Peter Talbot left the Intensive Care Unit's Waiting Room at San Diego General and walked across the hallway to the nearby Men's Room.
It was not feasible to lock the outer door behind him, but the werelion still in his human form took a quick sniff to confirm at least he was alone in the small room for the moment.
Positioning himself in a corner near the last hand basin so he could keep an eye on the entrance in case anyone needed to use the facilities, Peter returned his father's phone call from earlier.*
"My end is about as secure as it can be at the moment, considering I'm returning your call from a bathroom," Peter announced after saying hello.
"How are things down there?" Leon Talbot asked, skipping any greeting.
"Not as bad as they could be, but not as good as we'd like them to be," answered his son, before explaining his fiance's mother was back in surgery to drain excess fluid from putting additional pressure upon Monica Yuletide's spine. "Even with that removed, it's still unknown how much, if any use of her legs she'll eventually regain."
"Give it time son. Give it time," was all Leon could say.
"That's what I have been thinking about dad," Peter replied, instead of using the more formal term Father like he usually did. "Given who we are... one in our position does take a rather long view of life. Do you know how the concept of commission real estate sales works?"
"I have a basic idea of commission sales in general. Why?"
"In Monica's case it will be almost at least a year, if not longer, before she can hope to return to work in any capacity, let alone as a sales agent. By all accounts, she was her real estate agency's best before the accident. Her employer should be legally bound to hold a position for her until she's able to resume working, but even then..."
"What are you getting at son?" asked Leon.
"I was wondering if we should move Monica and her fiance to Moon Lake," replied Peter.
The phone was silent for a moment before Leon said, "While we consider family precious, let alone will do anything to protect our own, as both your father and in my more formal position," he added, referring to being the werelion King of Moon Lake, "I will have to say it's too soon to consider your suggestion at the moment. I'm not saying no to the possibility of ever doing it. Just not right now. Besides, there isn't really much of a real estate market here in Moon Lake as it is."
"I understand. I admit that I haven't thought it all through, but you know how I feel about Karen, and to see her in such emotional pain over how her mother is..."
"How is she doing?"
"As emotionally distraught as you can imagine. After all, what if it was you concerned about mom? Or me?"
Leon didn't hesitate to answer. "I'd move Heaven and Earth, fighting any foe I had to along the way, to make sure you were all right."
"That is how I feel about Karen. She is a part of me and I her, even if we haven't walked down the aisle yet, or..." Peter left that last part unfinished, but his father knew he was referring to the fact that Peter had yet to induct Karen into were society as his lioness.
"I know son. Yet I have to ask this question. What about Monica, let alone this fiance of hers you told me about?"
"Joanne Howard? What about them?"
"How do you think they would feel about Moon Lake, let alone its citizens?" asked his father, referring to its were population.
Peter had to stop and think about that for a moment before saying, "I honestly don't know."
"If they're as in love as you are with Karen, then you won't be able to relocate one without the other. Now Karen becoming who she wants to be will cover the local rules and regulations," said Leon, referring to the town's Mandatory Were Law(*2), "but how will the ladies react to the rules, let alone why they exist?"
"I don't know," admitted the younger Talbot. "Yet once the Town Council accomplishes its agenda, would not that become a moot point?" Peter asked, referring to their idea of creating a plan to reveal were existence to the world without revealing Moon Lake's role as a were sanctuary in the process.
"Maybe. But the Council is not scheduled to meet again to discuss the matter until Wednesday, and there is already much unrest in town just from the fact that they are even considering the idea," revealed Leon. "Besides not knowing how long it will take them to actually develop any plan, I hesitate to predict how the actual meeting will go, let alone what might happen if such a plan is enacted."
"I understand. Which is why I only suggested relocating them and nothing else," replied Peter, not mentioning Karen wanting to know if they could make her mother a were to help with her healing.
"I will have to see if we have any... assets down there that can help out Monica and her lady, but I was surprised to hear about her doctor," said Leon, referring to the fact Moria Alexander turned out to be a weretigress.
"The fact that our... club members outside of town don't stay in contact with each other is detrimental to our cause in situations like this," Peter pointed out.
"Agreed, but it has also helped keep everyone safe before now too," Leon reminded him.
"Is the family well?"
"As well as can be expected at the moment. You?"
"The same, considering the circumstances. Sometimes I feel so helpless..." confessed Peter.
"There is much we can and cannot do. The most important of which is knowing when to step aside and let others more capable than ourselves handle a situation," advised his father. "When will you and Karen be returning?"
"Tomorrow night at the earliest. She wants to wait until morning to find out how Monica is after this operation."
"Understandable. Give me a call whenever you two are ready and I shall make your return preparations."
"Thank you dad. I shall repay you for the travel expenses as soon as I can," promised his son.
"Don't make any promises you can't keep Peter, for I seriously doubt this shall be your only trip to San Diego before Monica is anywhere near her old self again. But if you do feel indebted to me, your mother and I would love to become grandparents sometime between Karen graduating college and before your tenth wedding anniversary."
"I shall see what can be arranged," Peter said with a smile on his face before ending the call.
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*At the beginning of our recent episode ♫Getting To Know You♫
*2) Where one member of each new family must join were society so that everyone shares the burden in protecting the town's secrets.—tmw.