Page 42 of Monstrosity

Rio meets her gaze steadily. "What makes you think that,mija?"

"You only bring us here when there's trouble," she says with that startling insight that sometimes makes me forget she's only eight. "Like when those men were following Uncle Tor last year."

"You're too smart for your own good," Rio says, reaching over to tug her braid gently. "Yes, there are some not-nice people we're dealing with. But you're safe here. Everyone's safe."

Elfe plops down across from us, her plate piled high with enough food for two people.

At twenty-one, she's got her mom Starla's striking features and her dad Ivar's rebellious streak.

The pink streaks in her dark hair catch the light as she settles in. "This is wild, right? Like summer camp but with more weapons."

"Elfe," Starla warns from down the table. "Not in front of the kids."

"What? They know Daddy and Uncle Rio have guns." She winks at my girls. "Bet you two are having fun with all the kids here."

"There'ssomany!" Florencia says, her earlier seriousness forgotten. "And they all know how to ride bikes already. Kira said her dad's teaching her on a little dirt bike. Can we learn, Daddy?"

"When you're older," Rio says automatically, then catches my eye. "If Dasha says it's okay."

The casual inclusion, the acknowledgment of my role in their decisions, makes my heart squeeze. "We'll see," I tell them, which every parent knows means 'probably not, but I don't want to argue right now.'

"But Dasha," Cali protests, "Kira's only seven and she gets to ride!"

"Kira's not our daughter," I point out. "And she wears so much protective gear she looks like a marshmallow."

I notice the way Rio’s eyes meet mine when I utter the words ‘our daughter’.

She isn’t mine, and neither is her sister, but they feel like they’ve always been mine.

"I'd wear the marshmallow suit," Cali bargains. "Please?"

"We'll discuss it when things calm down," Rio intervenes, giving me a grateful look. "Right now, focus on your dinner."

The meal continues with the comfortable chaos of a large family meal.

I catch snippets of conversation from around the room—Hakon got a girl pregnant, someone else just got a promotion at their legitimate job, a debate about the best route for an upcoming charity ride.

It's all so normal, you could almost forget why we're all here.

Almost.

I watch Rio interact with his brothers, the easy camaraderie mixed with underlying tension.

They're all aware of why we're here, even if they're keeping it light for the kids.

Every so often, I catch meaningful glances exchanged, subtle hand signals I don't understand yet.

"The kids are getting restless," Magnolia observes from down the table.

She's Kraken's old lady, a petite woman with laugh lines and kind eyes who seems to have adopted me when I first came around the club. "Should we do movie night?"

"Movie night!" Several children cheer in unison.

"After baths," Fern says firmly, every bit the matriarch despite being younger than some of the other old ladies. "You know the rules."

"Ladies, let's divide and conquer," Magnolia suggests. "Fern, you and Meghan take the younger ones. Starla, you've got the middle group. I'll help Dasha with her girls since it's their first movie night here."

It's clearly a routine they've done before.