Ashe was working at his computer later when Adele looked in on him. "Honey, I'm about to start dinner, will you bring your laundry out? We'll work on it tonight." His mother gave him a warm smile.
"All right." Ashe shut off the computer and went to gather dirty clothes. While Ashe loaded the washer and added detergent, he wondered why his parents hadn't given him the full contents of the note. Perhaps they didn't want him to be upset over spring break. He certainly was upset after learning he was destined to attend a human school. Now he was forced to act as if he didn't know.
"Socks and underwear in the washer," Ashe washed his hands and dried them on the towel his mother always folded around a drawer handle in the kitchen. Painted a sunny yellow, the Evans kitchen had windows facing north and east. A hall on the southwestern side led into Adele's solarium, where plants and cooking herbs were grown. The door leading into the garage was also on the western wall, and it was kept closed and locked at all times, to protect Aedan while he slept.
"We're having smothered steak, honey," Adele said. Ashe loved smothered steak. Principal Billings' note meant his parents were more worried than usual about him. It was also the reason his mother was making his favorite meal. Wondering when they planned to tell him about the human school, Ashe went to the cabinet to get plates for the table.
"Son, how was school?" Aedan walked into the kitchen while Ashe and his mother were eating. Ashe watched as his dad leaned down to kiss his mother on the forehead. Vampires looked and acted human most of the time, as did werewolves and shapeshifters. They kept their other nature hidden, to protect the races. Ashe sighed at the thought. Humans, if they were aware those races existed, would be terrified of them and try to kill them. At least some of them would. If he couldn't change, Ashe would be forced to attend school with hundreds of humans. His silence would protect his parents; the humans could never learn what they were. It could become the most serious secret he'd ever kept.
"Have your list of books written out?" Aedan settled into an extra chair at the table and smiled at his son.
"I went looking on the computer. I have a few things," Ashe smiled back.
"You can ask Sali to come if you want." Adele picked up her plate and took it to the dishwasher.
"Are you sure you want to buy two dinners for him?" Ashe teased.
"That child can certainly eat," Aedan agreed.
"Call him in the morning," Ashe's mother nodded toward the peas still on his plate. Ashe turned to his food.
* * *
"Mom, can I go to Oklahoma City with Ashe tonight?" Sali shouted at his mother the following morning.
"Honey, I can hear you just fine." Denise DeLuca walked into the living room where Sali was talking with Ashe on the phone. Ashe had called first thing to invite Sali along.
"Sorry, Mom," Sali apologized, hoping ill manners wouldn't influence his mother's decision; he hadn't realized she was so close. Being werewolf, her hearing was just as sharp as Sali's.
"Going to the bookstores?" Denise gave Sali a smile instead.
"Yeah. And out to eat." Some things were simply more important to Sali than others.
"All right, but you have to clean your room and do a good job."
"I can go," Sali crowed into the phone.
* * *
"Sali's coming," Ashe replaced the cordless in the cradle. Adele was wiping down the kitchen counters after breakfast.
"I heard. And you should clean your room too, young man." Adele scooted Ashe out of the kitchen. Adele went to work, leaving Ashe at home to do his chores. After cleaning his bedroom, Ashe spent the day going through bookshelves his father had built for him, checking carefully to make sure he hadn't missed any upcoming sequels or favorite authors that might have new books out. The shelves lined one wall of Ashe's bedroom, floor to ceiling, and all were full.
His father was good with his hands. He, Old Harold and Cori's father, Nathan, had built a barn in four nights the previous year. The O'Neill's barn was knocked down by a tornado and they'd lost precious ewes and lambs in the spring storm. The three vampires had rebuilt the barn and others donated to help replace animals.
Ashe had seen the devastation the tornado caused early the following day. Tiny lambs lay nearly a quarter mile from the destroyed barn—all dead. They'd looked like bits of cotton fluff scattered in the fields until he'd gotten close enough to see what they were. Marco joked that you couldn't count them or you'd fall asleep. Ashe had never wanted to hit Marco so badly in his life.
"Time to clean up. Your dad will wake in half an hour." Adele interrupted Ashe's thoughts. She'd found him sitting in the floor, an open copy of the latest in his favorite series on his lap. Time had gotten away from him.
"On my way." Ashe grinned as he jumped up and raced toward his closet.
* * *
"Where are we gonna eat?" Sali asked excitedly as he slid onto the back seat of Aedan's SUV. The vehicle was newer and nicer than the old blue Ford Adele drove. Aedan had offered to replace Adele's battered truck with a new version many times, but Adele argued that she often carried plants or bags of feed in the back and didn't need something else; it would just get scratched up anyway. Aedan had stopped trying to convince his wife after a while.
"Feel like The Italian Grill?" Adele smiled over the back seat at Sali.
"Yeah." Sali loved The Italian Grill.
"Are you buying books?" Adele was still smiling at Sali.
"Yeah. Mom said I had to get at least three. And read them." Sali didn't enjoy reading nearly as much as Ashe did.
"Come on, dude. You liked the last ones I told you to buy." Ashe poked at Sali.
"I read those in self-defense, 'cause you wouldn't shut up about 'em." Sali grinned at Ashe.
"Whatever it takes dude." Ashe settled back in his seat as Aedan pulled away from the house. Oklahoma City was nearly a hundred miles away. They'd eat first, then visit the bookstores. Ashe was thankful the big bookstores stayed open late.
"Come on, you'll like this one," Ashe shoved a book into Sali's hands. He'd already dumped two others onto Sali's stack. "Besides," Ashe added, "that DVD you like so much—about the crazy inventor? That book was written by this author."
"Then why don't I read that instead?" Sali whined.
"You can read it first." Ashe dropped a paperback copy onto the growing pile, which shifted dangerously and nearly fell from Sali's hands.
"Ashe, please stop. Mom will expect me to read all this." Sali hefted his books dramatically, begging his friend not to add any more.