“Just like Nick Fury,” Ashley adds. “And now that Dad’s home, he needs our help.” She sends a pointed glare to her mom and then Babs, then back to her mom again.
“Dad needs our help?” Max asks. Blakey stands up straighter.
I lean in, lowering my voice. “No one outside this house knows what I was doing, and it’s important we keep it that way. Like a mission. Just like how Spider-Man keeps his identity secret to protect the people he loves.”
Max nods solemnly. “Like a code name.”
“Exactly,” I say. “So if anyone asks, you tell them the truth—that I got arrested, but it was kind of a mistake. We keep the spy stuff here. Between us. Got it?”
Both boys throw up mock salutes. “Got it.”
“Sure thing, Captain Avenger,” Babs salutes.
My mother-in-law dips her chin.
Blakey tilts his head. “But you caught the bad guys, right?”
I nod. “Not just me, but yes. And now I’m home. For good.”
Max considers this, and then he says very seriously, “Good.”
“Our very own hero,” Renee says. Hell, I’m thelastperson in the world to think of myself like that, but… It’s better than trying to explain Ponzi schemes to my kids. Or how their dad got sucked in…
I catch Noah watching us from the doorway. We talked about this on the drive back. What stays in the family. What doesn’t need repeating.
Luna appears from the kitchen wearing one of Ashley’s aprons. “Table’s set. Is anyone hungry?” She walks straight into Noah’s arms without breaking stride.
The scent hits me before I even make it to the dining room—rich, familiar, and gut-punch real.
Not just dinner—a damn feast. Coq au vin, glossy and dark, steaming in a wide dish at the center. Golden brown bread still warm from the oven. Green beans with toasted almonds. Potatoes drenched in butter and thyme. Banana bread, thick-sliced, nestled between platters like dessert’s already forgiven.
It’s almost too much.
Too normal. Too good. Totallyundeserved.
Once we start passing around Luna’s creations, more questions start coming.
When did this start? What happens next?
I answer what I can. Noah fills in what he’s learned from Rocky, information that won’t scare the boys, but also, details that are already out there.
Ashley keeps a steady hand on Max’s back, like she’s anchoring him to the chair.
It’s not that the truth is dangerous anymore, but we still need to be careful.
Blakey says something that makes Ashley laugh, full and unguarded. There’s mashed potato smeared at the corner of his mouth.
Before she can reach for a napkin, I’m already leaning over, thumb catching the mess and wiping it away.
Blakey grins up at me like nothing’s changed.
Ashley meets my eyes across the table. Something soft flickers there. Something that says she sees me.
I’m finally home.
WE’VE BEEN THROUGH… A LOT
ASHLEY
