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Again, we’re not going to be best friends. But weirdly, the dark cloud over all of this does begin to lift slightly.
…I mean, sipping a glass of obscenely expensive wine doesn’t exactly hurt, either.
I can’t help but smile when I hear the high-pitched squeal from the other room when Tempest tells Maeve she’ll be moving into Gabriel’s house. Even Charles seems fine now that he’s calmed down.
Pam brings out dinner—perfectly done pork chops with a peach glaze—and we all tuck in. It’s no Norman Rockwell scene. It’s not all bubbly laughter and witty conversation. But it’s not deathly silence and dark looks, either.
I suppose that’s what they call “a good start”.
Tempest is chatting away with Maeve, but she turns to flash a quick smile at me.
Thank you, she mouths.
I just nod, because if I let myself dwell any deeper on any thoughts about “the time we have left”, I’ll go insane.
“So then Tempest…” Gabriel chuckles mid-story. “She completely ignores what dad said, and when he’s not looking, she takes this whole fucking chocolate cake. Remember, there are like thirty people coming over for her ninth birthday any second. But she takes that fucking cake upstairs?—”
Gabriel stops short. His face is pale and growing paler.
“Fuck,” he groans, holding his stomach.
He lurches to his feet and awkwardly stumbles to the side, away from the table. Tempest jumps to her feet next to me.
“Gabriel?”
He shakes his head, one hand clawing at the wall next to him. “I’m—I’m fine…”
His face turns ashen before he suddenly twists away and starts to vomit against the wall.
Shit.
Gabriel drops to his knees, still throwing up as Alistair and I run over to him at the same time.
“I’ve got this,” Alistair grunts at me, turning back to his brother. “Hey, bro, let’s get you to?—”
Alistair’s eyes roll back. He suddenly groans and slumps to the ground, just in time to puke all over the floor.
Oh fuck.
I’m aware of Charles dropping to his knees too as I make a beeline for Tempest.
It’s the food. Something’s in the?—
But Tempest and Maeve aren’t turning gray. They’re not throwing up or falling to the floor. They’re just gaping in horror as everyone collapses around them.
“Tempest—”
My legs give out, sending me sprawling to the ground in front of her.
“I—”
My vision blurs.
“Call 911…”
She’s screaming my name as I start to vomit. Then my world goes black.
31
