Read Online Refuge by Karen Lynch - Free Book Online

– when you are ready, of course.”
    “They’re here? I have family here . . . now?”
His news floored me. I had been living under the same roof with
family for almost two weeks without knowing it? Had I passed them
in the halls? Sat near them at meals? They could be one of the
other trainees or even my trainer. I crossed off that last thought.
After everything I’d been through, there was no way God would be
cruel enough to make Callum my family.
    His face gave nothing away as he nodded. “You
have a cousin who lives here, but he is away at the moment. And
your mother’s sire is here. You would call him your
grandfather.”
    “My grandfather is here?” When Nikolas told
me that Madeline’s father was still alive and wanted to meet me, I
was curious but nowhere near ready to meet him. The knowledge that
my grandfather was at this stronghold right now filled me with
trepidation and excitement at the same time.
    “Would you like to meet him?” Lord Tristan
asked.
    My stomach twisted nervously. Was I ready to
meet Madeline’s father? The man wasn’t Madeline and I could not
hold her behavior against him, but was I ready to have him in my
life? “No . . . I mean, I don’t know. I’m sorry, you took me by
surprise and it’s a lot to take in.”
    He settled back in his chair. “It’s
understandable. This is a big adjustment for you and you need more
time. He only wants you to know that he is here for you when you
are ready to meet him.”
    I lowered my gaze as guilt hit me. Great. Now
I felt like a total jerk. My grandfather sounded like a nice guy,
and I didn’t want to hurt his feelings. It wouldn’t hurt to just
meet him, right? It wasn’t like we had to start having family
dinners and all that. And how could I walk around here after this,
knowing he was here and not be able to identify him?
    “I’m ready,” I said at last.
    “Are you sure?”
    I raised my eyes to his again and nodded.
“I’m a little nervous, but yes.”
    Smiling, he stood and went to his desk.
Instead of reaching for his phone as I had expected him to, he
opened a drawer and pulled out a thin book. It wasn’t until he
returned to the sitting area that I saw it was not a book, but a
photo album. He passed the chair and sat beside me on the couch. I
looked up into his eyes, and the tenderness I saw in them punched
me square in the chest.
    “You have been through so much, and I can see
how unhappy you are right now. I can’t tell you how sorry I am for
all the pain you’ve suffered. More than anything, I wish I could
have been there for you all these years. Nikolas told me about your
uncle and how much you care for each other, and I’m happy that you
have someone like him in your life. I don’t want to replace him.
All I ask is the chance to get to know you and that you will come
to think of me as family, too.”
    I struggled for words. What do you say when
you find yourself face-to-face with a grandfather you never knew?
Especially one who looks like he should be in college. “You’re
Madeline’s father,” was all I could manage.
    His eyes grew sad. Nikolas hadn’t told me
much about Madeline or under what circumstances she had left the
Mohiri, and I wondered what her relationship had been like with her
father.
    “I know Madeline hurt you deeply. My daughter
has a lot to answer for when we find her.” He reached for my hand,
and I let him take it despite my conflicting emotions. “When I
learned of your existence, it took everything in me not to go to
Maine myself. But Nikolas advised against it. He told me about your
anger toward Madeline and your refusal to have anything to do with
us. With everything else that was going on at the time, he was
concerned about overwhelming you.”
    I let out a tremulous laugh. “He was right. I
kind of freaked out when he told me what I was. I’m still getting
used to it all.”
    He squeezed my hand lightly. “All I ask is
for the chance for us to get to know each other.”
    The