Flashback ( PDFDrive )

“My parents are coming?” Fitz asked.
“No keeping them away,” Elwin agreed. “Should be here within the
hour. Don’t worry—I told them it’d have to be a short visit and that
they couldn’t get emotional.”
“Right, like that’s going to happen,” Fitz muttered.
• • •
His parents tried—they really did.
Considering they hadn’t seen their son awake in more than two
weeks, there were shockingly few tears. But there were a whole lot of
choked apologies and weepy voices and lots and lots of blinking.
And hugs. So many hugs.
Elwin finally had to warn them about Fitz’s cracked ribs.
Sophie wished she could give them privacy for their family reunion
and told herself not to eavesdrop. And she’d been doing a pretty good
job—until Fitz started asking about Alvar.
“We still don’t know the exact day he’ll arrive,” Della told him,
reaching for the hand Fitz had pulled out of her grasp.
“But it’ll be soon,” Fitz pressed.
Alden nodded. “The house is ready. It’s passed every possible
security protocol.”
“What about the emergency override?” Fitz asked.
“I removed your brother’s DNA from the gates the first night I
learned he was with the Neverseen,” Alden told him. “You know that.”
“Yeah, but he still knows where the override is,” Fitz argued, and
Sophie had to bite her tongue to stop herself from asking, What’s the
override?