Chapter 22: The Family Meeting
The front door had barely closed behind Cameron when the full weight of his words settled over the living room like a dropped curtain. Katrina stood frozen in the entryway, her hand still resting on the doorframe, the echo of his voice—we're going to Bentley Ridge—reverberating through her skull with the persistence of a struck bell.
The living room was bathed in the soft, prismatic glow of floating lanterns. They drifted lazily near the ceiling, casting shifting patterns of light across the worn oak floors and the comfortable, slightly disreputable furniture that had seen decades of use. The enchanted chessboard sat between two armchairs, its mushroom pawns whispering secrets to each other that no one bothered to interpret. The air smelled of coffee, cinnamon, and the faint ozone tinge of active spellwork that had become as familiar to this house as the scent of Casey's paint thinner.
"Come on," Jan said gently, her hand finding Katrina's elbow. "Let's sit down before you fall down."
Katrina let herself be guided to the couch. Her legs felt like they belonged to someone else, someone who hadn't just been told she was going back to the place that had nearly destroyed her. The cushions swallowed her, and for a moment, she just stared at the glowing mushrooms on the chessboard, watching them pulse with their quiet, secret light.
"Bentley Ridge," she said finally. Her voice came out flat, distant. "I only got out of that void two months ago. I know I need to go back, but..."
Mike lowered himself into the armchair across from her, his shaggy grey hair falling into his eyes as he leaned forward. His expression was careful, measured. "You don't have to do this, Katrina. If you're not ready—"
"I'm not ready." She laughed, a hollow sound. "I don't think I'll ever be ready. But I have to go anyway."
Casey settled onto the arm of Mike's chair, her hand finding his shoulder. They communicated without words, a silent exchange that spoke to twenty years of partnership. When Casey spoke, her voice was gentle but firm. "Then we'll go with you. All of us."
Katrina looked around the room. Mike and Casey, solid and steady as the brick oven in their kitchen. Calista, perched on the windowsill with her silver hair catching the lantern light, her ethereal beauty somehow grounding rather than alienating. Mandy, sprawled in the corner of the couch with her perpetual smirk softened into something genuine. Beth, leaning against the doorframe to the kitchen, her camera hanging around her neck like a talisman.
And Jan. Jan, who had led the rescue of her from the void. Jan, who had held her while she sobbed and shook and forgot how to be a person. Jan, who was now looking at her with something that might have been pride.
"The whole cavalry," Katrina said, a tremor in her voice. "I'm not sure I'm worth this much firepower."
"Stop that," Mandy said, her voice sharp. "You're family now. Family doesn't do the 'I'm not worth it' thing. We do the 'we're all in this together' thing. It's in the handbook."
"There's a handbook?"
"Figurative handbook," Calista said, sliding off the windowsill. She crossed to the couch and sat on the arm near Katrina, her presence a warm, solid comfort. "But Mandy's right. You're one of us now. And we take care of our own."
Katrina felt the sting of tears behind her eyes. She blinked them back, hard. "I've been alone for so long. Even before the void, I was—" She shook her head. "I was so focused on work. On proving myself. On making my mother proud. I didn't realize I was isolating myself until there was no one left."
"You have people now," Jan said, settling onto the coffee table in front of her. Godfrey III, who had been dozing in a patch of light on the floor, padded over and climbed into Jan's lap, his tiny Maltese body curling into a ball. "And you're stuck with us. All of us. The horrifying, complicated mess that is this found family."
Katrina's eyes teared up. She hadn't expected the conversation to go there. But she also should have known better than to expect anything else from this family.
"Speaking of which," Jan said, leaning forward and sniffing the air around Katrina. Her expression was knowing, almost predatory. "You've fucked everyone in this house, haven't you?"
The silence that followed was deafening.
Katrina's face went through approximately seven shades of red in as many seconds. Her mouth opened and closed like a landed fish. She looked desperately at Mandy, who was grinning like the cat who'd gotten the cream.
"At least twice!" Mandy said cheerfully. "Well, three times in my case. But who's counting?"
"Bug," Mike said, his voice strained. "Please."
"What? It's true. I'm not going to lie about it. That would be disrespectful to the memories."
Katrina buried her face in her hands. "I want to die."
"Don't," Casey said, her voice warm with amusement. "We're all very flattered. And honestly, after two months of living with you, we're all very impressed."
"Casey!" Mike's face was now almost as red as Katrina's.
"What? I'm being supportive."
Jan was laughing so hard she had to set Godfrey on the floor to avoid dropping him. The tiny dog yapped in protest before trotting over to Katrina and licking her ankle, as if to offer comfort. "God, I love this family. I love this house. I love everything about this beautiful disaster of a life we've built."
"I'm glad you're enjoying yourself," Katrina said, her voice muffled by her hands.
"I am, honey. I really am." Jan's laughter subsided into something softer. She reached out and gently pulled Katrina's hands away from her face. "Listen to me. There is nothing wrong with what you've done. You've been through something that would have broken most people. You're learning to feel again, to connect again. And if that means connecting with everyone in this house, then more power to you."
"But it's so—" Katrina struggled for the word. "So much. So fast. I've never been like this before. I was always so focused, so controlled. And now I can't seem to stop."
"That's called healing," Casey said. "It's messy and it's chaotic and sometimes it looks like fucking everything that moves. But it's still healing."
Mandy leaned forward, her smirk softening into something genuine. "And for what it's worth, you're really good at it. Like, surprisingly good. I've had a lot of partners, and you're definitely in the top five."
"Jesus, Mandy," Mike muttered.
"What? I'm being honest. She's got skills."
Katrina couldn't help it. She started to laugh. It bubbled up from somewhere deep inside her, somewhere that had been dark and silent for so long. It was rusty and shaky but it was real. "I can't believe this is my life now."
"Neither can we," Mike said dryly. "But here we are."
Cameron, who had been standing by the door with his equipment, cleared his throat. He'd been politely trying to ignore the conversation, but there was a limit to how long a person could pretend not to hear detailed discussions about their girlfriend's friends' sexual prowess.
"If we could get back to the plan?" he suggested, his voice carefully neutral.
"Yes, please," Mike said emphatically.
Jan waved a hand dismissively. "Fine, fine. But this conversation isn't over, Katrina. We have so much more to discuss."
"I'm sure we do," Katrina said weakly.
Cameron set his equipment on the dining table, which was visible through the archway that separated the living room from the kitchen. He laid out a series of maps, documents, and what looked like a portable dimensional scanner. The device hummed softly, its screen glowing with shifting symbols that Katrina couldn't quite parse.
"Here's where we stand," Cameron said, his voice shifting into business mode. "I've been in contact with Aunt Calli—the Merlin of the Golden Wands—and as you know, she's already working on getting us access to the Bentley Ridge site."
Katrina frowned. "Why would the Wands give us access? The site's been quarantined since the Incident. Even my mother couldn't get clearance, and she was one of their most respected researchers."
"Because I asked nicely," Jan said, her grin returning. "And because Aunt Calli owes me approximately seventeen favors, and I've been cashing them in one by one for the past two decades. And Casey is her favorite niece. We already had access to rescue you and the rest of your team anyway."
"Also," Cameron added, "you're technically a surviving member of the research team. You have standing under the Accords to request access to any site where you were actively engaged in research when the incident occurred."
Katrina blinked. "I... I didn't know that."
"Most people don't," Cameron said. "But you do, and that gives us leverage. Combined with Calli's authority, Casey's familial ties, and Jan's... diplomatic skills, we have a good chance of getting full access to the site."
"What kind of timeline are we looking at?" Mike asked, his IT brain clearly already working through logistics.
Cameron consulted a small tablet. "Calli says she can have the paperwork expedited in two to three days. The site itself needs to be stabilized before anyone can enter. There's still residual dimensional energy that's been slowly dissipating for the past three decades, but it's not safe to just walk in." He looked at Katrina. "You know this better than most."
She nodded, her throat tight. "When the rift closed, it didn't just seal. It left behind a scar. A place where the boundaries between dimensions are thin. The Wands set up containments to keep it from spreading, but they never fully closed it."
"They're still there," Cameron confirmed. "The containment field is still operational. We'll need to work within its parameters."
Jan, who had been uncharacteristically quiet during this part of the discussion, reached out and placed a hand on Katrina's knee. Her voice was gentle when she spoke, stripped of its usual mischief. "I was there when you came out of the void. I saw your face, the moment you realized you were free."
Katrina swallowed hard. "I remember."
"I also remember how long it took you to stop shaking. How long it took you to trust that you weren't going to be pulled back in." Jan's green eyes were steady, searching. "Are you sure you want to go back there, honey?"
"I'm not sure," Katrina admitted. "I don't think I'll ever be sure. But my mother disappeared ten years after the Incident, and no one ever found out why. She left behind her journals, her research notes, everything she had. And the only clues are somewhere in Bentley Ridge." Her voice hardened with resolve. "I have to go. I have to try."
Jan studied her for a long moment. Then, slowly, she nodded. "Okay. Then we go."
"We?" Katrina's brow furrowed.
"You didn't think we were going to let you go alone, did you?" Mandy said, crossing her arms. "Because that's not happening."
"The whole family goes," Calista said firmly. "That's how we do things."
Katrina looked around the room again. At these people who had taken her in, who had welcomed her into their chaotic, loving, sex-soaked home without hesitation. Who had given her a family when she'd thought she'd lost everything.
"I don't know what I did to deserve this," she said quietly.
"Nothing," Mike said. "That's the thing about family. You don't have to earn it. It's just given."
The room fell into a comfortable silence. The floating lanterns drifted, casting their shifting light across the gathered faces. Godfrey III trotted back over to Jan, his tiny tail wagging, and curled up in her lap.
Then Jan's phone beeped, shattering the moment with its mundane intrusion.
She glanced at the screen, and a slow smile spread across her face. "Well, well, well."
"What?" Casey asked.
"It's Stacy." Jan's grin widened. "She and Rick are coming back to Chicago. They'll be here in the morning."
Katrina felt her heart skip. "Rick? He's coming here?"
Jan's eyes twinkled. "Stacy says she could tell you needed as much human contact as possible. She's also obscenely rich and can make travel arrangements happen faster than anyone I've ever met, so they're catching a private flight tonight."
"Private flight?" Katrina echoed. "Just like that?"
"Stacy has connections," Casey said, a warm smile on her face. "And apparently, she's decided this is important enough to drop everything for."
Katrina tried to process this information. Rick was coming here. Rick, who she'd had a video call with less than an hour ago, during which she'd stripped naked and touched herself while he watched. Rick, another person who had made her feel alive for the first time in decades.
She was going to have to be in the same room with him. With Stacy watching. With his parents only a few doors down.
"Oh god," she said faintly.
"What?" Mandy asked innocently. "Nervous about seeing Rick in person?"
"No," Katrina lied. "Why would I be nervous?"
"Because you two did a very thorough job of exploring each other over video call less than an hour ago?" Beth offered from the doorway, grinning.
Katrina's face was on fire. "You... you saw that?"
"Mom, did you broadcast that?" Mandy asked, turning to Casey.
Casey's smile was unapologetic. "Of course."
"Casey!" Mike's face had gone through so many shades of red that he looked almost purple. "Why would you do that?"
"Because it was a beautiful moment of connection and growth," Casey said primly. "And because I knew you'd want to see it."
"I didn't want to see it! That's my son!"
"Your son who has inherited his parents' legendary bedroom prowess," Jan said, winking at Katrina. "You should be proud."
"This is not how I wanted my evening to go," Mike muttered.
"Too bad." Jan stood, setting Godfrey down gently. She stretched, her back popping audibly. "Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm starving. Let's raid the kitchen and figure out sleeping arrangements for tomorrow."
"Sleeping arrangements?" Katrina asked.
"Rick and Stacy are going to need somewhere to stay," Jan said as she headed toward the kitchen. "And I have a feeling that Rick is going to want to be very close to you." She paused in the doorway, a wicked smirk on her face. "Or inside you. Whichever comes first."
"Jan!" Katrina could feel her entire body flushing now.
"What? I call it like I see it." Jan disappeared into the kitchen, her laughter trailing behind her.
The rest of the household exchanged glances. Mike was still red-faced and muttering under his breath. Casey was watching Katrina with a knowing, almost maternal expression. Mandy was texting furiously on her phone. Calista had a thoughtful look on her face.
"Don't worry about Jan," Calista said gently. "She means well. She just has the tact of a sledgehammer sometimes."
"I'm starting to figure that out," Katrina said.
"She's also right," Mandy added without looking up from her phone. "Rick's going to want to pick up where you two left off the moment he walks through the door. And knowing him, he's probably going to want to do it more than once."
"Mandy," Mike warned.
"What? I'm just preparing her. Forewarned is forearmed."
"I don't think that's the saying, but I appreciate the sentiment," Katrina said dryly.
Beth pushed off from the doorframe, crossing to the kitchen. "I'm going to help Jan with the food. You might want to go change into something more comfortable before Rick gets here."
Katrina looked down at her t-shirt and shorts. "This is comfortable."
"For sleeping, sure. But Rick's not going to want you in clothes that are hard to take off."
Beth winked and disappeared into the kitchen. Katrina could hear Jan's laughter mixing with Beth's, a sound of shared joy that felt almost alien to her.
Casey rose from the arm of Mike's chair, crossing to sit beside Katrina on the couch. She put an arm around her shoulders, her warmth anchoring Katrina to the present moment.
"Are you okay?" Casey asked softly. "With Rick coming? With everything?"
Katrina leaned into the embrace, letting herself be held. "I don't know. I think I'm still kind of shell-shocked."
"That's understandable. You've had a very eventful evening."
"That's one way to put it." Katrina let out a shaky breath. "Casey, can I ask you something? Something personal?"
"Of course, honey. Anything."
"How did you and Mike make it work? For so long, with everything that's happened? All the weirdness, all the... the extra people?"
Casey was quiet for a moment, her hand rubbing soothing circles on Katrina's back. "It wasn't always easy," she admitted. "There were times when I wasn't sure if we were going to make it. When the world was crashing down around us and we were being pulled in fourteen different directions."
"But you did make it."
"Because we chose each other," Casey said simply. "Every single day. We chose to wake up and be there for each other, even when it was hard. Even when we were scared. Even when we didn't know if we were going to live to see the next morning." She tightened her arm around Katrina. "That's what love is, Katrina. It's not the big moments. It's the small ones. The choice you make every day to stay."
Katrina felt tears welling in her eyes. "I don't know if I know how to do that yet."
"You will," Casey said gently. "You're learning. And that's enough." Casey looked toward the kitchen, where Jan's raucous laughter echoed through the house. "Jan's been where you are, you know. Not exactly, but close. She's been lost. She's been scared. She's been alone. But she found her way back, and she's spent the rest of her life helping other people do the same."
"She's pretty amazing."
"She is. But so are you, Katrina. Don't you ever forget that."
Katrina let the words wash over her, absorbing the comfort they offered. She'd spent so long being strong, being independent, being alone. It felt strange to lean on someone else. But maybe that was what she needed to learn to do. Maybe that was part of the healing.
"Thank you," she whispered.
"Anytime, honey."
The moment was interrupted by Mandy, who bounded into the room with a bowl of popcorn, followed by Jan and Beth carrying an assortment of finger foods. "Kitchen raid successful! We've got everything we need to survive the night."
"I'm not sure popcorn qualifies as a survival food," Calista observed.
"It does when Jan makes it," Mandy said. "She puts crack in it. Literally. I don't know how she does it, but it's addictive."
"It's just butter and salt," Jan protested, settling onto the couch with her own bowl.
"Lies," Mandy said. "Beautiful, delicious lies."
The conversation dissolved into laughter and casual banter as the group settled in for the evening. Katrina let herself be pulled into the warmth of it, the easy familiarity of people who had been together for so long that they moved in perfect sync.
Mike and Casey sat close together on the loveseat, their hands intertwined. Mike's face was still red, but he'd recovered enough to crack a joke about the chessboard's mushrooms. Calista perched on the arm of the couch, engaging in a friendly argument with Beth about the merits of digital versus film photography. Mandy was stuffing her face with popcorn while trying to simultaneously text Ben and engage in the conversation.
Jan was holding court in the center of it all, her laughter filling the room like the sound of breaking dawn after a long night. Godfrey III had claimed her lap as his throne, his tiny body vibrating with contentment.
And Katrina sat in the middle of the storm of it all, feeling for the first time in longer than she could remember the warmth of belonging. These people weren't just her hosts, her caretakers, her counselors. They were her family, in every way that mattered.
Tomorrow, Rick would be here. Tomorrow, they would plan the expedition to Bentley Ridge. Tomorrow, everything would become complicated and dangerous and terrifying.
But tonight, she was safe. Tonight, she was home.
She drifted through the rest of the evening, letting the warmth of the conversation wash over her. At some point, Jan shifted to sit beside her, Godfrey transferring to Katrina's lap with a proprietary huff.
"You look about as exhausted as I feel," Jan observed quietly.
"Can't imagine why. Everything's fine. My long-lost mother might have left a clue near the spot where I fell into a void for 30 years, that trip to the void dimension is starting to feel like a walk in the park, and a guy I just had video sex with and his girlfriend are flying in to, what did you call it, 'properly meet me tomorrow'?"
"To be fair, I don't think I used the phrase 'a guy and his girlfriend.'" Jan smirked. "That's too normal, and you're now a part of our family. There is nothing normal about us." She gave a long sigh, a cat grin stretching across her features. "Listen, when you go back to Bentley Ridge, I'll be right there with you. Cameron, Mike, and Casey are coming too. Mandy's already decided she's joining because she refuses to miss out on all the excitement. Calista has a stash of fire spells she's been wanting to try out. And Rick and Stacy are going to be there to protect you. You are going to be so safe."
"I know," Katrina said softly. "That's what scares me. I'm not used to being safe."
"It's terrifying, isn't it? But you'll get used to it. And the more you let yourself trust, the easier it will get."
Those words would have triggered a raw, defensive anger in the woman who existed before the void. But the woman she was now simply sat, absorbing the gravity of a family she finally dared to lean into, to question her own first impulse to run from kindness.
"You know, for someone who presents like a menace to society, you're actually very wise," Katrina said.
Jan's grin was unrepentant. "Don't tell anyone. I have a reputation to maintain." She stood, stretching. "Well, I'm going to bunk down with Cameron. He's already claimed the spare bed in the office. We'll have breakfast ready by the time Rick and Stacy arrive."
"You don't have to do that."
"I know. I want to." Jan reached down and squeezed Katrina's hand. "Get some rest, honey. You've earned it."
Jan's footsteps retreated up the stairs, followed by the soft click of a door. Katrina looked around the emptying room. Mandy had disappeared to her own room, phone pressed to her ear. Beth was heading upstairs with a yawn, her camera still slung around her neck.
Casey remained by her side, holding Mike's hand. She looked at Katrina, her eyes full of mercy. "There are snacks in the kitchen if you get hungry, and spare blankets in the hallway closet. But you know that."
"Thank you," Katrina said, the words feeling inadequate. "For everything."
"You're welcome." Casey squeezed Mike's hand and rose. He followed her toward the stairs, pausing on the first step. "Goodnight, Katrina."
"Goodnight, Mike."
Casey pressed a kiss to Mike's cheek, her hair strewn with early-silver strands. Then their footsteps faded, leaving Katrina alone in a house full of the people who had captured her soul.
A sharp, sudden knock at the front door made her start.
She froze. Everyone else was in bed. She rose, the cat craning his neck to sniff the air with suspicion.
She unlocked the deadbolt and pulled it inward. Standing on the doorstep, under the amber porch light, was a woman with sharp features and gleaming, familiar eyes that made Katrina's body lock, her memories of recent freedom clenching tight in the back of her throat. Her breath caught in a cold gasp.
"Hello, Katrina," the woman said, her voice smooth as silk and just as dangerous. "Did you miss me?"