He shot me a fond look. “She is one of my favorite people in the world. There are times I prefer her to my own children.”
The fact that he could deliver the statement with a straight face had me laughing. The outburst felt surreal given the circumstances, and before I knew it I was bent over at the waist, my hands resting on my knees, and caught in a cycle of outright guffaws.
“Are you okay?” Cormack asked, his forehead creased with concern.
I waved off the question and fought to catch my breath. “I’m fine. I’m not losing it or anything. I’m just ... I’m so relieved.” I couldn’t admit it until this very moment. “I wasn’t sure the gate would come back. I’ve been having nightmares for weeks that nothing would happen when we flipped the switch. I guess I was a little keyed up.”
Cormack patted my shoulder. “Me too.” He slipped past me, his gaze on the gate as he wandered closer to the opening between two worlds. His stare was intense but he didn’t say anything.
I glanced at Oliver, who seemed entranced by the shimmering surface, and then moved closer.
“What do the readouts say?” Paris asked. She was the only one focused on the business end of things, something I was grateful for.
“All the parameters seem normal,” Oliver replied as he scanned the data scrolling across his screen. “I mean, as normal as we can gauge. There’s still so much we don’t know about the gate.”
“Yeah, and so much we initially believed that turned out to be wrong,” I said, climbing the stairs that led to the gate platform.
“Izzy, be careful,” Cormack warned when he realized how close I was getting.
“I’ve been on the other side of the gate,” I reminded him. “I’m not afraid of it.”
“Yes, well, my life won’t be worth spit if something happens to you. My own son will kill me.”
I smiled despite his serious tone, my mind briefly wandering to Braden. He was another middle Grimlock child, probably the most tempestuous one if you discounted his sister, and we happened to be involved in a torrid relationship. In fact, I spent more time sleeping in his room at Grimlock Manor these days than I did in my own apartment on Belle Isle.
“I think it’ll be okay,” I said, trailing my fingers over the surface of the gate. I could feel the magic humming. “It seems ... back to normal.”
“It does,” Cormack agreed, letting out a sigh. “And there’s no sign of my father.”
I glanced over my shoulder, taking a moment to drink in his expression, and debated what I should say to make him feel better. Honestly, he’d been emotionally closed off from everybody but Lily since his father’s disappearance. I had no idea what he needed to hear. There was very little I could offer him by way of solace anyway.
“I’m sorry.”
He shot me a wink. “There’s nothing to be sorry about. You didn’t do this.”
“That’s not entirely true,” I countered. “I’m the reason he ended up on the other side of the gate.”
“You were protecting my family. You did what you had to do.”
“They were your family, too. Your parents, I mean.”
“Oddly, it doesn’t feel that way.” He exhaled heavily and drew his hand through his hair. It was as dark as that boasted by his children, only random hints of gray invading at his temples. “I guess part of me thought maybe he really would come strolling through the gate as if nothing had happened.”
“And maybe he would have an explanation you could live with,” I mused.
“No, there’s no explanation he could offer that I would find acceptable. I promise you that.”
“Well, I’m still sorry. Answers are better than questions.”
“I guess.”
I shifted my attention to Oliver. “Any blips?”
The vampire shook his head. “Not a single one. Everything is completely level. The reboot went smoother than I expected.”
“I think we can all say that,” I agreed. “Given all the weird things that have happened with that gate, I certainly didn’t expect a quiet afternoon.”
As if on cue, voices started echoing in the hallway outside the gate room. I looked in that direction, confused. “Are you expecting someone, Cormack?”
“No.” He started toward the entryway, clearly ready to shut down random employees should they be stopping in for a visit. Before he could reach his destination, the door flew open to reveal a wild-eyed teenager, black hair flying as she raced across the room and pointed herself at Paris.
“Aunt Paris!”
My alarm didn’t dissipate when Paris opened her arms to accept the hug. “Sami!”
Cormack’s eyes followed the girl and I could tell what he was thinking. How did she get past security? Before I could ask the obvious question, two other figures appeared in the doorway. The man was tall, with broad shoulders and dark hair. He looked like the girl’s clone, only older and with a nice bit of stubble. The woman was smaller, more diminutive. She was fair with blond hair and striking blue eyes. I recognized them both from video conferences, of course.
The Winters family was officially here.
“I’m so glad to see you,” Sami gushed as she pulled back to stare into her godmother’s delighted eyes. “You’re the only one who can help me.” She sounded appropriately desperate.
“What do you need help with?” Paris asked, brushing Sami’s flyaway hair back from her forehead.
“Mom and Dad are the worst.”
“We’re right here, Sami,” Aric Winters called out, his eyes already on the gate. He seemed intrigued, if also a bit leery. “We can hear you.”
“I know you can hear me,” Sami shot back, attitude on full display. “Why do you think I’m speaking so loudly?”
Aric was blasé. “I thought maybe you were channeling your mother.”
“Oh, nice,” Zoe countered, shooting her husband a dark look. “I thought you were on my side.”
“Always, baby.” He moved away from his wife and drifted closer to me. “Is this the gate thing we’ve heard about?”
I nodded dumbly. “I ... um ... .” I looked toward
