“I’ll be okay,” she says softly. She drags in a deep breath and straightens up. He’s right, about the dangers of staying still too long when there’s so much emotion hanging in the air. It’s a panicked smothering waiting to happen.

Athena helps him bring in the groceries, puts things away, showers and changes into properly clean new-old pajamas before returning to the kitchen. “How do you brine chicken anyway? I want to learn so I can impress and confuse Aunt Nory with my culinary acumen.”