Page 90 of Leda's Log

His response made me laugh.

“I didn’t think General Silverstar even knew how to make a joke,” I said.

Aunt Tessa winked at me. “Actually, I don’t think he was kidding.”

“Sierra, could you help me with the dessert?” Calli asked.

“Of course.” I followed her into the kitchen.

“How are you?” she asked as she took the cherry pie out of the oven.

“What do you mean?”

She set the steaming pie on the stove. “Well, you are the most powerful magic user in the world, perhaps even inallthe worlds.”

I opened the freezer and retrieved a tub of vanilla ice cream. “And?”

“Andit can be a terrible burden to feel you need to live up to such great expectations.”

I frowned. “My parents told you what happened, didn’t they?”

“They haven’t told me anything,” she replied. “Is there something to tell?”

I clutched the ice cream tub to me.

Calli watched me. “No one is expecting anything from you, Sierra, except that you’re happy. You don’t have to prove anything. You don’t have to save the world every other week.” She set her hand on my arm and smiled. “You don’t have to be your parents. You can be your own person. And whoever that may be, whatever that may be, I know you will be magnificent.”

I blinked back tears. “Thanks.”

“For what?”

“For not talking to me like I’m just a kid,” I sighed.

“What’s wrong, Sierra?”

“I messed up, Calli.” I looked down at my feet. “I messed up badly.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“Not really.”

But I told her anyway, all about Lavinia and the rings.

“I’m the one who messed it up,” I finished. “So I have to be the one to fix it.”

“You’re very much like your mother, you know,” she said after a reflective pause. “Leda also always puts the weight of the world on her shoulders. But, please, whatever you do, remember that you aren’t alone. You can always count on your family. You can call on us anytime, anywhere, and we will come.”

“Thanks.”

“So,” she said, nibbling on a tiny piece of pie crust that had broken off from the pan. “How do we stop Lavinia’s plans?”

I shook my head. “If only I knew.”

“There’s something else bothering you,” Calli commented. “Something you have not shared.”

“How did you know?”

She chuckled. “I have been a mother for a very long time, Sierra. Mothers can sense these things.”

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