The dining room was enormous, with a table that could seat twenty people. Miguel's place was set at one end, a booster seat on the chair so he could reach his plate. No one else ever ate with him, except occasionally Uncle Xavier when he wasn't working late.
"Can I eat in the TV room?" Miguel asked hopefully as Lily helped him into his seat.
She glanced at the guard who still hovered in the doorway. "Just this once," she said quietly. "Since it's Friday."
The guard frowned but said nothing as Lily prepared a tray with Miguel's dinner—chicken nuggets shaped like dinosaurs, mashed potatoes, and broccoli that he would push around but not eat.
With his dinner balanced carefully on the tray Lily carried, Miguel followed her to the den—a smaller, cozier room with comfortable sofas and a larg
