Page 17 of A Shade Too Far
“Let’s all take a deep breath and calm down.” Ryann edged out of her seat, using her hands to demonstrate the flow of her inhales and exhales.
Delilah inflated even more.
Ryann didn’t bat an eye. “Take a moment of mindfulness before continuing this conversation.”
Behind me, Delilah crossed her arms, the two of us ignoring Ryann.
“You’re letting your emotions over the past run away with you,” Eli said.
“My emotions?” I slammed a hand on the counter. “No, it’s a cold, hard fact that at least one Lonestar covered up Mom’s and Dad’s murders. But if you want to discuss emotions, can I get you an ankh for your terror necklace? Because I think you’re missing a few religious artifacts there.”
Eli made a “bring it” motion. “If it keeps a vampire far away, then yeah. Keep those artifacts coming, sweetheart.”
I yanked open a drawer and chucked an ornate dessert spoon at him. It nailed him in the chest and bounced onto the ground. “Here. Don’t forget to carry silver for the werewolves.” I waved my hands around, moving into his personal space. “Ooooh, scary.”
“All righty, then,” Ryann said, holding up her hands. “Maybe we should try some conflict resolution?”
“How about we don’t?” I whirled on her. “I don’t need cops coming into my house and telling me what to do.”
“Okay,” Ryann muttered and sat down. “I’ll be taking some deep breaths over here if anyone wants to join in and be calm again.”
“Better any corrupt cop than a vampire!” Eli roared, nose-to-nose with me.
The air crackled with hostility. It deepened and grew until it snapped with the slam of the kitchen door.
We spun around to find Sadie gripping her overnight bag. She’d had been at her aunt’s cabin for the weekend celebrating her cousin Nessa’s birthday and had returned at the worst moment possible.
“Vampire?” she said. “Dad, is this a joke? But…why are you and Mom fighting about it?”
Eli turned away with a soft curse, rubbing a hand over his bald head.
The one thing we’d agreed on was that our discussion with Sadie about the existence of magic and things that go bump in the night would be conducted in a calm, stress-free environment, conveying the appropriate amount of seriousness without scaring her.
I grabbed the cookie tin. “Hi, honey. Ginger cookie?”
Ryann stood up. “It’s homemade.”
Delilah shrank down to normal. Nothing to see here, folks.
Sadie’s bag hit the ground. She rubbed her eyes with her fists, gaping at Delilah.
Way to break the perception filter, Mom.
Ryann took her leave soon after, telling me to call her if I wanted to contact Elizabeta. I nodded absently, watching my daughter sitting in the living room staring at her feet, her hair falling forward to hide her face like a curtain.
I filled the kettle and set it on the gas burner. Delilah became another shadow on the ground, but instead of the usual faint hum under my skin, my magic was dull.
Eli hovered anxiously in the kitchen doorway, his hands stuffed in the pockets of his jeans. “You’re making tea?”
No, I was buying time in case my daughter flinched when she saw me and my entire life shattered. If Sadie was horrified by my powers, I wouldn’t use them again.
I pulled a container of English Breakfast out of the cupboard.
You think you can stop now? Quit on Tatiana when Zev has free reign in your home? Go back in that magicless closet?
Sadie had her back to me now and she hadn’t made eye contact since she’d seen Delilah, nor had I gotten any kind of hug even though she’d been away all weekend.
The round tin slipped from my hand, loose black tea spilling across the floor.
