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Sloane
I closed out my academy email account.
I’d been reading the messages too many times.
In a huff, I got up, then headed to Bru’s room. He was up and watching TV.
I could see why.
I stiffened where I stood upon seeing Callum, Dorian’s grandfather Callum. He stood at the front of a large home, wide with thick columns, and he had about a billion microphones in front of his face.
Still in his bed clothes, Bru angled around, waving me to sit with him. He must have heard me come in.
I joined him but was slow about it.
“He’s been making announcements all morning,” Bru said. “Ones about you.”
Ones about me.
I stayed completely still when the news people calmed down enough to let him talk.
“We’ve heard from representatives from the Mallick family,” he said, nodding. He wore a suit, but it was barely 7 AM. “And it’s true what you’ve heard. They tell us Pilar Mallick has been officially found, but other than that, we know no more than you. Thank you.”
Shocked, I sat back, watching as Callum retreated back up the steps and into that big home he’d stood in front of. My brother flicked off the news, then rested an arm on the back of the couch.
“Looks like they know,” he said, his eyebrows narrowed. “And he’s right, the press do too. The news stations have been talking about it all morning. I guess the family reached out to them all and told them you’ve been found.”
I leaned forward, breathing into my hands. This was news. Especially because last night Ares had come in and said he’d give me a night. He said the evening had already been enough, and since it’d been late, I should just stay put. We were supposed to talk about everything today, and what I’d ultimately decided. I wanted to meet his family.
I needed to see who I was.
Of course, no one had been shocked more than me that he’d wanted me to take that night, and if the family knew about me now, why weren’t they here? I feel like they would have been up here like they had the hospital.
“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Bru frowned, angling in my direction. He was swimming in his clothes, things Thatcher had gotten for him to wear. Thatcher had gotten me stuff to wear too, but they’d been Bow’s things and way too small. He said his mother wasn’t much different in size, so he ended up thrifting me some stuff after I told him my size. Bru’s head tilted. “Once all this starts, there is no putting it back in the bottle.”
All this was already starting. It had been for a while now, but I’d just been too scared and confused to be a part of it.
“I need to meet them,” I said. The words still foreign in my head, they felt even weirder coming out of my mouth. “It’s going to be fine. I’m going to be good.”
He looked at me for a while, and though he nodded, I knew my brother. He wasn’t okay if I wasn’t okay, and I hadn’t been a lot these days. He sat forward with the remote. “Did Callum reach out to you via email? I saw you on Thatcher’s laptop earlier.”
I had been on there and definitely not in a productive way.
If my brother saw what I’d been reading again, he didn’t say anything about it, and he did know about the emails. He’d caught me reading them before. It was something we didn’t talk about, and I definitely didn’t want to talk about it. Especially after last night.
Someone else hadn’t wanted to talk about them either.
Dorian hadn’t wanted to be vocal at all really, and that’d been okay with me. Knowing about who I was or not, he’d still lied to me. “No, I haven’t.”
“Figured.” Bru folded his hands. “He reached out to me. Said he was just checking up but he didn’t want to bother you. Sent me an email.”
“What did he say?” I asked the question with my breath unsteady, trying not to fidget but I couldn’t help it. We’d found out so many things about him, both of us. They’d been things he had told us himself, but still…
There was just so much darkness.
“Not much.” Bru rubbed his hands. “Sounded like he was just extending a hand, and that he was around for us. Also that he was sorry for, well, everything.” His head lowered. “He’s reached out a few times, but I haven’t responded. Probably should have told you about it, but I didn’t want to stress you out.”
It was funny how things had changed. Bru was always trying to take care of me these days.
