Angie wakes up in the middle of the name in a cold sweat. She tries to catch her breath as she stares off into the darkness surrounding her. It took her a few seconds to remember where she was. She grabs her stuffed teddy bear dressed as a fireman and holds it close against her body.

She was still shaken from the memories of what had happened at her school. She gets out of bed after turning the lamp on her nightstand. She didn’t want to be by herself in her bedroom. She leaves her bedroom and heads toward Nora and Kelly’s bedroom. She’s a little hasten to open their bedroom door, but Nora and Kelly told her to come to them if she can’t sleep.

Angie walks into their bedroom and closes the bedroom door behind her. She walks over to their bed. She notices Nora open her eyes.

“Having nightmares. Angie?” Nora had taken Angie in after the bomb that went off at the high school where she was a teacher.

“Yes, ma’am.” Angie wonders if Nora isn’t going to let her sleep with them.

Nora moves the blanket aside to let Angie climb in. She scoots over some so she can lay with her and Kelly. She pats the bed sheet with her hand.

Angie climbs up on the bed and snuggles close to Nora. She felt safe being in bed with Nora and Kelly. She feels Nora cover her up with the blanket and wrap her arm around her. Nora reminded her of her mother when she was little.

Angie closes her eyes and feels Nora hold her tight against her body. She could smell the scented baby powder Nora wore. She closes her eyes and instantly falls asleep, snuggled against Nora.

When Angie woke up the next day, she was snuggled between Nora and Kelly. Somehow during the night, she ended up being sandwiched between the two women. Both of them had their arms resting on her, and they were facing her. Both women were still asleep, but she knew they would wake up if she moved. So, she just stays still resting between them.

She still had the teddy bear she was given when she was little. Her father was a firefighter that died while rescuing one of his men during a fire. Her mother died two days later after a guy rammed the ambulance her and her partner were in off the road.

They were heading towards the hospital with a young woman her boyfriend had shot. The man came from a side street and rammed the side of the ambulance, sending it down an embankment. Her mother had hit her head against the wall inside of the ambulance. Her partner and the young woman died from the ambulance rolling down the barrier.

Her mother had been friends with Nora and had put her in her will. Should something happen to her, Nora gets custody of her? Her mother trusted Nora and Kelly to bring her up.

The only girl that was still living with Nora and Kelly was Daiyu. Carol had moved in with Bobbi and was living together. Tiffany was living with her boyfriend. He was a mechanic that worked on the big rigs and adored little Nora Maria. Melody graduated high school early and was attending art school at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA, and living in the dorms. She had won a full scholarship for several art pieces she did.

Ginger had been transferred from California to Fort Benning, Georgia. She broke up with her old boyfriend from high school because he had met someone else and got her pregnant. Ginger didn’t mind and understood that the two of them were drifting apart, and she could never give him what he wanted.

Ginger started dating an army ranger stationed at Fort Benning. She stops by the house twice a month since she is stationed nearby. She sometimes brings her boyfriend when he isn’t busy with his friends. He and his friends were armature race car drivers.

Angie feels Nora get up and stumble towards the bathroom. When she comes out, Kelly stumbles towards the bathroom and does her morning business. She smiles when Nora sits down on the side of the bed. She sits up, wraps her arms around Nora’s back, and hugs her.

Nora feels Angie’s arms hold her from behind and feel Angie press her face against her back. A smile forms on Nora’s face. She pats Angie’s tiny hand, being careful of her bandaged one.

“How are you feeling, sweetie?” Nora looks in the mirror mounted on the dresser next to the bed. She could see Angie behind her.

“I’m okay, mom. I just had a nightmare from what happened at school.” Angie had been nearby when a pipe bomb had gone off in school.

She got caught at the edge of the explosion. The right-hand side of her body had been hit by shrapnel. Her right arm and all of the right side of her chest. Even her right leg had shrapnel in it. The doctors had removed over eighty pieces of shrapnel from her body. She still had a hard time hearing anything because of the bomb going off so close.

“I know what you mean, sweetie. I still get flashbacks from being shot.” Nora sometimes wakes up in the middle of the night from nightmares she had from the gunshots she received while protecting Chris.

Even Kelly had nightmares of the men who tried to kill her. They had tried running Kelly into a parked car. They tried the same trick with Nora but ended up being her victim.

She knew even Carol had flashbacks of the guy that tried killing her. Even though they caught the person who burned down the law office, she worked there. Kelly is still nervous that he might come back.

Kelly walks out of the bathroom and notices Angie hugging Nora from behind. She walks over to her side of the bed, wraps her arms around Angie, and holds her. She knows Angie has experienced a lot in the last few months.

“I think we should go out for breakfast this morning.” Kelly looks toward Nora while holding Angie.

“I think that’s a wonderful idea. I’ll go and wake up Daiyu.” Nora knew Daiyu wasn’t a morning person. She had to wake her up every morning for school.

“And I’ll make sure this munchkin gets dressed.” Kelly tickles Angie.

Angie squirms in Kelly’s arms as she tickles her. She tried to escape Kelly’s arms but couldn’t. Kelly had her and wasn’t letting her go.

Nora smiles as she stands up. She loved watching her wife tease their daughters. She grabs her house robe and walks out of the bedroom and towards Daiyu’s bedroom.

“Uncle, uncle!” Angie was ready to pee her panties.

A smile appears on Kelly’s face. She lets go of Angie and kisses her forehead.

“Go and get dressed, young lady.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Angie gets off the bed and picks up her teddy bear.

She walks out of the main bedroom and to her bedroom. It was Carol’s old bedroom. She was sharing the room for a while before Carol moved out. She takes her nightgown off and grabs a sleeveless dress from the closet. She didn’t need to wear a slip with the dress.

She doesn’t mind people seeing her scars. She just wished one part of her body had been injured. She hated it and wanted it gone. She puts the dress on and brushes her hair out. She needed to come up with a style that was just her.

Once her hair is brushed and styled the best she could. She puts on some light make-up and puts on her glasses. She wasn’t blind without them, but she did need them to read.

Nora walks into Daiyu’s bedroom and gently shakes her shoulder. She had her head covered up by her blanket and her legs sticking out from the blanket, barely covering her waist and legs.

“Come on, sweetie, it’s time to get up.” Nora spots the scar that ran the length of Daiyu’s leg.

Daiyu’s father had done more damage to her than they had known. Daiyu’s leg bones had been shattered in several places, and the doctor had to cut Daiyu’s leg and put metal braces on the outside of her leg bones. The staples used to close the wound had just come out a few days ago.

“I don’t want to.” Daiyu stayed up late last night after she was sent to bed.

“Well, if you don’t want to go out for breakfast, with me, Kelly and Angie. I’ll let them know.” Nora smiles as she turns to leave the bedroom.

Daiyu kicks the cover off her body and nearly falls out of bed. She likes going out for breakfast. She had to be careful because of her leg.

Nora just smirks as she leaves Daiyu’s bedroom. She knew Daiyu liked going out for breakfast. She walks back to her bedroom to get ready herself.

By the time everyone was ready to go. Nora looks at her two new girls and smile. Angie looked like a preteen girl. No matter how she dressed,
she always looked like she was younger than she was. As for Daiyu, she looked like a Japanese school girl.

Both girls wore the same style of dress but in different colors. Nora was wearing a sleeveless top with dress slacks and two-inch heels. Kelly was wearing a tight pair of faded blue jeans. It showed off her hips and ass. She was wearing a very top like Nora was but in a different color. Her breasts stuck out more than Nora’s. she was wearing the same type of heels as Nora’s.

They take Kelly’s new convertible. The weather was excellent, and Kelly wanted to drive with the top down. She backs out of the driveway and drives toward A new restaurant that had just opened up. The place had an excellent breakfast buffet.

The girls enjoyed the wind blowing through their hair as they drove towards the restaurant. When a song starts playing on the radio, Daiyu and Angie start singing. A smirk appears on Kelly’s and Nora’s faces. They love hearing their girls sing.

Kelly pulls into the parking lot of the restaurant. They noticed that the place was named Uptown Breakfast. They served breakfast and lunch only. Kelly turns the car off.

“Alright, girls, let’s go and get some food.”

All four women walked into the restaurant, and they were busy. Nora spotted three of her students working in the place. One of them was the hostess “Maria, how has your summer been?”

Maria was surprised when Mrs. Midnight and her family walked into the restaurant. Everyone in school knew Mrs. Midnight was a lesbian and took in girls that have been abused or thrown out of their homes.

“Busy, Mrs. Midnight. Is this your and your family’s first time here?” Maria hasn’t seen Mrs. Midnight in the restaurant before.

“Yes, it is.” Nora knew Maria worked hard at school.

“Is this all in your party?” Maria grabs four menus.

“Yes, it is, Maria.”

“If you’ll follow me, please.” Maria escorts Nora and her family over to a corner booth.

Maria watches as everyone sits down. She hands each person a menu.

“Your waitress will be with you in a little bit.” Maria smiles at Nora and her family.

“Thank you, Maria.” Nora smiles back at her former student.

“Is she one of your students, mom?” Daiyu looks at Nora for an answer.

“Yes, she was in my fourth bell government class. Now, she’ll be taking world history with Mr. Larson.” Nora liked the way Mr. Larson taught.

“Do you enjoy being a teacher, mom?” Angie looks at Nora to watch her expression.

“Actually, yes, I do. It allows me to form young minds and let them hear how our government works. Although, lately, I wonder if any of the senators, congresswomen, or congressmen really know how the government works.” Nora has never been the political type of person.

She didn’t have a party she favored. She voted on the person whose morals aligned with how she believed. She didn’t care about party politics.

Nora and Kelly smiled as their waitress approached them. Nora recognized the young lady right away. She had her two years ago in her government class. She was a junior now if Nora remembered right.

“Have you decided what you want to order or need a few more minutes?” Gloria looks at the two women and the young girls with them. One of them reminded her of someone she knew, but she couldn’t place the face.

“We’re ready, Gloria. We would like the breakfast buffet and two glasses of milk and two small glasses of orange juice.” Nora watched Gloria as she spoke.

When Gloria hears the familiar voice, she stopped writing and looks at Nora. She was surprised to see Mrs. Midnight in the restaurant. She looks at Nora “sorry for not recognizing you right away, Mrs. Midnight.”

“It’s okay, Gloria. It’s been two years since you had my class. If you don’t mind me asking, how many of you work at the restaurant?” Nora was curious.

Gloria had to think for a minute. She counted everyone up in her head.

“At least twelve of us work here, Mrs. Midnight. Mr. Collins believes in giving high school and former students a chance.” Gloria knew she was lucky to get a waitress job.

“Does he treat you well, Gloria?” Nora knew most restaurant managers tend to overwork most teenage workers.

“Oh! He treats us wonderful, Mrs. Midnight. He’s a nice fellow to work for.” Gloria liked Mr. Collins.

“That’s good to hear.” Nora was pleased to hear that.

Her mother was a restaurant owner and knew what working for a family was like. That was why she never worked at her mother’s restaurant. Her cousin did and liked it a lot. Her mother was planning on leaving the restaurant to her cousin, should she ever decide to retire.

“I’ll bring over some plates and silverware to your table. There’s a coffee bar, Mrs. Midnight.”

“Thank you, Gloria.” Nora had already spotted the coffee bar.

Gloria leaves and returns with a stack of plates and individually wrapped silverware. She places the dishes in the center of the table and silverware at each place mat.

“I’ll bring your milk and juice to your table.” Gloria smiles and walks off.

“Thank you, Gloria.” Nora was going to leave a nice tip for Gloria.

Once Gloria walks away, Kelly looks at Daiyu and Angie “alright, ladies. Let’s go and get you some food.”

“Okay.” Both girls get up and walk with Kelly to the buffet.

Nora follows behind her girls and wife. She helps Angie select what she wants to eat. Kelly helps Daiyu with what she wants to eat. The girls head back to the table while Kelly and Nora select what they want to eat. Nora fixes herself and Kelly cups of coffee. Kelly took Nora’s plate to the table so that Nora could carry two cups of coffee.

Nora sits back down at the table and places Kelly’s coffee before her plate.

“Thanks, sweetie.” Kelly smiles at Nora.

“You’re welcome.” Nora returns the smile.

Daiyu and Angie go back to the buffet several times, trying different things. Nora and Kelly go back twice. Nora was set in her ways and knew what she liked. The kids thought she was crazy when she mixed a sunny side cooked egg with her grits.

There was a lady up at the buffet that cooked your eggs like you like them. So, Kelly got a Western omelet. The only Spanish omelet Kelly ever ate were the ones made by Nora or by Nora’s mother. She loved how they made them.

Gloria was attentive to them. She refilled the girl’s milk glasses and brought rolls over to them. She made sure they had everything they needed.

When Nora and her family were leaving. She leaves a twenty-dollar bill for Gloria. She knew it was more than you were supposed to leave, but Nora knew waiters and waitresses made their money on tips.

Daiyu and Angie were stuff. They had tried several different things from the buffet. Kelly noticed how stuffed the girls were “I think we should walk breakfast off some. What do you think, Nora?” Kelly looks at her wife.

“A little walk in the park, won’t do us any harm.” Nora looks at the girls and smiles at them.

Kelly drives to the city park and parks her convertible. She noticed there were a few cars already there. They all get out and start following the sidewalk into the park. There was a crowd gathering around some painted bronze fellows doing some tricks. They looked like they were statues.

As they continued to walk into the park, they passed two actors dressed as characters from Shakespeare. They were putting on a little show. Nora and Kelly stop to watch them. Both women love the arts and try to go to the local theater whenever they have a show going on.

They clap when the actors are done with a scene. Kelly pulls out a few dollars and drops them in a tin can that had been set up for tips and donations. The girls run ahead of Nora and Kelly to watch some older teenagers doing tricks and gymnastic moves.

They were dressed in old-style circus clothes. The girls stop to watch them perform. Nora and Kelly catch up with them and watches the performance as well. Nora looks at the expressions on Angie and Daiyu’s faces as they watch the people perform. She was pleased that the girls were enjoying themselves.

“Ladies and gentlemen, can I please have your attention?”

Everyone hears the words echoing around behind them, but no one spots anything. A cloud of pinkest smoke spews from the ground and fills a four-by-four circle. When it dissipates, a young woman with bright pink straight hair that comes just down below her shoulders, dress in a black tuxedo leotard and black stocking covering her legs. She was wearing a black dovetail suit jacket and a tall black top hat.

She coughs as a small cloud of pink smoke flows from her mouth. A smile appears on her youthful-looking face. There was mischief in her eyes as a playful smile appeared on her face.

“I am Circe and I am here today to entertain you with feats of magic that haven’t been seen for centuries.” Circe causes the air above her to sparkle as her name appears.

The girls are impressed as they watch Circe’s name disappear. They have only seen magic tricks on television like on America Got Talent.

“Now, watch carefully as I pull a rabbit out of my hat.” Circe takes her top hat off and reaches her hand inside.

The crowd watches as she puts half of her forearm inside her top hat. She was holding it in mid-air with just one hand.

“Now, where is Harvey?” Circe reaches deeper inside her hat, making half her right arm disappear inside the hat.

A medium size blue bunny appears behind Circe. He looks from behind her legs at the crowd.

“He’s behind you,” Daiyu yells at Circe.

Circe looks at Daiyu when she yells at her. She looks at the oriental girl and the light brown hair girl standing next to her “are you sure he’s behind me?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Circe turns around to look for her rabbit but doesn’t see him. “Are you sure he’s here?” Circe had her back to the crowd.

Harvey had hopped around when Circe turned and was sitting behind her feet.

“Turn around. He’s down by your feet.” Angie watches as the bunny hops behind Circe as she turns again.

Circe looks down at her feet but doesn’t see him. She looks back up at the crowd of children that had made their way towards the front “are you sure he’s by my feet?”

All the kids nod their heads yes.

“Hhhmm, now where can that wascawwy wabbit, be!”

Every time Circe turns, the rabbit turns with her. Circe could tell the kids were loving her little joke. She turns back around quickly and catches the rabbit “I got you now, you wascawwy wabbit.”

Circe picks her rabbit up and looks at him. Her top hat was still floating in mid-air where she left it. She notices the kids and adults gather to watch her wondering how her hat did that.

“Now, ladies and gentlemen. Now that I have Harvey. Who wants to see Harvey float?” Circe pets Harvey.

“Rabbits can’t float?” A young man standing next to Angie speaks out.

“Are you sure, young man?” Circe had let go of Harvey and he was still floating where she had been petting him.

Circe was getting ooohs and aah's from the crowd as Harvey floats before them. The crowd watches as Harvey hops in mid-air. He finally jumps back into the top hat that was still floating. When he hops into the top hat. Several carrots pop out and fall back down into the hat.

Circe gets several applause for that trick. She grabs her hat and sticks her hand back into it and pulls out a marble. She says some words under her breath as she channels the magical energies into the marble. She tosses it into the air as it starts getting bigger.

The marble grows to the size of a huge beach ball. She stands up on the marble in her three-inch heels and causes it to roll forward and backwards. She does a one-hand stand on it as it moves around on its own.

“She’s good, Nora.” Kelly was impressed with Circe as she performs.

“She really is.” Nora knew who Circe really was.

It’s been almost ten years since she last saw her. The last time she saw Circe was in Europe at a conference. Circe had tried to kill the Ambassador of Germany. Nora had recently been assigned to protect him. She wonders what Circe was doing in the United States now?

Circe spots Nora Midnight and smiles at her. She wonders who the other woman was standing next to Nora. She knew Nora was a lesbian and tried unsuccessfully to seduce her when she was guarding the German ambassador. She also knew she had been lucky that Nora hadn’t killed her either.

It was because of that confrontation with Nora that she changed her life around. Her superiors hadn’t liked it and even tried to kill her because of her change of heart. The thing was, she was happier than she has ever been. The government she once served, took her from her folks when
she was little and raised her to seduce men and kill them. Sometimes, she would seduce women as well and extract as much information form them, before poisoning them or leaving them alive for further information extraction.

Circe continues her performance for a little bit longer doing tricks no one has ever seen. She tries to get Nora to come out and let her hypnotize her, but Nora refuses. Daiyu volunteers to be hypnotized. A smile appears on Circe’s face as she hypnotizes Daiyu to believe she is a kitten and gets her to purr and mew. She even gives Daiyu a ball of yarn to play with.

After some fun with Daiyu, Circe snaps Daiyu out of the hypnotic Daiyu was put in. Daiyu looks at everyone confused because she couldn’t remember anything. Angie had recorded everything to tease her later.

“Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. If you would be so kind to donate whatever you feel is right for the show in this magical bean can.” Circe tosses a few beans into the can and a small tree sprout form the can.

Nora, and Kelly wait until the crowd leave, before approaching Circe. Nora looks at Circe and could tell she has changed since the last time she saw her. “I like your new look.”

Circe smiles at Nora “it keeps me out of trouble, Nora.”

“I see. So, what brings you to Memphis, Tenn.?” Nora was curious.

“I’m thinking about settling here. I like the environment and the people. California and New York are too fast pace for me.” Circe had put her top hat back on. It shrinks down in size to fit her head better.

“How did you do that?” Angie was curious.

“And who are you, my beautiful little girl?” Circe looks at Angie.

“This is our daughter Angie Elizabeth Midnight and our other daughter Daiyu Ann Midnight. This is my wife, Kelly Jenks Midnight. Girls, I would like you to meet an old friend.” Nora wasn’t sure what name Circe was going by these days.

“Circe Blackwood.” She saw the look on Nora’s face.

“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Blackwood. How do you know my wife?” Kelly was curious.

“We traveled in the same circles in Europe.” Circe couldn’t tell Nora’s wife the truth about her. Besides, she wasn’t that person anymore.
“So, you used to help foreign dignitaries?” Kelly watches Circe’s facial expression.

A smile appears on her face “you could say something like that.”

Kelly knew that could mean several different things. She wonders what Circe did in Europe.

“So, what brings you out here performing in the park today, Circe?” Nora wonders if Circe was looking for anyone.

“The city of Memphis thought it would be good for families to meet some of the local entertainers that work and perform here in Memphis. I’m also helping to raise funds for the local theater troupe to fund a new production they have put together.”

“Well, in that case.” Nora takes a couple of hundreds she carries with her and drops them in the can.

When Angie went over to look inside the can, it was empty. She looks at Circe “where did the money go?”

“What? There’s no money in there?” Circe walks over and picks the can up, and shakes it.

A rattling sound comes from the can. She closes one eye and looks inside the can again but sees nothing. She reaches her hand inside the can. She stops at her elbow and starts pulling her hand out. She had a few bills in her hand. She looks at Angie “here it is.”

“How did you do that?” Angie was curious because the can was empty, and she saw Circe put her hand up to her elbow in the can.

Circe kneels in front of Angie. She stares into Angie’s hazel eyes “magic, my dear child. Magic.” A smile appears on her face as she stands up.

“That wasn’t very helpful.” Angie looks at Circe with a disbelief look on her face.

“Kid, it’s magic.” Circe was serious when she said it.

“You’ll have to tell us more, Circe. How about over dinner tonight?” Kelly wanted to hear more.

“Okay.” Circe has never been to Nora’s place, except when she was in Germany.

“Behave yourself, Circe.” Nora knew Circe could be a handful.

“I promise to be on my best behavior. Here’s my card.” As she waves her hand and a business card appears in it. She hands the card to Kelly.

Kelly accepts it. She looks down at the writing on the card and notices it shimmers when she tints the card.

“Send me the address and time. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have more people to perform for.” Circe winks at the girls and walks off to entertain some more people.

“Come on, kids, let’s continue our walk.” Nora led the girls around the park.

Daiyu and Angie run ahead of their mothers to watch another act. While watching the show, Kelly stops Nora and looks into her eyes “who is Circe?”

“She’s a former Russian Swallow.” Nora looks into Kelly’s eyes.

“A Russian Swallow? What’s a Russian Swallow?” Kelly has never heard the term before.

“The Russians had a program where they would talented men and women and trained them in the art of espionage and assassination. They use their bodies to entrap you and get as much information from you as they can or turn you. Sometimes, once they have the information, they will kill you. Circe was one of their best agents until she came after me. Thanks to the training I received from Cheshire, I defeated her. I would have blown her head off until I realized she was a pawn like I was. I gave her a choice, either to live and get out of her life, or I would put a bullet through her skull. She wanted to live.”

“How did you know she would want to live?” Kelly was curious.

“Because I slept with her. During the night, she would have nightmares of what was done to her to make her Swallow. She was taken from her family and raised along with several other women. There were scars on her body from the punishments she would receive for failing what she was taught.” Nora could remember Circe’s body.

“You slept with her? How many women before me did you sleep with?” Kelly was curious.

“You’re the third woman I have slept with. And the only one I have ever wanted to marry.” Nora places a kiss on Kelly’s lips.

Kelly returns Nora’s kiss. She looks into Nora’s brown eyes “why didn’t you fall for Circe’s charm?”

“You forget who taught me to be a killer. Sex and charm are a female agent’s number one tool. Men think with their egos and dicks. I also noticed the training Circe had and went along with it.”

“I wonder what you were like before Cheshire and the CIA got a hold of you?”

“Naive and stupid at times. There was a lot I didn’t know about life because my parents shielded me from it. Plus, I was raised around a bunch of white bread white people. People who didn’t know how bad this world can be or how good it could be.” Nora knew she missed out on a lot in high school. However, she always wanted to be a DSS agent and worked hard to achieve that goal.

For the rest of the day, Nora and their family explore the different acts and performances in the park. There were vendors and food trucks on the other side of the park. They stop and have lunch at two different ones. Daiyu and Angie wanted tacos and burritos. Nora and Kelly wanted to try some Hawaiian food.

So, Nora and Kelly watched as the girls got what they wanted. Nora and Kelly got what they wanted. They sit at one of the tables that the city had set up for the citizens to use. Nora notices the vendor was giving the performers free food.

“That is nice of them.” Kelly saw it too.

“It is.”

“So, what do you want to do for dinner with Circe?” Kelly looks at Nora.

“I’m thinking of something simple and easy to make.” Nora knew what type of food Circe used to like.

On their way home, Kelly stops at the grocery store so Nora can buy a few items for dinner that night. The girls go inside and pick out a few things they would like to have for lunch and snacks tomorrow. Kelly approves of their choices.

“You are such a big softy.” Nora looks at Kelly with a smirk on her face.

“I can’t help it. The girls normally don’t ask for much.” Kelly pays for everything. She and Nora have a joint account.

Twenty minutes later, they arrive home. The girls help take everything inside. Kelly sends Circe their address, dinner time, and phone number. Daiyu wants to help Nora with dinner.

Nora lets her. An idea starts forming in her head on what path she could set Daiyu. She’ll see how well Daiyu likes cooking and such. She’ll also ask her mother if Daiyu could sometimes work up at the restaurant with her.

By the time dinner is ready, Circe shows up. Kelly opens the door to let her in.

“I bring gifts.” Circe holds up two bottles of wine.

“Nice, please come in, Circe.” Kelly steps aside to let Circe into the house.

Circe stepped inside the house and loved how it was decorated. You could tell this house had a bunch of women living in it. She follows Kelly to the kitchen, where Circe sees the girls helping Nora.

“Circe brought wine, sweetie.” Kelly holds the bottles up.

“And one of them is non-alcoholic too. I figure the girls could join us in drinking.” Circe felt like the girls would like to be included with them.

“That was thoughtful of you, Circe.” Nora smiles at Circe.

“Whatever you cooked smells wonderful, Nora.” Circe loved whatever she was smelling.

“Thanks, but Daiyu did most of the work.” Nora let Daiyu cook the meal under her supervision.

“Well, whatever you two cooked, it smells heavenly.” Circe loved the aroma floating around in the kitchen.

Once everything was ready, Angie and Kelly served the food. They sit down at the dining room table to eat and talk. Kelly quizzes Circe about what Nora was like when she was working as a DSS agent. Even the girls were curious about how their adopted mother acted when she was younger.

An evil smile appears on Circe’s face as she tells some of the things she knew about Nora to Kelly and Nora’s daughters. She brings up an embarrassing situation Nora had with an Iranian representative that wouldn't leave Nora alone. Somehow that representative ended up tripping and hitting his face on the wall.

"I wonder how that happened?" Circe looks over at Nora.

"I have no idea what you are talking about." A smile appears on Nora's face when she says that.

"Right." Circe just smirks at Nora's comment.

"So, Circe. How long have you been performing magic?" Kelly was curious.

Circe had to think about it for a second. She was mentally counting how long it had been seen she left Russia. "Going on eight years now."

"Shortly after me and you last saw each other." Nora was surprised that Circe had left the Russian government.

"Trust me; it was an easy decision after what happened to me." Two operatives hunted down Circe. She trained within the Swallow program.

"What happened to you?' Angie was curious as she looked at Circe.

"I was involved in a serious accident, Angie. The accident showed me that what I was doing was the right occupation for me. I get more pleasure now making people happy." Circe didn't know how much Angie knew about her.

"You mom are alike. She became a school teacher." Daiyu looks fondly at her mother.

That raised an eyebrow on Circe's face "you're a school teacher now?'

"Yes, I teach high school students Spanish, German, and US Government." A smile appears on Nora's face. She enjoyed being a school teacher.

"I never pegged you as being the school teacher type." Circe was surprised.

"Neither had I, but after the way, my oldest daughter was being taught. I had to intervene and show the students the truth." Nora remembered the day she observed Ginger's US Government class.

"How many kids do you and Kelly have?" Circe was curious because she never thought of Nora as the mother type.

"We have six daughters, our oldest is a writer, and I have heard she will be directing her first film. Our next oldest daughter is in the Marines. Our other daughters either are at college or own their own business."

"You must be proud of them." Circe wonders if she'll ever meet the right person and make a good mother. She didn't know what family life was like.

"We are." Kelly noticed the sadness in Circe's voice.

"Circe, who did you learn your magic tricks from?" Nora was curious about who taught Circe.

A smile appears on Circe's face. "I was taught by an old woman named Agatha Payne. She was a retired entertainer that took me in and taught me about the world of magic. She also helped me with a few other problems as well."

Nora caught the tone of voice Circe used when she said that. Nora figured the GRU didn't like that one of their swallows left the family. They
probably sent agents after Circe to bring her back to torture or assassinate her. The thing is, Circe was one of their best, and only three other women that Nora knew about were in Circe's class.