" Be quiet," Helen said sharply to Derek. "Heidi is married to Chrissieand she's a good friend of mine. She lives by her own rules."That information a...ppeared to be too much for Derek to process. He studiedme again and cupped his hand and whispered something into Helen's ear.When she whispered back to him he shook his head in disbelief. Thewhispering continued for a few minutes then Helen and Derek both rosefrom the table."Will you be alright on your own for a couple of minutes?" Helen. Melanie's parents had a gigantic white tent erected in their backyard and were catering a large party. The party was for us.We received warm greetings from both parents, and Patty spent a long time hugging both of us. Remarkably, the party wasn't just for the upper-crust circle of friends that Melanie's parents hang out with. Many of our true friends from Sterling High had been invited, and it was so delightful seeing them, Melanie and I actually started to relax and have a good time. In the. Bursting from the undergrowth, an adolescent wolf lunged at Noah and Tin. Noah was quick on the draw and managed to slash the monster on the shoulder with his longsword. It landed behind him, slightly limping but showing no signs of giving up. It flashed eyes full of bloodlust while it snarled and foamed. Tin hurried behind Noah, as per his orders, while he stared it down. If he cast his illusion, he could easily kill it without it ever seeing the attack coming, but today, he was sharpening his. My husband and I used a new one each year.”“Empress, I don’t mean to be personal, but when did your husband die?”“Of course not,” she said, serious enough. “Two months ago.”“I’ll be damned!”“What you mean, Nathan dear, is that you’re surprised that I went with you so quickly.”“If truth you want, truth you’ll get. Yes.”“Do you want to know my story now or later?”“Split it,.