Page 91 of Deathless
I was here now. Uncomfortable and completely out of my element, yes. But if I left now, would I really come back? Or would I just avoid this discomfort, this massive potential responsibility being held out to me? I was getting stronger in trusting myself but wasn’t all the way there yet.
“Yeah, I’m good,” I told Rori as casually as I could manage.
I gestured for her to go ahead of me, an idea we’d discussed with June and Lisa, the foster parents, over the phone. The children would be more at ease seeing another woman first.
Rori gave my arm a squeeze as she walked past me, heading up the charming mosaic-tiled walkway to the front door where she knocked gently.
A Black woman almost as tall as Rori and with long, multicolored braided hair opened the door, smiling warmly as she stepped aside to let us in. “Hello, come in! I’m Lisa. June’s watching the girls out back.”
“Thank you for letting us come over,” Rori answered. “I’m Rori, this is Hudson.”
“Well, I can see the resemblance,” Lisa said as she shook my hand. “Maia, the older one, looks just like you.”
“Thanks.” I laughed nervously. “That’s promising, I hope.”
I was antsy to meet these kids, I realized. I wanted to learn about them, their likes and dislikes, their dreams and fears.
“Please make yourselves comfortable.” Lisa gestured toward a cozy living room with deep set couches. “I was just making some tea, would you all like some?”
“That would be lovely, thank you.” Rori took a seat and smiled graciously. It was a trip seeing her this way, all warm and polite. I almost couldn’t believe this same woman was the foul-mouthed biker president with a thirst for revenge.
But that thirst had been sated now, I reminded myself. The nightmare was really over.
Once settled on the couch with tea, I could see through a bay window to a large backyard. A Caucasian woman with dark hair up in a messy bun sat on the other side of the window. We could hear her talking to the two girls, though they weren’t in view.
“Sounds like they’re settling in well,” Rori remarked.
“Every day is a little bit better,” Lisa said with a nod. “The younger one, Elodie, probably won’t remember the cult. But Maia is old enough to remember, and she struggles to understand some things. She asks about her mom a lot. We try to tell her that her mom wasn’t a bad person, but she had brought Maia into a dangerous situation. So she had to come with us to be safe.”
“Do they have the same mother?” I asked.
“No, different mothers,” Lisa said. “Those two are like peas in a pod, though. Very emotionally close, like true sisters.” Lisa placed her mug down on the coffee table and brought her hands to her lap. “Are you ready to meet them?”
“Yes,” I said. “I would like to.”
“Are we still okay doing it as we discussed?” Lisa’s gaze shifted from me to Rori.
“Yes,” I said again. “Whatever it takes to make them feel more comfortable.”
“Alright then.”
She stood from the couch and headed for the backyard, with Rori and me following. After opening the sliding door, she and Rori stepped outside while I stayed behind.
I could see and hear the kids from where I stood, but they wouldn’t see me until I was signaled to come out. The children had been taught by the Sisterhood not to have any interaction with outsiders and that men were especially unsafe. So our plan was to introduce them to Rori first, and then, based on their reactions, see if they were open to meeting me.
“Hey hun, Rori’s here,” Lisa said to her wife. “Girls, this is our friend, Rori. Can you say hello and introduce yourselves?”
“Hiii!” Elodie, the almost-four year old, waved and smiled brightly at Rori. “We’re playing sandbox.”
The younger of the two had russet brown hair curling around her face, much like mine had at that age. Her expression was open, happy, and curious about her foster mothers’ new friend. Maia, on the other hand, remained silent and withdrawn, watching Rori suspiciously. Shedidlook like me, down to the blue eyes and furrowed brows.
Lisa and June didn’t push Maia for an introduction, and Rori seemed to take note of her frostiness, crossing her legs to sit on the grass just outside of the girls’ sandbox. “I like all your shovels and tools in there.” Rori gestured to the brightly colored plastic buckets, rakes, and other sandcastle building supplies. “Can you show me what you’re making?”
Elodie babbled happily about her sandcastle process, showing Rori everything she used and what it made. Maia, however, silently continued her own project in the far corner of the sandbox.
“This is so cool.” Rori was engaged and attentive to Elodie the whole time. “You’ve got a whole workshop. My dad has a workshop too, only his stuff is for building motorcycles.”
“Dad?” Maia asked in shock, speaking up for the first time. “You have a dad?”
