Page 142 of The Midnight Order
Chapter 37
Corvin
Silver holdsthe box in her arms like it’s fragile. Lowell returned immediately after speaking with Silver and reported what she had found. He also told us what he told her. She looks to be still reeling from his words, so I’m treading lightly as I clear off an old desk in the room's corner.
The temperature and humidity in this room are controlled, so I know anything we find in that box will be safe as we remove it.
“Alright, there we go. Do you want us to wear gloves while handling your documents?” I ask her.
As a tear tracks down her cheek, she looks at me like I’ve grown a second head.
I rush her, taking the box and placing it behind me on the desk. “Hey, what’s wrong?”
Tugging her into a tight hug, I rock her back and forth, something innate in all of us when comforting.
“Everything. Nothing.”
Those two words I understand.
Lowell really got to her earlier. Jasper didn’t help, either.
I understand their points. I do. She gets to choose this life, and we didn’t have that luxury.
“We can go as fast or slow as you want to. We don’t have to start today. That box can sit on that desk for years if you want it to. We have plenty of time, Silver.”
She sniffles. “Haven’t you all wasted enough time waiting for me?”
I laugh. “Well, we didn’t know we were waiting on you, specifically. Plus, have you met Lowell? You’ll be the one waiting around in the end.”
Wiping her eyes, she finally breaks and smiles. “I guess you have a point.”
“Why don’t we go have some lunch or coffee or something? Get our minds off all of this.”
“We can’t go into town,” she offers.
“I know. Milly’s become quite the skilled barista with that machine, though. I hear it’s become an obsession of hers.”
Silver smiles, and it seems to light the entire universe.
“You’re sure we don’t need to dive into all that right now?”
“Who knows how long it’s been traveling with Soliel? It’ll keep. Come on.” I lead her into the hall, locking the door behind me and pocketing the key.
“You know, Asher says you and he sometimes have coffee on the back veranda. Maybe we could do that?”
I hear her swallow and wonder why it was so audible. Do I make her nervous? Does talking about Asher with me make her anxious?
She’s probably like everyone else in the manor: worried that history will repeat itself.
“It was only once,” she says, as if defending their time together.
“It made him very happy.” I stop her, turning her toward me. “Maybe you two should make a habit of it?”
She searches my face for something before smirking, tight-lipped. “Maybe we should.”
I sigh, feeling like I have made no headway in the wall that feels like it is building between us by the second.
Milly is in the kitchen, tinkering with dishes in the sink. She hears us come in and beams at us.
