Page 145 of Deceived Wrath

Her selflessness is her biggest strength.

I only hope it doesn’t end up being her greatest weakness too.

Chapter Thirty-One

FIONA

It turnsout that teaching is not my strong suit. I appreciate why Cormac is hesitant to put Scout into a public school, but putting his education in my hands feels like too great a responsibility.

“Are we done yet?” Scout grumbles.

I push the worksheet toward him. “You need to finish writing out these letters first.”

“But they’reboring.”

He’s not wrong, but I’ve run out of ways to bribe Scout that don’t involve chocolate chips or pancakes.

“You know, if you want to be an astronaut, you’re going to have to learn your letters.”

Scout pouts. “But astronauts don’t need to write. They just float around in space.”

I let out a sigh. “If you do your letters, I’ll make you pancakes for lunch.”

Scout's face lights up, and he immediately starts working through his alphabet.

“And if your dad asks, we ate them with a salad?—”

The elevator doors open.

I glance up to find Ronan and Brennan storming out, both wearing expressions that turn my blood to ice.

I’m on my feet in an instant. “What’s going on?”

Ronan glances around. “Is Cormac back?”

“N-no. He’s at the office.” My pulse spikes. “Should he be here? Has something happened to him?”

“We must have beaten him to it,” Brennan mutters.

“Uncle Brennan!” Scout abandons his worksheet and jumps down from his seat to launch himself at Brennan.

“How’s my favorite nephew?” Brennan laughs, though I can tell it’s forced from the way his smile doesn’t meet his eyes.

Ronan glances my way. “Is Kieran meeting us?”

I shrug. “Scout and I are the only ones here. Seriously, what’s going on?”

Brennan raises a brow. “I’d like to know the answer to that too.”

Just then, the elevator opens once more, and Cormac appears.

He’s deathly pale, and his eyes are frantic as he scans the room for Scout.

The second he spots him, his entire body sags with relief, but mine doesn’t.

If anything, it only puts me more on edge.

I’ve never seen Cormac look so…rattled.