As I giggled, Sherrie came back with the paperwork. “All set, babies.”
Spencer folded the pages slightly, slipping them into the large pockets of her cargo pants. With one final squeeze to my hand, Spencer nodded toward Caleb’s door. “I’ll be back soon.”
“Take your time, I can entertain myself.” Winking, I took a seat in one of the chairs that lined the hallway.
As soon as Spencer appeared in the doorway, a cacophony of excited shouts drifted out to the waiting area. All I could make out was the low rumble of Spencer’s voice and a few words from the kids.
Until I heard a teenage boy’s voice say. “What, no Aunt Dom today? Too cool for us?”
My head tilted as I considered it, a bit surprised that they’d even met Dom. Not because she wouldn’t stick around but because she was such a hardass that I couldn’t imagine herwantingto meet them.
But from the laughs that followed in the hospital room, I knew I was wrong.
All that money probably made it easy for Dom to spoil those two. But what I couldn’t figure out was how she managed to be sweet and loving.
I was pretty sure I’d die without ever seeing that side of my captor.
Then the room quieted down as the family got to more serious matters.
The hallway grew eery as it neared midnight, a few nurses drifting from patient to patient as they did their rounds.
But soon, the buzz of the overhead lights and rhythmic beeping of the medical equipment started to make my heart race.
The image of Isaac’s letterhead came racing back to my mind. As I stared ahead, I felt like I could hear him yelling at my mother.GET OUT OF MY HOUSE.
Like a raging beast, his red, breathless face appeared behind my eyelids — a shiver running down my spine at the visual.
I remembered being grabbed by the arm, guided down the stairs in a rush and jostled toward the door.
Shaking my head, I tried to piece the memory together. But I felt like a thick wool sweater was being thrown over it, unable to discern more details. All I could remember was Isaac. His daughter. And a large, oak door.
It wasn’t his face I’d seen. No — it was his daughter’s, raging. Angry. Throwing me and my mother out.
The house…
Looking down the hallway, I tried to steady my breathing.
The mansion wasn’t just vaguely familiar. No, it was distinctly recognizable. And I was starting to understand why.
But I needed to confirm it. And fast.
26
SPENCER
I was still rubbingsleep from my eyes as I stumbled down the last steps of the cold stone stairs. Kiera and I hadn’t gotten home until the waning hours of the night, a sliver of blue appearing on the horizon.
Yawning, I put my hand down my gray sweats. I scratched my pubes and waltzed into the kitchen where Major Callahan was frying up eggs on the stove.
“Smells good.” I managed as I threw myself into the island stool, kicking my feet up onto the empty one.
Leo nodded. “It won’t be a Chef Moore special, but it’ll be food.”
And today, that was enough. Which Leo knew. She wasn’t one to pry, wasn’t going to insert herself in my business. But she knew when I needed the morning off.
“Went okay?” She asked without looking up from the stove.
At the question, all of my frustration came roaring back. I’d almost been able to push the images of my nephew's casted arm and bruised face from my memory.
