The Reset

Chapter Six: The Cold Sun

Kai sat in the kitchen, zoning out into space as he stared at his wedding band. Emilio shuffled around, presumably making coffee from what he could smell. The roasted beans were circulating throughout and while it calmed his nerves, he couldn't stop the muscle at his jaw from ticking as he clenched his teeth together. While he knew that his children were still around the house, they had all dispersed after a bit so they could mull over their own thoughts. The house was blanketed in a heavy feeling of apprehension.

He couldn't blame them. He wouldn't. But as much remorse as he felt for regurgitating all the information that he had, Kai's own mind was racing with something else.

Why hadn't it worked? He had spent the better part of five years perfecting that damned spell. He had worked and reworked it, quadruple checking his Latin and the enchantment's sequence. Even the runes he'd poured over all worked. Made sense. They all fit.

So why? Why hadn't it worked?!

A steaming mug was set in front of him, bringing Kai out of his thoughts as he saw Emilio slip into the empty chair beside him. He smiled gently to his son but couldn't get rid of the worry lines that were surely on his face. "Thanks Emile," Kai said softly.

Emilio cradled his own cup, lifting it to his face and sipping thoughtfully as he continued staring at Kai. They both stayed in companionable silence for a while. He could feel his son's leg shaking under the table; a habit that he hadn't been able to break no matter how many times Bonnie had smacked his knee for it. Kai couldn't help the smile that broke across his face as he drank his coffee.

"She'll come around," Emilio finally said.

Kai's brows raised slightly. "Hmm?"

"Lydia. She'll come around." Kai closed his eyes and almost scoffed. "I just think... Well, I think it shocked her more than the rest of us."

"She was always the more sensitive one."

"And the biggest grudge holder."

"Gets that from her mother."

Emilio snorted. "Mom said she gets that from you."

"From me?" Kai laughed heartily, opening one eye to peek at his son. "Now why would she go and say something like that?"

His son quirked his lips to the side, giving him a Really, Dad? look, shaking his head slightly. "You spent eighteen years in solitary confinement, plotting the deaths of your entire coven." Emilio smirked over the rim of his coffee cup. "Pretty sure you're the worst grudge holder than Mom ever was."

"You have a point. But hey, I wound up not killing them in the end. Gimme some credit."

"Oh I do, Dad. Trust me, I do."

Kai sighed. "How's everyone else doing?"

"Lonnie's a mess," Emilio said easily, almost laughing. "Josiah is with her. Abby and Max are together. I think they went for a walk? Liddy's upstairs with Mom."

"Hmm," was all he offered, his lips pressed into a thin line. After another minute, Kai popped his mouth and looked down at his coffee. "I mean, how is everyone feeling?"

"The truth?"

"Of course."

"We're fucking scared."

Kai chuckled softly. "Of course."

"I'm serious, Dad," his son said a bit more firmly. "What we saw back there? That is nothing like we've ever seen! It's nothing we've read about in books or anything you and Mom made us study when you both were training us in magic. It's unheard of!" He paused, grinning a little. "And maybe we're all just a little out of sorts about suddenly having a dad who looks younger than our baby sister."