Chapter 29
“I’m nervous.
Ryder brings the back of my hand to his lips and presses a kiss to it. “It’s going to be okay.”
Fallon takes my other hand and gives it a reassuring squeeze. The three of us are standing on my front doorstep as I have an internal debate with myself about going inside.
I reach for the doorknob but hesitate and turn to Ryder. “We’re skipping school tomorrow, right? What’s the point of going in for only one day? I have about a couple more days of schoolwork to catch up on, so missing one more day isn’t going to hurt.”
Tomorrow is Friday, the last day of school before the week-long holiday break for Thanksgiving. What’s the point in going in when we won’t be doing much anyway? Besides, Ryder is still tired from all the flying he has done, and he and I could use a day of nothing but napping.
Ryder bends down and kisses me, distracting me from my worries. His kisses have a way of blanking all coherent thought from my brain. In this instance, his kiss instantly replaces my worry.
“Stop stalling and open the door, baby.
“One more kiss,” I tell him, and Fallon starts poking me in the side.
“I’m standing right here. Can your make-out session wait until I’m gone? Unless I’m invited, of course.”
That startles a giggle out of me, and I relax enough to reach out and turn the doorknob. As soon as the door opens, the smell of freshly baked cookies hits us. Daniel must have been busy baking today.
During our busy day of shopping in New York City, Fallon purchased a pink hard-case luggage set for me to hold all the clothes he also bought me. Our driver is unloading my luggage as we speak, and Fallon instructed him to leave them by the front door on the porch.
As soon as we enter the house, I walk to the kitchen. Daniel is standing at the counter island, a coffee cup in his hands as he stares off into space
“I’m home,” I quietly announce.
A combined look of relief and joy crosses his face when he sees me. “Come here,” he says gruffly, setting down his mug and opening his arms wide. My feet take over as I fly into his embrace, wrapping my arms around his neck as he hugs me tightly.
It’s the first time I’ve seen Daniel since getting my memories back, and I’m struck by how much he resembles my dad, his younger brother.
I lean back to hold Daniel’s face between my hands and examine his every feature.
His hair is exactly the same shade as Dad’s was.
His eyes are the same color too, as is the shape of his mouth.
God, he even smells the same as Dad—clean linen and mint
“You look just like Daddy,” I tell him with a watery smile.
“Christ, Lizzie,” he replies, bringing me back in for a long hug. “I’m so glad you’re home, sweet girl. What did Dr. Narwali say?”
When our plane landed and I texted Daniel that we had arrived, he called my neurologist, Dr. Narwali.
By lucky happenstance, Dr. Narwali had just finished his rounds and told Daniel to send me straight to the hospital and up to his office.
While I was being examined and checked over, Ryder and Fallon waited for me in the hospital cafeteria.
Apparently, more caffeine was needed. We were all exhausted, especially Ryder.
“I’m fine, just like I told you. He did a full blood panel and wants me to come in for an MRI next week.”
I hate MRIs. They are loud and make me claustrophobic.
The ear plugs they give you to help muffle the noise of the machine aren’t enough for me, so I always ask for cotton balls as well.
Combining the two—ear plugs in first, then cotton balls after—helps dampen the excruciating bangs and jackhammer-clanks the machine makes.
“Good.” Daniel gives me one last squeeze before releasing me and motions for the guys to come in and sit down. Fallon takes a bar stool, but Ryder comes over to shake Daniel’s hand in greeting before taking a seat himself.
“Sir,” Ryder says respectfully.
I have a feeling we are going to be sucking up to my uncle big time for the grief we put him through these past weeks.
“As much as I would love to play the role of irate parent and lecture the three of you for being so reckless and taking ten years off my life in the process, I’ll just say thank you for taking care of my niece,” he tells Fallon, looking him in the eye before turning his gaze on me.
“It doesn’t mean that you’re still not grounded,” he informs me.
That’s fair, but I have a feeling that Daniel will cave pretty quickly about the whole grounding thing. I wrap my arm around his waist and smile up at him. Daniel has never been any good at playing the bad parent.
“I can’t wait to tell you everything,” I say with a smile.
“I have a lot of photos you haven’t seen yet,” Fallon adds. Since Fallon was holding my phone hostage for most of the trip, he made sure to take lots of pictures and videos for me. I sent a few to Daniel on the days I texted him instead of calling.
I notice Ryder eyeing Daniel’s coffee on the counter. He’s still fatigued from jetlag and the hospital-grade coffee didn’t help perk him up much. Ryder actually fell asleep again in the back seat on the ride over.
Trying to decide how much coffee is too much coffee for someone to consume in a day, I figure one more cup won’t hurt and pop a fresh pod into the Keurig. Daniel hands me a mug from the cabinet and I place it underneath the drip and hit the button to start it going.
While I wait, I lean back against the countertop. “Is she here?” I ask Daniel.
“Sleeping in your room at the moment. She’s had a rough twenty-four hours. The police want to speak with her, but they agreed to hold off for a day or two so she can get settled.
“Has she said anything?”
Hailey was gone for about nine months. I hope that once the police have talked with her, they will go after the guy she ran off with. They better, once I tell them about the bruises and burn marks I saw on her body the day before she disappeared.
“She’s been a mess since I told her about John and Ann. She keeps asking for you.”
I inhale deeply through my nose and let the breath out in one exhaled burst. “Alright.”
As soon as the coffee finishes brewing, I take it over to Ryder, who accepts it gratefully. I snuggle into his side while he sips. Looking over at Fallon, I ask, “You guys sticking around?”
“I need to take Ry to get his car, then I’ll head home. Dad wants to talk to me.”
“Please tell him thank you. I plan to do it myself, but Hailey comes first.”
“Babe, we understand. Do what you need to do. I’ll text you later once I have a chance to talk with Mom and Dad,” Ryder tells me. I do not envy him that conversation.
“Let me know if I can help.” I will gladly play the sympathy card or drop some major emotional blackmail to keep Ryder out of trouble with his parents.
We spend a few more minutes idly chatting while Ryder finishes downing his caffeine fix. As I walk them outside, I embrace Fallon for a long moment and make him promise to call me later tonight. Then I kiss the daylights out of Ryder and tell him that I love him.
I stay rooted in the driveway until I can no longer see the taillights of the black SUV we arrived in. Pivoting around to walk back up to the house, I stop abruptly when I see Hailey standing on the porch, staring down at me.
My first observation on seeing my sister for the first time in months is that she looks terrible.
Hailey has dark circles under her eyes and her body is unnaturally thin, like she’s lost a lot of weight.
She’s dressed in a long-sleeved hoodie and yoga pants from my closet.
The way she’s dressed reminds me how I should have realized there was a problem when she started wearing the same type of clothes all the time, even during warm weather.
It’s obvious now when looking back that she wore clothes as a type of shield to conceal the bruises on her body.
My heart screams out at me from those memories, knowing she has endured so much pain.
Knowing that she must have endured even more from him these past months that she’s been gone.
I can see the bruise on her cheek from here and want to rush up the steps and shake her, demanding why she would let someone do that to her.
Hailey stands as still as a statue as I approach the house and ascend the porch steps.
When I get within a foot of her, I halt.
She is about two inches shorter than I am.
Her hair is a darker blond than mine, and instead of green eyes, hers are hazel.
Hailey is an equal mix of both Mom and Dad, and seeing the similarities almost breaks me.
My gaze roams over her in careful inspection, as if to assure myself that she’s really here.
“Hailey,” I say, tucking strands of her hair behind her ear. Her lower lip quivers and a single tear blazes a trail down her cheek before disappearing as it drips onto the concrete flooring of the porch. I pull her rigid body into mine and wrap her in my arms.
“I’m sorry,” she haltingly whispers, but she doesn’t return my embrace, her arms hanging awkwardly at her sides.
“Me too,” I reply just as quietly and let her go, only to take her hand and usher her inside the house. My eyes meet Daniel’s as soon as we cross the threshold.
“Why don’t we all go into the living room and talk,” I tell him.
My eagerness to pepper Hailey with questions about where she’s been all this time will have to wait.
I know how stubborn my sister can be, and if she feels pushed, she’ll shut down and retreat.
The strategy with Hailey is that you have to let her come to you when she’s ready.
Then again, I may need to rethink that philosophy.
Would things have turned out differently for both us and our parents if I had pushed her more to open up to me?
If I had asked more questions? Demanded answers? I’ll never know.
I walk Hailey to the sofa and sit down, keeping her hand in mine so she is forced to sit right next to me. The coldness in her behavior towards me contrasts with her demands that I come home immediately and her claims to Daniel that she wanted me here with her.
Daniel takes a seat on the coffee table right in front of us and braces his forearms on his knees, clasping his hands together in front.
“Hailey, I can’t presume to understand how you must be feeling right now.” He waits to see if she’ll respond. She doesn’t.
“The three of us have been thrust into a tragic situation, but I know if we work together and remain open and honest with our feelings, we can make things work. With that being said, I need to know if this is something you want.”
Hailey finally lifts her head, focusing her attention on him. “I don’t understand what you mean?”
“Do you want to be here with me and Lizzie?”
I watch as my sister struggles to answer his question and my stomach drops. Is she going to leave again? Go back to him?
Finally, Hailey answers. “Yes.”
Daniel nods his head. “Alright. As Lizzie will probably tell you later, I am navigating this whole parent-legal guardian thing as best as I can. I will make mistakes, just as I expect you and Lizzie will make mistakes of your own.” He bores his eyes into me, letting me know he’ll get to me later about my sudden, unexplained departure with Fallon.
“I will have house rules as long as you live under this roof. I’m not John and I never will be,” he says of our father. “But Lizzie will tell you that I try to be open-minded and understanding.” Again, he looks at me pointedly and I start to squirm a little.
Daniel really has been great about everything. A tad overprotective at times, but not so bad considering. He did basically let Ryder move in with us—well, sleep over, often—once Ryder and I became serious in our relationship.
“One of those rules will be that you see a therapist,” he tells Hailey, who grimaces at the suggestion. “That is non-negotiable. If you are not willing to at least try, you need to tell me now.”
I squeeze Hailey’s hand in support, letting her know that I think his suggestion is a valid one.
“Okay,” she says.
“Good. Good,” he repeats. “Then we’re going to make a go of this. Do you have any questions for me?”
She shifts on the sofa to face me, leaving her hand in mine. “Lizzie, I need you to tell me what happened.”