But if I did give the right response, maybe we could start to heal things.
The portrait was somewhat crude, a children’s drawing, though I could tell that she had tried hard to match my likeness, getting the shape of my hair mostly correct and coloring in my eyes the right shade. I had a look of concentration on my face that I thought exuded leadership.
“This is perfect,” I told her.
“It is?” she asked.
“Yes,” I insisted. Standing, I called for Xavier. When he entered the room, I showed him the portrait. “Our artist has completed her work. I need this framed and hung in the space for the official portrait at once.”
“Yes, Alpha,” Xavier said. As he collected the drawing, he looked at Nova. “This is good work, Nova.”
“Thank you…” she said, her voice small.
Later, as I walked Nova back
