CHAPTER 13
After Nereus is done swimming, we walk away from the beach, letting Kye set the pace.
He can walk a lot faster than this, but he’s nervous. His hands are in his pockets, and he looks around as if he’s taking in the view, but I know it’s more than that. I see a lighthouse in the distance towering above the twinkling lights of the city.
I’ve never been to Pensacola before, but I’m sure that if this was just a midnight stroll, it would be lovely. I can feel the anxiety radiating from Kye, though, and it only seems to get worse the further away we get from the beach.
Nereus senses it too, because he squeezes my shoulder as he picks up his head to talk to Kye. He doesn’t have a chance to, because Kye suddenly stops in front of a small, one-story house with a tiny but well-manicured lawn. Potted plants flank the tiny path to the door, a festive red wreath hanging from it.
“This is the address your father got for me,” Kye says, but it doesn’t sound like he’s talking to me.
Nereus walks behind me so he can settle his hand on the small of Kye’s back. He meets Kye’s eyes before he speaks, his voice soft and comforting. “I know I can’t do this when we see your family,” he says. “So I thought I’d remind you that I’m with you.”
I grab his cybernetic hand, treading my fingers in his, and his breath hitches a little as he looks down at me. “We both are.”
Kye nods, squaring his shoulders when he does. He doesn’t look calm--I don’t think there’s any possible way he could be calm--but he looks more determined than he did before.
He takes a step forward, and I watch as he climbs up the two steps toward the tiny porch. He brushes his knuckles against the door once before he knocks loudly. Nereus and I are standing so close to each other I can feel the heat rolling off his skin, and when he grabs my hand and squeezes it softly, I smile gratefully. Seeing Kye like this, and being unable to do absolutely anything, is so hard. It must be hard for Nereus, too.
There is a long, dreadful silence. Kye’s spine straightens as he looks at the door, and I watch his fists clench by his sides. I hear the faint sound of footsteps approaching us and the lock clicks as someone opens the door. Kye looks at us over his shoulders, his eyes suddenly wide, panicked.
I begin to walk before I realize what I’m doing, because I want to stand next to him when this happens, in case he needs me. Nereus follows my lead, and after what feels like no time, we’re standing right behind him and the door isn’t even fully open yet.
When it finally does, I see a woman, about twice Kye’s age, but whose resemblance to him is undeniable. She has dark brown eyes, walnut hair cropped around her soft face.
Her gaze darts between to me, to Nereus, and then settles back on Kye, and her eyes widen as she starts to process what she’s seeing.
“Hi, mami,” Kye says, an almost imperceptible tremor in his voice.
She stills, her mouth agape, her eyes wide. “Kye,” she says, and it sounds like she’s about to burst into tears. “Mijo. You’re alive.”
“Mom, I’m so sorry. I...”
She doesn’t let him talk. She cuts him off by throwing her arms around his neck, and she buries her face in his chest as she sobs against him. It looks like it must take considerable effort, because she’s much smaller than he is. He leans down to welcome her into his arms and he releases a breath against the top of her head, his shoulders dropping as he finally seems to realize.
I catch Nereus’ gaze, a question in his eyes. I shake my head--we shouldn’t interrupt this moment, even when it feels like it might make Kye sob too. I can feel tears pricking at the corner of my eyes, but Kye’s mom pulls away from him and wipes her eyes as she takes his hands in hers. He’s wearing gloves, so she can’t see what his hand looks like, but she should be able to feel how hard his fingers are. If she does, it doesn’t seem important at all.
“You’re okay,” she says, tears sliding down her cheeks even as she composes herself. “You’re okay.”
Kye doesn’t say anything, opening his mouth to speak, but no words come out.
“What happened to you? We...”
“Hello,” Nereus says when it seems like Kye hasn’t managed to regain his ability to speak, and I can’t think of the right thing to say. “I apologize for interrupting, but we’ve had a long journey, and Kye might be more inclined to converse after he’s had a few minutes to catch his bearings.”
“Of course,” she says, taking a step back. “You must all be starving. Have you eaten yet?”
As soon as we step into the small house, I smell the scent of freshly cooked food--garlic and cilantro linger in the air, the unmistakable aroma of roasted vegetables in the air. My mouth waters, the idea of eating homemade human food so tempting that, for a second, it’s all I can think about.
“You have to eat,” Kye’s mom says, ushering us inside and closing the door behind us. As soon as we enter the foyer, I can see the rest of the house. A small dining room and living room on my right, a small kitchen on my left, three doors right in front of me. “You have to tell me everything that happened. We thought you were dead, mijo, we...”
“I’ll explain,” Kye finally says, his breath hitching in his throat when he does speak. “I’ll explain everything, I just...”
“I’ll give you a moment to catch your breath,” his mom says. “Sit down. You must be exhausted.”
We do as she tells us, because contradicting her seems pointless, and I smile as she races toward the kitchen. “I’ll help you,” I say, jumping to my feet. I’m not very domestic, but I want to make a good impression on Kye’s mom, and she seems very sweet. I can also distract her if Kye needs a bit longer.
“Thank you, dear,” she says, a smile on her lips. “What’s your name?”
“I’m Fiona, Mrs. Castillo,” I say, smiling back at her. “That’s Nereus, and we’re...”
I’m interrupted by the sound of a car peeling into the driveway. “Hold that thought,” Mrs. Castillo says. “That must be Ace.”