“Okay, I can see that too,” Bricker allowed, and then glanced from Basil to Lucian and asked, “But what was Elvi’s deal?”

Lucian scowled when the young man settled his gaze on him. It seemed obvious to Basil that his brother had no idea why Elvi was crying, but rather than say so, he simply said,

“She is a woman. They don’t need a reason to cry. They just do.”

Sherry released what sounded suspiciously like a snort, her body jerking against his, and then she explained to Bricker, “Elvi is just relieved that Stephanie’s life is no longer in danger. It has been a great strain on her to worry about the girl for so long.”

“Ah,” Bricker said with understanding. But now Lucian was scowling even harder.

“She should be happy now then. Stephanie is safe,” Lucian pointed out.

“She is happy,” Sherry assured him patiently. “That’s why she was crying.”

If anything, that seemed to confuse Lucian more. Shaking his head, he turned to Bricker and said, “You see? It’s as I said, women don’t need a reason to cry. They just do.”