walked in as I was speaking. "See? Now we can start."
"Sorry about that. Just needed a breath of fresh air. What's for supper?" His voice was normal. He seemed completely calm, and I didn't buy it for a minute. But the look he shot me didn't welcome any doubts.
"Spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread," June answered. "There's also salad and a chocolate cake for dessert."
"Wow, that sounds great, June. Thanks for inviting us tonight, everything smells delicious," Jason said with a smile that actually reached his eyes. I felt myself relax at seeing a true smile for once, and I accepted the bowl of spaghetti from Ginny who sat next to me. As Jason had predicted, the meal was delicious, and the dinner conversation was lively and entertaining. The kids were all excited to go back to school and get back to a normal life, but they were a bit nervous about being able to fit in with the other kids who hadn't been through what they'd been through. But at least they had each other to lean on if things got difficult. And they could always go to Jason for anything. He was still in charge, in their minds, and they would come back to him in an instant if he asked.
But he wouldn't. Jason would see how happy they were, and he would think that they didn't need him anymore; that they were better off without him. He would never see that they would rather be with him than with Dan and June. The only reason they were staying, or at least the reason Paul was staying, was because it was the only way to stay in constant contact with Jason. He was their big brother, their protector. They wouldn't forget that, and sooner or later, Jason would realize it too.
"I'm glad we went. We needed some time out of the house and with friends," Alice said as we drove home. She hadn't done much besides go to work and come home lately. Unlike Jason and me she didn't have the free time to go to a park or hang out with people outside of work, and I felt bad that even our normal outings had come to almost a standstill. Although she had gone out with Agent Jones a couple times since Jason's rescue. They seemed to get along pretty well, but she was noncommittal about what she felt about him, and in our girl talks never said more than that he was a nice guy and she liked him. He also knew about Jason's abilities, but Jason was close-mouthed whenever Mark was around. He didn't seem to take it personally. Mark had been the one to find Jason after Mason had tortured him, the first one to see just how badly injured the kidnapped police informant was. He understood Jason's inability to trust a near stranger.
"Yeah, it was fun, we should do this kind of thing more often," I said, glancing to the backseat where Jason sat quietly. He was shaking his head and looking confused. "Jase, are you okay?" I asked, turning to face him.
"Just confused," he said, his face mirroring what he said.
"About what?" I asked when he didn't continue.
He met my eyes and I could see the worry and fear as he said, "You guys are talking about having fun tonight, but we haven't even gone yet. Have we?"
TWELVE
Kindred
I'd spent the evening with the Tracker, enjoying myself with his friends and family while he hid away in the dark place. He wouldn't know what had happened, but it had been a long time since I'd had a home-cooked meal like the one June had prepared. It was interesting to be so involved in a normal activity. But as fun as hanging out with the Tracker’s friends was, it was time to get back to work, so I regretfully cut ties with the Tracker for the moment to focus on my next task: I needed to get at the man currently in police custody. It wouldn't be too difficult, but there were a lot of people I'd need to get past. It wasn't like breaking into someone's house. There were security cameras and guards to get past. The guards were easy. The cameras were another story. Oh well. It would make the chase all the more exciting with the possibility of my identity being discovered. I
"Sorry about that. Just needed a breath of fresh air. What's for supper?" His voice was normal. He seemed completely calm, and I didn't buy it for a minute. But the look he shot me didn't welcome any doubts.
"Spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread," June answered. "There's also salad and a chocolate cake for dessert."
"Wow, that sounds great, June. Thanks for inviting us tonight, everything smells delicious," Jason said with a smile that actually reached his eyes. I felt myself relax at seeing a true smile for once, and I accepted the bowl of spaghetti from Ginny who sat next to me. As Jason had predicted, the meal was delicious, and the dinner conversation was lively and entertaining. The kids were all excited to go back to school and get back to a normal life, but they were a bit nervous about being able to fit in with the other kids who hadn't been through what they'd been through. But at least they had each other to lean on if things got difficult. And they could always go to Jason for anything. He was still in charge, in their minds, and they would come back to him in an instant if he asked.
But he wouldn't. Jason would see how happy they were, and he would think that they didn't need him anymore; that they were better off without him. He would never see that they would rather be with him than with Dan and June. The only reason they were staying, or at least the reason Paul was staying, was because it was the only way to stay in constant contact with Jason. He was their big brother, their protector. They wouldn't forget that, and sooner or later, Jason would realize it too.
"I'm glad we went. We needed some time out of the house and with friends," Alice said as we drove home. She hadn't done much besides go to work and come home lately. Unlike Jason and me she didn't have the free time to go to a park or hang out with people outside of work, and I felt bad that even our normal outings had come to almost a standstill. Although she had gone out with Agent Jones a couple times since Jason's rescue. They seemed to get along pretty well, but she was noncommittal about what she felt about him, and in our girl talks never said more than that he was a nice guy and she liked him. He also knew about Jason's abilities, but Jason was close-mouthed whenever Mark was around. He didn't seem to take it personally. Mark had been the one to find Jason after Mason had tortured him, the first one to see just how badly injured the kidnapped police informant was. He understood Jason's inability to trust a near stranger.
"Yeah, it was fun, we should do this kind of thing more often," I said, glancing to the backseat where Jason sat quietly. He was shaking his head and looking confused. "Jase, are you okay?" I asked, turning to face him.
"Just confused," he said, his face mirroring what he said.
"About what?" I asked when he didn't continue.
He met my eyes and I could see the worry and fear as he said, "You guys are talking about having fun tonight, but we haven't even gone yet. Have we?"
TWELVE
Kindred
I'd spent the evening with the Tracker, enjoying myself with his friends and family while he hid away in the dark place. He wouldn't know what had happened, but it had been a long time since I'd had a home-cooked meal like the one June had prepared. It was interesting to be so involved in a normal activity. But as fun as hanging out with the Tracker’s friends was, it was time to get back to work, so I regretfully cut ties with the Tracker for the moment to focus on my next task: I needed to get at the man currently in police custody. It wouldn't be too difficult, but there were a lot of people I'd need to get past. It wasn't like breaking into someone's house. There were security cameras and guards to get past. The guards were easy. The cameras were another story. Oh well. It would make the chase all the more exciting with the possibility of my identity being discovered. I
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