The Normal Life
By Didi
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters that are recognizable and I certainly don't own the show. Don't sue me cause all you're going to get is lent, and not much of that either.
Author's Note: Story is winding down and I'm hoping that this ending will be better than some of the ones I've done in the past. (sigh) Okay, onward with the story.
Rating: R for restricted under 17.
~~~~~~~~~~
-Donner's POV-
I sigh as I sit slowly. The noon sun was high and I take moment to feel the warmth of it against my skin through the windows of my living room. I had only gotten back from overseeing the disposal of the twenty-six bodies that we managed to recover before the humans woke. There were still six unaccounted for and I can only hope that the others come across them first before someone else did.
That must have been the longest night in history. Not to mention the most complicated one. Of course that's not to say that the fall out from it is going to a piece of cake. John Kanin is going to be in for a hell of a shock, as is the rest of the pack... assuming that there was actually someone that didn't get the news by the howl-mail last night.
"Sophia!" I called, half expecting a six year old little pixie to come bounding down the stairway.
"I'm here, Dad," she answered quietly from the kitchen door. She had a tray in her hand and her hair was a massive mess in a ponytail behind her. She had the look on her, the look of someone that had flipped. "I wasn't sure how late you'd be but I made you some breakfast. Not much but it's something." And sat the tray down in front of me, watching me with concern eyes. "Are you okay?"
I didn't have to worry her, knew that in my head. But my heart had other ideas.
Sophia. My little girl. My baby girl. My only child. A white. Wow, who would have thought such a thing was possible or even probable. Scratch that, Sherman probably did. Damn fool could have said something! When I get my hands on that know-it-all bastard...
"I'll survive," I replied and patted the seat next to me. "This looks great, honey. Thanks."
"I thought you'd be hungry by the time you get back," she smiled and tucked a stray lock back. "Luke practically cleaned the frig in sitting."
"Is he still here?" I asked quietly, not really caring if he was. He did good last night, protecting Sophia. I won't forget that. Doesn't mean I approve of the two of them though.
"I sent him home. I didn't think you needed to deal with Luke after last night."
"Thanks, I appreciate it." The hot oatmeal looked good, she even remembered to keep the brown sugar to the side. She sat there, watching me, studying me. I wanted to ask what was wrong but I already knew that answer to that. It would take time for her accept me in this fashion, different but still the same. She's seen me at my... worst? Best? Who can tell?
"Dad?"
"Yeah?"
"What's a 'Diamond Black?' And why Luke think that there's going to be trouble?"
"Honey..."
"So you're back," Sherman Blackstone stood in the kitchen doorway, grinning from ear to ear and holding a steaming cup in his hand. "Coffee? Hope you didn't mind, Sophia. But I've been up all right and this seemed like the sure way to keep me on my feet."
"Where the hell have you been?" I demanded with more heat than I thought I had the energy for. Every muscle in my body ached from the shift. As natural as it had been to return to my roots, my body wasn't quite handling it as well as I had hoped. This was going to time some time to get use to again. "And where the hell were you last night?"
"Around," Sherman answered nonchalantly, coming in and taking a seat across from me as if it was the more natural things in the world. If I had the energy, I'd reached across the table and smack him. "So, Creed's gone and you and Kanin are meeting tonight, are you?"
I really hate it when he does that. "Is it all over town now?" I asked, ignoring the inquisitive look from my every curious daughter.
"Only among the pack, though the local are wondering where their esteemed sheriff is."
"I'm taking a sick day."
"You haven't taken a sick day in fifteen years. What the heck makes you think anyone's going to buy that?" Sherman asked, with some irritation. "Come up with something better."
I was just too tired to go a thousand rounds with the wily old man. "What do you suggest?"
His brows went into the air. "Alpha for a night and already you're pushing responsibilities on to me? Took Willard a good six weeks to figure that one out." He turned to look at my daughter. "How are you feeling, Sophia?"
She blinked big round eyes at him. "Fine."
"Really?" he asked with exaggerated concern. "Cause you look kind of pale to me, a little under the weather. You sure you aren't feeling weak? Feverish maybe? Contagious to be sure. You won't want anyone near and dear to you to go out and spread it about now, do you?"
No one ever called Sophia a dummy. Blinking for a moment, she suddenly coughed. "You know what? I think you're right." She held a hand to her cheeks and gave a great sniffle. "I think I'll call the diner and tell them that I've come down with something and won't be in today or tomorrow."
"Wise decision," Sherman said then winked at her as Sophia got up and went to use to the phone in the kitchen. "Smart girl you got there, Matt."
"Just like her mother."
"Yes, looks like her too." Sherman sipped his coffee quietly and said nothing as I enjoyed the half cold breakfast made by my daughter's hands. The soft murmur and occasional coughing in the kitchen was the only sound that penetrated the thick silence until the Keeper spoke again. Gone was the easy affections, "What are you going to do, Alpha?"
"Whatever it takes to keep this pack alive and thriving," came the standardized answer.
"We're doing pretty good you know," Sherman said quietly. "Population has grown in the past two decades, and the younger ones are straining to get out more."
"We've always been here, we'll always be here," I'm tired, too tired to argue with him. "It's us against them. We stick together."
Sherman watched me with eyes that were older than time. I've wondered, since childhood, what goes on behind those eyes. "Are you really just going to sit there and recite text book answer to me?"
"At the moment, I'm too exhausted to do anything more productive than that."
There was another stretch of silence as just sat there sipping his coffee and staring at me. "Sophia will end up leading this pack someday. Probably with Lucas Cates."
"I already knew that." And I did too. The minute I saw her snowy fur and big golden eyes. She's always been special and until that moment, I didn't realize how special. Maybe it had been wrong of me to keep her away from my roots but... God, how many hours at night did I lay there and fear that she would be trapped between our worlds? How often did I reassure Marie while her belly was swollen with child that I wouldn't let anything happen to our baby because of my past? But now, nature had chosen for us what path she will tread. "I'd hoped it wouldn't be with that kid but hell... they've pretty much taken that decision out of my hands haven't they?"
"She's a white. He's..." Sherman grinned at me. "Strong enough."
That look he gave me was supposed to take me to places that I didn't want to visit. She will always be my little girl. My baby girl. "I know that."
"And you've accepted that as a couple, they'll probably be next in line for the leadership." He told me this in a rather odd question form that I wasn't sure I could answer. There was something there, something he wanted me to understand but I simply wasn't getting it. Damn old man, why can't he just come right out and say it.
"We must be in real trouble if we need two whites to lead us," I commented making a face, the orange juice Sophia had given me was more bitter than sweet. She must have used those oranges pollinated by the lemon tree in the back yard. "Anything you want to tell me about that? Given that I am currently still the Alpha." But is going to change.
He watched me again, those quiet steady eyes that were seeing more then telling. "Don't do it," he advised softly after a moment.
"Don't do what?" I asked, already knowing the answer.
He gave me a look that I didn't appreciate. "That bone-headed idea that's probably been rattling around your head since you saw that Ruby, our dear beloved only white until your daughter came along, married herself a genuine diamond-black. First in..." he stared at the ceiling for a moment. "Oh... four centuries? At least in this pack."
I didn't reply. I didn't need to. He already knew that truth of it. Sherman may be the biggest pain in the ass that I've had to deal with but he was smarter than everyone else in this pack ever gave him credit for. It was a pity that so few people see just what kind of man he was. Maybe it was his position among us... or because of it.
"You're making a mistake," he tell me.
"It's for the best."
"Is it?"
"I think so."
"And cause you're Alpha, you must be right." Blackstone rolled his eyes at me.
"I never claim that. And I do what I think is the best for the pack, just as any Alpha would." I sighed and glanced at the door to the kitchen. Sophia probably already knew that it was wiser not to interrupt. "I've read the history books. I know the stories. Last time there was a diamond-black, half the pack perished in the fight."
Sherman said nothing but got up slowly. "I assume I'll be needed tonight?"
"I would appreciate it," I replied, a little relieved and a little disappointed that he didn't argue the point with me.
"Do me a favor," as he paused at the front door.
"Yeah?"
"Make sure Sophia, Luke and Vivian Cates are there as well. Oh and read these before the meeting," pulling several small leather bound books from behind his back.
The man never ceases to amaze me. "Where did these come... never mind. It's not like you're going to tell me anyways," I took the books with a sigh and studied them. They were each maybe half an inch thick and the same width and length as normal hardbacks. No title or markings of any short to indicate what they were. "Why are these so..." When I looked up, the doorway was empty and I was talking to myself.
I hate it when he does that.
~~~~~~~~~~
-Vivian's POV-
Diamonds. So fine, so rare, so powerful, so perfect: exactly what was needed tonight. For something this important, diamonds are the only way to go. My mother always said that you must dress every occasion no matter how big or how small the occasion. Heck, my mother's been known to stripe for those same occasions as well.
I watched reflection in the mirror as I dress. For a woman with a nearly grown son, I'm considered to be quite well preserved. But then again, we age so much more differently than the humans do. Take Sherman for instances, god only knows how old that man really is. I can see remember him exactly the way he is today from when I was but a child. Perhaps because he was the Keeper that he... oh damn it.
Chiding myself for the useless habit of allowing my mind to wonder when I have other pressing concerns on my mind, I pulled too hard at the straps of the shoes I had planned on wearing tonight and broke them. My favorite pair too. Willard had give them to me last year when he told me of the cancer, thought they would soften the shock of it, as if anything could. But that was Willard, always considerate of my... needs.
Taking a deep breath, I held it for as along as my body would allow and let it out with great relief. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest, more from what may happen tonight if I do not miss my guess than from having held my breath for too long.
"Are you about ready?" Ruby's voice came from the open doorway.
I turned to look at my stepdaughter. Even in her human form she was something special to look at. They say the white wolf is a descendant of the goddess of the moon, which certainly does fit Ruby well. There was something hauntingly ethereal, almost supernatural, about her that seemed to transcend both her forms. That heart-stopping luminous face, eyes like stars in the night where we roam as wolves and a voice that was meant to seduce a man into oblivions. The mystical white wolf.
Willard always called her his angel, his precious gift from Regina, the one person that could evoke weakness in Willard after Regina and Amanda perished. I doubt even Luke or myself could have been as important to him as his precious Ruby.
Was I ever jealous of the place she held in my husband's heart? No. I never begrudged her that place; it was something I had to deal with, like many other things in my life. I was never allowed to be naïve about what I can and cannot have. Sure, there were still some bitter memories that I could never seem to shake but hey, we all have them right?
"I'll be down in a minute," I turned to shuffle through my shoeboxes. There had to be something in here that won't clash with my dress. "How is Mr. Kanin settling into his new home."
I could hear Ruby move around behind me. The soft cushion swooshed softly as Ruby sat down on it. "We won't be here forever, you know, just until we can find a place our own. If Sherman thought it was safe for us to stay at John's cabin, we'd be there now."
"You are more that welcome to..."
"I don't want to be here any more than you want us here."
Pausing at removing a pair of silver pumps from their housing, I glanced over my shoulder. "Is the truce between us over?"
She was watching me with those silvery eyes that seem to see all too much and never enough. "If you think that I missed all those little covert looks you've been giving my husband, you don't know me nearly as well as you think you do." She crossed her arms, allowing the thin blue straps of her dress to tighten over the smooth muscles around her shoulders. "I won't let you hurt him."
"I don't plan on hurting anyone," I replied quietly, removing the shoetree from the shoes. "I just want to make sure that everything is as it should be."
"With Matthew Donner as Alpha of this pack," she said it more as a question than a station.
What could I say in response to that? "Yes."
"Well that's not going to change." Ruby's eyes were glittering now. "John and I are behind Donner a hundred and one percent."
"That's still ninety percent short," she seemed more than willing to lay the cards on the table, why should I do any less. "We both grew in this pack, Ruby. Let's not kid ourselves into thinking that just because your husband didn't grow up here that it changes anything in the minds of our brethrens. There are those naïve enough, foolish enough to walk blinding. Just look at last evening's events."
She didn't answer. She didn't need to. No one ever called Ruby Cates a fool. "John and I just want to normal life."
"We don't always get what we want, Ruby." And how well I know that. "Sometimes we simply have to deal with what we are given to the best of our abilities."
There was a long pause as we stood across from each other in a room her father shared with both her mother and me. Her question was near a whisper, "Can he win?"
"Kanin?" I asked.
She nods her head.
I want to say no. I truly wanted to say no, for my sake. But after last night... "I don't know."
She nods again, silently thanking me for my honestly. She was watching me, assessing me even. I didn't feel any discomfort, any annoyance, were I in her place, I would do no less. She took a moment, her hand playing with the thin band around her fourth finger. "Would you support me if I were to announce my intentions to back Donner?" she asked, even knowing the answer.
I almost smiled. For all the mystery and intrigue that surrounds her, in so many ways, Ruby was still just a cub. So young, so naïve. She didn't understand yet. Didn't know Matthew Donner half as well as I do. She had no comprehension of what honor and duty meant, not in the since that Donner did. "It's not me you have to convince."
~~~~~~~~~~
To be Continued..... (hee-hee)
By Didi
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters that are recognizable and I certainly don't own the show. Don't sue me cause all you're going to get is lent, and not much of that either.
Author's Note: Story is winding down and I'm hoping that this ending will be better than some of the ones I've done in the past. (sigh) Okay, onward with the story.
Rating: R for restricted under 17.
~~~~~~~~~~
-Donner's POV-
I sigh as I sit slowly. The noon sun was high and I take moment to feel the warmth of it against my skin through the windows of my living room. I had only gotten back from overseeing the disposal of the twenty-six bodies that we managed to recover before the humans woke. There were still six unaccounted for and I can only hope that the others come across them first before someone else did.
That must have been the longest night in history. Not to mention the most complicated one. Of course that's not to say that the fall out from it is going to a piece of cake. John Kanin is going to be in for a hell of a shock, as is the rest of the pack... assuming that there was actually someone that didn't get the news by the howl-mail last night.
"Sophia!" I called, half expecting a six year old little pixie to come bounding down the stairway.
"I'm here, Dad," she answered quietly from the kitchen door. She had a tray in her hand and her hair was a massive mess in a ponytail behind her. She had the look on her, the look of someone that had flipped. "I wasn't sure how late you'd be but I made you some breakfast. Not much but it's something." And sat the tray down in front of me, watching me with concern eyes. "Are you okay?"
I didn't have to worry her, knew that in my head. But my heart had other ideas.
Sophia. My little girl. My baby girl. My only child. A white. Wow, who would have thought such a thing was possible or even probable. Scratch that, Sherman probably did. Damn fool could have said something! When I get my hands on that know-it-all bastard...
"I'll survive," I replied and patted the seat next to me. "This looks great, honey. Thanks."
"I thought you'd be hungry by the time you get back," she smiled and tucked a stray lock back. "Luke practically cleaned the frig in sitting."
"Is he still here?" I asked quietly, not really caring if he was. He did good last night, protecting Sophia. I won't forget that. Doesn't mean I approve of the two of them though.
"I sent him home. I didn't think you needed to deal with Luke after last night."
"Thanks, I appreciate it." The hot oatmeal looked good, she even remembered to keep the brown sugar to the side. She sat there, watching me, studying me. I wanted to ask what was wrong but I already knew that answer to that. It would take time for her accept me in this fashion, different but still the same. She's seen me at my... worst? Best? Who can tell?
"Dad?"
"Yeah?"
"What's a 'Diamond Black?' And why Luke think that there's going to be trouble?"
"Honey..."
"So you're back," Sherman Blackstone stood in the kitchen doorway, grinning from ear to ear and holding a steaming cup in his hand. "Coffee? Hope you didn't mind, Sophia. But I've been up all right and this seemed like the sure way to keep me on my feet."
"Where the hell have you been?" I demanded with more heat than I thought I had the energy for. Every muscle in my body ached from the shift. As natural as it had been to return to my roots, my body wasn't quite handling it as well as I had hoped. This was going to time some time to get use to again. "And where the hell were you last night?"
"Around," Sherman answered nonchalantly, coming in and taking a seat across from me as if it was the more natural things in the world. If I had the energy, I'd reached across the table and smack him. "So, Creed's gone and you and Kanin are meeting tonight, are you?"
I really hate it when he does that. "Is it all over town now?" I asked, ignoring the inquisitive look from my every curious daughter.
"Only among the pack, though the local are wondering where their esteemed sheriff is."
"I'm taking a sick day."
"You haven't taken a sick day in fifteen years. What the heck makes you think anyone's going to buy that?" Sherman asked, with some irritation. "Come up with something better."
I was just too tired to go a thousand rounds with the wily old man. "What do you suggest?"
His brows went into the air. "Alpha for a night and already you're pushing responsibilities on to me? Took Willard a good six weeks to figure that one out." He turned to look at my daughter. "How are you feeling, Sophia?"
She blinked big round eyes at him. "Fine."
"Really?" he asked with exaggerated concern. "Cause you look kind of pale to me, a little under the weather. You sure you aren't feeling weak? Feverish maybe? Contagious to be sure. You won't want anyone near and dear to you to go out and spread it about now, do you?"
No one ever called Sophia a dummy. Blinking for a moment, she suddenly coughed. "You know what? I think you're right." She held a hand to her cheeks and gave a great sniffle. "I think I'll call the diner and tell them that I've come down with something and won't be in today or tomorrow."
"Wise decision," Sherman said then winked at her as Sophia got up and went to use to the phone in the kitchen. "Smart girl you got there, Matt."
"Just like her mother."
"Yes, looks like her too." Sherman sipped his coffee quietly and said nothing as I enjoyed the half cold breakfast made by my daughter's hands. The soft murmur and occasional coughing in the kitchen was the only sound that penetrated the thick silence until the Keeper spoke again. Gone was the easy affections, "What are you going to do, Alpha?"
"Whatever it takes to keep this pack alive and thriving," came the standardized answer.
"We're doing pretty good you know," Sherman said quietly. "Population has grown in the past two decades, and the younger ones are straining to get out more."
"We've always been here, we'll always be here," I'm tired, too tired to argue with him. "It's us against them. We stick together."
Sherman watched me with eyes that were older than time. I've wondered, since childhood, what goes on behind those eyes. "Are you really just going to sit there and recite text book answer to me?"
"At the moment, I'm too exhausted to do anything more productive than that."
There was another stretch of silence as just sat there sipping his coffee and staring at me. "Sophia will end up leading this pack someday. Probably with Lucas Cates."
"I already knew that." And I did too. The minute I saw her snowy fur and big golden eyes. She's always been special and until that moment, I didn't realize how special. Maybe it had been wrong of me to keep her away from my roots but... God, how many hours at night did I lay there and fear that she would be trapped between our worlds? How often did I reassure Marie while her belly was swollen with child that I wouldn't let anything happen to our baby because of my past? But now, nature had chosen for us what path she will tread. "I'd hoped it wouldn't be with that kid but hell... they've pretty much taken that decision out of my hands haven't they?"
"She's a white. He's..." Sherman grinned at me. "Strong enough."
That look he gave me was supposed to take me to places that I didn't want to visit. She will always be my little girl. My baby girl. "I know that."
"And you've accepted that as a couple, they'll probably be next in line for the leadership." He told me this in a rather odd question form that I wasn't sure I could answer. There was something there, something he wanted me to understand but I simply wasn't getting it. Damn old man, why can't he just come right out and say it.
"We must be in real trouble if we need two whites to lead us," I commented making a face, the orange juice Sophia had given me was more bitter than sweet. She must have used those oranges pollinated by the lemon tree in the back yard. "Anything you want to tell me about that? Given that I am currently still the Alpha." But is going to change.
He watched me again, those quiet steady eyes that were seeing more then telling. "Don't do it," he advised softly after a moment.
"Don't do what?" I asked, already knowing the answer.
He gave me a look that I didn't appreciate. "That bone-headed idea that's probably been rattling around your head since you saw that Ruby, our dear beloved only white until your daughter came along, married herself a genuine diamond-black. First in..." he stared at the ceiling for a moment. "Oh... four centuries? At least in this pack."
I didn't reply. I didn't need to. He already knew that truth of it. Sherman may be the biggest pain in the ass that I've had to deal with but he was smarter than everyone else in this pack ever gave him credit for. It was a pity that so few people see just what kind of man he was. Maybe it was his position among us... or because of it.
"You're making a mistake," he tell me.
"It's for the best."
"Is it?"
"I think so."
"And cause you're Alpha, you must be right." Blackstone rolled his eyes at me.
"I never claim that. And I do what I think is the best for the pack, just as any Alpha would." I sighed and glanced at the door to the kitchen. Sophia probably already knew that it was wiser not to interrupt. "I've read the history books. I know the stories. Last time there was a diamond-black, half the pack perished in the fight."
Sherman said nothing but got up slowly. "I assume I'll be needed tonight?"
"I would appreciate it," I replied, a little relieved and a little disappointed that he didn't argue the point with me.
"Do me a favor," as he paused at the front door.
"Yeah?"
"Make sure Sophia, Luke and Vivian Cates are there as well. Oh and read these before the meeting," pulling several small leather bound books from behind his back.
The man never ceases to amaze me. "Where did these come... never mind. It's not like you're going to tell me anyways," I took the books with a sigh and studied them. They were each maybe half an inch thick and the same width and length as normal hardbacks. No title or markings of any short to indicate what they were. "Why are these so..." When I looked up, the doorway was empty and I was talking to myself.
I hate it when he does that.
~~~~~~~~~~
-Vivian's POV-
Diamonds. So fine, so rare, so powerful, so perfect: exactly what was needed tonight. For something this important, diamonds are the only way to go. My mother always said that you must dress every occasion no matter how big or how small the occasion. Heck, my mother's been known to stripe for those same occasions as well.
I watched reflection in the mirror as I dress. For a woman with a nearly grown son, I'm considered to be quite well preserved. But then again, we age so much more differently than the humans do. Take Sherman for instances, god only knows how old that man really is. I can see remember him exactly the way he is today from when I was but a child. Perhaps because he was the Keeper that he... oh damn it.
Chiding myself for the useless habit of allowing my mind to wonder when I have other pressing concerns on my mind, I pulled too hard at the straps of the shoes I had planned on wearing tonight and broke them. My favorite pair too. Willard had give them to me last year when he told me of the cancer, thought they would soften the shock of it, as if anything could. But that was Willard, always considerate of my... needs.
Taking a deep breath, I held it for as along as my body would allow and let it out with great relief. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest, more from what may happen tonight if I do not miss my guess than from having held my breath for too long.
"Are you about ready?" Ruby's voice came from the open doorway.
I turned to look at my stepdaughter. Even in her human form she was something special to look at. They say the white wolf is a descendant of the goddess of the moon, which certainly does fit Ruby well. There was something hauntingly ethereal, almost supernatural, about her that seemed to transcend both her forms. That heart-stopping luminous face, eyes like stars in the night where we roam as wolves and a voice that was meant to seduce a man into oblivions. The mystical white wolf.
Willard always called her his angel, his precious gift from Regina, the one person that could evoke weakness in Willard after Regina and Amanda perished. I doubt even Luke or myself could have been as important to him as his precious Ruby.
Was I ever jealous of the place she held in my husband's heart? No. I never begrudged her that place; it was something I had to deal with, like many other things in my life. I was never allowed to be naïve about what I can and cannot have. Sure, there were still some bitter memories that I could never seem to shake but hey, we all have them right?
"I'll be down in a minute," I turned to shuffle through my shoeboxes. There had to be something in here that won't clash with my dress. "How is Mr. Kanin settling into his new home."
I could hear Ruby move around behind me. The soft cushion swooshed softly as Ruby sat down on it. "We won't be here forever, you know, just until we can find a place our own. If Sherman thought it was safe for us to stay at John's cabin, we'd be there now."
"You are more that welcome to..."
"I don't want to be here any more than you want us here."
Pausing at removing a pair of silver pumps from their housing, I glanced over my shoulder. "Is the truce between us over?"
She was watching me with those silvery eyes that seem to see all too much and never enough. "If you think that I missed all those little covert looks you've been giving my husband, you don't know me nearly as well as you think you do." She crossed her arms, allowing the thin blue straps of her dress to tighten over the smooth muscles around her shoulders. "I won't let you hurt him."
"I don't plan on hurting anyone," I replied quietly, removing the shoetree from the shoes. "I just want to make sure that everything is as it should be."
"With Matthew Donner as Alpha of this pack," she said it more as a question than a station.
What could I say in response to that? "Yes."
"Well that's not going to change." Ruby's eyes were glittering now. "John and I are behind Donner a hundred and one percent."
"That's still ninety percent short," she seemed more than willing to lay the cards on the table, why should I do any less. "We both grew in this pack, Ruby. Let's not kid ourselves into thinking that just because your husband didn't grow up here that it changes anything in the minds of our brethrens. There are those naïve enough, foolish enough to walk blinding. Just look at last evening's events."
She didn't answer. She didn't need to. No one ever called Ruby Cates a fool. "John and I just want to normal life."
"We don't always get what we want, Ruby." And how well I know that. "Sometimes we simply have to deal with what we are given to the best of our abilities."
There was a long pause as we stood across from each other in a room her father shared with both her mother and me. Her question was near a whisper, "Can he win?"
"Kanin?" I asked.
She nods her head.
I want to say no. I truly wanted to say no, for my sake. But after last night... "I don't know."
She nods again, silently thanking me for my honestly. She was watching me, assessing me even. I didn't feel any discomfort, any annoyance, were I in her place, I would do no less. She took a moment, her hand playing with the thin band around her fourth finger. "Would you support me if I were to announce my intentions to back Donner?" she asked, even knowing the answer.
I almost smiled. For all the mystery and intrigue that surrounds her, in so many ways, Ruby was still just a cub. So young, so naïve. She didn't understand yet. Didn't know Matthew Donner half as well as I do. She had no comprehension of what honor and duty meant, not in the since that Donner did. "It's not me you have to convince."
~~~~~~~~~~
To be Continued..... (hee-hee)
