Everyone was even now. She was only sticking around at this point to annoy Lisette, nothing more.


    And then there was thepany. Thepany was originally started by her grandfather. Calliope just couldn''t stand the thought of seeing his legacy fall into someone else''s hands. Even if it didn''t end up with her, it definitely shouldn''t be Lisette''s.


    If the Jewell family turned out to be too clueless to hold onto it, Calliope wouldn''t mind snatching it up herself.


    ...


    That evening, when Calliope headed home, Monty and the others walked out right behind her.


    Lisette offered to give them a ride, but no one was interested.


    "Lisette, you go on ahead. We''ll ride with Callie," Monty called out.


    “There''s quite a few of you. Won''t it be crowded? I can split the group if you want," Lisette suggested, trying to sound helpful.


    "Callie''s SUV is huge. We''ll fit just fine. And we can talk about thepany on the way," Monty replied with a grin.


    "But Horatio''s legs... Callie''s car sits pretty high off the ground. Isn''t that going to be tough for him?" Lisette pressed, trying to get at least one of them in her car.


    But the group made it clear-no one wanted to ride with her. Calliope had suddenly be everyone''s favorite, like the hottest pie at Thanksgiving dinner. "It''s not a problem," Monty said, "Valerian and I can help lift him in. And Callie''s got muscles. She could probably carry Horatio herself."


    Monty nced around and realized Calliope had already started walking to her car, Horatio and Valerian right behind her.


    He jogged to catch up. "Hey, wait up! Don''t leave me behind!"


    "Feel free to ride with Lisette if you want," Calliope called back, not turning


    around. "We''re all going to the same ce anyway."


    "Not the same!" Monty grinned. "It''s more fun with you."


    "Exactly. Callie''s our real sister, after


    all," Valerian chimed in, thinking about the insanely expensive car Calliope was driving. No matter the past arguments, she was still. ridiculously generous. He was gaining a whole new respect for her, and her bank ount.


    Calliope didn''t reply, just unlocked the car. They all climbed in, and she drove them home.


    Valerian, maybe trying to make up for old misunderstandings, was way too enthusiastic the whole ride.


    Calliope stayed pretty reserved, but Valerian just thought she was being adorably shy. He figured she wanted to apologize for all the old drama, but was too embarrassed to say it out loud.


    They pulled up to the Jewell family home before long.


    As they got out, Calliope noticed a very familiar car parked next to theirs, a sleek


    ck Maybach. Ss had plenty of cars, but he drove this one all the time.


    She immediately guessed he was inside. Probably because she hadn''te


    home tonight, he''d decided toe here instead.


    "Whose car is that?" Horatio asked, ncing over.


    Calliope didn''t answer; she was already striding toward the front door. She stepped into the grand foyer and spotted Ss sittingfortably on the couch, sipping coffee, a tter of fruit in front of him.  ?wnovel


    Zelda, who never liked Calliope and wasn''t afraid of her, suddenly looked nervous in front of Ss.


    "Mr. Myers, are you hungry? Dinner''s almost ready!" Zelda offered, her voice a little shaky.


    Ss''s eyes drifted to the family photo on the wall. "Callie''s not in the family portrait," he remarked quietly.


    Zelda fell silent, unable toe up with any response.