finally coming together. I cannot stop now."
Law smirked. "Don't tell me you can't run this business from that little laptop of yours; I know better. Besides, Tom runs most of the day-to-day operations here. You're more hands on with training and getting new accounts."
Kari pursed her lips. "Maybe," she admitted begrudgingly. She gasped. "What about Avery? He needs to come with me. He is a shifter; would he be welcome? You know he does not do well with large groups."
"The first wave of refugees that went to Noctem Falls was a town of wolf shifters. I don't think Avery being a shifter will be an issue. Prince Magnus is more open-minded than most vampires half his age."
Kari exhaled. "Is Noctem Falls my only choice?"
Law gave her a wolfish grin. "Or you can move in with me and the guys," he offered.