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“I won’t argue the point,” he said. “But we grow more when the decisions are harder. Carlie might be angry at you. And she’s entitled to her feelings. They may be logical, they may be irrational, but she’s entitled to them. But that doesn’t change what you did or why you did it.
“She’ll not be bound to you,” he added. “Not if she’s going to be fed solely by Ronan during the rest of the process. But you began the process, so you’ll do her the honor of staying nearby and, if she’ll see you, of speaking to her about it. And if she agrees to talk to you, you take responsibility for your actions. Respect your choice, the decision that had to be made. And respect the change you’ve wrought to her life.”
I nodded. “You’re right.”
“In case it helps—even if your mother had decided never to speak to me again, had decided to loathe me for the rest of her immortal life, I’d have done the same thing. The world would be less without her. Same goes for you. In the more immediate sense, let’s discuss your and Connor’s current situation.”
A flush rose hot on my cheeks.
“Are you in danger?” he asked before I could mutter out a response to the relationship question I was afraid he was going to ask.
“The clan will probably want to speak to us tomorrow, and they’re going to have plenty to say. The creatures were pretty seriously wounded, so I imagine they’re licking their wounds. Connor’s keeping an eye out. I don’t suppose you have any idea what they are?”
“None,” he said. “Connor’s theory—that they’re clan membersaffected by magic—seems entirely logical. But I don’t know of any shifters who’ve taken that shape before or magic that would do it. I could ask your mother to reach out to Mallory.”
The thought of involving Lulu’s mom made me uncomfortable, like I was going around Lulu. “That’s okay. I’m going to give Theo an update. The OMB has connections to the Order.” The Order was the mandatory union for sorcerers and sorceresses.
He nodded. “You’ll let me know if you need anything—backup or otherwise.”
Whatever else fell apart, I could rely on my father, on my family. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever be able to tell him how much that meant to me.
“I will.”
“Get some sleep,” he said. “You’ll have a clearer eye tomorrow. And whatever happens, the House is here, and us with it.”
“I love you.”
“I love you, too. Go do the right thing.”
We ended the call, and I looked down at the blank screen in my hand. I felt better about what had gone down tonight, and appreciated my father’s last message.
Go do the right thing.
I’d give myself what was left of night to wrestle with the battle, the fear, the weight of what I’d done. But tomorrow, it was time to think about Carlie, and how I could help her. Starting, first off, with finding the creatures that had hurt her and making sure they didn’t hurt anyone else.
I sent Theo a rambling message, explaining what had happened, what we’d seen, what I’d done. I asked him about magic, and told him he could talk to me or my father when the sun fell again. And because it was escapist and important to him and made me feel better, I told him I hoped he’d been able to snag his comic.
I meant to put my screen aside, to give myself a break fromdrama until the sun rose, but I needed one more thing. So I tapped the screen again, sent a message.
YOU UP?I asked, and waited for a reply.
Lulu’s response was nearly instantaneous.I TOLD YOU, RODNEY. I’M NOT INTERESTED.
HILARIOUS, I messaged.IT’S BEEN A CRAP NIGHT. TELLME SOMETHING GOOD.
HUMANS RECORD THEMSELVES DOING STUPID THINGS AND UPLOAD THE VIDEOS SO STRANGERS AROUND THE WORLD CAN WATCH THEM.
YES, YOU’VE JUST DESCRIBED THEINTERNET.
HUMANS MAKE NO SENSE.
IT IS ATRUTH UNIVERSALLY ACKNOWLEDGED, I agreed.HOW IS ELEANOR OF AQUITAINE?I wasn’t even brave enough to use a nickname or acronym over text. Because she’d know.
DISPLEASED SHE GOT CAT FOOD INSTEAD OF BLUEFIN TUNA. SHE RIPPED UP ONE OF YOUR SOCKS.
WHY MY SOCK?
BECAUSE I DIDN’T WANT TO USE ONE OF MINE OBVS.
