Chapter sixteen
The invitation came during breakfast.
Dinner tonight. My place. 6pm. No excuses.
Rae's texts were always like that. Direct. Non-negotiable. The kind of message that made it clear declining wasn't actually an option.
I stared at the screen, thumb hovering over the keyboard. I should say no. I had Stone to visit. Charts to review. A paper for Tomlinson's class that was already two days late.
My phone buzzed again.
Alexandra has been asking for you. She drew you a picture.
Below the text: a photo of a crayon drawing. A tornado, or maybe a rainbow. Hard to tell with two-year-old artwork.
I smiled despite myself.
I'll be there.
The walk to Rae's house took fifteen minutes.
She and her mates lived on the edge of campus — close enough to respond to emergencies, far enough that students didn't constantly interrupt. The house was larger than faculty housing usually was, built to accommodate a family that kept growing.
I'd been here before. Many times, actually, during the years before when I'd visit during summer breaks. But somehow, in the chaos of the past few weeks, I'd stopped coming. Stopped doing anything that wasn't directly related to the ferals.
The front door opened before I could knock.
"LULU!"
Three feet of determined toddler launched herself at my legs. I caught Alexandra before she could knock us both over, swinging her up onto my hip with the ease of long practice.
"Hey, little wolf." I pressed a kiss to her dark curls. "I heard you made me a picture."
"It's you!" Alexandra grabbed my face with both hands, squishing my cheeks together. "And the sad wolves. But they're not sad anymore 'cause you're there."
My throat tightened. "That's a very good picture."
"I know." She said it with the absolute confidence only a two-year-old could manage. "Daddy helped with the ears."
"Which daddy?"
"The loud one."
"Ash, then."
"Ash." She nodded solemnly. "He's loud."
"I heard that!" A voice called from inside the house. A moment later, Ash appeared in the doorway — tall, broad-shouldered, with the easy grin. His dark hair was longer than the last timeI'd seen him, pulled back in a short tail. "I am not loud. I amenthusiastic."
"Same thing," Alexandra informed him.
He clutched his chest in mock offense. "Betrayed by my own daughter." He stepped forward, pulled me into a one-armed hug that was careful not to squish Alexandra between us. "Good to see you, Lumi. You look like hell."
"Thanks."
"I mean it with love." He stepped back, studying my face with the same assessing look everyone seemed to have lately. "Rae's in the kitchen. The rest of the chaos is in the living room. Come on — Silas made his famous lamb thing. If we don't hurry, Vince will eat it all."
The living room was exactly as chaotic as Ash had promised.
