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Kyle took Ash’s basket and opened my car door. “You want to ride with me, or are you okay to drive?”
I wanted to put distance between myself and LeAnne Hanson. “I can drive.” He reached across to put Ash’s basket on the passenger seat, took my hand and eased me behind the wheel before he closed the door. “See you at home.”
Ten minutes later, I walked into my own house and scooped Ash out of her basket and sat at the dining room table. “You okay, kitty?” I asked.
She curled into my lap nudged my hand with her head. I scratched her ears and ran my hand over her body, stroking her fur and inspecting her for any wounds. She seemed unharmed, perhaps as exhausted from the experience as I was. We drew strength from each other, and as Ash’s purrs grew in volume, I closed my eyes and let the last vestiges of the ball of ice inside me melt away.
The cat hopped to the floor and wandered into the utility room, circling her food dishes. I followed, giving her a little extra food, and went back to the table where I’d spent so many hours with Nora. I laid my head against my arms and cried. Moments later, Kyle arrived home, knelt beside me, and slid his arms around me. I turned into his embrace. We clung to each other until I’d let go of the sadness and held onto the goodness I’d found in Kyle.
“Are the kids going to be okay?” Kyle asked, smoothing my hair off my face.
I nodded. “I’m sure Jason will take care of them.”
“And LeAnne?”
A fresh stream of tears slid down my face. “If you had seen her with those kids. I want to believe she’s suffering from post-partum, but the things she said...” I drew a shuddery breath.
He eased an arm across my shoulder. “I’ve seen new mothers do scary things.”
“She said she married Jason to enhance the gene pool. Essentially, she wanted to have a powerful child. I don’t even know what she had in mind, but after today, I can’t imagine it was good.”
“So Sharon was right about her.”
I nodded.
“If it’s any consolation, I suspect Jason has seen the light, in a manner of speaking.”
Jason. He wasn’t due home for another day. “Why did he come home early? He couldn’t possibly have made it home that fast after I texted him.”
“That’s my fault. You were worried if I tried to help, you wouldn’t be able to protect me. I’ve seen enough these past couple weeks to trust you might be right. I figured if anyone could reach LeAnne, Jason could, so I suggested he was needed at home. If things went sideways, he could at least distract her long enough for me to get you out of there.” Kyle tilted his head. “You texted him?”
“Someone had to take care of those kids, and it wasn’t LeAnne. That’s why Georgia hasn’t been visiting me. The poor child has hardly slept with taking care of her baby brother. She’s three years old. She can’t even change a diaper.” I was horrified anew at the weight of Remy’s diaper, at his chapped skin.
“Have I told you you’d make a great mom?” Kyle said, bumping one of his shoulders against mine.
Fresh tears fell. Holding Remy, caring for Georgia, a yearning yawned inside of me.
“I didn’t mean to make you cry,” Kyle said, his eyes welling with tears of his own.
“If we’re meant to be parents, we will be,” I said.
“And if we can’t have them on our own, there’s a world full of children who need parents. I have no doubt your heart is big enough to claim one or two.”
I laughed through the tears and punched his shoulder. “Can we wait until after the wedding to talk about what comes next?”
He held me tight and I drew from his strength.
The kitchen door opened and Nora rushed in. “I was so worried. Are you okay, sweet Brynn?”
I wiped my tears away and nodded while Nora joined in the hug.
“I felt a ripple, but I couldn’t reach you. I came as soon as I could.” She pulled away. “Let me make us all some tea.”
She returned a short time later with a pretty, painted teapot I hadn’t seen before and set it on a trivet. A quick trip back to the kitchen and she brought us matching cups.
“Where did you find this?” I asked.
“On top of the cupboards. I save it for special occasions. This strikes me as one of those times.” She settled at the table with us. “Tell me what happened.”
While she poured, I filled her in on LeAnne and Jason.
“I guess I can forget about trying to prove to him I’m not a bad person,” I concluded. “After today, I’m sure he’ll hold me responsible for everything.”
“And you think LeAnne and Georgia have both lost their powers?” she asked, sneaking a peek at Kyle.
“Pretty sure. She tried to get me to drink the potion that went with the incantation, but when Georgia reached for the glass, LeAnne knocked it out of her hand. Will the spell be complete without it?”
“Time will tell,” Nora said. “What about Jason?”
“I think the initial glow, if you want to call it that, had already worn off. He was staying with her out of obligation more than anything else,” I replied.
“If I get a vote,” Kyle said, “speaking as a man who’s been there, the look on Jason’s face said it all for me. Whatever hold she had on him seemed to have been severed completely.”
“Maybe,” I said, “but that doesn’t mean Jason will absolve me of whatever crimes he imagines I’ve committed.”
“I wouldn’t write him off yet,” Kyle said. “You took care of his kids. That will carry more weight than you think.”
Nora took my hands. “What about you?”
“What about me?”
“You managed to avoid the line of fire?”
I rolled my eyes. “You know what, I wouldn’t have minded if it had been me instead of one of them. I know this is a gift, and I understand how I fit into the grand scheme of things, but all I’ve ever wanted was to be normal.”
“You are one of the most normal people I know,” Kyle said. “Don’t sell yourself short. Normal is caring. Normal is thinking about what other people need, too.”
Nora grinned. “I knew I liked this boy. Might have taken a bit of refining to get it right, but clearly his mother’s genes made the difference to the Jakes bloodline.”
Kyle raised his eyebrows and I laughed.