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10 minutes later I strolled into the kitchen freshly showered and clothed in a sweatshirt and matching pants that were only slightly baggy, which I'd scrounged from a dresser in the guest bedroom where I'd crashed. Finn sat at a table in the nearby breakfast nook shoveling one of those god-awful fried chicken TV dinners in his mouth. He smirked when I wrinkled my nose and kept right on stuffing his face. I rolled my eyes and glanced at the Spellbinder, a woman named Brittany, who stepped into the room.
"Finn said you needed an escort to the grocery store?"
"Correct. Shadows know how long we're going to be stuck here. Even if it's just the rest of today and tonight, we're going to need some supplies."
"Yeah," Finn drawled sarcastically. "Can't have my baby brother forced to dine on substandard frozen food. Gotta keep it fancy for His Royal Highness."
I shot him a dirty look. "When have you ever turned down any of the quote-unquote fancy food I've cooked for you?"
"That's beside the point."
My eyes rolled. "I think that's exactly the point. But keep it up Loverboy, and you definitely won't be eating anything I cook today."
He flipped me off before turning back to the swill in his classy plastic container. I cheerfully returned the gesture before turning back to Brittany. "You ready to go?"
She nodded, seeming amused by our brotherly banter but letting it go unremarked. Probably for the best, or it might inspire us to just keep on going. And some of us had constructive work to do.
Brittany led me to one of the SUVs parked in the driveway and drove us to a large supermarket just a couple miles away from the safe house. It didn’t take long to knock out the grocery list I had mentally prepared while showering. I planned on preparing simple, tasty sandwiches and salads for lunch, but I had bigger plans for dinner. Ava had let it slip during a conversation on New Year's Eve that her absolute favorite food was lasagna and garlic cheese bread. So by the shadows, I was going to make her the best damn lasagna she'd ever had.
Finn may have rocked her world with sex, but everyone knew the true way to someone's heart was through their stomach. Or so I was telling myself.
It wasn't that I begrudged Finn having kissed and made up (and then some) with our little Beacon. But a huge part of me craved to take care of her in a way she'd never previously allowed. And I had always expressed my love for others by providing their favorite foods.
Brittany glanced at me as we stepped up to the checkout lane, which only had a couple people in front of us. "I need to make a quick phone call. I'll pick you up at the door when I see you come outside."
"That's fine by me."
It only occurred to me after she'd already stepped through the front entrance that I probably should have asked her what call was so important it couldn't wait for us to get back to the safe house. But she was a Spellbinder. Not like she couldn't magically camouflage her own phone calls. Besides, she was most likely checking in with her boss, Deion. I’m sure he’d asked for regular reports.
Loading up the grocery conveyor belt and paying for everything with cash didn't take more than a few minutes. Brittany pulled up in the SUV as soon as I stepped outside, just like promised. I quickly loaded everything into the rear of the SUV and returned the cart before hopping in the passenger seat. The strangest sensation that we were being watched settled into my skin. A frown crossed my face as I casually surveyed the surroundings. Nothing seemed out of place, and no visible watchers met my glance. No matter how carefully I searched. Making me think I was just being overly paranoid.
Brittany didn't notice my unease, and she soon had us back in the safe house driveway. We unloaded the groceries, and she went to take her turn to nap while I got to work in the kitchen.
Putting away the groceries didn't take long, allowing me to focus my attention on preparing sandwiches and salads. My mind wandered as I fell into the familiar habits of chopping, mixing, and adding ingredients into pleasing new forms. I couldn't help thinking about our bastard of an uncle, who had shockingly turned out to be Ava's biological uncle, and how he had so callously sanctioned the murder of not just our cousin but her sister. The first related to him through marital ties and the second through actual blood. What on earth could have been important enough for someone who had always seemed like a kind soul to so thoroughly betray Pack and kinship ties?
I spent the next couple hours remembering everything I could about Alexander as I served lunch to those who were currently on guard duty and started on my time-consuming but completely worth it lasagna recipe. Unfortunately, though, I was no closer to a revelation by the time a much more well-rested Shea and Ava followed their noses to find me puttering in the kitchen, along with Finn scarfing down a pre-dinner salad he'd stolen from the fridge despite my earlier threat not to feed him.
"What smells so absolutely delicious?" Ava asked me, although her eyes wandered briefly onto Finn and heated. She then bit her lip and glanced quickly back at me, her cheeks growing adorably pink.
As tempting as it was to tease her, I didn't want to risk setting back any progress we had made with our delectable little Beacon. Things were too new and tenuous. So I settled for smiling and waving toward the oven. "You are just 20 minutes away from the best damn lasagna you've ever tasted."
Her eyes lit up, making me glad I hadn't teased her. "I can believe that, judging by how good it smells."
All right, so I couldn't resist alittleteasing. "Not as good asyousmell."
She flushed slightly, another thing that struck me as adorable. I wouldn't have pegged her for getting so easily flustered. "Thank the shampoo and conditioner in the bathroom for that."
I grinned. "It's definitely not your hair products, Blondie."
Shea beckoned Ava and me to join him and Finn at the breakfast nook. Once we took seats to each side of him, he glanced at Ava. "You up to casting a Radiant Seal while we wait for dinner to finish? I'd like to make those phone calls to our parents and aunt."
Finn frowned and jumped up to grab another salad I'd left in the fridge. "Here, eat this first. You're the only one of us who hasn't eaten anything today."
He shot a reproachful look at Shea, who took it in good stride. "You're right, Finn. I forgot that. Never mind. We can make the phone calls after we eat."
I nodded. "I thought we could eat in here within a Radiant Seal after I serve everyone else out in the main dining room. That way we can hold a brainstorming session. After that, we can make the phone calls."
Ava, who must've been starving after all the magic she'd been forced to channel recently, merely nodded as she began inhaling the salad Finn had slid in front of her. Part of me wanted to point out I had prepared that masterpiece of high-end vegetables, cheese, croutons, and salad dressing, but I fought back the childish urge to one-up my brother. Besides, I was pretty sure Ava knew us well enough to know I was the one with the culinary skills.
