“Agreed.”
“Good.” And she hangs up without further ado.
Shaking my head, I give my phone one last look before setting it on the counter as Moni sits back down next to me. “Are you okay?” I ask, pulling her into a hug.
“Why didn’t you tell me she was snooping around?” she accuses, but her voice doesn’t hold heat.
Squeezing her a little bit harder, I explain, “I honestly thought I was protecting you by not mentioning it. I didn’t think it would ever come up again. But don’t worry, I won’t let you out of my sight around her. Am I forgiven?”
“Yes,” she answers, and a loud grumble radiates from her stomach.
Giving her a what-was-that look, I step back and eye her tiny frame. “Did you eat a monster while I was on the phone because I think he’s trying to communicate with me.”
“Shut up and feed me,” she says while rolling her eyes and lightly pushing me towards the stove.
I quickly wash my hands and get started on the breakfast Moni picked out which consists of omelets, tullé strips, and fresh fruit bowls. I work in silence until the barrage of pictures hits me, stunning me for a second.
Moni’s thoughts are going a mile a minute giving me vertigo, and I try to make sense of what’s going on. “Want to talk about it?” I hedge. I know better than to push Moni when she’s not ready, but I also know she won’t volunteer certain information unless she has an opening.
“I think I’m having an eclipsy attack!”
“A what?” I try turning around, but end up spilling some batter. Reaching over to clean it up, I listen as Moni frantically explains.
“You know, eclipsy. When you can’t see through your thoughts. Nothing about what has happened in the past twenty-four hours is okay. Something happened to Rez, Lynx and Knots are missing, and thatwoman/thingis asking to see me!” she blurts out, practically spitting every point out. I peek over my shoulder, and my jaw drops as I take in her form.
‘I know I look like a psychedelic vibrating dildo on fairy farts right now, so stop staring!’Her thought hits me, and my jaw snaps closed for a split second before I snort because that’s an accurate yet oddly specific way of describing what she looks like.
“All I want to know is what’s going on,” she wails, dropping her head into her shaking hands and looking defeated.
“Yes, I would like to know the same thing,” a familiar voice says, walking into the kitchen and startling both of us.Shit!Dropping my knife, I jump back, the sharp blade barely missing my toes as it lands. Hearing a plunk, I look up in shock only to find Moni gone and Matthew rushing to the island.
“Crap!” Matthew gasps and hurries over to pick up Moni off the floor, being careful as he gently lays her on the island countertop. “Sorry, I didn’t realize she was that worked up,” he announces as he pushes his hair back out of his face and looks around the dorm. “What is going on here?”
Well shit, it’s not like I can lie to him. But what to tell him?I don’t know if I can trust him, even though he’s the dean and our pseudo father, considering he took us in when mom passed. This is completely fucked up. I don’t want to believe that he’s a part of the plan to use us as spies. In the short span that I caught of Rez’s memory, Matthew was the only one on that video that didn’t seem happy to be there. Is there anyone left to trust around here?
There’s no point in trying to read his mind, his barriers are rock solid. I should know because he’s found me trying to get in a dozen times while I was a kid practicing my skills.
“Want an omelet, Dean Caldron?” I ask, showcasing the ingredients I have laying out on the counter.
“Sure, I would love one. But you know you don’t have to call me Dean when we’re in private like this. I practically raised you two.” He chuckles, placing his jacket on the back of the stool and gently nudging Moni. “Come on, sweetie. I need you to wake up,” he coaxes in a gentle tone. It’s the same tone he used with us when we had nightmares after my mother died.
Moni shoots up and shrinks down to her smaller self, bashfully looking up at both of us, her pinkish skin highlighting her emotions.
“Hey, at least that was faint number one of the day.” She giggles, and my shoulders relax as she gets settled at the other barstool, giving me a soft smile.
“So, who wants to tell me what happened?”
I take that as a sign to get back to cooking. There is no way I can answer him on an empty stomach.
ChapterFour
THE PARDON
Dean Caldron
Moni shifts in her seat while we wait for JP to join us in the lounge area of the dorm. I must admit, I wasn’t expecting to eat in the den, but apparently it’s the only area that has enough seating at the moment. Which within itself is shocking since JP loves to cook and decorate. The boy was born for it.Wonder what he did with the voucher to Dangles?
We eat in silence, then JP quickly gathers our plates and says he’ll be right back.Probably stalling to figure out what to say.It’s a tactic he’s used for years no matter how much I’ve tried to break him of it. In a sense, eating with JP and Moni again brings back sweet memories of him asking me to taste his food while he was learning to cook. He would often come to my home office with a new dish and something to drink to wash it down.
