“So I guess, in summary: I’m getting married, I’m changing my name to McKenzie, my birth mother’s a professional liar, and I’m sorry if this is, like, a lot to dump on you all at once, but that’s what’s happening.”
The silence stretched so long I started to sweat. I glanced at Bodean, who gave me a thumbs-up so slow and exaggerated it looked like a time-lapse of evolution. Newt was the first to move—he scooted closer to Knox, lacing their fingers together on top of the cushion.
I fiddled with my bracelet, turning the leather band around and around my wrist, feeling the raised edge of Quiad’s name underneath. It was the only thing keeping me tethered to the floor.
Finally, Pa cleared his throat. It was a small sound, but it cracked the tension in the room. “Son,” he said, voice even. “You ever hear the saying, ‘Ain’t nothing worth doing if it’s easy’?”
I nodded, not trusting my voice.
He shrugged. “Well, that’s just about the truth. Sometimes, it’s the hard things that end up mattering most.”
Ma leaned forward, her face softening. “You think we’re going to be angry, Levi?” she said.
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “I thought maybe you’d think I was bringing more trouble to the house. That I was—” I stopped. “I’m not good at this. Sorry.”
Ma got up and came over, crowding my space. She hugged me so hard my ribs creaked, and she smelled like cinnamon and flour and a little bit of old cigarette smoke, the way a proper mother is supposed to.
“Oh, honey,” she whispered. “You’ve been family since the first day you set foot on this porch. We don’t give up on our own. Not ever.”
Over her shoulder, Knox stood and gave me the kind of look that could bend steel. “We already looked into Gloria’s mess,” he said. “She’s got three warrants, and she won’t last another week in this town before she’s running for the hills. And if she doesn’t…” He didn’t finish, but the crack of his knuckles said enough.
Ransom snorted, then pointed at Quiad. “You sure you want to be chained to this asshole for the rest of your life?” he said, but there was something like pride in his voice.
I managed a half-smile. “It’s better than being haunted by my actual family tree.”
Floyd, who’d been keeping to the background, stepped forward and shook my hand. “Congrats,” he said. “You ever need a restraining order, you know where to find me.”
Harlow beamed, shy but genuine. “Welcome, Levi,” he said. Dan, his hand never leaving Harlow’s arm, nodded too.
Ma let me go, then pulled Quiad in and hugged him just as hard. “You take good care of him, you hear?” she said. “He’s precious.”
Quiad’s ears went pink, but he nodded. “Always.”
Pa clapped both of us on the shoulder, rough but not unkind. “You’re a McKenzie now. And no one messes with a McKenzie.”
The words landed in my chest like a sledgehammer, knocking loose something I’d been holding tight for years. The relief came with a wave of heat behind my eyes, and I blinked fast, trying not to lose it completely.
“Okay,” I said, voice shot to hell. “Thank you.”
“Damn right,” said Ma. “Now, everyone eat something before the pie gets cold.”
Just like that, the tension broke, and the room erupted in a tangle of hugs and back-slaps and Bodean’s loud, ridiculous yodeling of “WEDDING PARTY!” while Ransom pretended to vomit into a napkin.
Even Newt, who’d never been much for displays, slipped me a quick, nervous hug and then vanished behind Knox like a prairie dog.
Quiad stayed close, one hand on my back, a quiet anchor in the chaos. We made our way to the kitchen, where Ma had somehow materialized a stack of plates and three different kinds of pie.
“Key lime, cherry, or pecan?” she asked.
“Pecan, please,” I croaked.
She cut me an extra-large slice, then winked. “Eat up. You’re going to need your strength. The next week is going to be a blur.”
I grinned, then leaned into Quiad’s side and let the noise of the family wash over me. For the first time in years, I felt safe. And I wasn’t about to let anything or anyone ruin that.
Not even myself.
Bodean was still on the floor, but when I glanced at him, his face was uncharacteristically serious. “You’re one of us, man,” he said. “That means you don’t gotta fight your demons alone.”
