Samsor laughed.“Deltas.We are all deltas.”
“But...the odds of that are extreme.”
“Emhara beats the odds.”Samsor smiled.“Her heart stopped, and she came back, and then Duran was there.”
“I asked them to call the book club, and then Luna was there, andthenshe called Duran because it was obvious that I needed legal representation.Somewhere in there, my heart had a major arrhythmia, and they shocked me to get me started.That pain is unmistakable.”
She looked at the drawing pad and sat down, working efficiently but quickly.
Samsor looked at her father.“Coffee, Carlos?”
“Please.”
* * * *
Carlos.Her father’sname was Carlos.He was so well protected in the digital world that she had never been able to find him.Well, she had, but when she had his office number, his receptionist blocked her at every turn.
She had been polite.Hello, my name is Emhara, and I need to speak to my father.
The man had been busy for three years.
She took a deep breath, focused on her project, and smiled softly at the face that was emerging under her pencils.When her pencils dulled, she went to the kitchen and got a paring knife.She sat, sharpened them, and kept making the face from memory.
The drawing relaxed her and let her examine her situation, just like Abuela had taught her.Some people need to use their hands to focus, Emhara.There is no shame in it.When you can’t draw big, draw on your palm with your fingertip.Keep your focus.It’s important to feel in control when you are not in control.She had gotten a hug and then a kiss to the top of her head, and the scent of peaches and roses surrounded her.
She sighed as she finished and sat back.A pack of wet wipes was next to her, and she used one.As she stood up and went to get some of the coffee she could smell, her father walked over and gasped.“Oh, Emhara, you captured her perfectly.”
“I reflected her with the eyes of someone who loved her.That woman could not be captured.”She smiled and doctored her coffee until she could sip without wincing.
Samsor smiled.“Don’t care for dark roast?”
“Tea drinker by preference.”
“What kind?”
“Earl Grey.I like it when my teeth squeak.”She checked her phone, and it wasn’t quite eleven.“What are we doing for lunch?I don’t want to freak out on the stand, and it is either eat or start another picture, and I don’t know how Mateo’s mates would like to see the other him.”She looked at her father.“If you want to keep that, we will need to get some fixative spray.”
He smiled.“I want to keep it.It is going above my desk in my office.”
“I can always make you another one.”
He looked at the picture on the table.“I want to keep this one.It is very powerful.”
She looked at it and nodded.“It is almost like he can jump off the paper.”
Her father smiled.“Yes.I would be very interested to see Mateo’s pack.”
“I will ask them before I do it.I haven’t seen Armand yet.Not properly.”She shrugged and looked at Samsor.“What is the option for lunch?”
Echel grinned and got to his feet.“We are going out.”
“Oh, shoot.Time to switch dresses.”
Echel lifted a garment bag.“Got it.Just in case you are as enthusiastic about lunch as you were about breakfast.”
She blushed but nodded.“Good call.”She grabbed her phone.“Ready when you are.”
Samsor nodded and spoke to her father.“When we get them stabilized, we will call you.I am guessing that you want the image of your mother as well?”
