Of course he was.
“Everything’s fine, Mom.”Elodie’s attempt at cheerfulness fell flat.She couldn’t muster a fake smile.She barely had the energy to move forward.
Gwen wrung her hands, her bottom lip in a pout.“I was so nervous, Elodie.”She lowered her voice dramatically.“Eos was at your workplace.”
“You don’t have to whisper.They can’t hear you.”Elodie slogged past her mother, pausing before she reached the living room’s plush sectional, spotless glass tables and clear view to the kitchen.To Rhett.
“How can you be so glib at a time like this?”Gwen’s claws pinched her hips.“My only daughter was in mortal peril, and I couldn’t reach your father.”Her hands flew to the pearls draped around her neck.“You know how my nerves can get the best of me.”
Through the doorway, Elodie watched Rhett’s white hair, white shirt, and white skin ghost through the white kitchen on his way to the fridge.He disappeared for a moment behind the door before reemerging, thick hands full of snacks.
“Thank goodness Rhett was here,” Gwen repeated.As if Rhett needed anymore propping up.
Elodie dragged the damp beanie down her face, wiping away the residue of her real emotions and replacing them with a tight, forced smile.“Rhett, thank you so much for coming over,” she began as she mustered the strength to stride through the living room and meet him at the kitchen island.Gwen’s heels clacked behind her like a stalking reaper.“But you definitely don’t need to stay.I’m sure they’re desperate for your help back at the MediCenter.”
Rhett stuffed a handful of baby carrots into his mouth.“Gosh, El,” he managed around the orange chunks.“I’m surprised you’re doing so well.”
Gwen rounded the island to stand next to Rhett.“But you do look dreadful,” she told her daughter, “which is to be expected after the absolute fright you’ve endured.”She plucked a carrot from the bag and rolled it between her fingers.“But it is odd that you’re so—” She waved the carrot around.Her inflated lips pressed into a straight line.“Well, we know howsensitiveyouare.”
Why did they keep sayingsensitivelike it was something to be ashamed of?Empathy was never a badthing.
Gwen pressed the tip of the carrot against her lips, thought better of it, and set it back down on the counter.“But this time you have every right to be.The attack was right in your building.Merely floors beneath yours.”
Elodie stiffened.“It wasn’t an attack,” she countered.
Rhett popped another carrot into his mouth.“Everything from Eos is an attack.An act of terror.That’s what they do.It’s their whole purpose.”
Elodie’s fingertips dug into the thick beanie limply hanging from her balled fist.“Then why aren’t you at the MediCenter?Isn’t dealing with Eos your whole purpose?”
Rhett stopped chomping.He and Gwen blinked at her, slackjawed.
Rhett pushed his plate away from the edge of the counter and brushed off his hands.“I was wrong.This has you shaken up more than I expected.”
“I, for one,didexpect this.”Gwen wagged her finger in the air.“We watched the attack live.There were soldiers crawling all over the MediCenter.Rhett was expertly fielding calls, managing his subordinates from afar.The attack—”
“It wasn’t an attack!”This time Elodie spat the words.She was tense and ready, armor coated.
Gwen slowly rounded the island.“You are in denial.You’ve been traumatized and your mind has blurred the entire event so you don’t...”she waved her hands in the air like she was batting flies, “end up with a terrible mental disorder.You’re not seeing this clearly.”Her stilettos whispered against the marble as she cautiously approached her daughter.“Youcan’tbe.I know you are no sympathizer.”
Rhett huffed.“Of course she’s not,” he said, each word punctuated by a crunch as he resumed eating.“She’s confused.The whole mess has her rattled.”
Elodiewasconfused.Veryconfused.But she knew one thing for sure—what she’d witnessed was not an attack.“Maybe neither of you know me well enough to know whatI am.”
Add that to the list of what she knew to betrue.
“El—” Rhett began.
“No!I don’t want to hear it.”Elodie’s heartbeat clapped inside herears.
Gwen stiffened and opened her mouth to speak.
“From either of you.”Elodie spun around and marched toward the stairs.
Gwen clicked frantically after her.“Elodie!”
Elodie stopped short of the top of the stairs and steeled herself before she faced her mother.
Gwen’s eyes glistened with tears.Real tears this time.“I worry about you so much.I want to be sure you’re safe.The Key is safety—theright path.Please don’t disappoint me and turn down the wrong one.Think first, my darling.Think.”
