Page 19 of Cleansed By Water (The Nature Hunters Academy 3)

“I’m good, Tara-bear,” Shelly assured her. “Just having a bit of a mini freak-out.”

Tara smiled gently at her friend. “Those are completely understandable, considering everything you’ve gone through.”

“I’m not sitting in a corner rocking and drooling. I think that deserves a cookie,” Shelly said, sounding more like herself.

“Agreed,” Tara said.

Aviur opened a portal and looked at their group. “Buffalo, Kentucky, correct?”

Tara and Shelly both nodded at the same time.

Ra tightened his grip on Shelly as they stepped through the portal, reminding her that he was beside her. He always would be.

The first thing Shelly noticed as soon as her feet landed on the porch of her parent’s home was how cold it was. It was May … or maybe June? Crap, she didn’t even know anymore, but she knew it shouldn’t have been cold. This was confirmation things were indeed as bad as the royals had said.

Shelly stepped up to the front door. The place didn’t feel as if it was her house anymore. Not now that she was with Ra. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. As her hand rose to knock, she paused just before her fist made contact.

Her mind raced. She wondered how they would take the news of the supernatural world and the fact that she’d been in hell. Maybe she didn’t have to mention the hell part?

“It’s going to be okay, Shell,” Tara said from beside her. She took Shelly’s hand and squeezed it. Ra held her other hand just as tightly.

With a deep breath, she let go of Tara’s hand and finally knocked on the door. Shelly could feel her heart pounding painfully in her chest. She’d never been so scared and excited at the same time. After what seemed like an agonizingly long time, she heard the lock on the door turn. It had to be the slowest opening of a door in the history of door openings. Finally, her mother’s face appeared in the entryway. Shelly didn’t know what she’d expected, but other than looking utterly exhausted, her mom hadn’t changed. She was as beautiful as ever. Shelly had inherited her long blonde hair and her fine bone structure from her mom, though her green eyes were all her dad’s. Her mom had stormy grey eyes that were currently filled with confusion.

“Mom,” Shelly said in a pained whisper. The moment the word passed her lips, her mom fell to her knees in front of her and wrapped her arms tightly around Shelly's waist. There was a moment of shock before she returned her mother's embrace.

The familiar scent of Regina Smith hit Shelly’s nose, and the tears that hadn’t begun to fall streamed down her face. She felt her mother’s body shaking as she cried and whispered, “My girl, my sweet girl. My Shelly.”

Shelly wasn’t sure what to say, but all of a sudden, all she could do was apologize. “I’m sorry, Mom. I’m so sorry.” She felt as if she’d let her parents down in some way. Shelly wasn’t sure if there had been any way she could have prevented what had happened. But she felt responsible for the pain her parents had gone through. As she felt her mom—her strong mother—fall apart in her arms, Shelly knew she would have done anything to spare them this agony.

“Regina, who was at the door?” Her dad’s voice came from somewhere inside the house and then closer. “Shelly?”

She looked up from where her face had been buried in her mom’s hair and met the confused eyes of her father.

“Hey, Dad,” she said with a weak smile. A second later, he wrapped his arms around her and her mom.

“You’re back.” She heard his deep, baritone voice say near her ear.

“I am.” It was the truth and not the truth. She was back, for now, but she wouldn’t be staying. She couldn’t be away from Ra, not that she wanted to be. But she also didn’t want to be away from her parents.

It was a long while before her dad finally pulled back and just stared at her. Shelly wondered if it was the same look he’d given her when she was born. Awe mixed with wonder and hope. It made something inside of her twist and turn. She’d always known her parents loved her, but to see it so raw and powerful was gut-wrenching because it was clear that they’d both thought they’d never see her again.

A few minutes later her mom stood. Her hands moved up to Shelly’s shoulders, and she ran her eyes over her face, seeming to catalog every feature. Then one of her hands lifted, shaking as it rested against Shelly’s cheek. “I didn’t think I’d ever see you again,” her mom said, confirming what Shelly had seen in her dad’s eyes. “I hoped and I prayed, but I just didn’t know.”

“I’m so sorry, Mom,” Shelly said again.

“You have nothing to be sorry for,” her mom said. “You’re here and that’s what matters.”

“Who are these people with you?” her dad asked and then added. “Tara?”

“Hey, Mr. Smith, Mrs. Smith,” her friend said in a bright yet hesitant voice.

“You’ve been missing, too,” Shelly’s mom pointed out. “Have you been with Shelly?”

“Um, well, sort of,” Tara answered.

“Mom, Dad, I have a lot I need to tell you, and these people are here to help me explain it,” she said and then blew out a breath that caused her cheeks to puff out.

Her mom stepped to the side, though the hand on her shoulder did not move. “Please, come in.”

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