Chapter 15
KYLIE
Ididn’t actually play, but spending time with Tyler and Rayna in her playroom satisfied my little side a little. She seemed to be in a state of glee, and Rayna had pinned me as her big sister. I stayed with her when Maddox and Tyler left.
She received text messages from Kyler periodically with instructions: get ready for bed, go to bed. She grumbled about it, but obeyed.
I waited in the living room while she showered and changed into her pajamas. It seemed weird for her little to go through this ritual without a daddy present, but I guess in her world, her daddy was always with her.
She came out wearing a onesie with swords on it and holding a penguin dressed like Sherlock Holmes under her arm.
“Will you stay with me?” Her voice was high-pitched. “Until Daddy gets home. We can just rest our eyes in the playroom until he gets here.” She grabbed my hand and walked me back to the playroom.
She didn’t give me much choice.
The playroom had two twin-size beds next to each other on the far wall with a nightstand between them. I assumed she slept with Kyler, but maybe not. This door had a lock on it. Did he lock her in at night, a failsafe against any ideas she might have about leaving?
I peeked at the escape route door. Was that only an option during a lockdown?
She climbed into the bed closer to the door and pulled the covers up to her chin. She hugged the stuffie to her chest.
“Your stuffie is cute,” I said. “What’s his name?”
“Sherlock.” She yawned. “Do you have a stuffie?”
“No.”
“Oh,” she pouted. “You can have one of mine. I have lots. Just not Sherlock. He's my favorite.”
“I wouldn’t dream of taking your favorite.”
“Get under the covers if you want.” She waved her hand. “Tinley and I have sleepovers here all the time.”
“You and Tinley are pretty close. It must be nice to have someone going through the same thing you’re going through.” I used my words carefully.
“Yeah, she’s the best.” Rayna rolled to her side and rested her head on her pillow. “She’s so strong and brave. I’m so proud of her.”
“You’ve been through a lot, too.” I kicked off my shoes and socks and slid under the covers. The bed was so soft, and the room was cool, but perfectly warm under the blankets.
Rayna reached out and dimmed the lights. “Watch this?” She flipped another switch, and star-shaped lights danced across the ceiling.
“Oh, wow, so pretty.” My eyes darted around, trying to follow the path of one star as it zigzagged.
“Everyone says that. I guess so, but I think I was more na?ve about the world before I came here, and I was content with that.” Her voice dropped to a whisper.
“Then I spent four months back in my old life, and I was scared all the time. I hated it. I’m so relieved to be here.
I’m so much happier.” She yawned again, which caused me to yawn.
We both giggled. The light show mesmerized me.
After a few minutes of silence, I flipped to my side to look at her. “But don’t you have dreams of your own? Things you want to do? You don’t want to live in a hotel for the rest of your life.”
Rayna didn’t answer me. I rose to see if she was sleeping or ignoring me. She was fast asleep.
I flopped back down and shifted onto my back. The show on the ceiling was comforting in a way. It made me sleepy. I tried to keep my eyes open, but eventually I drifted into a calm slumber.
Maybe in my dream, the world wasn’t so complicated.