A knock on the window caused us both to startle. A man with a reflective vest and creased expression stood on the other side of the glass.
“Hey! You can’t park here.”
Leni leaped off my lap, face close to the glass. “Open the door! We’re stuck.”
The man scrunched his face harder but slowly attempted to pull on the handle.
“I think it’s locked.”
Fuck.
“The driver’s side. Open the sunroof. Now!”
The man did as he was told, but it took him a few more seconds than I was comfortable with before he found the right button.
As the glass slid open, I pulled Leni. “Go now! I’ll be right behind you.”
Her jaw tensed. “Silas, if you try anything.”
“I’ve got you, always, remember?”
She nodded and bolted through the opening, and I followed. The moment our feet hit the ground, we ran. “Get away from the vehicle,” I shouted at the man, who immediately shuffled backward upon seeing our frantic escape.
Reaching a safe distance, we fell to the ground, struggling to catch our breath and waiting for the explosion Ronan had promised.
“You think he lied? Just to fuck with us?”
Leni looked back at the lone car parked on the side of the road and shook her head slowly. “No. He’s not the type of man who makes empty threats.”
She was right. No sooner had I tugged her into my lap, the world rocked around us. The explosion was thunderous, and my ears began ringing.
“Fuck,” we said in unison before falling back onto the grass.
* * *
PHILADELPHIA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
My feet were heavy. My heart pounding. In just minutes, I would be face-to-face with my sister. Leni had pulled up a photo posted on a website from an event at her precinct. She was beautiful, and maybe I could see the resemblance in our eyes. Still, nothing else felt familiar, no matter how many times I’d lose myself in the image of her face, trying to force memories that were, in all probability, lost forever.
“Are you ready?” she asked, looping an arm through mine.
“I am,” I said, scouring the crowd, searching for the woman in the photo. Leni had called ahead and gave her the news once we picked up our bags and offered to meet them outside. Eva was beside herself and insisted on parking.
“There they are.” Leni nudged on my arm as a group of people dispersed. A short distance before me was a pregnant woman with pretty features twisted into a sob. She mouthed my name and began to move toward me, when the tattooed hand of a man held her back. In the same breath, he took a protective stance before her, eyes like lasers fixed on mine. But Eva pushed her way around him, mouthed words I couldn’t quite catch, and continued toward me.
“F-Frankie?” Her voice broke, and she was shaking, as if fighting to keep it together. She reached out, and I thought she was going in for a hug, but she yanked the collar of my shirt open and instantly gasped. I could only assume it was due to the small birthmark on my clavicle. “It’s really you,” she breathed. “But…how? I saw when they shot you.”
My eyes widened. Doing quick math, she had to have been barely sixteen. What a tragedy.
“I’m sorry,” I said, unsure what I was apologizing for other than not protecting her from something so horrific.
She smiled and shook her head. “You’re so handsome, Frankie. And so tall. So grown up.”
While I didn’t remember, I’m sure she looked vastly different than she did today.
“You too, Eva.”
At the sound of her name, her facade cracked. This tiny woman with a rounded belly jumped on me, arms around my neck, and broke into hysterics.
