Page 105 of Wandering Souls

“Hush.” Penny squeezed her. “No need for that. I suspect they’ve run you off your feet?”

“You can say that again.”

Penny pulled back and held Abi by the shoulders, running a worried eye over her. “They haven’t caused you any pain, have they?”

The overprotectiveness in Penny’s voice pleasantly surprised her. “I’m okay.”

“Hm.” Appearing entirely unconvinced, Penny and Damien shared a look but Abi couldn’t decipher the hidden meaning. “We’re a little late courtesy of that damn cyclone. Things haven’t started, have they?”

Abi shook her head as the Commander’s door opened. Larger than any of them, Leigh Carter filled the doorway as he laid eyes on the three of them. Unimpressed by the turnout, he stared hard at Damien. If Abi wasn’t mistaken, they’d known each other, but the steely gaze of Carter suggested they were never friends.

“Commander.” Damien nodded in acknowledgement.

Eyes so dark they almost seemed black smiled back. “Major.”

Abi stared from one man to the other unsure what to make of their exchange.

“With all due respect, McCafferty, I want to see Winter alone.”

“And with all due respect, Carter, no can do. We’re family.”

Carter’s eyes focused on her. One eyebrow rose in curiosity. “Winter?”

Abi cleared her throat. “He’s my father, Sir. And this,” she took Penny’s hand, “is my mother.”

Carter frowned. “I think I’m going to need a full explanation Second Lieutenant. If you’d be so kind as to join me.”

Abi took one step forward. Damien and Penny followed suit.

“Second Lieutenant first. Just for a minute.”

She turned to her parents and nodded. “I’ll be okay.”

Inside the office, Carter closed the door and took a deep breath. “First thing’s first, Damien McCafferty is your father?”

“Yes, Sir.”

He shook his head, shocked. “He was a hard ass and rode my back in training. If you think that by having him here—”

“Sir?” Abi held up a hand, hating to interrupt. “He’s here to support me, that’s all.”

“I thought your mother was...” He hesitated. “I thought she’d passed?”

“Yes, Sir. That would be Margery Winter, the woman who adopted me. Penny McCafferty gave birth to me.”

He blinked, then frowned, glancing at the closed doors in confusion. “That’s Penny? I thought she was...” He dragged a large, roughened hand over his short hair. “Bloody hell.”

Abi smiled. “Yes, sir. Exactly. It’s been one hell of a summer. I went away to recover and found my family. Well, actually, I kind of stumbled onto them. More accident than anything, really.”

“That’s incredible. I’m very happy for you but we need to get down to business, and I hope you understand that just because he’s Damien McCafferty doesn’t mean he has any say here.”

Glad to know her father’s legacy could still intimidate effectively, Abi’s chest warmed. “Understood.”

He waved a hand to the door. “Bring them in.”

Abi did as she was told and waited until they filed in. Damien stood to her left while Penny took up the space to her right, both close enough to touch. Though they said nothing, she felt their presence in her soul and their support kept her legs under her.

The scrutiny of Carter’s gaze made her heart pound in her chest, while a sweat broke out between her shoulder blades. Carter lifted a manila folder and glanced down into it.

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