Chapter 11 Untitled Chapter
They ended up inside the dining area. Not the formal one. A smaller space. Warmer lighting and less cold energy.
The table was messy in a normal way for once. The plates were not perfectly aligned and the food was served casually. It felt almost unreal.
Kendrix sat slowly. Like the chair might disappear if she moved wrong.
Skyler dropped into his seat like he owned the place. “Okay, I just want to say…this is the most domestic situation we’ve had in months.”
Bash pointed at him. “Don’t romanticize it.”
“I’m not romanticizing it,” Skyler said. “I’m observing it.”
“You’re emotionally unstable,” Bash replied.
“Thank you.”
Kendrix watched them for a moment. Then exhaled.
“You people are exhausting.”
Skyler grinned. “You love it.”
“I don’t.”
“You’re smiling though,” he said.
“I’m not.”
Nora placed a dish down gently. “Eat before it gets cold.”
Kendrix looked at her again. There was something about Nora tonight. Softer, but not fully open. Like she had decided how much of herself to show and stopped right before the truth. Kendrix didn’t know why that bothered her. She picked up her fork anyway.
The first bite surprised her. Not perfect. Not fancy. Just… good.
Kendrix paused slightly.
Skyler noticed immediately. “Oh. She approves.”
“I didn’t say that.”
“You didn’t deny it either.”
Bash leaned back. “Ketchup’s going soft.”
Kendrix froze and slowly turned her head. “Say that again.”
Bash smiled. “Ketchup.”
Skyler laughed before he could stop himself. Nora almost smiled too.
Kendrix pointed at Bash. “I hate you.”
“No you don’t,” he said easily.
“I do.”
“No, you’re just dramatic.”
“I will stab you with this fork.”
“Worth it.”
Skyler raised his hands. “Okay, okay…let’s not escalate dinner crimes.”
The table actually felt alive for a moment. Kendrix hated how quickly her guard lowered without permission.
At one point, Skyler leaned forward. “So, Ketchup…”
“Don't call me that.”
“Oh, you don't want me calling you that?” He raised a brow. “How about Kendall.”
She glared at him. “I said don’t call me that.”
“Fine …fine,”he raised his hands in surrender. “So I was going to ask you something…what’s your survival plan if you ever escape again?”
The room paused for half a second.
Kendrix kept eating. “Why would I tell you?”
“Because I’m curious.”
“You’re nosy.”
“I prefer emotionally invested.”
Bash nodded. “He’s nosy.”
Nora quietly added, “He is nosy.”
Skyler looked offended. “Traitors.”
Kendrix almost laughed. But then her eyes flicked up. Nora was watching her again. She wasn't smiling, just watching her like she was measuring something.
Kendrix raised a questioning brow. “What?”
Nora blinked. “Nothing.”
That answer came too fast.
Kendrix narrowed her eyes slightly but didn’t push further.
The conversation shifted again back to nonsense. Skyler overreacts to everything and Bash mocks everything.
Nora occasionally stepped in just to soften the edges. And Kendrix, despite herself staying in it. For the first time, she wasn’t calculating exits every five seconds. That scared her a little. Not enough to leave, just enough to notice.
Skyler leaned back. “I’m telling you, this is the healthiest we’ve all been emotionally.”
Bash shook his head. “That’s objectively false.”
Kendrix muttered, “This is your idea of healthy?”
Skyler smiled. “For us? Yes.”
That answer shouldn’t have been funny. But it almost was. When Kendrix finally leaned back in her chair, she realized something. Her shoulders weren’t tight. For a moment…just a moment, she had stopped bracing for impact. She didn’t trust it, but she felt it anyway.
And somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew this was going to cost something. She didn't want to think too much about it and she didn’t say it out loud either. Because for now, the table was still laughing. And she wasn’t ready to break it yet.
. .
Roberto stood still for a moment after ending a call. Not reacting. Just listening to the silence of his own house. Then he exhaled once and went to the bottom drawer of his desk. He pulled out a worn envelope. There was no address. Just a name on the front in handwriting he hadn't seen in years. He didn't open it. He just held it until his knuckles went white, then locked it back away.
“Not yet,” he said to the empty room.
. .
Kendrix woke to silence, and it set her teeth on edge. Not the quiet of a house asleep that she knew. This was the quiet of a house holding its breath. Like everyone downstairs was moving in socks and low voices because something upstairs had cracked.
She sat up, rubbed her eyes, and muttered, “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Her room looked untouched. Crisp sheets. No dust. No fingerprints. Nothing about it said last night happened.
For half a second she wanted to believe she’d dreamed the whole dinner. The way Roberto said her name. The way Nora wouldn’t meet her eyes.
Then her stomach dropped. Nora’s face had looked like someone had just read her a death notice.
Downstairs wasn’t loud either.
It was worse. It was careful. Kendrix caught it the moment her foot hit the hall. No one spoke above a whisper. Footsteps paused when she came into view. Like she was a problem they hadn’t decided how to handle yet.
She stopped halfway down the stairs.
Something had shifted overnight. Not furniture. People.
Skyler saw her first and straightened up too fast.
“Morning.”
Bash was leaning on the kitchen island like he hadn’t slept. Nora stood off to the side, hands folded, face smooth and empty.
Kendrix looked between them.
“You all look like you’re at a funeral.”
Skyler gave a short laugh. “Not a funeral.”
Bash shrugged. “Debatable.”
Kendrix’s eyes narrowed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Nobody answered. That was worse than a no.
Nora finally spoke, voice careful. “You should sit down.”
Kendrix didn’t move. “No.”
Skyler scratched the back of his neck. “It’s not bad news. Not really.”
“That’s worse,” Kendrix said.
Bash grinned a little. “She’s getting it.”
Kendrix pointed at him. “Stop talking around me.”
“I’m literally talking to you,” he said.
Her gaze cut back to Nora. Something in Nora’s stance had gone final.
“Just say it,” Kendrix said quietly.
Nora hesitated. Just long enough.
“The engagement announcement is today.”