Late mornings had become my new favorite time of day. By then, Iβd finished most of my big tasks. Everyone was still at home. No one made special requests for whatever I was not cooking. No one yelled from another floor asking where theyβd left something they were probably standing next to. During those hours, the house was just...chill. Like the calm before a storm.
Josh had finally discovered the video game system Iβd forgotten we owned and immediately made himself comfortable on the couch. I couldnβt remember the last time anybody had turned the thing on, but judging by how quickly he settled in, it had found its purpose again.
Logan, meanwhile, had decided we needed to do flashcards. I suggested toys. He brought me the flashcards. I suggested the racetrack. He put the flashcards in my lap. Apparently, playtime was for babies, and he required all knowledge immediately, almost like he sensed school and big boy things were right around the corner.
βOkay.β I held up a card with three colored blocks. βWhat color is this one?β
βGood job. And this one?β
He bounced in place, already reaching for the next card before I could put the first one down.
Desi hung around for a while, talking to Josh between rounds of his game and cheering loudly every time Logan got an answer right. Eventually, she announced she was going out to see some friends. I had a feeling she was mostly making the rounds to spread her news, but I was glad to see her social butterfly wings fluttering again. Everything lately had been Josh, Josh, Josh. It was good to see her making room for her friends again. I only hoped sheβd be better than me at keeping up with hers.
By the time she came home, Josh had moved on to another game, and Logan had finally released me from academic duty. Desi dropped onto the couch beside me and immediately started telling me about her day.
I asked questions here and there, but I didnβt really care who sheβd seen or what theyβd done. I just liked hearing her voice. She talked with her whole body. Her hands moved almost as fast as her mouth, and every story came with side stories that somehow had their own side stories. I didnβt always know where we were going, but eventually, she found her way back to the point.
βSo then we left there and went back to Savannahβs houseββ
I looked at her. βYou went to Savannahβs house?β
βYeah. Thatβs where we hung out most of the time.β
Iβd just seen Savannah and Stacy at Desiβs birthday party, so I knew they were alive, grown, and apparently doing well. But Desi had been to their home. For years, the entire point had been that I didnβt know where that was. Yasmine had disappeared because she needed to. When the girls became teenagers, she moved them one last time, cut contact with everyone, and erased as much of herself from the world as she could. The fewer people who knew where they were, the harder it would be for their donor to find them. Iβd respected that and never looked for herβnot that I would have, anyway. Still, now and then, I wondered whether it had worked. Now, suddenly, I had an avenue to get some answers.Β I let Desi keep talking.
Savannah was still living at home, but she planned to move to Sulani as soon as she saved enough money. Sheβd apparently already decided which island she wanted to live on and had started pricing furniture for an apartment she didnβt have yet. That sounded typical of early young adult life.
Stacy was still at home, too. Sheβd always been the quieter twin, so Desi didnβt have nearly as much to say about her. She was doing well, though. Working. Saving money. Mostly staying to herself. Simply hearing that put me at ease. They had made it to young adulthood undetected. Yasmine and her girls were still together, living ordinary lives and making ordinary plans. She had done it. Giving up her home, her friends, and everything familiar to keep those girls safe had worked.
I waited until Desi finished another story before slipping in my first question.
βSo where do they live now?β
βYeah. Itβs nice out there.β
Niceβand unexpected. If I were a spellcaster searching for the family that had disappeared from Copperdale, I definitely wouldnβt think to look for them in the countryside. Not that it mattered anymore. Those delicate, stressful years were behind them. Whatever that psycho had intended to do, heβd never gotten the chance.
βHowβs Yasmine doing?β I asked.
βGood, I guess.β Desi shrugged. βShe doesnβt really talk to me much. She came in a few times to make sure we were all right, brought us snacks, and reminded Savannah about some stuff she needed to do.β
I nodded slowly. That tidbit was enough for me.
βI can tell her you asked about her next time I'm there," she said.
The answer came out faster than I intended. Desi looked at me.
βIβm glad theyβre all doing well,β I said. βThatβs all I wanted to know.β
She studied me for another second, then nodded. βOkay.β
Josh shouted at the television.
Desi turned toward him. βWhat happened?β
She laughed and got up to investigate, abandoning me on the couch. A moment later, Sophia took her place.
She watched Desi disappear into the living room and start offering Josh several opinions about everything heβd done wrong.
βI canβt believe sheβll be gone in a few days,β she said.
βMy baby...β Her eyes followed Desi across the room. βSheβs really a grown woman now.β
Sophia nodded solemnly. Then her mouth twitched, forming that cute little evil grin.
βAnd weβll finally be the only adults in the house again.β
I stared at her before I started laughing. βYou sound awfully excited for someone who was on the verge of tears three seconds ago.β
βIβm not bad. Iβve been very well-behaved.β
βI'm pretty sure the kids would disagree.β
Awkward or not, there was no way Desi and Josh's shenanigans would stop us from loving each other.
βDo you know how many times Iβve decided not to pounce on you?" she asked. "I need my house back.β
"So what you're saying is, we should just get rid of all the kids so you can enslave me in our bedroom."
"Yes! Logan spends too much time in this house, anyway. I'll write to him from time to time so he doesn't forget me."
"You are super bad," I said as I walked away.
There she was: the bold, saucy, funny woman Iβd moved in with all those years ago. Life had weighed her down plenty, but it had never taken that from her. Her woohoo drive still put mine to shame. Once Desi and Josh were gone, I needed to start watching my back again.
