The Cat watching Doves from the 2nd Floor windowsill spotted Shade at once. So when Shade opened the door downstairs, he received an enthusiastic welcome from his own cat.
They were having dinner at home tonight. Before the maids had left yesterday, they had stocked the kitchen with more than enough food. And naturally, the ones cooking were the visiting twins.
Over their long lives, they had learned many useful domestic skills. Compared to the Outlander, who could only make a few simple dishes, Helen and Grace were far better cooks.
"A long time ago, I imagined cooking in the kitchen with sister, without having to worry that next week, one of us would strangle the other and then wait alone for another twenty-one years."
Grace was preparing the final soup in the kitchen, while Helen had taken off her apron and was already sitting beside Shade.
The gas lamp illuminated the simply furnished but cozy dining room. The oil painting Haila Osenfott had painted for Shade hung on the wall behind him. The young girl in a black dress sat beside Shade, propping up her chin with one hand as she turned to look at her sister in the kitchen.
Shade held Little Mia, who was eagerly awaiting dinner.
"You'll have plenty of time to live together from now on. Just don't get sick of each other."
Helen turned to him.
"How could we? Sister is me, and I am sister. Sometimes I even feel that perhaps when God created us, He divided one whole into two individuals. We were destined to be together, never, ever to be separated."
"Helen, you'll make me blush if you say that."
Grace, wearing a white dress and apron, walked over. To be honest, Shade still found it rather strange to have two