213 Grace: RRW
“The children are our biggest concern.”
The midday sun beats down on us as we walk. Blue Mountain territory looks exactly as I remember it, and it makes my heart feel a little sweet and sour. Bad or good, these are memories of an entire six years of my life. It wasn’t all terrible, so it’s hard to cut all emotional ties to this place.
“See?” Jer nods vigorously. “Like a pancake”
My head hurts just thinking about it.
Jer snorts, not moving his attention from the TV. “Don’t worry. Caine will flatten him like a pancake if he hurts us. He’s our dad, remember?”
Ten minutes later, the kids are in front of the TV re–watching a movie about a blocky world, Jer is dressed in clean clothes, even if they’re a size too large, and
Randall–Raymond–Whoever hasn’t even said a word about her bunny ears and cat whiskers coming and going.
My smile feels plastic as I call out, “Kids, be nice to Mr. Randy. I’ll be back in a little while with clean clothes.”
“It’s fine, ma’am.”
“I’m here to keep you safe-‘
”
I must look like some bizarre Disney princess with my animal entourage–if Disney princesses wore jeans a size too small and borrowed t–shirts.
“Be super nice to Mr. Raymond while I’m gone, okay?”
“Of course.” Does he think they’re kept separately from the other laundry?
Sara, on the other hand, looks at Randy with caution, her red eyes slightly narrowed. “Is he going to kill us if you leave?”
The animals dance around, just beyond my reach. My shoulders already ache from the weight of the backpack. I haven’t even started walking yet.
“There’s nothing wrong with doing a load of laundry.”
15:03
213 Grace: RRW
Sadie and the cat follow behind me like I’ve been training them for years as I set off down the street. The laundromat is about a mile
away.
“Randy.” He sounds especially polite as he corrects me again, and I pause for a second. “No, thank you.” It isn’t like the offer isn’t tempting, but I don’t need some random Lycan breathing down my neck while I try to hunt down a mysterious artifact in the local laundromat.
““”
Then again, Randy’s just a Lycan, not the Lycan King.
RRW looks hesitant, and I have the feeling he’s talking to Caine from inside his head.
“Oh. I’m sorry, Randall.” My apology is sincere, though my attention is a little spotty as I haul the straps of the first backpack over my shoulders. There are two more, all stuffed to their zippers‘ max capacities.
If I make it there.
The Lycan clears his throat. “It’s Randy, ma’am.”
Wow.
My presence is no longer necessary, so I slip toward the door while they’re distracted, grabbing the last two laundry–laden backpacks. Right when I make it down the steps and turn to close the door, Sadie bounds past me, tongue lolling happily, followed by the giant white cat.
Once these missions are done, I’m leaving. Though I should probably ask Caine why Once these missions are done, I’m leaving. T the Lycans are still here and how long he needs to stay…
“I’m fine. I’ll go on my own.”
But I definitely don’t feel the urge to stay here. No way.
“Go back inside!” I hiss, trying to shoo them back up the stairs by swinging the two backpacks in my hands.
Lamest excuse ever.
He hasn’t.
Seriously; it isn’t like I haven’t been there before. There’s nothing in that building to warrant the label of ‘artifact‘.
213 Grace NRW
Randy coughs lightly. “I’m your bodyguard. It’s my job to do the flattening”
Or from this horrible “exercise” I’ve cornered myself into.
We haven’t really discussed the future properly. We’ve somehow agreed to co–parent a bunch of adopted children together, but what about the logistics? Where are we going to live? How is this going to work?
Randall or Raymond or whatever his name is wades into the chaos like Super Nanny, unfazed even when I explain the laundry fiasco to him.
“Cool.” He turns back to the blocky movie without another word.
“You two are the worst,” I mutter. “I hope you know that.”
Jer spins around from the TV, his dark curls bouncing as he pins me with a particularly intense stare. “You’ll remember to wash my underwear, right?”
It isn’t like the random someone can do my laundry and my mission.
“If you’ll wait a moment, I can call someone-
“1
He watches me with a worried frown, and now I’m absolutely positive he’s tattling on me to Caine.
Randy appears at the top of the stairs, looking concerned. “Miss Harper, I think you should wait while I call someone over to drive you there.”
“I’m fine,” I say hastily. No way am I waiting around for some chauffeur to hover over me during my magical artifact hunt, and I’m more than a little displeased over the entire existence of this app for not only having me turn down protection, but a ride I’m crazy to refuse. “Really. I… need the exercise.”
Randall–Raymond–Whoever frowns. “High Alpha wouldn’t be pleased-”
“Right. Randy. Sorry again.”
Giving up on my excuses and on corralling the animals, I start walking, glancing over my shoulder to see if Randy’s closed the door yet.
“Uh–huh,” she says, clearly unconvinced by this ridiculous family cosplay we’ve got going.
Who exercises by taking three overstuffed backpacks of laundry on a one–mile walk?
213 Grace: RRW
“Hmm. Okay then.” She doesn’t sound convinced at all, her freckles scrunching up as she eyes Randy like he’s planning to cook them for dinner.
In the wise words of someone, somewhere, sometime, it’s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. So I paste on my sunniest smile and clap my hands at the kids.
“Of course not.” My jaw would drop, but I’m already a little used to her doomsday scenarios when it comes to the Lycans. I’m surprised she isn’t clutching her metaphorical pearls and moaning about being doomed like she did when Caine came
around.
Sadie wags her tail as she picks up her pace to trot beside me. I can’t see the cat since it’s behind me, but I’m sure it probably looks smug. Cats always do.
He acts like this is just a normal Monday, and even politely offers to have someone do the laundry for me. But I shake my head, cognizant of my phone burning a hole in my
pocket.
