Sadik watched as the two children were building a sand castle. The sand here had more stones in it than one near the ocean, and so, they were having trouble. Sadik flipped the steaks and sprinkled them with barbecue souse.

“And you baked the bread yourself, Emilia?” Asked Audrey, eyeing the bread with appreciation.

“I don’t do any of them fake breads. Ones with sugar and God knows how many chemicals. If it hadn’t been kneed by me, I won’t eat it. And neither will my grandson. I have been teaching Nikola how to make bread. He is better at it than Sadik,” Sadik grinned at being chewed up.

“I can make meat. Which is something a man should do,” Nikola smiled sweetly, too sweetly, and Sadik knew he had said something wrong.

“And what am I, Sadik?” Sadik’s smile fell. Oh, he hadn’t wanted to make a dig at Nikola’s masculinity. But it had certainly come off that way. He smiled sheepishly.

“I leave my punishment in your capable hands,” of Sadik was lucky, he might even like it. Nikola had blindfolded him one more time, on the second night of the zoo tours. They had been lucky that they had been both too tired last night, or Emilia would have reconsidered letting them be a part of her family.

“Washing duty at the soup kitchen. Until all dishes are done,” Nikola grinned evilly and then added. “After the dinner crowd.”

Because most of the people who visited were trying to find a job, they spend most of their day outside and couldn’t clock in for anything but dinner. So, the dinner crowd was the busiest one. 

“If you feel that it is for the best,” Sadik bowed his head and made sure he looked as apologetic as he could be. Nikola nodded, and his eyes found the children again.

“What soup kitchen?” Audrey was looking between the two men.

“There is one next to the church and there is one next to the mosque. We slave away there when we sin. All Niki’s idea,” Sadik looked at Nikola, who was still looking at the children and not paying the conversation any attention.

“Oh, well, that sounds convenient for the two of you. My priest has me say prayers. And we don’t have a soup kitchen next to the church,” Sadik nodded. Audrey had a cross around her neck, but it was the Catholic one. Sadik supposed that the equality groups would have a blast with them. All very diverse. All getting along.

“I am certain that if you want to help out, father Sergei won’t send you away,” said Nikola and Audrey turned to look at him.

“That would be nice. I think I can take Jake with me next Sunday. I will go to the sermon and then swing by…which is your church?” That was an excellent question, seeing as in the town there were about five churches, two of the Catholic.

“The Orthodox church. At Fir road,” Audrey rose her eyebrows.

“Ah, I thought. Never mind. I would be happy to go there,” Nikola smiled and Sadik checked Audrey’s mind. She was thinking how Nikola was understanding and was lamenting how she should have met him sooner. Sadik took Nikola’s arm and tugged him to the side.

“Audrey has the hots for you, I don’t like it,” Nikola sighed. He checked to see if Audrey was looking at them, but she was speaking with Emilia.

“I don’t like it either. You are the only one I want. But she seems lonely, and Jake needs a friend. Eric likes him well enough…” they heard shouting from the children’s corner and both turned as one. Only Eric was at the lake’s shore. Jake was nowhere to be seen.

They ran to him and Audrey looked panicked at the water.

“Where is he? Where is my son?” Eric pointed at the water.

“He went in and didn’t come back up. I told him not to, but he pushed me to the side and ran,” Sadik was in the water when Eric finished the sentence. He could trust Nikola to keep Audrey to the shore. The least he wanted was for him to have to drag two people out of the water.

Said water was murky and only his heightened vampire senses helped him look around. He saw a body on the bottom and thanked Allah that the boy hadn’t gotten any further in.

Diving, he thought about how he would never forgive himself if the little rascal died. Nikola would be distraught. Audrey might press charges. He took the limp body and swam up. The boy didn’t begin coughing when they surfaced, and he worried.

Sadik swam to the shore and deposited Jake on the banks. He pressed his mouth to the boy’s and pressed two fingers around his nose. He breathed in. Nothing. Then, he pressed his hands on Jake’s chest for the heart massaged and repeated thirty times. Still nothing.

He heard Audrey crying and barely registered it. Nikola was saying something to her, but the only thing he could hear was the silence. He pressed his mouth to the boy’s mouth again, knowing too well that it might be too late.

The boy had been overconfident, and now, he was going to pay with his life. Sadik’s eyes found Nikola’s. Why wasn’t he doing anything? Was he going to let Jake die for a rule? He pleaded with his eyes and he saw Nikola nod, ever so slightly.

“Move to the side?” Audrey was on the ground now, and Sadik went to her.

“He is dead. My baby,” she wailed as she clutched at Sadik. A light enveloped the prone body of the boy. Audrey’s eyes were as big as saucers as Nikola bend down and breathed in the boy’s mouth.

Jake opened his eyes and began coughing out water. But Nikola fell down.

“What?” Audrey asked, then it registered to her that her son was alive, and she rushed to him. Sadik scooped up Nikola. His pulse was there, but only just. Emilia was calling an ambulance. Sadik hoped that Nikola would hold it together long enough for it to reach them. Once again, Sadik was convinced that they couldn’t live in the cottage.