Page 22 of Flawed Revenge

After their talk in the forest this morning, he and Kate had sat out there until the sun began to rise, then headed back to the house, arriving just before Ariella woke up. Kate had been softer with Voodoo this time. That fear that had been there when they left him and Indigo with a sleeping Ariella had disappeared now that she understood what had happened to them.

All thirteen of them had had breakfast together, then Kate and Ariella had spent a few hours homeschooling before they had lunch, and Ariella went for a nap. It killed him to see his vibrant little girl get tired so easily. Nine-year-olds didn't need naps, and yet it was clear his daughter couldn’t make it more than a few hours before she needed some sleep to recharge.

“We can do a snack,” he said, mentally scanning the cupboards to see what they had. “What's the plan for the afternoon?” he asked Kate.

“No plans. Ariella’s done with school for the day, so she can do whatever she wants this afternoon,” Kate replied.

“Can we play, Dad? Me and you?” Ariella asked.

“Course we can,” he answered, this time not seeking out Kate first to gain her permission. She’d told him that whatever happened—or didn't happen—between them, he was Ariella’s father and she had no problem with them spending time together and getting to know one another.

What happened if the transplant worked and his daughter got better, he wasn't sure. He wasn’t ready to ask and maybe hear an answer he didn't want. Kate didn't know if she wanted to get back together with him, and he’d never try to separate her and their daughter. But he also couldn’t just leave here. Even aside from the fact that River Gardner might be a threat, he wasn't safe to live around regular people. Not a monster, but still not completely normal either.

“Can we make Oreo lumps of coal?” Ariella asked, her blue eyes lighting up with excitement.

“Oreo lumps of coal?”

“Just Oreo balls. Crushed cookies with cream cheese covered in chocolate,” Kate explained. “We usually only make them for Christmas, hence the name, but lately Ariella keeps asking to make them.”

“They’re my favorite,” Ariella piped up.

Which was why Kate hadn't denied her. Why he wouldn't deny her. How could you deprive a dying little girl of anything that brought her joy?

It was clear from the way Kate’s eyes misted that she was afraid her daughter wouldn't make it to Christmas, and that they’d never get the chance to share one of their traditions again. Making the most of the time they had was all they could do right now. That and pray for a miracle, hoping he was a match and the transplant would work.

“Pretty sure we have everything we need to make them,” he assured his daughter. “Why don’t we get started?”

“I get to smash the cookies,” Ariella said immediately, still a little girl at heart even if her condition had forced her to grow up much quicker than other children her age.

“We usually use a rolling pin rather than a blender, more fun that way,” Kate told him as she drifted over to the table.

“Rolling pin it is. That does sound like much more fun,” he said with a wink that made Ariella giggle.

“One time, I was rolling the cookies. They were in a paper bag, and I rolled too hard, or the bag was too weak, and it popped, and cookie crumbs went everywhere,” Ariella said with another giggle. “It made such a huge mess, and I was sad because I thought we didn't have any more cookies, but Mom had more and we cleaned up and then started over.”

“Cookie crumbs can make a huge mess,” he agreed as he located the packs of Oreos in the pantry, along with some cooking chocolate they could melt and use to dip the finished balls in.

“I love making a mess,” Ariella told him. “Mom always says it’s fine to make a mess as long as I clean it up afterward. Sometimes we do crafts and make a big mess. We do paper-mache and clay, and we paint. I use lots of glitter because I love how much it sparkles. Sometimes after we’ve used glitter, we keep finding it in the house for weeks afterward.”

As he located paper bags and let Ariella rip open the cookie bags and tip them into the paper bags, Lion honestly couldn’t think of a way he’d rather spend his life than being surrounded by cookie crumbs and glitter.

Mess when it was made by the people he loved having fun had to be the most beautiful sight in the world.

March 15th

2:52 P.M.

“They’re cute together.”

Unable to take her eyes off Ariella and Leo giggling and smashing cookies with the rolling pin, Kate nodded. “Yeah, they are.”

It made her happy and incredibly sad at the same time. She was glad that her daughter was getting this opportunity to bond with her dad while she could, but it was a bittersweet reminder of all the time the two of them had lost.

Leo hadn't been there when Ariella said her first word or took her first step. He hadn't seen how excited she was for her first day of school, or how proud she’d been when she learned how to jump rope. He hadn't been there for the fevers and teething, and he hadn't been there to support her daughter when Ariella started getting sick.

Not his fault, she understood that now, but it still sucked that her daughter had to miss out on so much just because of some deranged scientist who tried to turn people into super soldiers without really knowing what he was doing.

“You seem more relaxed today,” Rose continued, and Kate finally turned to smile at the woman who had pulled up a seat beside her, the other women also sitting around the table.