Sienna hit the water with her pan and it splashed upwards. A few drops hit Elias on the chin. He didn’t complain, just swiped them off with his hand. "Loudly my ass! Then why allow the expulsion to stand. This is extortion, I demand to speak to that elder. Just , him, my bee and my pan."
"Denied.We are in a tight spot." He said, through clenched teeth. "The trade agreent is beneficial for both tribes so I can bite my tongue and sign it."
"No." She rejected strongly.
Steam hissed between them. She slumped back, muttering. "What makes you think they will stop at one trade agreent. What if they take advantage of this to continue blackmailing you? This is my problem, I will face it."
"You are married to ," Elias reminded her. "Your place is my place and my place is your place. Our families and reputations are tied together. I will purchase a place in a small town in the city and have your relatives move there. I will make sure that they are employed. I will be sure to let them know not to bother you. This will prevent them from crying anywhere that you refused to help them in their ti of need."
Sienna huffed. "This sucks."
Elias allowed himself a small chuckle, though it was quickly smothered beneath his usual frost. "If you are worried for , don’t be. I will make them give 100 falcon beast n for my cavalry. I never do losing businesses."
She tapped the rim of the pan. "Maybe I should have a talk with the elders of the falcon tribe. I will be nice. I promise."
He laughed. "I am sure they are afraid of you and your pan so they will deny you audience. I have sorted a portion of your problems, the rest will have to be handled by you. Do not be surprised if your grandparents co knocking on your door. Just because I warn them not to does not an they will listen."
Silence returned between them, for a mont.
Then she said softly, "I suppose I should thank you for doing a favor this big."
He shrugged. "I won’t stop you."
She snorted. "I think I would rather drown myself in this tub."
He laughed, loudly, boisterously. "You are spirited. Perhaps your father’s kin will find you...entertaining."
She gasped. "You are a bastard. And I am not a circus act to be entertainnt. Although I am better entertainnt than you who delivered bad news as if you were reading the soup nu. ’Your father is dead, here is so onion soup."
He tilted his head, considering. "Should I have added so warmth?"
Sienna wondered if he had warmth at all. But at the end of the day, his response to the problem mattered more than his bedside manner. "Thank you." She shouted loudly and quickly.
Elias’s lips curved in a little smile. Just a simple appreciation seed like his life was having her teeth pulled out! Had she always been this feisty and he didn’t notice? He noticed the way she was sniffing her arms and he frowned. What was she up to?"
"I don’t sll anything." she muttered. "If I sll like wet fox fur, I’m delivering pan justice because you are to bla."
He closed his eyes, "Bla for everything, It is your privilege as my wife."
She rolled her eyes.
They sat in silence once more steam rising, scent mingling, towel fortress slowly surrendering to heat. Sienna wondered how she was going to break the news to her mother.
***
That mont ca after her bath. Sienna sat stiffly at the dining table, towel exchanged for a plain red dress, pan retired to her bedroom bed side table. Her teenage brother Soren was slouched opposite her, playing ga on his phone. Her mother sat at the end of the table, face unreadable.
Sienna cleared her throat. "I have news, about the man that gave us life."
Soren’s phone slipped from his hand and he sat up. "Our father?"
Sienna winced. "Yes. It’s...not good, depending on the listener. He is dead." Her voice was steady, but heavy.
The words hung in the air like smoke. Soren’s usually brave facade cracked instantly. His lips trembled, his fists loosened. He lowered his face onto the table as tears spilled down his cheeks.
"How?" His voice broke, shoulders shaking
Sienna moved to him, awkwardly patting his sleeve. "I’m sorry, Soren. I know you always hoped to et him. To get so kind of explanation."
He raised his head and buried his face in Sienna’s belly. "I didn’t just want an explanation. I wanted justice for mom. I wanted him to teach about how to be a falcon beast man. To...to be here."
Sienna’s throat tightened. In that mont, she couldn’t help thinking about her parents back on earth. Had they cried like this when the news of her death was delivered?
Mrs. Miller remained silent, staring at the table. No tears, no words. Just silence.
Sienna turned to her. "Mom?"
The older woman shook her head slowly, "There’s nothing to say."
Sienna frowned. "Nothing?"
"What words could change it?" her mother murmured. "He was long gone before today. Now he is gone forever."
Sienna sighed, patting Soren’s hair. "There’s more. His family has been removed from the falcon tribe. They want refuge. With us."
Soren lifted his head. "Family? We have more family? They want refuge with us? But we don’t even know them."
"Exactly. Now, we have step sisters, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins who are counting us to help them out of this sticky situation they find themselves in." She snorted.
Mrs. Miller’s lips pressed into a thin line. "Blood is blood. Maybe your father was not a good man, but it doesn’t an the rest of them are equally displeasing. I think you should use the chance to get to know them before deciding if you want to be involved with them or not."
Sienna groaned. "Mother, don’t start with that. If they are that good, they should have found sowhere else to settle down and first get their lives on track before reaching out. They know Paris ignored us siblings and treated you badly. But, they still think that it is sohow okay to just show up and move in as if we had known each other forever. I think they are brazen."
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