“See?” Willow asked, exasperated. She held up the phone. “Want to take a picture?”
I hesitated because, no, I absolutely did not want to take a picture. But I was learning how to trust these women, and I thought, for a moment, that they might understand what I went through more than anyone else.
“Sure.”
Willow snapped a quick selfie of the two of us, our heads leaning toward one another. She was smiling, looking like an angel made real, but I looked like a monster from a storybook. The bandage covered my eye. I was cut and bruised everywhere, and I looked like a skeleton with my pale skin and hollow cheeks.
“Wait,” I said, but she ignored me and sent it.
Her phone rang with a group video call invitation. Willow picked it up, and Fallon’s head filled the screen, conveniently blocking out the rest of her bed. Zoya joined moments after. My hands clenched in my lap, praying they weren’t about to ask about what had happened.
“Fucking badass eyepatch, Leona,” Fallon said before either of us could get a word in. Her Irish accent drew a small smile to my face. “Can’t wait to see the scars. You’re a badass bitch, and I hope ya know it.”
“Thanks, Fallon,” I replied.
“Glad you’re home,” she added. “Hope ya gave them hell.”
I snorted. “They are rotting at the bottom of the ocean, as close to hell as they can get.”
“Good on ya.”
Zoya greeted me with a wave. “Hey, Leona.”
“Hey.”
“Hanging in there?”
I nodded. “Just tired. I was about to get some sleep.”
“Eat some food first,” Zoya said sternly, in a perfect copy of Willow’s doctor voice. “If you haven’t already.”
It brought a small smile to my lips. “You sound like Willow already.”
Her cheeks flushed while Fallon burst out laughing.
Willow moved the camera to her face. “All right now, ladies. We were just checking in. Once Leona has her phone back, we can flood the chat. She has specifically asked for stupid jokes and memes.”
Fallon saluted. “My specialty.”
Zoya grinned. “Stupid jokes and memes we can do.”
“Okay, time for Leona to rest,” Willow said.
They signed off with well wishes and requests for scar update pictures, which felt a little ridiculous on Fallon’s end, but I was relieved that none of them pushed me to talk about it. I felt a little lighter than before, knowing that they acknowledged something happened, but didn’t push me.
Yeah, this girls group chat could be exactly what I needed.
Maybe one day I’d get to add Chiara, and the Queens would be complete.
18
CASPIAN
“She said I can tell you the extent of her injuries so you can help with her recovery, but she doesn’t want to talk further.”
Willow sat with me, Obi, Ciel, and Ryuji in the kitchen. Wynn was asleep in his room. After Obi and I had finished disposing of the bloodied clothes and used gauze, Willow had called us all together. Leona rested in our room, but Willow said she would come out when she was ready. She needed some time alone.
It was killing us all.
