Her father looked concerned when he turned around. “Is everything okay?”
She mentally slapped herself and ran down the stairs, eager to be done with them. “Just tired.” A sweet smell assaulted her as she entered the dining room. “What’s for breakfast?”
“Waffles,” Lauren said as she set down a bottle of syrup and took a seat.
Rory sat opposite of her and stared at the tall stack. “I didn’t realize they were a golden color.” Her father and Lauren looked up, and she felt her neck heat. “They used to look grey to me.”
“I can make them different colors,” Lauren said to break the awkwardness. “I just have to add food coloring to the batter.”
Rory shot her a grateful smile. “I love waffles no matter the color.”
“Cora hated them but loved pancakes,” Patrick recounted with a chuckle. “Do you remember that?”
“How could I forget?” Rory snorted. “It didn’t matter how many times Mom told her it was the same batter. She refused to eat them.” Laughing, she soaked her waffles in syrup, filling her entire plate.
“They’re not the same,” Lauren replied before popping a forkful of waffle into her mouth.
Rory and Patrick looked at her and burst out laughing.
“It’s the texture,” Lauren insisted, waving her fork over her plate.
“Don’t tell me you don’t like pancakes,” Rory teased with a wide grin.
“They feel like a sponge.” The guard’s nose wrinkled. “What’s to like?”
Rory’s father was still laughing when he pointed his fork at Rory and said, “This one right here will eat anything.”
Rory shrugged and shoveled a piece of waffle into her mouth. “Life’s too short to pass up food.”
“Your mother used to say the same thing,” her father remarked, cutting his waffle into tiny triangles.
She tried not to let the reminder of her mother pull her into the all-too-familiar dark place that plagued her thoughts and swallowed her bite without chewing.
“Lenora doesn’t have her abilities there,” Lauren said softly, meeting Rory’s gaze. “Her mind is clear, and you might not believe me, but the inmates are treated very well. Some prefer it to Erdikoa.”
Rory stared at her plate. “I believe you.”
“Tell me about your job, Dad,” she said, changing the subject. “When did they start needing a night vet?”
Patrick picked up his napkin, wiped his mouth, and took a drink, stalling. “I quit the vet’s office and took a job at the library downtown to stay with your mother during the day.” Rory’s mouth fell open. He loved treating animals.
Her motherwas not trapped in her mind anymore. She was treated well. She was not trapped in her mind anymore. She was treated well,Rory chanted silently. Maybe if she said it enough, it would make her feel better.
She set down her fork. Her father was one of the best veterinarians in the realm. People traveled across the city with their pets instead of using the offices closest to them. “Can you get your old job back?”
His mouth lifted a fraction. “I like the quiet calm of cleaning the library.”
“You clean the library?” Cleaning was a respectable job, but hehatedcleaning. Patrick nodded with a genuine smile, and Rory returned it. “You really love it.”
“I do. I love animals, and there is nothing more rewarding than saving someone’s beloved pet, but telling someone that not even potions can help took a toll on me.” He dropped his napkin on his empty plate. “Don’t tell my boss, but sometimes I sit and read while I’m there.”
Lauren’s silence didn’t go unnoticed by Rory. “And what about you? How did a non-Aatxebecome a guard?” Jealousy struck her hard in the gut. Had they allowed her to be an enforcer, would she have still become The Butcher?
Lauren smirked. “Because I’m anAngel.”
Rory and Patrick looked at each other, and while her father looked star-struck, Rory laughed. “Are you aSeraph? Should I bow down?”
Tears were forming in her eyes as she continued to laugh. Itwasn’t that funny, and she knew that, but it was the first truly funny thing to happen since her arrest.
