~
Elora sat in her mom’s store flipping through a book she had found while helping her mom clean the storeroom. It was a book about the elves.
“Where’d you get this?” Elora asked as she turned another page.
Lisa stopped in mid-step as she saw what Elora was holding. Her eyes widened slightly but she schooled her expression quickly.
“Just a book that Syndra loaned me.”
“Syndra loaned you a book that holds the history of their race?” Elora raised a brow at her mom.
Lisa shrugged. “She said she trusts me.”
“Uh-huh,” Elora grunted as she watched Lisa’s tense, jerky movements.
“We really should put that away. Syndra doesn’t want others knowing that it’s here.”
Elora closed the book and handed it to her mother’s outstretched hand.
“Lisa, are you okay?” Elora asked, “You have been weird ever since the elves let themselves out.”
Lisa took a deep breath and seemed to gather herself. “I know we don’t talk about your father very much.”
Elora interrupted. “He died, what more is there to say?”
Lisa chuckled. “You are a lot like him. He was so matter of fact about everything.”
“So why the sudden nostalgia?”
“Because, to—” she choked on her words as she tried to hold back the tears, “tomorrow is the anniversary of his death.”
Elora’s face fell and she regretted having been so uncompassionate. She knew that her mom had loved her father immensely. Elora didn’t remember him. He died before she could even walk.
“He adored you. I don’t know if I’ve ever told you that.” Lisa looked at Elora and her eyes seemed to glaze over as she remembered a time long ago. “He used to sing to you and you would laugh and smile. He thought you were the most incredible blessing. I know you don’t remember him and you don’t feel much towards him, but I just want you to know that you were his world.”
Elora tried to discreetly wipe the tear from her eye before it made its appearance on her face. She didn’t like to cry. She didn’t like to feel something for someone she’d never known or would ever know.
“Thanks,” she whispered not trusting her voice to not waver.
Lisa smiled. “It’s getting late. You ready to call it a night and get something to eat?”
Elora nodded. She followed her mom out of the store and waited while she locked up. Elora pulled her phone out of her pocket to see if Cassie had responded to any of her texts. She hadn’t. She was very tempted to go over and check on her but what explanation would she give Cassie’s parents? Hi, just checking on Cassie because she has a dark elf quiver carrying assassin in her room. Yeah, that would not go over very well.
She climbed into the car and looked out into the dark night. She let her thoughts take over as she replayed her mother’s words about her dad. She thought it odd that her mom had never said that the man was Oakley’s dad, but she had never asked why and neither had Oakley.