Matt jerked back.
Payton’s eyes rounded. I had a feeling that if she could’ve poofed in the air and disappeared, she would’ve.
Everyone else was as surprised as me.
And Cyclone was not done!
He pounded his fist on the table, sitting up on his knees. He lifted that fist and pointed at his brother with a finger jabbing in the air. “You’re always so mean to Aunt Payton. Stop it!”
Out of the mouths of babes…
I swiveled my head until I was only watching Matt, the back of my head to everyone else. He seemed frozen in place until his eyes jumped and met mine. Guilt flared before he blinked, and then it was gone. His smirk remained, but it was much less, and he leaned forward. His fork was poised over his plate, just hanging from his hand. “I’m being mean, Cy?”
Cyclone’s face got beet red and he sat back down. But his mouth was still tight and his chin jutted out. He crossed his arms over his chest. “Not always, but a lot of the times to Aunt Payton and Dad.”
Matt’s eyes started dancing. His smirk was more a flat line, but I had the impression he was holding laughter in. “Really?” He leaned forward, placing his fork down in an exaggerated move and smiled politely. “Well,Dad. I am sorry for being mean so much of the time.” He sat back, nodding to Payton. His tone was more genuine and softer. “Payton.”
Her mouth turned down at the corners, but she nodded back. “Matthew.”
“I didn’t mean that in a mean way…” He winked at Cyclone.“But in a way where I was making fun of Peter Dearest, since, you know, he sent you away when the big guns came home.” His eyes darted to Marie, holding, before he leaned back in his chair. His arm came up, resting on the back of my chair, and he turned to me, his look holding on me, too.
The back of my neck got hot. “You’re being mean to me now?”
The smirk was back, and it was wicked. “I called you a ‘big gun.’ How is that not a compliment?”
I opened my mouth, but Payton beat me to it, and her comment came out way softer than mine would’ve. “Because it’s not, but thank you in a backward way.” She turned to me, then Marie. “When Peter asked if I’d come back, he explained both of your concerns.” She looked from Marie to me and back. “I’m not here to disrupt anyone. I’m only here for Cyclone and Seraphina. I love both of them so much, and Peter said it’d be good if I came back. I do not condone what my sister did. If I did, I wouldn’t be able to sit here. Icondemnwhat she did. I no longer consider her my sister.”
Cyclone stiffened, and it was noticeable enough for everyone to look his way.
Payton, too. “Oh, honey. You have to know that what your mother did was wrong. I can’t love her back, not until she apologizes to everyone she’s hurt because of her actions. To Bailey. Kash. Everyone she hurt. Right now”—she put her arm around Cyclone, drawing him to her side—“she doesn’t think it was wrong, what she did. That’s why you can’t see her right now, not until she gets better.”
Seraphina frowned, but she didn’t say anything.
Cyclone’s eyes were so big and wide, and heartbroken. My throat swelled up, seeing that last emotion, and then I heard him whisper, “Does that mean we’ll never get to see her again?”
“Oh!” Marie’s gasp was hushed.
I looked over. Peter seemed to be struggling himself, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down repeatedly.
A tiny tear slipped from Seraphina, sliding down her cheek.
Marie bundled her back to her, hugging her as both still watched Payton and Cyclone.
The only one who seemed not affected by his whisper was Payton, but her tone was soothing and so caring. “I don’t know, bud. I hope you do. I hope I do. I don’t agree with what my sister did, but that doesn’t mean I don’t still love her. You can feel what you feel. Anger. Hurt. Love. If you miss her, you can miss her. You can do that, but she’s made some bad choices, and until she starts making better choices that don’t hurt people, we can’t go and see her.”
“She’s not in prison.” That came from Seraphina. She was sitting straight up, her chin raised, her eyes defiant, and she was holding on to the table as if her life depended on it.
I tensed.
“But she should be.” Seraphina sent a furtive look to Kash, and I felt him tense beside me. She turned to Cyclone. “We should never see her again. She tried to take Bailey from us. If Kash hadn’t gotten there as fast as he did, we might not have her with us anymore. Wejustgot a sister and then she wanted to hurt her and take her away permanently. That’s not a good person doing a bad thing. That’s a bad person doing a bad thing. And she was bad. She was mean to me, always. I was never enough!” Her voice rose. “Never good enough. Never pretty enough. I had to speak perfectly, act perfectly, think perfectly, and I hated it. I hated her! She made me drink vinegar if I messed up—”
“What?”
Everyone exploded, but Peter’s outburst overrode the entire room.
Seraphina turned those defiant eyes his way. “She made me clean my mouth out with soap. She picked my friends, did you know that?”
My stomach rolled over.