I blushed. “I should have known better, but I wasn’t thinking clearly.”
Richard sighed and sat down in the chair, the fire suddenly going out of him.
“I know you’re trying to do the right thing,” I told him honestly as I scooted forward in my seat. “But try to see it from my perspective. I was struggling to deal with my grandmother’s death, and then my entire life was ripped away.”
I could feel Maverik’s eyes on me, but I didn’t look in his direction. Kingston was surprisingly quiet. I hadn’t heard one joke or even a chuckle from his direction. He’d even stopped crunching his popcorn.
Richard sat down on the couch across from me and sank down into the deep cushion. “Katya, I understand that you were upset, but running isn’t the right thing to do. You should have come talk to me or your mother.”
Kingston snorted, and Richard gave him a sharp look.
“I know,” I said softly. “I thought I was alone, but Maverik and Kingston showed me that I’m not.”
Richard searched my eyes for a moment, then stood. “Katya, I’m glad that you’ve learned an important lesson from this, but I don’t think the boys have. This isn’t the first time that they’ve simply taken off on their own.”
“Katya determined this was the best course of action,” Maverik told him coolly. “I would have never let King go alone, and now Katya’s part of the family. Isn’t that what you wanted?”
Richard let out an exasperated breath. “Yes, but I didn’t want you to teach her how to steal cars and disappear across the country.”
“We’re ready to hear the punishment,” Kingston interrupted. “Just lay it on us.”
Richard looked even more annoyed. “My goal isn’t to punish you just to be cruel, Kingston. I need you to realize how serious your actions were and to understand that they have consequences.”
“We’re not children,” Maverik pointed out. “We’ve been on our own for a while now, and we take care of each other. Personally, I don’t think we did anything wrong.”
“Stealing a car?” Richard asked with a raised eyebrow.
Maverik shrugged. “Borrowed from the garage where we lived. It’s not like we stole it off the street.”
“I’m going to have to cancel your summer at hockey camp,” Richard told them sternly.
“What?” Maverik asked angrily as he stood. “That’s not a punishment, that’s derailing our future. We need that camp to help us get our skills up to college level.”
Richard looked like he was thinking that through, but he may have backed himself into a corner.
“If the goal is to learn a lesson,” I said slowly. “Why don’t you give us an opportunity to grow?”
Richard looked at me with a glimmer of interest in his eyes. “What do you suggest, Katya?”
“All of this happened because I felt alone and didn’t feel comfortable going to anyone for help,” I admitted. “Then, the guys thought it would be better to tag along than to turn me in.”
Kingston opened his mouth as if he were going to object, but Maverik silenced him with a look.
“Taking hockey away from the guys will only make them see you as an enemy - it won’t bring you closer together,” I explained. “The thought of losing ballet just makes me angry and distrusting towards the people who want to take it away.”
“And your suggestion?”
“Babulya and I cooked dinner together every night,” I said softly. “We talked about everything we did that day, and I never hesitated to ask for help or advice. It didn’t feel weird because we were so close.”
“But dad doesn’t cook,” Kingston pointed out. “That’s why we have a housekeeper and occasionally a chef.”
I blushed. “It doesn’t have to be cooking. Why don’t the three of you spend time together doing something that you’d all like? Maybe start going to hockey games? Seattle has a team, right?”
“Four of us,” Kingston said happily. “You’re a part of this, Kitty Kat.”
“Five,” Richard corrected. “Nina and I are getting married next year, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t part of the family now.”
Kingston rolled his eyes. “She’s not going to step one stiletto into a hockey arena.”
Nina managed to smooth the pained look off of her face before Richard looked over to her.
“Nina wants us to be a family just as much as I do,” Richard said as he reached for her hand and took it in his.
I rolled my eyes. That was unlikely, but Nina gave him a sickeningly sweet smile that told him otherwise.
Richard surveyed the doubtful faces around him. “Here’s your punishment: you will attend family dinners every night for the next week, and we will be spending Sunday together as a group. Curfew will be at eight pm every night-”
“Eight?” Kingston shouted.
Richard continued as if Kingston hadn’t spoken. “You will not attend any parties, and you will not host any guests after six pm. If you follow all of these rules and we make progress as a family, I will allow you to go to Canada next week. If you break any of these rules, I will extend the punishment for another week for every infraction. Do you understand?”
Kingston mumbled an agreement, and Richard stared at Maverik. I could see the defiance in Maverik’s eyes, and I knew he wanted to argue on principle. Maverik didn’t want anyone telling him what to do, especially his father.
Kingston needs this. That’s what I wanted to tell him, but I was afraid of saying anything out loud.
Maverik’s eyes flicked towards me as if he could hear my silent plea, and then he gave his father a nod. “I agree.”
“Kash is considered family and not
