everything you’ve done.”
Unsure if I could speak, I nodded.
“Okay. Now I
Dawson gave me a quick squeeze. “I’m forever in your debt.”
I wanted to tell him that wasn’t necessary. Helping him get Bethany was something I’d do all over again, even knowing that Blake had set us up. After being in Daedalus’s grips, now more than ever I understood how important it had been to get her out. The only thing I would’ve changed was where I was standing in that damn tunnel in Mount Weather.
He stepped aside as his brother swooped in, picking up the tote and circling his arm around my waist. Dawson cocked his head to the side. “What is up with the alien doll?”
“Daemon thought it would remind me of him,” I told Dawson.
“Tell him what you named it,” Daemon said, and then he dropped a kiss atop my head.
My heart jumped, and my cheeks flushed. “I named it DB.”
Dee peered at the alien toy over Dawson’s shoulder. “It kind of does look like you, Daemon.”
“Ha. Ha.” I tugged the doll out of the bag and held it close. For some reason, I loved the stupid thing.
“Everyone want to head in?” Luc rocked back on the heels of his Converse sneakers. “I’m starving.”
Dee spun around so that she was on my other side as we headed in. She stole a peek at Archer, who walked in behind us. If I noticed that, so did Daemon. And whatever Dee was thinking right now, most likely Archer was eavesdropping in on.
I so needed to give her a heads-up on that.
Plus the fact that Archer was, well, he was really different from all of us.
The temperature was a good thirty degrees cooler inside the brightly lit foyer, even with the glass sky dome allowing the sunlight inside. Quartz was embedded in the tile floor, making everything so
Sinking my fingers into soil…wow, how long had it been since I’d done that? The day we’d left for Mount Weather? Too long.
“You doing okay?”
“Huh?” I glanced up at Daemon, and I realized that I must’ve stopped walking, because everyone else was already in the hall beyond the foyer. “Yeah, I was just thinking about gardens.”
An emotion crossed his face. Before I could decipher what it was, he looked away. I reached over and tugged on the hem of his shirt. “How about you? Seeing Dawson and Dee?”
He thrust his fingers through his hair. “I don’t know what to think.” He kept his voice low. “I’m happy to see them, but…dammit.”
I nodded in understanding. “You don’t want them anywhere near this?”
“No. Not at all.”
I wanted to somehow lessen his concern, but I knew there was nothing I could say that would do so. I stretched up and kissed his cheek. That was the best I had.
He grinned down at me once I settled back on my feet. He opened his mouth to say something, but Dee popped back into the foyer.
Expression exasperated, she put her hands on her hips. “All right, you two, come in a little farther. There are people here in the great room who would like to say hi. Whatever a ‘great room’ is I really have no idea, but it is pretty great.”
God, I missed her so much.
Daemon lifted his head, smiling at his sister. “Yeah, I think I know who’s waiting.”
The people waiting to say hello were none other than Matthew, plus Ash and Andrew Thompson. I shouldn’t have been surprised to see them. All of them—Matthew, the Thompsons—were like a family. They converged on Daemon at once, and they swallowed him, Dawson and Dee included.
I hung back again, because this was his reunion—a well-deserved one. And the room was rather distracting. Oriental carpet. More statues of dolphins. Quartz-trimmed furniture. A couch big enough for the Duggar family.
Luc plopped down on a chaise longue and started texting away on his cell phone. Paris hung near him, like a grinning shadow. Archer was like me, on the outskirts, probably unsure of what to do as Dee started crying again.
Even Ash was crying.
I expected to feel the hot wave of jealousy when Daemon hugged her, but I didn’t. Other than the fact Ash still managed to make crying look glamorous, I was so over that useless emotion. If there was one thing I knew and understood in this world, it was that Daemon loved me.
Matthew stepped forward, grabbing Daemon’s shoulders. “It’s good…it’s good to see you.”
“You, too.” Daemon clasped his arms. “Sorry about your car.”
I wondered what happened to Matthew’s car, but that question was lost in the lump that was slithering up my throat. Watching them embrace each other, I was reminded of how important Matthew was to all of them. He’d been the only father any of them remembered.
“It’s hard, isn’t it?” Archer asked quietly.
Looking at him, I frowned. “Are you in my head again?”
“No. Your emotions are all over your face.”
“Oh.” I blew out a breath as I glanced back at the huddle. “I miss my mom, and I don’t know…” I shook my head, not wanting to finish.
When the group broke apart, Matthew was the first to approach me. The hug was a bit stiff, but I appreciated it. Ash and Andrew both appeared in front of me, and I was immediately wary of the two. They had never been big fans of mine.
Ash’s vibrant blue eyes were red-rimmed when she gazed at me, no doubt taking one look at my outfit and writing me off as a giant fashion fail. “I can’t say I’m overly thrilled to see you, but I’m happy you’re alive, or whatever.”
I choked on my laugh. “Uh, thanks?”
Andrew scratched his chin, face scrunched. “Yeah, I second that statement.”
I nodded, having no idea what to say. I raised my hands and gave a little shrug. “Well, I’m happy to see you guys, too.”
Ash laughed, the sound throaty. “No you’re not, but it’s cool. Seriously, our rampant dislike of you really isn’t at the top of the priority list right now.”
Archer blew out a low whistle and studiously looked away, which gained Ash’s catlike interest. As beautiful as she was, I doubted most could resist her.
I was saved from more awkward hellos by the newest entrance. The woman was around Matthew’s age, early thirties, tall and slender, wearing a strapless white sundress that swished around her ankles. She was model beautiful with long blond hair.
Obviously an alien.
She smiled warmly as she clasped her hands together. Brown bamboo bangles on her wrists thudded off one another. “I’m glad to see everyone made it here. My name is Lyla Marie. Welcome to my home.”
I murmured a hello as Daemon crossed the room and shook the Luxen’s hand. He was surprisingly much better at this than I was. Who knew? But seeing everyone here, being surrounded by people I once thought I’d never see again, was a little on the overwhelming side. I was happy, and I was confused, and this terrible coating of foreboding was like sweat on my skin.
Here we were, all of us, a couple of hundred miles from Area 51.
Trying to push those thoughts out of my head as Daemon introduced Archer, I sat on the edge of the couch, holding DB in my lap. Dee sat beside me, her cheeks flushed with emotion. I knew she was going to start crying again.
Dawson made his way over to Lyla’s side. “Is Bethany lying down?”
Bethany? My ears perked up. Of course she’d be here with Dawson. In the wave of faces, I just hadn’t thought of her. Was she sick?
