Annalise's POV
As we arrived at the meeting point just off the borderline of the village outbanks, Stefan helped me take the kids out of the back seat while Alexis and Killian took out the large duffle bags from the trunk of the SUV. Dante and Danielle surveyed their surroundings and I couldn't help but smile at my children. They weren't looking around in awe or feeling scared. They were actually looking for points of intrusion, just like Orion taught them to. They held each other by a single hand between them as they turned their heads, their serious expressions giving me pause.
"Hey you two," I say to them and they both looked at me at the same time. I walked over to crouch in front of them so that we were at eye level. "I'm proud of you two. But please also know that it's okay to be a
