All three of them were allowed to go home the next day. Since they’d been closer to the hallway, most of the weight of the ceiling had missed them and they hadn’t gotten more than bruising. It had been the psychic pulse from Steve Chapman that had knocked them all unconscious and thankfully, there was no damage from that. Apparently they could all be grateful that the Chapmans weren’t more powerful psychics, or using anything to enhance their abilities because, according Dr. Hillard when she stopped in to check on them, more powerful forms of psychic pulses could and would kill in a second. Then she’d walked away without any further explanation.

Amelia wasn’t technically in charge, but she did manage to make James stay home. Gabriella wasn’t sure what threats were involved since she wasn’t there either. She was able to go home again, so she went there and slept for the vast majority of the next twenty-four hours. When she got to work the next day, somewhat sore and disoriented, but otherwise fine, nearly everyone was there already.

“I’m alive,” she muttered as she sat down on the couch beside Fang, who looked up with disinterest before closing her eyes again. “How are things here?”

“Running,” Amelia said. “James is in in an hour, so we’ll talk more then. But McGovern called a little while ago. The Chapmans are both dead.”

Gabriella glanced at Graham. She was unsure exactly how she was feeling at the moment. And she could see the same conflict there, only more so. 

“Also, we’re going to meet up with Casey Romano later,” Amelia said. “If you feel up for it.”

“Yeah,” Gabriella said. “I think I’m good.”

James got there an hour later, moving slowly and with a black eye, but otherwise alright. Amelia gave him the news too. 

“There was nothing we could have done to stop them,” he said to the group as they sat in the living room. “They made their decision and I think they knew the risks, even if they weren’t acknowledging them. But if anyone needs to talk, my door is open.”

Gabriella was still a little numb, but she might take him up on that. 

After the meeting, Gabriella saw Graham and Madelyn talking quietly by the front door before Graham left to take a few hours off. Madelyn leaned up and kissed him softly and Gabriella looked away to give them privacy.

A moment later, Graham was gone and Madelyn was back up the stairs. She sat down on the couch beside Gabriella. “You guys are good?” Gabriella asked.

“Yeah.” Madelyn smiled. “He asked if I wanted to move in with him.”

“Oh yeah?”

Apparently she wasn’t as good an actor as she hoped, because Madelyn looked at her and laughed. “You knew, didn’t you?”

“He might have mentioned wanting to ask you. Did he ask just now?”

“No, last night. I guess he and James talked about it too. We’re going to start looking for an August move-in. And Amelia’s going to take over his half of the lease at his place with James.”

Gabriella felt a quick, strange sting of jealousy that disappeared almost as quickly as it had arrived. “That’s great,” she said. “I’m really happy for you.”

***

It was beautiful out today, so Gabriella took advantage of the weather by going out into the yard to eat her lunch. It was plain, just a sandwich and a small container of fruit salad. She had packed it this morning when she finally decided that she was stable enough to go to work and actually wanted to do so. 

She thought that it would be hard to put together a meal, that there would be too many emotions connected to it. At that point, she hadn’t known that the Chapmans were dead. Just that they were both in bad shape at St. Hildegard’s while she was now safe at her own home, far away from them and putting together a very boring meal for later. And yeah, she’d thought of them. It was impossible not to, especially when half her counter and cabinets were gone with a promise from her landlord to get them replaced very soon. But as she’d put together her sandwich, she had thought of Graham and James there with her at what she thought was going to be the end. And how grateful she was that it wasn’t.

And now she was sitting on the front steps, picking at her food. Her body ached, though not as badly as she would have expected it to. But her appetite wasn’t great, so mostly she just sipped her water.

“Gabriella!”

She looked over to see Jolene getting out of her car. Gabriella waved, slowly standing so that Jolene could get around her.

“No, it’s fine,” Jolene said as she made her way over. “How are you feeling, hon?”

“It doesn’t hurt as bad,” Gabriella said. 

“Good,” Jolene said, flashing that same warm smile. “Yeah, Dr. Hillard told me it looked worse than it was.”

“Yeah, the, um, the psychic pulse wasn’t that bad apparently.”

“Good.”

Jolene looked genuinely relieved. “It’s almost too nice to go inside,” she said. “Not that I’ll be here long. I’ve got to meet with James for a few, then I’m all over the state until tonight.”

“How was your vacation?” Gabriella asked.

“So nice,” Jolene said, suddenly looking more wistful than Gabriella expected her to. “I really needed to make that time with my son. I should have done it earlier.”

“Did he love it?” 

“Oh my God, he did,” Jolene said. “We had a cottage right on the beach and he just swam for hours. I’ve never seen a kid move like that, I could barely get him out of the water long enough to eat.”

“I was the same way,” Gabriella said with a laugh. “My mom would try to get me to come out and I’d duck into the water so that only my head was showing. Like maybe she’d think the only way to get me out was to come in too, so she wouldn’t bother.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Apparently James was the same way. I wasn’t around yet, but that’s what I heard. And then when we were all little and he was older, he’d just throw us off the dock.”

“Were there a lot of you?”

Gabriella laughed. “Yeah.”

“Erik doesn’t really have that,” Jolene said. “He has a couple cousins on Danny’s side, but they live too far away. But he met some kids there and he was happy.”

She looked a little sad again now. “I guess that’s what matters?” Gabriella said, as though she had any clue about raising kids. “You do your best and hope that they’re happy? At least that’s what my mom says.”

“And it seems like she did a good job.”

Gabriella’s face went even warmer in the late spring heat. “Don’t listen to me, I can’t even imagine having a kid,” she said.

Now Jolene laughed. “It’s tough to imagine until you’re in it. I messed up pretty badly, so I’m just trying to fix it as much as I can from here.”

Gabriella had no idea what to say to that. But Jolene sighed, looking up at the blue sky. “Oh, this isn’t a day to be inside,” she said. “But I have to.”

“I’ll see you in there.”

Jolene went in the door and Gabriella glanced at her watch. They had about two hours until they were going to Casey’s truck to talk to him and she didn’t actually have anything to do before then, so she sat back down to take a few more minutes in the sunlight.

She wasn’t alone for more than a minute. Graham’s car pulled up behind Jolene’s and she watched as he gingerly got out of the driver’s seat. As he reached the stairs, she moved over to let him through. But instead, he sat down beside her on the top step.

“How are you?” she asked.

“Angry,” he replied. “Angry more than anything. It’s such a waste. They could have been almost as successful without hurting anyone. And now all my favorite recipes are ruined.”

“Want some Better Than Sex cake?” Gabriella asked. “I made another one and I think Bradley might have left a couple pieces.”

Graham started laughing, the sound building up until he was giggling helplessly into his hands. “I’m sorry, Gabriella, but that cake looked awful.”

“I can only eat a little bit of it,” she admitted. “It makes my teeth ache. Graham, I’m sorry about all of this.”

“Me too,” he said, leaning back on his hands and looking up at the one cloud drifting across the sky. “But I think maybe it clarified some things for me.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Did you know there’s a school in North Dakota where students can major in paranormal studies? James was telling me about it.”

“No,” she said. “Do you think they have remote options?”

“I have no clue,” Graham admitted. “But if something like that’s possible, then maybe my options aren’t just either feed my whole life to the Foundation or leave it entirely.”

They were quiet for a second. “I want to go to that school,” Gabriella said.

“Me too,” Graham admitted. “I want to teach at that school. But I guess I should probably learn it all first.”

“Are we moving to North Dakota?”

“Not a chance in hell,” Graham said. “But I have a feeling something will open up. Just based on what Casey said.”

Gabriella didn’t feel that same pull to leave the Foundation, but moving forward in a way that didn’t involve becoming either a captain or nothing had her seriously considering what could be.