A few minutes passed before I heard footsteps coming back down the hall, Rebecca's quick stride, and behind her the quieter, more measured sounds of Sydney and Rachel following in.
"Did you call Ivy?" I asked, looking at Rebecca as they came in.
She stopped. "What?"
"Ivy. She's part of us," I said.
Rebecca shifted her weight and crossed her arms. "I mean, yeah, I know that. But she's not exactly heavily involved in the day-to-day stuff, is she? And since Mei got taken she's been..." She paused, searching for the word. "Even more distant than usual. Weird, honestly."
"Rebecca," Rachel said.
"What?" Rebecca looked at her sister with the expression of someone who was not going to apologize for a factual observation. "I'm just saying what's true." She turned back to me, already moving. "Anyway, it's done now. I'll get out of your way."
"No." I said it before she'd taken a full step. "You're staying."
