“Stop panicking,” he says as the cup lowers down. “Can you pour me another one too? It’s going to be quite a day.”
“Don’t be an asshole, Eric. Can’t you see she’s already spiraling?” William scolds his brother before coming over to me and taking me by the arm. “Lila, everything is okay. Get your coffee and listen to what we have to say.”
“Where is everyone?” I ask, letting William lead me to the coffee pot. He takes a clean mug out of the cupboard, placing it into my hand before filling it and Eric’s.
“Link and Xavier are in their bedrooms. They spent most of the night checking on your grandma and cousins. We told them to get some sleep. The rest made themselves scarce. I think they all have errands today, and they are going to wrap up the auditions for you and make sure your rooms have been remodeled as requested. The ship is scheduled for departuretomorrow, and we need everything to be situated as soon as possible. Kinga and Andre are looking after the children. They are heading to a playground to let them run off some excess energy. I think they were going to build some snowmen and try their hand at tobogganing. Kinga and Andre aren’t too keen on the cold, though, so I’m not sure how long that will last,” Eric tells me, chuckling. I guess being cold-blooded in cold weather wouldn’t be much fun. I know Tirrian grumbles repeatedly about it as well, even though he has internal heat he can access.
“Okay,” I reply, feeling a little less anxious now that I know everyone is fine. “How are Phillip and Fiona?” I ask as William guides me back to the table, and I take a seat next to John.
“They are stable, but it might help if you give them another healing session. Link said you should be able to now. We’re hoping they will wake soon too.”
“Of course,” I agree. I don’t like them, but I don’t believe they need to suffer either, so if I can help ease that suffering, then I will gladly help.
“We need to find out what happened to them. I have a feeling everything is related now that we know Lili’s story.”
“She told you what happened?” I ask, and the three of them nod solemnly, though I can see the fury blazing in their eyes.
“Yes, we know everything.”
“And?” I prompt, but William shakes his head.
“Liliana asked if she could meet you. She wants to explain it to you herself.”
“She wants to meet me?” I ask, my voice quiet.
“Oh, Lila, nothing would make her happier. You were the light of her life for the first few years. Every time we came to Earth, she would stay with you and your parents. It was only that last time that she didn’t come with us, which was strange within itself.”
“And is she the goddess of life?” That’s the most burning question I have, and I brace myself as the three men exchange glances.
“Yes, she is,” John confirms, “which I can assure you comes as a surprise to us all, her included.”
“She didn’t know?” I ask, unable to hide the shock in my voice.
“No, but I’ll let her explain it to you. First, we need to talk to you about something else.” His brow creases, and the tension that he’s been carrying for so long returns. I look at the other two, and both of them appear serious as well. My stomach rolls as I consider what they might need to talk to me about.
“Okay,” I say hesitantly, cupping my mug with both hands so I don’t squirm like a teenager who was out after curfew.
“Relax, it’s nothing bad.” Eric waves a hand at me, but it isn’t particularly reassuring. I’ve come to learn his oh-shit-o-meter is definitely broken.
“No, not at all. In fact, I’m hoping you will be happy for us,” John adds, and I feel some of the tension drain away from me. John is usually the most uptight, so if he’s relaxed about whatever they want to tell me, then it can’t be all too drastic.
“Lila, we’ve decided to retire early. Having Lili back just highlights how much we’ve missed out on, and we’re ready to move on to the next phase of our lives.” William crosses his arms and leans back in his chair, keeping his steely gaze on me. My heart starts to race. “We hoped to hand the circus over to your parents, but that isn’t possible, so it’s your turn. Now that you have a solid mating circle, we think all of you are perfectly capable of taking the Galaxy Circus by the reins and making it something special.”
“What do you mean?” I need explicit clarification before I start my small, possibly large, meltdown.
“We won’t be joining you when the ship leaves for Earth,” William says, voicing the words I had been dreading, and I feel nauseous.
“But, but…” I’m kind of lost for words.
“Take a deep breath, Lila.” Eric chuckles, and I want to shove my foot up his ass. “You’ve got this. We wouldn’t be handing it over to you so soon if we didn’t think you could cope.”
My breathing comes even faster, and I feel a little lightheaded. I lean my forehead onto the table, and Eric chuckles.
“We’ll only be a screen call away, but we want to make up for lost time. If this has proven anything to us, it’s that time is not guaranteed.”
I breathe in through my nose and out through my mouth a couple of times and get myself under control. “I can completely understand that, but it doesn’t make me panic any less. I don’t think I’m cut out for such a huge responsibility. Hell, I can’t even take care of three babies, not to mention the two new ones, let alone a gigantic corporation like Galaxy Circus.”
“Maybe not yet, but you have a group of men, most of whom have been trained to take over their parents’ companies or rule. Between the thirteen of you, I have no doubt that this company will flourish.”
