The next morning, laughter was already drifting up from the living room when I came downstairs.
Fabian and Athena sat at the breakfast table, eating.
Fabian was carefully picking out food and setting it on Athena's plate.
They sat close together, and Athena was in my chair.
The moment I appeared, the room went quiet for a beat.
Fabian's hand froze in midair.
Athena dabbed at her mouth and greeted me with a smile.
"Winona, you're up?"
"Come sit, have some breakfast."
She gestured to the seat across from her, as natural as if she were the woman of the house.
Fabian gave a cold snort.
"Athena was thinking of you. She dragged me out first thing to buy breakfast."
"And here you are, only coming down now."
Athena patted Fabian's arm, the gesture easy and familiar.
"Winona's pregnant!"
"It's only normal she'd sleep in a little."
Only then did Fabian go quiet, though the look he gave me stayed sour.
I couldn't be bothered to argue.
"I'll pass on breakfast."
The words were barely out when Athena's eyes went red.
Fabian's face darkened. He slammed his chopsticks down.
"Winona, how much longer are you going to keep this up?"
"Do we all have to walk on eggshells around your moods?"
"Athena went to all that trouble to buy you a good breakfast. What more do you want?"
I laughed.
Not one dish on that table was something I liked.
The porridge had already gone stone cold, and floating on top of it was cilantro. The thing I'm allergic to.
"Fabian, I'm allergic to cilantro."
"This is from the Sunnyside Corner Store, isn't it?"
"That is a real trek. Must be almost ten miles out there."
"And all of it is what Athena likes."
Fabian had nothing to say.
Athena's voice filled with hurt.
"Winona, I didn't do it on purpose."
"I just got back, and the Sunnyside place was all I could think of."
"Next time. Next time I'll buy what you like, I promise."
I didn't answer. I turned to leave.
Then Athena's voice came again from behind me.
"Winona."
"I just got back, and I don't have anywhere to stay."
"So Fabian had the room next to yours cleaned out for me."
"You don't mind, do you?"
I stopped dead and stared at Fabian, unable to believe it.
That was the nursery. The one we'd set up for the baby.
We'd started getting it ready when the first child was on the way.
After we lost that baby, the room was locked up.
It stayed locked until this pregnancy, when the door was finally opened again.
Everything inside it, the two of us had chosen piece by piece for our child.
I turned and hurried up the stairs, and pushed the door open.
Inside, every single thing that had belonged to the baby was gone.
There was a brand-new bedding set on the bed.
Athena's clothes lay tossed across it in a heap.
I rushed to the head of the bed.
In the nightstand was the protective charm I'd prayed for, for my baby.
So that in his next life he could be happy.
But the drawer was empty. There was nothing left.
Eyes burning red, I looked at Athena behind me.
"Where is it?"
Athena let out a little "oh."
"That little red pouch, you mean."
"I threw it out."
"It was kind of ugly, just sitting there in the way."
"Fabian said I could do whatever I wanted with this room."
I whipped around to Fabian.
"You know what that was!"
After we lost the baby, I couldn't sleep for nights on end.
It was Fabian who stayed with me, who climbed the mountain all night to be the first one at the temple, and prayed for that charm.
And now Athena had thrown it away.
Fabian remembered. The color drained from his face, but he still faced me down, refusing to back off.
"Winona, don't make a mountain out of nothing."
"It's just a charm."
"It was all so long ago. Enough is enough."
I looked at Fabian, so utterly indifferent,
and at Athena beside him, gloating, and I laughed until the tears ran down my face.
All I'd wanted was to leave quietly.
But now, I would make sure Fabian and Athena were left with nothing.
