Louis woke as the jet began its descent. He turned toward the window. The cloud cover had thinned. Los Angeles came into view, the clouds had opened enough for the last light of dusk to reach the coast. Freeways glowed below them. Louis leaned toward the glass and recognized the coastline and the familiar grid of the city. Maeve shifted beside him and rested her head against his shoulder. He put an arm around her. Her breathing slowed, and she relaxed against him.
The jet touched down smoothly. The cabin shook lightly as the aircraft slowed. As they taxied, the media line became visible beyond the security perimeter. Camera lights flashed behind the barriers.
Maeve stared at them. “Is that for us?”
“Yes,” Louis said. “We were missing for a while.”
“Oh,” she said. “What do they want?”
“Breaking news.”
“I don’t like it.”
“Me neither.”
Savannah stretched her arms. “They better stay behind that line.”
“They will,” Constantine said.
The aircraft stopped beside a private reception bay. Armored sedans, security vans, and a Hummer limousine stood nearby with their doors open. Dominion Guards formed a line between the aircraft stairs and the vehicles. The cabin door opened. Constantine stood.
“Out,” he said. “Don’t talk to anyone. Don’t look at them. Don’t wave. Just go to the cars. We are going straight home.”
Louis stood and pulled Maeve up with him. “Let’s go.”
They filed down the stairs. Reporters began shouting the moment they appeared.
“Louis!”
“Mr. Collins!”
“Princess Bourbon!”
“Who are they?”
“Supreme President, can you confirm—”
“Were you held by the Holy States of Dixie?”
As they reached the bottom, the cameras flashed. The guards hurried them toward the limousine. A guard opened the door, and they climbed inside. Louis entered last and sat where he could see the door. It closed behind him, and the reporters’ voices became muffled behind the armored glass. The convoy moved away. A few minutes later, it merged onto the freeway.
Cherish leaned toward the window and watched the streets outside. “This is the Dominion?”
“Yes,” Louis said. “This is it.”
She looked at him, then back at the lit streets. “It’s so pretty.”
“It is.”
Maeve looked at the others. “Do people live like this all the time?”
Gladice answered before Louis could. “Some people do.”
“Which people?”
“The lucky ones,” Savannah said.
Maeve watched the streetlights pass. Then she looked at Louis again. “Am I one of them now?”
He smiled and touched her shoulder. “Yeah. You are.”
She nodded once and turned back to the window.
The convoy entered Beverly Hills along a route cleared by police. Security vehicles split off at intersections, and the gates opened as the convoy approached. The presidential residence stood behind high walls and trees, with security cameras covering the approach. The limousine stopped under the covered entrance. A small group of staff waited near the doors.
Louis stepped out and stood still. For a second, he remembered leaving this house a month earlier, late for a reception and irritated by his tie while Élise reminded him that his father hated delays.
Then the front doors opened. Serana stood at the threshold. She wore a simple dress, her hair loose and her face pale. She took three steps toward him and stopped. Her mouth opened, but no words came. Louis went to her. She opened her arms and pulled him into a tight embrace.
“Oh, Louis,” she said against his shoulder. “You look worse than the footage.”
He laughed into her hair. “I missed you.”
She pulled back, her hands still on his arms. “You idiot. You scared the hell out of everyone.”
“I know.” He touched her face. “I’m okay.”
She nodded, her eyes red. Then she wiped them with the heel of her hand and frowned at him.
Behind her, Samyra appeared with Victoria on one hip. Victoria was half asleep, her thumb in her mouth and her blond hair messy. She saw Louis and blinked. Tears ran down Samyra’s cheeks as she looked at him.
“Louis,” Samyra said.
“Samyra.” He opened his arms. She came to him carefully, keeping Victoria secure on her hip. Victoria stared at Louis, still half asleep.
“Welcome home,” Samyra whispered.
“Thank you.” Louis leaned toward Victoria. “Hi, Vicki.”
“Lulu.” She reached out and touched his face with her free hand. “You’re back.”
“I’m back.”
She smiled and rested her head against Samyra’s shoulder. Louis closed his eyes. Judith turned away briefly. Constantine watched without moving.
Élise appeared at the side of the entrance hall. She wore a dark uniform, her hair pinned and her hands folded in front of her. She looked at his face and clothes, then at the women behind him.
“Louis.” She came forward.
He opened his arms. She stepped into them and held him tightly. Her shoulders gradually relaxed against him.
“Welcome back.” Her voice was so soft he almost missed it.
“I’m home.” He pulled back and saw that her eyes were wet. “Are you okay?”
She nodded, then shook her head, then nodded again. “I will be.”
He smiled and touched her arm. “Good.”
Louis turned toward the others. “Everyone, my sisters, Serana and Victoria. Our nanny, Samyra, and our butler, Élise.”
Serana looked past Angelique and Gladice at the other women behind them.
“I see you brought back some new friends.”
Angelique managed a weak smile. “We had an eventful trip.”
“I bet,” Serana said.
Gladice grinned. “You have no idea.”
Then Angelique looked past Serana. Jacques stood near the foot of the stairs in a black sweater, his arms folded and his mouth set in a hard line. Charles stood beside him in pajamas, his hair messy from sleep and his eyes wide. Angelique looked at them.
Jacques spoke first. “You look terrible.”
Angelique smiled at him. “You too.”
Charles took a step forward. “Ange.”
She hurried to him and hugged him tightly. He laughed softly and held her. Jacques watched, then joined them. Angelique pulled both brothers close and shut her eyes.
Maria watched from nearby. Her face remained calm, but her fingers pressed into Philip’s arm.
Constantine waited until the reunions were over. Élise touched Louis’s arm.
“Come,” she said. “Let’s get you settled.”
“Everyone stays in my bedroom,” Louis said.
Élise blinked. “All of them?”
“Yes.”
She looked at Constantine. He nodded.
“Arrange it,” he said.
Élise straightened. “Yes, sir.”
Louis led the group up the main staircase. Serana looked from Louis to the women.
“Your room has only one bed.”
Louis smiled. “That won’t be a problem.”
Serana stared at him for a second, then shook her head.
“You’re ridiculous,” she said.
“I know.” He smiled. “Good night, Sis.”
“Good night, Louis.” She paused. “It’s good to have you back.”
She went to her bedroom. Louis opened his bedroom door. The lights were already on. For a second, the room looked exactly as he remembered it: the wide king-size bed, the low seating area, the books he had skimmed and never finished, the closed wardrobes, and the balcony beyond the glass.
The staff followed them in and cleared the sitting area. Two low guest beds were brought from storage and placed flush against either side of Louis’s bed. They covered the three mattresses with fresh bedding and added enough pillows and blankets for everyone.
Gladice watched the staff work. “This is better than the embassy.”
“It’s home,” Judith said. “It should be.”
“It’s larger than my whole dorm,” Willa said, looking around.
“Enjoy it,” Louis said. “You earned it.”
Cherish looked at the beds. “We are sleeping here? All of us?”
“Yeah,” Louis said. “All of us.”
She turned to him, then to the others. She blushed. Donya squeezed her hand, and Savannah smiled.
“We will figure it out,” Willa said.
“Rest well, everyone.” Judith kissed Louis on the cheek. “I will see you tomorrow.”
“Thank you, Mom.”
Judith smiled and left. The staff filed out and closed the door behind them. Gladice walked to the bed and fell backward onto the mattress.
“Now that’s what I call a bed,” she said. “Soft. Big. And it smells like Louis.”
“Of course it does,” Willa said. “It’s his bed.”
“I can get used to this,” Gladice said, stretching her arms. “And to him.”
Louis looked at the others. They were all watching him.
“I think we deserve some celebration,” he said. “For making it home alive.”
“I’m in,” Gladice said, sitting up. “What did you have in mind?”
“Music.” Louis walked toward his computer terminal and turned it on. He selected a playlist, and the room filled with a pop track. “And shopping. Everyone needs a phone. We can order them online.”
“What kind?” Willa asked.
“Athena X-30 Sovereign,” Louis said. “The latest. One for each of us.”
“That’s… very generous,” Willa said.
“We need phones now that we are back in the world.” He opened the order form. “And I want you to have the best.”
Willa read the screen. “This is the most expensive civilian device they make.”
Louis looked at her. “Yes, and I’m paying.”
“Colors?”
“Come on, ladies,” he called out. “Come here and pick your colors.”
Cherish stepped closer first and leaned toward the screen. “I can have any color?”
“Any of these,” Louis said. “We can also have customized ones. But that takes time.”
“I never had a phone before,” Cherish said. “I don’t know.”
“Pick what you like.”
She pointed at the soft lavender option. “That one?”
“Good choice.” Louis added it to the cart.
Maeve got up and came over. She studied the color options with a frown.
“Do I really need a phone?” she asked.
“Yes,” Angelique said. “You are part of the modern world now. Get used to it.”
Maeve scowled at the screen, then pointed at black. “That one.”
“Done.” Louis added it.
Donya chose emerald, Savannah picked slate gray with a matte finish, and Gladice went with electric blue. Willa hesitated before pointing at pink.
“Really?” Louis said. “I thought you would go for black.”
“Too cliché.” Willa smiled. “I am more subtle than you think.”
“I’ll remember that.”
Angelique chose pearl white without hesitation. Louis picked black for himself and submitted the order. Savannah leaned closer when the confirmation screen showed the total.
“That is a lot of money for phones,” she said.
Louis shrugged. “We can afford it.”
Savannah nodded. “Okay.”
“We also need accessories,” Willa said.
“What accessories?” Cherish asked.
“Earpods. Cases. Watches.” Willa pointed at the screen. “Those things.”
Gladice leaned back on her elbows. “Get me a watch. I’ve never had a smartwatch. The Collective banned them for field officers.”
“Because they can be tracked,” Savannah said.
“Exactly.” Gladice grinned. “Now they can track me all they want.”
Louis added the accessories without checking the total. Soon they were adding tablets and laptops as well. Within three minutes, Willa was scrolling through the catalog and pointing out everything they might need. Louis approved every item.
Maeve watched the screen as Louis added a laptop for her.
“I don’t know how to use that.”
“I will teach you,” Willa said. “And so will Louis.”
Cherish looked at Louis. “I can have a laptop?”
“You can have anything you want,” he said.
She stared at the laptop on the screen before looking back at him. “I want to learn how to use it.”
“Good.” Louis added it to the cart.
After that, the order stopped being practical.
Gladice ate a piece of chocolate and pointed at Louis.
“Clothes,” she said. “We all need clothes. We are citizens now. And Louis is rich. So we get to dress like it.”
“You can order whatever you want.” Louis laughed. “But it’s better to get custom-made.”
“Even better.” Gladice sat up. “But let’s save the custom stuff for the next few days. For now, let’s just buy some of everything to hold us over.”
“I want shoes too,” Angelique said.
“And bags.” Willa smiled. “Lots of bags.”
“We need tactical gear,” Savannah said. “And a weapon upgrade.”
“You do know the Dominion bans guns, right?” Angelique said.
Savannah gave her a sharp smile. “Not for me.”
Cherish looked from Savannah to Louis. “Can we really buy anything?”
“If it fits in a delivery box, yes.” Louis opened a shopping portal.
Maeve watched the screen for a while, then looked at Louis.
“What kind of clothes do people wear here?” she asked.
“Anything they want,” Angelique said.
“But what’s normal?” Maeve asked.
“There is no normal,” Gladice said. “Only what you like.”
Maeve watched the catalog. “I don’t know what I like.”
“Street clothes,” Donya said. “Jeans. T-shirts. Boots. That’s a good start.”
“Okay,” Maeve said.
“You know what? Let’s just leave it to the house stylist,” Louis said. “I’ll let Élise call her in the morning. She can handle all our measurements and get us what we need.”
Gladice raised an eyebrow. “A house stylist? Seriously?”
“Yeah.” Louis smiled. “Her name’s Auriel. She’s always on vacation since we already have enough clothes. Now it’s time to get her busy.”
“I like that,” Willa said. “Let someone else do the work. That’s the definition of luxury.”
Angelique frowned. “I’d rather pick my own things.”
“So can you,” Louis said. “Auriel is just a consultant. She knows style, but we know our own bodies and preferences.”
“Good.” Angelique nodded. “I want to talk to her.”
“Me too,” Gladice said. “I have very specific needs.”
“I bet you do,” Willa said. “But I think Auriel can handle it.”
“Then it’s settled,” Louis said. “I’ll call Élise now.”
He opened the house channel on his terminal and typed a message to Élise. She responded almost instantly.
“Done,” Louis said. “She will call Auriel now. She will be here tomorrow morning, if she hasn’t overslept again.”
“I can’t wait to meet this Auriel,” Gladice said, her eyes gleaming. “She sounds like my kind of person.”
“She’s a lazy drama queen who loves to complain,” Louis said. “But she’s good at what she does. And she sleeps with my dad sometimes. So don’t piss her off.”
Donya’s eyes widened. “Your dad sleeps with her?”
“Sometimes,” Louis said. “With my mom together. They have an open marriage.”
Cherish blushed. “They all… together?”
Louis shrugged. “Yeah. And they are okay with it. It’s not my business.”
Willa shook her head. “The Collins family is something else.”
“We are,” Louis said. “And now you are part of it.”
“I guess,” Willa said.
“I like it.” Gladice smirked. “It’s hot.”
“Of course you do,” Willa said.
“So, tomorrow, we get new clothes,” Angelique said. “What about tonight?”
“Let’s take a shower,” Louis said. He hesitated. “With everyone together.”
Cherish’s cheeks turned pink. “All of us? At the same time?”
Gladice laughed. “That’s the idea, Cherry.”
Willa leaned forward. “Logistical question. How big is your bathroom?”
Louis smiled. “Follow me.”
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