Kano's War

Chapter 31

I woke to the sound of a soft knock against the door and the creak of it slowly opening.

"Amory," a familiar voice called gently.

I blinked groggily, the room still dim with the barely any light from the sun. The warmth of a small body pressed against me reminded me that Lily was still curled at my side, her tiny hands tucked under her chin like she was trying to stay small.

Kano stepped into the room, his hair tousled and eyes sharp even beneath the fatigue. "Sorry," he whispered as he knelt beside the bed. "Didn't mean to wake you. I just wanted to see you."

"You didn't wake me," I lied, pushing myself up a little. "What time is it?"

"Late. Just before sundown."

I nodded. "That explains why I still feel like a half-dead ghost."

Kano smiled faintly and turned his attention to the girl still snoring lightly beside me. "Think she always sleep like this?"

"Since she claimed your bed? Yeah. Like a rock. I think she likes having a warm pillow."

He chuckled, and for a moment, it felt normal again.

"Can I?" he asked, nodding to Lily. "She's one of the pups that likes to stay away from the others."

"Well, She's yours now too, whether you like it or not."

He reached over, brushing some stray curls from her face, then gently poked her cheek.

Lily groaned and cracked one eye open. "Hmm?"

"You snore," he whispered seriously.

"I do not," she mumbled, turning her face into the pillow.

"Lies," he said, glancing at me with a crooked grin.

I smiled sleepily, and something about that moment — him kneeling beside us, teasing a child that wasn't his like she belonged — made something twist deep in my chest. A longing I didn't have time to feel.

He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to my forehead. "Scoot over a bit." He whispered. I picked Lily up and pulled her infront of me while I back up. Kano began to lay down and settle in bed beside me, "Things are going to get busy. Messy. Hard," he said softly. "These next few weeks are going to be a drag."

"How bad?" I asked.

"Rebuilding everything from the ground up. Fixing territory lines, earning loyalty, making sure no one inside the walls is working against us." His hand moved to the back of his neck. "I'm going to be everywhere at once. And I hate it already."

I placed a hand on his forearm. "We'll make it work."

He looked at me like he wanted to believe that. Then he pulled the blanket over us, leaned over and brushed a kiss over my temple.

It was quiet for a few more minutes before I claimed dream land once again. When I awoke, it was to Kano getting dressed. I pulled Lily closer to me while keeping the blanket over us.

He came up to me and ran his hand through my hair. I giggled tiredly. The sun wasn't even out yet and it was clearly still dark.

"I'll try to check in when I can," he murmured. "But until things settle... don't wait up."

And with that, he slipped out of the room, leaving behind nothing but the fading warmth of his touch and the weight of what was coming.

When Lily and I got up I couldn't help but bring us down stairs to get started on the downstairs. But when I got down there, it seemed that a lot of it was already picked up.