Xena''s POV
"It''s not exactly a vacation, and I wouldn''t call it rxing either. I think your dad left something for you there. I checked the address
it''s a storage unit. Honestly, I believe he hid all of your mother''s belongings there. With Martha about to be locked in the dungeon, you can finally have them. I think going there to retrieve ose things, or whatever''s there, would be a good idea.
A storage unit?" I turned to face him, my heart skipping a beat, My mother''s belongings-fragments of memories I never truly had, traces of her existence that Martha had methodically erased from my life.
Ryder knelt down on one knee, his green eyes level with mine. "Yes. This isn''t about taking you away or anything like that. Whatever''s in that storage unit, your father thought it important enough to hide it there. Obviously somewhere Martha didn''t know about. If he left it for you, I think he wanted you to retrieve and cherish those things, whatever they are."
"I always thought my mother''s things would be in her house." The words felt hollow leaving my lips, like I was speaking about a stranger rather than the woman who gave birth to me.
“I don''t think so. That house is on your father''s pack territory. Martha is Luna. She can do whatever she wants, and if she discovered the house and set fire to it, everything would be gone. This way, ever if the house was destroyed, he preserved those things."
"That actually makes sense," I murmured, imagining my father secretly collecting my mother''s items, carefully hiding them away, just to one day ce them in my hands. The thought of him showing that kind of care made my chest ache in a peculiar way.
"Will you consider it?" Ryder asked softly, his eyes shimmering with genuine
concern.
"I will." I promised, surprising myself with how much I meant it.
"Thank you. Are you almost finished?" Ryder stood up, dusting off his jeans.
"Yes, why?" I looked up at him, noticing the yful gleam in his eyes
"I was thinking we could go for a motorcycle ride this afternoon." Ryder raised an eyebrow suggestively.
"I like the way you think." I smiled and stood up, closing myptop with a satisfying click.
Ryder held the office door open for me as we walked out.
"We''re done!" Nn shouted as I emerged from the office.
"It looks amazing!" The instation wasplete. The other kids had collected all
the garbage and taken it out, and one person had swept away all the dust and dirt. "Thank you all!"
Nn stood up, admiring his work with the pride of an artist seeing his visione to life.
"Everything''s ready to go," I said, koking around. It was gettingte and I hadn''t eaten since breakfast. My stomach was starting to make its protests known. "When are you nning to open?" Nn asked, his eyes bright with excitement.
Before I could answer, Ryder jumped in. "Not sure yet." He grabbed his shirt and pulled it on, muscles flexing as he did. He walked to the door and held it open for them.
"Anytime! It was great to help." Nn and his friends filed out of the shop. We followed them outside, and I locked the door securely behind us.
I think what you did for him was nice, Ryder said once we were inhe car. They drove away as Ryder started his engine.
Someone''s got to take over for Penelope." I said, feeling a ripple of hdness wash
over me.
"Is that possible?" Ryder asked as he pulled onto the street.
I rolled down the window, letting my hand float on the breeze. "It''s not. She really was one situation?"
of a
kind. Any progress on her father''s
"Nothing yet. We''ve stopped the public investigation. We want to keep a low profile until Saturday." Ryder ced his hand on my thigh, the warmth of his palm seeping through my jeans.
"I''m hungry," I told Ryder, suddenly conscious of my stomach''s very real protests. "That''s a first. How about barbecue?" His lips quirked up in a half-sle.
"Yes, please!" I answered immediately, my mouth already watering at the thought.
"Alright, we can change and head over there." Ryder agreed, his thump tracing small circles on my leg.
"Do you want to invite Ama and William?" I asked. "We really haven''t gone out with them in forever. We pissed Ama off this morning, so it might be a good way to make it up to her."
"Ama pissed herself off this morning," Ryder frowned and grumbled.
Iughed so hard I couldn''t breathe, and Ryder joined in beside me. The image of Ama''s pouting face had me feeling lighter than I
had in days.
"You''re right about that," I said when I caught my breath.
Twenty minutester, we pulled into the garage. "Since I can''t mind link people
yet, will you ask them?" I asked as we walked into the house.
"We really need to fix that issue," Ryder muttered.
"Well, your mother is working on it. You''ll have to wait until you can officially mark
me to ask her." I mumbled as we climbed the
stairs.
Stopping on the second floor, we made our way to William''s room.
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