What I Wouldn't Do

If it had been any of her other children -- even Arian, when she had reeked of her cousin that had betrayed the Adravendi name -- she could've embraced them without a hint of hesitation. But Caeto was her weakness, the one child that she could not figure out, whose reactions she couldn't anticipate or even guess at. Had time really changed him so drastically? What had happened that had made him so hateful?


He'd been silent and cold at their last reunion, so it surprised her when a bit of emotion crept onto his features and he moved to greet her. A sigh of relief slid from parted jaws as he embraced her, his own voice quaking with some uncertainty. The scars on his face and snout were obvious, and though the wounds were not quite fresh they had not healed fully. Tenderly she returned the embrace, pressing gently into him before they pulled away and she examined his face silently. "There's no need to be sorry," she told him honestly, another sigh escaping her tight throat. "I should be the one who is sorry, for leaving you and your siblings on your own. I shouldn't have even considered it."


Perhaps if she and Maverick hadn't left, they wouldn't have lost contact with their oldest children; maybe Maverick wouldn't have cheated on her and gotten a near stranger pregnant. She'd never been one terribly prone to regret, but she couldn't help but feel as though she'd made the wrong mistake by letting her family disperse so long ago. A near whimper fell from her lips as she let her nose nudge the side of Caeto's snout. "What happened to you, Caeto?"