Текст книги "Sweet Reckoning"
Автор книги: Wendy Higgins
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Текущая страница: 16 (всего у книги 17 страниц)
“It’s time,” I whispered.
“Yes,” Kaidan said. “Do what you have to do.”
He pressed me back against the wall and blocked me as fighting continued in front of us.
I concentrated on the sword, unwilling to close my eyes with all the surrounding chaos. I began my prayer out loud for all to hear.
“Father”—my voice trembled with emotion—“let your will be done—”
Pharzuph charged for me, a complete madman with glowing red eyes and gelled hair flying out of place. Kaidan’s knife arm went up, but before he could release, my father took Pharzuph down to the ground, crushing his windpipe and holding him there. Kaidan went to one knee next to them.
“It’s too late, Father. This is your opportunity to make amends. Please consider it.”
“I will not grovel at His feet!” Pharzuph choked out.
My heart hurt to see Kaidan’s hope for his father, which was sure to be shattered.
Kaidan looked up at me, pained but resolute, and nodded for me to continue.
“I pray forgiveness for the souls who once betrayed you and have reconciled. Return them to their rightful home, and let those spirits who still harbor hatred be returned to hell—”
The room filled with terrifying shrieks that made me flinch down into a crouch and hold the blade higher. An overpowering warmth and lightness spread over me. The room, which had been so dark, was brightening.
“It’s working!” Kaidan said. “Keep going!”
Kobal broke from the mob and rushed toward me with his teeth bared in fury. Blake and Kopano grabbed him, and Marek stood over him with a gun pointed to his face.
I prayed louder now, and as the words left my mouth I felt a sense of . . . magic. I didn’t know how else to explain it—as if I’d called upon something ancient and mystifying. There was going to be a reckoning here tonight, both sweet and terrible.
My voice shook with emotion as I spoke loudly. “Please, banish all the demons from earth!”
And then something else began shaking. The ground.
At the very last second, I knew there was one more element essential to my task—one more prayerful request that had nothing to do with the prophecy. I spoke faster as the earth rumbled ominously.
“I ask with all my heart that the demon stains be washed from the souls of all Nephilim, both here on earth, and those who came before us. Please allow us a chance at redemption.”
A furious gurgle came from the earth, and the room tilted, throwing us all off our feet. The sword flew from my hand, immediately extinguishing its glowing blade. It rolled and bounced into a giant crack in the floor, where the earth was opening. Leather chairs and tables were thrown around the room. The dark-winged angels were torn unwillingly from their places in the air, and from their human bodies, shrieking and flailing, being spiraled downward into the gaping hole. We watched as Pharzuph’s soul was pulled by invisible arms out of his handsome young body and sucked down with the others. Kaidan stared at the hole where his father disappeared.
An army of heaven’s angels flew in from all sides now, beautiful and magnificent, and the remaining dark angels moved, making space. A huge white cloud of vapor descended on the bright room, causing us to shield our eyes. Peace, whole and beautiful, settled over me, and the purest kind of love filled my heart.
It is well, I heard whispered in my ear as I crouched on the tilted floor.
I turned to my father next to me. He motioned toward the other dark souls as they transformed from black to gray to gleaming snow, ascending lightly above us. My dad and I looked one last time at each other.
“You did good, baby girl.” It was time for him to go. I squeezed him around the neck. He gave me a grateful smile as he let me go, and then his spirit rose from the body of Big Rotty. His shining soul flew above me, wings flapping.
“Good-bye,” I whispered to him. But I couldn’t be too sad, because I knew I’d see him again, and he was going to be with Mariantha. All the things that were so crazy on earth would shed away and cease to matter.
The angel army led the way up, and the newly brightened souls followed, rising through the ceiling to their long-lost home. Kaidan grabbed me in a tight hug. As we looked at each other, I felt a strange tug within me.
From our chests, where our badges appeared, dark smoke was expelled, dissipating into the air. We gasped to see each other’s badges change to bursts of white.
And then a rushing of air made us turn to the opening in the earth. Souls of redeemed fallen angels and Nephilim from the underworld were flying upward by the thousands. We watched their ascent with pure amazement.
The building gave an ominous creak all around us, followed by a vicious quaking. Dust and dirt billowed up throughout the room.
“We have to get out of here!” Kaidan yelled.
Surrounding Neph grabbed hands and pulled one another up. We all ran as fast as we could, hurdling bodies on the ground, jumping over furniture and mounds of uprooted earth. Zania fell as the tremors under us increased, but Kaidan and Kopano pulled her up, and we ran to the back alley stairway, where we pushed through the heavy metal doors and sprinted upward, out into the Nevada summer night.
UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE
HarperCollins Publishers
..................................................................
CHAPTER THIRTY
NEW LIFE
In the aftermath of Las Vegas’s worst earthquake in recent history, humanity showed its best. The streets were crowded with people. In the midst of the mayhem, complete strangers were helping and comforting one another. Miraculously, only thirteen people were killed in the quake—an eclectic group from around the world, eleven men and two women, all in the Lunar Room of the Galaxy Nightclub, which sat directly above the fault line. Rumors flew about the scandal of Big Rotty and his “faked death” followed by his real one.
No part of the club was salvageable. Hundreds were injured, and there’d been minor structural damage to surrounding buildings, but otherwise the news called it a modern miracle.
When Galaxy’s owner was interviewed, he said, “We cleared out the club as soon as the earthquake began, but the Lunar Room was locked. We banged and banged, but nobody would answer, and we had to get out of there.”
Reportedly, shots had been fired in the Lunar Room just before the quake began, but that was all speculation.
Kaidan never let go of my hand as we fled the nightclub as quickly as possible, pressing through the crowded streets of dusty chaos and back to the enormous lobby of The Venetian, where people talked animatedly about where they had been during the quake. Lights from rescue squads flashed across the room through the glass doors.
He pulled me into a corner against the wall, where we were partially hidden by an ATM machine. Kaidan grasped my face and I held his waist. All we could do was stare at each other.
“We made it,” he whispered, sounding disbelieving.
The truth of those words exploded inside me. It was over.
“We made it,” I said back. “We really did.”
He held my face, placing kisses across my skin—my nose, forehead, chin, and cheeks, then finally my lips. We were alive. I couldn’t believe it. When he wrapped his arms around me, a terrible, gaping loss gripped my heart, and it felt like I was cracking into pieces. “Patti . . .”
Kaidan held me tight as I broke down.
“I’m so sorry, luv,” he whispered. I felt him kiss my head as I clung to him, the memory of her death slicing through me.
Knowing she was at peace couldn’t stop me from hurting for the fear she must’ve felt when she was captured, and the pain she experienced at the hands of an evil soul. And the fact that I would no longer feel her hugs or listen to her supportive words here on earth. I’d miss her every day of my life.
And then I thought of something. . . .
I pulled back from Kaidan with a frantic feeling inside me.
“Where’s Jay?” I asked. How could I not have thought of him sooner?
I turned, searching the lobby until I saw our group of friends huddled close to the glass and looking out at the craziness in silence. Marna was on her phone. When we made eye contact, her arm shot into the air, waving me over, and she was smiling.
Pure, sweet relief rushed through me. He was okay.
I ran to Marna and we embraced.
“Where is he?”
“He’s actually here in Vegas. He didn’t know where we’d be, so he checked in at another hotel, but he’s on his way over.” She was beaming.
“How did he know to come here?” I asked. “What happened?”
“I texted him last night, but I don’t know what happened on his end. Anna . . .” Her eyes softened. “I’m so sorry about your mum.”
I swallowed back another bout of tears.
Marna took my hand and we went to the window, watching for Jay. Next to me, Kaidan wound his fingers through mine, and I looked up into his tired blue eyes. I wanted to be happy that we’d made it, and be joyous about our future, but first I needed to mourn.
I looked toward Ginger, also standing by the glass. Blake had his arm around her, holding her close, and she was wiping her eyes.
I went to her and put a hand on her shoulder. Ginger turned, and when she saw it was me, she wrapped her arms around me and we cried together. Every negative thing that had ever been between us slipped away at that moment. She hadn’t known Patti very long, but I knew Ginger saw what I saw—a loving woman who accepted us and believed in us.
“She was the closest thing to a mum I ever had,” Ginger said. “I know that sounds silly. I barely knew her.”
I let her go so I could see her face. “It doesn’t sound silly at all. Patti loved you right away.”
Ginger nodded. Her jaw trembled as she wiped her eyes again.
“Jay!”
We all turned toward Marna’s voice. She ran from the hotel, crashing into Jay on the sidewalk. He lifted her off her feet in a giant hug that went on forever.
“He really does love her,” Ginger whispered.
We all nodded and watched as Jay and Marna pulled apart, talking. His face fell and his demeanor changed, his aura turning dark blue, and I realized he was probably hearing about Patti. Again, my heart ached. I pressed a hand to my chest and wondered if the pain would always be with me.
As Jay and Marna made their way inside, he came straight to me and held me. I wanted to ask what had happened, but I didn’t want to talk about it out in the open. I was just so glad he was okay. We held tight for a long time.
“I’m so sorry, Anna,” he whispered.
I couldn’t answer, and he seemed to understand.
Kopano and Zania joined us. Kope’s shirt had a bloody hole in the middle, a sight that made me shiver as I remembered how we’d almost lost him. Looking around, I saw that everyone was a little worse for wear, bloodied and scraped, with torn clothing but, thankfully, no lasting injuries.
Kaidan and Kope gave each other a man hug, then Blake and Jay, too.
Jay pointed at Kopano’s shirt, his eyes huge. “Dude!”
“Yeah, how you feeling, mate?” Kaidan asked.
Kope rubbed his chest. “It’s tender and feels strange, but I am okay. It looks bad. . . . I need to change this shirt.”
The way Zania watched him was endearing.
“Let’s all go back to the room,” Kaidan suggested, and we all agreed.
As we made our way through the lobby, we stopped to thank other Nephilim who’d fought with us. It was weird to see everyone’s badges turned white. I met Kopano’s brothers and gave them hugs.
I found Marek watching out the window with his hands in his pockets, and I punched him in the arm. He turned, surprised when he saw me standing there with my hands on my hips.
“You scared me!”
Marek laughed. “I was working for your papa!”
Dad had been there all along, playing a hand in the events.
I smiled and put a hand on my hip. “Well, did you have to be such a good actor?”
“My plan was to tell you when we met, but that did not work out.” His eyes lifted to someone behind me and he leaned closer to my ear. “So, you and the son of Pharzuph, eh? Good choice.” He gave his eyebrows a playful lift.
“Um, thanks. . . .” I glanced over my shoulder at Kai, who turned away from us with an amused smile. Yeah, it was too bad Kaidan didn’t have a twin brother to appease the masses, because I wasn’t sharing my man.
“You have my admiration in more ways than one, Daughter of Belial. Enjoy your life with that gorgeous husband. You deserve it.” He winked.
I reached up and hugged Marek now, and he hugged me back.
“Keep in touch,” I told him.
As he walked away, the back of a young girl caught my eye. She was watching out the window, her arms wrapped around herself. Her dark hair hung limp. Just a child. Was she separated from her parents? I had to find out.
“Excuse me,” I said to her.
When she turned, I sucked in a breath. Caterina. Her eyes were bloodshot and distant. Her hair had come out of its neat bun.
“Where is she?” Caterina asked.
“Who? Oh . . . Jezebet?”
Caterina nodded.
I spoke with care. “She’s in heaven.”
The poor girl looked pitiful. Baffled. I actually felt sorry for her. Jezebet had been working for the opposite side for who knew how long, and Caterina had to feel betrayed.
“She couldn’t tell you,” I started to explain, but Caterina cut me off with a curt nod.
“She did not trust me.”
I bit my lip. What could I say to that?
Caterina stared at my badge. “Is mine . . . ?”
“Yours is white now, too,” I said.
“And what does that mean?”
I thought about it. “It means you’re not automatically going to hell when you die. You’re not cursed anymore just because of who your father was. You can choose how you want to live your life now. You’re free.”
She looked more frightened and childlike now. The girl had had no guidance except in evil.
“Caterina . . . where will you go now?”
She looked around, lost.
“You’ll come with me,” I heard, and turned to see Ginger eyeing Caterina.
The girl’s eyes got big and she shook her head. “No. Nu. I will care for myself.”
“Bollocks.” Ginger stepped closer. She pushed the hair off Caterina’s shoulder, and the girl flinched away. “I’ll never hit you. But I’ll also not put up with any lying or attitude.”
Caterina shook her head, staring down at the floor. Ginger didn’t bother with gentleness when she spoke to her. She was as frank as always, which made me think they were a good match for each other.
“How old are you?” Ginger asked.
“Thirteen.”
“I know some of the things you’ve done,” Ginger told her. “I’ve done a lot, too. But that’s all going to change now. Come on.” She held out her hand.
Caterina stared at her outstretched offering. Based on everything I’d witnessed from the girl, I couldn’t imagine her taking it. But people were full of surprises. Caterina took her hand.
“Right then,” Ginger said. She marched through our group, pulling Caterina behind her and leaving us all gaping in her wake.
“Unbelievable,” Marna whispered.
Blake grinned. “I freaking love her.” He jogged to catch up to Ginger.
I smiled up at Kaidan, who still seemed dumbstruck, and I twined my fingers with his.
I’d always considered myself a forgiving person, but when it came to Caterina it was hard to see past the evil things she’d done, and to remember she was young and badly nurtured. It was humbling to see Ginger being more open-minded than me in this matter. I thought she understood the girl’s attitude in a way the rest of us couldn’t.
It was nearly six in the morning when we made it to the room. We were dragging, and covered in a layer of dust. I couldn’t believe we’d been in this room just five short hours ago, wondering if we’d live or die.
Caterina sat in a chair with her ankles crossed and her head down, looking nervous. Ginger tapped her shoulder and handed her a cola with ice.
“No need to be scared of anyone here. They know I’ll kick their arses if they mess with you. Got it?”
Caterina nodded and stared down at her drink.
Kaidan dug a T-shirt from his bag and tossed it to Kopano. When he came out of the bathroom, he seemed uncomfortable. The shirt was tighter than anything he usually wore. I peeked at Zania, who was sitting on the floor cross-legged and staring hard at Kope. When she met my eye she tried to hold back a smile, because yeah . . . he looked really good.
“You tryin’ to show me up, man?” Blake said to Kopano, flexing his lean biceps.
Everyone laughed and Kope gave his bashful smile, dimple and all, before he took a seat on the floor next to Zania.
Kaidan sat at the end of the couch and put his arm around me. I squished close next to him, taking his hand. This was weird. It was the first time ever that we could be affectionate without worry or fear. I smiled up at him. Wow.
We were all here. Alive. And our fathers were gone from earth forever. The quiet that settled over the room told me we were all thinking that same thing. It seemed unreal.
“So, what’s it mean, Anna?” Blake asked, his eyes dropping to the supernatural badge on my chest. “They’re all white.”
“I don’t know,” I said. “I mean, I prayed that all Neph, alive or dead, would have a chance at heaven just like regular people.”
Blake nodded, then got up and walked over to the mini fridge, opening it and pulling out a couple small champagne bottles.
“Wanna celebrate?” he asked the room. I actually felt surprised when the dark urge stirred inside me and I longed to drink both those bottles and then some. Blake eyed me meaningfully. “Feel anything, Anna?”
I bit my lip and dropped my eyes, nodding. “It’s still there.”
“I could’ve told you that, mate,” Kaidan muttered, making Jay and Blake laugh.
“And I still see the bonds,” Marna said. Ginger agreed.
The auras and guardian angels were still there, too.
So our demon urges hadn’t left us—only the stain that made us damned. But we were strong. We’d proven that.
The room quieted as Blake put the drinks back in the fridge, and my mind switched gears. As much as I didn’t want to get upset, and as morbid as it may have seemed, I needed the details about what Patti had been through.
“Jay?” I said quietly. “What happened?”
He didn’t say anything at first. He rubbed Marna’s knee and thought.
“She knew something was coming. I don’t know how—intuition or something—but she made us separate. She kept hugging me and saying not to worry, she’d see me soon.”
He got choked up, and I felt my eyes burning all over again.
“So we separated. Then I got a text from Marna saying y’all were going to Vegas. That things were going down. I couldn’t get ahold of Patti, and I felt like I needed to be here, so I came. I’m sorry, Anna.”
I grabbed his hand. “You don’t need to be sorry.”
“I keep thinking if I didn’t leave her . . . if I made us stay together—”
“You wouldn’t have been able to stop them,” Kaidan said. “They would have killed you or tried to use you against Anna, as well. And if you’d been there, they would’ve seen your bond with Marna.”
Jay looked down and shook his head.
Marna put her arm around him and kissed his cheek. “I think it had to happen the way it did, luv.”
Her eyes darted to mine, a worried expression on her face about what she’d said. I nodded, because I no longer believed in coincidence.
Zania’s voice was soft when she said, “She is my hero.”
“Yes,” Ginger whispered.
I tucked my face in the crook of Kaidan’s neck, overcome.
“Hey, Kope,” said Blake. “What your dad did for you? That was awesome. You were gone, man.”
I lifted my eyes to see Kope incline his head.
“I cannot remember it. It was just . . . there was only pain and darkness, and then I was opening my eyes.”
Zania shifted next to him, as if the memory was too much. Kope laid his hand on top of hers. After another stretch of silence, Blake spoke again, relieving the room’s tension in the way only he could.
“So, how ’bout them exorcisms, Kaidan Rowe–style, eh?”
Kaidan huffed a laugh through his nose.
“Seriously, dude,” Blake went on. “When you hit Mammon in the eye . . . I was, like, dayum!”
The energy in the room rose.
“That was amazing,” Marna said.
“Good thinking with the holy water,” Kopano added.
“I wasn’t sure it would work,” Kaidan admitted. “Bloody good thing it did.”
We all angled toward one another, and for the next hour we talked about the events of the summit, rehashing every single detail, in awe at how things had turned out.
Caterina stayed put in her chair, trying to keep her head down, but periodically looking up with interest at something someone said before dropping her chin again. Ginger kept a close eye on her, seeming to study her and gauge her reactions and interests.
And then we began figuring out exactly which of the Dukes had chosen heaven. My father, Kopano’s father, and Jezebet. Melchom, Pharzuph, and Astaroth had not. It was a solemn conversation. No tears were shed. The twins and Zania had no sentimental attachments to their fathers, and were glad to see them go. Kaidan hadn’t said a word. I looked at him, but he kept his eyes averted.
“Your father showed interest in the beginning,” I said to Blake. “I was hopeful.”
“Yeah.” He shook his head. “If it was just a choice between going to heaven or hell, I think he would have chosen heaven. But choosing between heaven and earth, he’d definitely wanna stay here. He thought they could stop the prophecy and stay on earth. Bad move.”
I knew it bothered him, just like it bothered Kai. Kaidan leaned his head into my hand. His chest swelled and fell with a silent sigh.
“So, what’s everyone gonna do now?” asked Jay.
Kaidan spoke up right away. “I know the first thing I’m going to do.”
Surprised and curious, I leaned to the side so I could see his face better.
“I’m making an anonymous call to the police about Marissa and her trafficking ring.”
“Yes!” I said. I threw my arms around him. Those words made me fall a million times more in love with him. He could bust the madam now with no fear of having it traced back to him.
“Nice,” said Jay. “How ’bout you, Anna?”
Kaidan squeezed my hip. “Anna’s a uni girl now.”
I shook my head. “I’m already missing class by being here, and after all this, I think I need to take the semester off. I don’t really care where I go to school. If you want to stay in L.A.,” I said to Kaidan, “I’ll transfer to a school out there.”
He looked at me, his eyes all melty. “That’d be nice.”
I smiled. It’d be very nice.
“And what about you, Jay?” Kai asked him. “I could hook you up with some people in the recording business or radio shows in L.A. Maybe we could write more music together.”
“For real?” Jay’s aura lit up like an orange firework, and we all laughed. “Dude. I’m there! What do you think, Marna? Wanna live in L.A.?”
“Sounds brilliant to me,” she said. “As long and Blake and Ginger stay in California . . . at least until . . . you know, after the baby.”
The mood of the room sank again. Ginger took her sister’s hand and looked her in the eye.
“I’ll be there.”
Blake had turned, and appeared touched by their interaction. “Hey, Gin. Wanna join the married club while we’re here in Vegas?” He waggled his eyebrows. Surely he was joking.
All eyes were on Ginger.
“No.” Her voice was hard. “I’m never getting married.”
Caterina sniggered. She stared down at her nails and said, “She means that.”
Blake rubbed his chin, undeterred, then raised his pierced brow at her. “All right. Want to move in with me?”
Ginger narrowed her eyes at him, tapping her foot at his side. “You takin’ the mick?”
“Nah. I’m serious.”
“He is,” Caterina muttered.
Ginger sniffed. “Fine.”
“Sweet,” Blake said with a grin.
“I’m not moving in with him!” Caterina crossed her arms and frowned. There was the girl I remembered. When she saw us all looking at her, she uncrossed her arms and dropped her head again.
Ginger smiled. I think she took Caterina’s sassiness as a challenge. “When you see Blake’s house, you might change your mind.”
“What about you, Kope?” Marna asked, shifting the attention.
“I will finish my master’s soon and return to Africa with my brothers. There is much that needs to be done there.”
“And you’re just the man to do it.” Marna winked, and he gave a grateful smile.
I looked at Zania. “Where will you go, Z?”
She sort of shrugged and looked shy.
“You don’t have to decide right now,” I said, just as Kopano blurted, “You would love Malawi.”
Then we all giggled and shifted, trying not to allow the moment to get too awkward. Zania gazed up at Kopano, who watched her with his signature intensity.
“Yes,” she said. “I think I would love Malawi very much.”
Marna clapped her hands.
Caterina made a disgusted sound and spoke fast in her high-pitched little voice. “But . . . you’re all Nephilim. And he is a human!” She pointed at Jay. “I don’t understand this. Are all of you in love?”
We all looked around, taken aback by the question, an allegation that five hours ago would have scared us to death to hear out loud. And then in sync we burst into laughter, because yes. Yes, we were all in love. We’d defied the oppressive rules, fought back, and won. No more hiding. No more running. No more faking. No more fearing.
We were free.
UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE
HarperCollins Publishers
..................................................................
EPILOGUE
Six Years Later . . .
Malawi was everything Kopano had said it would be. Kai and I loved it from the moment we stepped off the plane, holding hands, smiling into the bright sunshine. Zania and Kopano met us at the doors of the orphanage. They’d been married five years now. Zania and I hugged first, while the guys shook hands.
“Your big day is finally here!” Zania said. She’d been working with us for the past year to make this happen.
Kaidan took my hand. We were both shaking a little. I was nervous and excited beyond belief to meet our boys—brothers.
We knew parenthood was hard. We’d been there for Jay after Marna’s soul had passed during Anise’s birth. She’d been taken despite our earnest hopes, but she’d made the most of her last months of freedom. I’d never seen anyone laugh and smile as much as Marna had. She radiated joy, and even Ginger softened under her ray of sunshine.
It was no surprise that Jay was the hippest rock-star single dad ever, but I knew he was tired, working full-time and then being the only parent for his baby girl.
Ginger and I spent a lot of time with Anise, keeping her whenever Jay had night deejaying events for the L.A. radio station. Anise was a perfect combination of Marna’s happiness and Ginger’s divaness, walking around in her pink tutu with a hand on her hip. And Jay could do no wrong in his girl’s eyes. She laughed at all his jokes and loved when he called her Short Stuff.
So. Cute.
But we all missed Marna.
We followed Kope and Z inside the one-story building, a relatively new structure built with Alocer’s funds, along with a library and medical facility in the small town.
We were led down a hall to a sparse room with chairs and toys.
“Let me get them,” Kope said, leaving us.
Zania motioned for us to sit, but we declined. I clutched Kai’s hand, and Zania giggled.
“This is my favorite part. New parents are adorable.” She rubbed my shoulder and I tried to smile.
When I heard footsteps coming down the hall and Kope’s rumbling voice talking sweetly, my stomach clenched with nerves.
The door opened and Kopano had a boy on each hip. They looked positively tiny in his arms, and I immediately teared up. Don’t cry, I told myself. I didn’t want to scare them. As we all moved closer, the eighteen-month-old boy, Mandala, held tighter to Kope, wary of us. Six-month-old Onani, on the other hand, let out a giant gurgling giggle and waved his arms up and down, making us all laugh.
I held out my hands, and Onani came to me with no qualms, obviously going to be our “people person.” I checked out his skinny limbs, which somehow still managed to have soft dimples at the knees, elbows, ankles, and wrists. Despite being so thin, Onani’s cheeks were chubby, and his head was a gorgeous mess of black curls.
I was in love and I couldn’t stop smiling.
“Hi, Onani,” I said softly.
He went a bit cross-eyed as he tried to focus on me, taking in every feature on my face with serious curiosity. Then he reached out and grabbed my hair, squealing happily while we all laughed and I unpried his little fingers. I looked at Kaidan and he was watching us in awe.
“I should have warned you,” Z said. “He loves hair.”
While I held Onani, adoring the weight of him in my arms, I watched as Kope and Kai both squatted on the floor. Mandala leaned back against Kopano, still wary of Kaidan.
“I think I have something you might like,” Kaidan said. From one pocket he pulled a cherry red toy car.
This piqued Mandala’s attention. He took a step toward Kaidan.
“It’s yours, mate,” Kai assured him. “I brought it just for you.” He held out the car and our boy took it. He crouched down on the ground and rolled the car. Kaidan made a vrooming sound effect and Mandala smiled, making my heart flutter. Kai grinned up at me, and I swear . . . I had no idea I could love him more. But as I watched Kaidan lie on the floor and play with Mandala, my heart overflowed.
We spent the day at the orphanage, trying to get the boys as comfortable with us as possible before we took them to the hotel. Other children came in and out of the playroom where we stayed, and they all took an interest in us. Zania said I could give them candy, so I became quite popular among the kids, all the while watching Onani trying to crawl next to me.
“He’s awful cute, isn’t he?” Kaidan asked, grinning at me in wonder. Then Mandala sidled up close, holding his new toy, which nobody was allowed to touch, and he gently petted his baby brother’s head, looking up at Kai for affirmation.
“You’re a good boy,” Kaidan said to him.
Then my heart officially melted.
Kaidan earned major hot points with me that day.
When a new group of kids came into the room, one of the little girls stood at the door and stared at us. Specifically, she stared at Kaidan. She looked about three years, no older than four, with thick braids.
“Would you like one?” I asked her, holding out a lollipop.
She eyed the candy, considering, but then her eyes went back to Kaidan and she shook her head.
The auras of children were always interesting jumbles, because they couldn’t process all those emotions. But this girl’s were pretty clear and unwavering. Underneath, stirring like a low storm, were dark emotions. When I opened myself to her I felt fear, and it made me gasp. I pulled back and watched her, surprised. Because on top of that fear was pure, light pink love, swirled with light gray apprehension, and sparks of orange excitement. It was the love she was so clearly feeling as she stared at Kaidan that I couldn’t quite understand. Zania and Kope came back into the room after some time, and they noticed the girl right away. They looked back and forth between her and Kaidan, who hadn’t noticed what was happening yet.
