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WHEN COSIMO presented himself at the Lake House after his release, he was told Ivette and Mathias had gone for a walk by the lake. The housekeeper who showed him into the great room assured him she would send someone to find them.
He eyed the gaggle of children with some dismay. He wasn't a big fan of small children.
"Er—Hello," he said.
One of the girls, a dark-haired mite with a café-au-lait complexion said, "How do you do, I'm Fran. Would you like some coffee or tea while you wait?"
"Ah-alright, thank you."
Fran, remembering what she had seen her mother do, pushed a button on the table and when a voice said, "yes?" asked for tea and juice to be brought to the great room.
"You have the same name as our Daddy," a blond-haired girl about the same age said. "Does it mean you are our uncle?"
"Yes, I guess it does," he replied.
The housekeeper brought in a tray with a teapot, cups and a small plate of cookies and set them on the coffee table. "Shall I pour Miss Fran, or do you want to?" she asked.
"I can do it," Fran replied, carefully lifting the teapot and pouring a small amount into one of the cups.
Cosimo had been told the children were all about three. He didn't know much about kids this age, and he watched with some trepidation as she poured the hot liquid into a cup."
The blond girl carried it to him along with a saucer.
"Thank you," he said. "I didn't get your name."
"I'm Daphne," she said. "That's Gabe coloring, and Don and Rafe watching the vid. Jillian and Leo are playing on the swings."
Cosimo sipped his tea, setting the saucer on the table beside his chair.
Mathias and his wife entered, accompanied by two other children and a guard vole. Cosimo knew about the vole, he had seen her at the wedding, and he remembered Alexandre's complaints about her. He hadn't been sure why his former friend had wanted access to the children, but a guard vole would have been an effective deterrent to whatever plans Alexandre had.
Mathias sat cross-legged on the floor by the coffee table and allowed Daphne to bring him a cup of tea. He patted the floor beside him, and Leo sat down too, staring fixedly at Cosimo, who eyed the dark-haired boy warily. This must be Leo. When he previously met the boy at the Portal terminal, the child had screamed he was a "bad man" at the top of his voice. All the adults within hearing distance had regarded Cosimo with varying degrees of distrust and disgust. It wasn't an experience he wanted to repeat.
"Welcome to Lake House, Cosimo," Ivette said, taking a seat in the chair opposite him. She accepted a cup of tea from Daphne with thanks and praise for both her and Fran. "I see our daughters have made you comfortable. Well done, girls."
Both girls glowed with pride at the praise. Their previous environment hadn't handed out many accolades, so praise was still a novel experience.
"Yes," Cosimo said. "Fran and Daphne served me the tea. It's very good. I wanted to thank you for your help with the Junta, Mathias. If you hadn't vouched for me, I might have been thrown in jail with the rest of the rebels."
"Mathias tells me I should thank you for pretending you didn't see us dive into the lake the day Marconi ordered us brought down," Ivette said. "I hope it didn't cause you too much trouble."
Cosimo shrugged. "He was too busy needling your mother to pay me much attention at the time. I don't doubt if he had succeeded in assassinating the Rex, pretending I didn't see where you went would have caused me trouble later, but fortunately Mathias and the Guard got there before he had time to think about what I had or hadn't done." He rubbed his neck. "Your Shifu packs quite a wallop."
"Yes, well she didn't know you were on our side," Ivette replied.
Don and Rafe arrived at the table, and both reached for the same cookie. A tussle might have ensued, but Mathias caught their eyes, and both of them stepped back. Don picked up the plate and offered it to Jillian.
"Would you like a cookie?"
"Yes, thank you," she said. She took an extra and held it out to the Vole, who took it gently before swallowing it whole.
"Rafe?" Don asked, extending the plate to his brother, who took one with thanks. Don set the plate back on the table and took one himself. Both boys went back to watch the vid.
"How do you manage that?" Ivette demanded. "All you did was look at them. If I'd tried to intervene, I would have needed to physically separate them."
Mathias grinned at her. "Force of eye," he said. "They're good boys," he added. "Sometimes they simply need reminding about manners."
Cosimo smiled wryly. "Like us, you mean."
"You aren't a bad man today," Leo announced.
"Ah—Thank you?" Cosimo replied. "I'm glad you approve of me today."
A suspicious quiver in her voice, Ivette told him. "Kids Leo's age sometimes don't have the right vocabulary to say what they mean. He knew you were angry with Mathias the day we arrived, and he picked a word he knew."
Cosimo grimaced. "I was lucky to get out of there alive—practically every adult there thought I was some kind of pervert who picked on little boys!"
"Sorry about that," Mathias said grinning. Eyes dancing, he met Ivette's, and she lost it; She put her head down and howled.
"We have a tutor teaching him how to block negative emotions, but he's still learning," Mathias said in a strangled voice.
His brother glared at him. "It's not funny!" Their laughter was contagious and finally, Cosimo grinned reluctantly. "Okay, I suppose it was a little funny."
After Cosimo left, Mathias and Ivette exchanged glances.
"Surprised to see him?" she asked.
"No, not really. I detect my mother's fine and elegant hand in his visit. She probably guilted him into coming to thank us the same way she guilted me into helping him."
"It's what family does," Ivette agreed with a grin.
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