He rolled his eyes. “I suppose if I must have another sister, you’re not too dreadful.”
“Gee, thanks.” She grinned and held out her hand. “Shake on it?”
As he shook her hand a sense of relief flooded her. But when he pulled his hand back, she held on, squeezing harder. His eyebrows rose as he accepted the challenge, increasing the force of his grip. She put everything she had into it, holding her breath and squeezing with all her might. But her fingers throbbed, and she knew she was beaten.
“I give up!” She pulled her hand back, shaking it to get the blood flowing. “I thought I might be able to beat you since you’ve been in the hospital for over a week.”
“You actually thought you could out-grip me?” He laughed, and a genuine smile lit up his face. “You have a competitive spirit; I admire that. I’m sorry, Alora. I think I misjudged you.”
“I totally understand. This has been an emotional rollercoaster for me, too. My life is turned upside-down, and I’m just trying to cope right now. But I hope we’ll be good friends.”
He gave a sharp nod. “Good friends.”
*****
Alora almost jumped for joy when she saw Beth’s name on her cell phone caller ID. “Beth! I was afraid I’d never get to talk to you again.”
“Me, too! I’m still grounded for life. But Mom told me I could call and let you know we’re coming to the meeting with your uncle.”
“You realize Graely and Jireo and Raelene and almost all of the council are going to be there, right? I mean, I thought your Mom didn’t buy the story about us transporting to Laegenshire.”
“She didn’t, and she still doesn’t believe it. But I guess she’ll have to believe it after tonight.”
“Yikes! This could be really interesting.”
“Are Wesley and his parents coming?”
“I haven’t talked to him at all, but Uncle Charles says they’re coming. I think Wesley would have been better off if he’d just pretended he’d gone with us on a long camping trip. Uncle Charles said his mother was kind of hysterical about the whole thing.”
“This is going to be so awesome.” Beth’s giggles echoed in Alora’s ear. “See you later.”
*****
Charles stepped outside to cool his nerves and dry his sweaty armpits. He hadn’t been this nervous since the night he asked Lena’s father for permission to marry her. They had to have this meeting—it was the right thing to do. But after painstaking efforts to protect Alora’s identity for fifteen years, he felt as if he were now announcing the news in a press conference. He’d put off the explanation as long as possible, delaying until after Graely and Jireo had been released from the hospital and returned to Laegenshire. But he knew none of the parents were satisfied with the story as their children had told it. And there was a possibility they wouldn’t believe him, either.
Even though the only adults from Montana who’d be in attendance were Wesley’s parents and Beth’s mother, it seemed dangerous to let anyone else know the truth about Alora’s origins. The pact with Doc Sanders and Sheriff Mason had been secure for fifteen years. After all, each of them was complicit in hiding the truth and fabricating her birth certificate. But with an ever-growing circle of insiders came the risk someone might accidentally let some critical information slip. So he had to meet with them. To impress on them the importance of keeping her secret. To convince them to never speak of it. To plead for cooperation. To beg forgiveness for putting their children in danger. To do whatever it took to protect Alora.
Beth and her mother were the first to arrive.
“Thank you for coming, Janice…Beth. Come in, and make yourselves comfortable. Would you like some coffee or hot chocolate?”
“No, thank you.” Janice spoke through stiff lips. “I’ll be honest with you, Charles. I don’t understand why we had to come all the way over here to listen to your explanation. Why couldn’t you say what you had to say over the phone?”
“There are some things I’m going to tell you that need to be said in person. If you’ll be patient, you’ll understand soon enough.”
Beth made a grimace behind her mother’s back, shrugging her shoulders. Janice perched on the edge of the couch with a straight back.
“Beth, you can sit right here with me. You’re still grounded, so you’re not allowed to go off with Alora.”
Beth stuck out her tongue at Alora and crossed her eyes. Alora stifled a giggle with her hand as Beth joined her mother on the couch.
Charles wished he’d worn double antiperspirant.
Alora ran to answer a knock at the door and led Wesley inside with his parents, Brian and Karen. Brian returned Charles’ firm handshake.
“I brought a bit of cobbler.” Karen wore a warm smile as she handed a huge, heavy dish to Alora. “I figured you could always use some sweets.”
“Thanks, Karen. We haven’t had a good cobbler since Lena passed.” Charles tried to hide his surprise at her amicable attitude. Maybe she wasn’t as upset as Janice. Had Wesley really told his parents the whole story? And did they believe it?