She doesn’t reply, so I clear my throat. “Shannon?” I ask.
“What?” she asks, putting away her phone.
“How long are you in Mareflow?”
“Only two days.” She finally looks at me. “Listen, we needed to talk to you in person, Reed,” Shannon says.
Her serious tone gives me pause. “Yes?”
“I’m gonna be straight with you: we want Aisen to move back in with us.”
My blood runs cold. They want to take away my boy? I’m so blindsided that I forget that he’s not mine.
I try to school my shocked expression. “What?”
“We’re his parents, and we want to be there for our son. So, tonight, we’re going to let Aisen know.”
My head is spinning with conflict. They’re gonna take him away? “I…thought you lived on the road, touring the seas?”
“We do.” Shannon shrugs and takes out her pocket mirror. She touches up her makeup as if she’s not throwing my whole world into a loop. “But we have a houseboat. It’s docked forseveral weeks of the year. Other couples in the circus take their kids around.” She takes out lipstick and finagles with it, barely looking at me. “We want to be a family again.”
My jaw clenches, and I struggle to relax. Admittedly, when I first got custody of Aisen, I wanted her and my brother to show up and change their minds. But now, I can’t even think of a world where I’m not raising him. He’s part of my home.
“I see. What changed your mind?”
She glances at me momentarily, then looks back at her reflection. “We’re his parents. We’re ready to nurture him, to homeschool him, and teach him about the world.”
I call bullshit. Before I can say more, my brother and nephew saunter back in. Reed is wearing a blue track jacket emblazoned with a mermaid symbol, the logo of the circus. “Uncle Reed, is it okay if me, Mom, and Dad go to the beach?”
“This late on a school night?” I ask.
Aisen shrugs, but my brother pats his shoulder. “I already said it was okay,” Ryan says.
“They want to see my new octopus form in action!” Aisen seems so cheerful, and I turn to look back at Shannon. She notices when I quickly come to the conclusion of why they’re suddenly so parent-y.
“Ah,” I say.
“It’s an interesting new development in our baby’s life.” Shannon stands up and gives a fake smile. “A giant octopus is so rare. So exquisite. And it’s our son!”
“We’re gonna go swimming with him! We want to see how majestic that octopus is.” Ryan laughs and hugs Aisen tighter.
I stand up straight and try to school my fury, for the boy’s sake. With a nod, I calmly ask, “And what about his kraken form? What about that?”
“No one in the circus thinks it’s cool,” Aisen says. He turns to his dad. “That’s what Mom and Dad keep saying. But socialmedia loves octopus shifters.” Aisen shrugs again. “So anyway, can we go swimming, pleeease? I know it’s a school night, but we’ll be quick. I never get to go swimming with my parents.”
“We already said it’s okay,” Shannon says, placatingly. She touches Aisen’s shoulder, then looks at me expectantly.
My mouth goes dry, but after a moment, I nod. “Go on. Have fun.”
“You can come too,” Aisen says.
“Nah.” I manage to chuckle and wave. “Go enjoy time with your parents.”
Aisen laughs and the three saunter off. “Tell us, how big is your octopus form?” Shannon asks as they walk out of the front door.
The boy is finally reunited with his parents. And they at long last want him, albeit only for his new monster form. I sit down on the couch and try not to wallow as anxiety kicks in.
What will Aisen’s life be like on the road if he chooses to leave? Furthermore, what will mine be like?
