Path of the Hunters [PART 3]

He returned the smile. "Merci." He kissed her gently.

She kissed back, listening to their children coo and gurgle. They would become very used to this, if they weren't already.

He smiled softly. "When this is all over, how about we take our honeymoon a little early?"

Aurélie laughed, licking his cheek. "Bonne idée."

"Thought so. We're gonna have to be in top-form, to bring up these two."

Smiling, she nuzzled him. "Agreed."

He looked down at his daughter, smiled broadly. "...Wow. It actually just dawned on me. I'm a daddy..." He chuckled softly, soaking it in, Aurora cooing in his arms.

"Oui. It's rather amazing..." She cuddled her son, smiling at the sounds he made.

"It just feels so weird. Not once did I ever call my father anything endearing. Never really pictured myself becoming one. Now, though, it feels so right..."

She inhaled the pup's scent, still smiling. "I never expected to be a mother. Under any circumstance. I would not change this for the world."

"That makes two of us," he said, nuzzling the pup in his arms.

After a moment of thought, Aurélie bathed Dart's face with her tongue, amused by his gurgling and soft attempts at barking. "Mon fils," she cooed.

"My baby girl," he said softly, Aurora grabbing at his cheeks. "I'm gonna miss you two, while we're off savin' our tails."

"And, ultimately, theirs," she pointed out, nuzzling Dart.

He nodded. "There's a lot ridin' on this. I hope Cross and the others have a good plan for this."

"Mm... Per'aps we should find out." She shifted Dart and he gurgles happily, as if knowing they were going to go somewhere. "'Opefully, 'er location will be simple to ascertain."

He looked upwards in thought. "Somehow, I think I know where she is."

"Do you?"

He shook his head. "It's just a vague theory. When I managed to scrape up those kill orders on Crescent's parents, I traced their meeting spot to an old cathedral on the outskirts of Paris. Maybe..."

The dog frowned. "If they 'ave taken 'er to Paris, our chances of saving her are as low as if we 'ad gone last night."

"Well, hopefully, that's not the case, since they have home-field advantage. Hmm... I used to hear rumors about some underground embassy somewhere outside the city, made for shady characters and groups, like our families."

"It is not a rumor, mon coeur. I 'ave taken use of that embassy before."

He nodded. "Then that's our best bet." Aurora gurgled in his arms, as if agreeing with him.

She nodded, reaching out a hand to scratch Aurora behind the ear. "We shall see. For now, let's find out if anyone else is awake."

"If anyone is, it's Cross." He shifted his daughter in his arms, smiling at her. "Let's get cleaned up, and start taking a look around."