Page 19 of The Lost Kings
Panic flipped around in my chest. I didn’t want her to take away my training; it was the only thing that seemed to be an outlet for me, and it was the only thing that felt like it made sense. I knew my mom wished I was more like her. She probably wanted me to be like my cousin Carter and the twins’ sister, Alex, but that didn’t feel right. I liked running around the property line wearing a weighted vest. I enjoyed shooting and throwing knives. I liked learning to fight.
“This needs to stop, Scotty.”
He stepped closer to her, putting his hands out. “You agreed to this, Rylie.”
“I never agreed tothis. Look at her, Scotty. She has bruises on half her body; her knuckles are shredded.”
My mom’s eyes watered, her arms came in and tucked in close over her chest.
He stepped closer. “You placed your life in my hands once upon a time. Trust me with her, Rylie. I would never do anything to hurt her.”
I’d never witnessed Scotty sound so…soft. He seemed like a human with her; whereas with everyone else, he was cold and gruff. To be fair, he was that way with Mom most of the time too, but something about her fear seemed to force out this side of him.
“I’m sorry, you’re right. I just—we almost lost Kyle and hearing what she saw and had to do that night…it keeps me up at night. I hate what we’re subjecting her to. She doesn’t get to just be a normal little girl, Scotty.”
“What does anyone know of what normal constitutes, Rylie? There is no way for any person, especially a little girl, to be normal. No code, no law that suggests how they should be or who they’ll become. Presleyisnormal because she arrives every day with a smile on her face, and the day that changes, I will pull her out. I swear that to you.”
Uncle Scotty stepped closer and pulled my mom into a hug, which made my eyes go wide. I’d never seen him hug anyone before. Her arms came around him as she hugged him back, and suddenly Dad walked into the hallway, watching them with a smile.
It was muffled, but I heard Scotty say, “This is a risk and it’s taking a toll on all of us.”
My mom had tears streaming down her cheeks as she nodded, then she sobbed.
“What if we’re making a mistake by allowing her to train like Kyle trained?”
My dad’s uncle didn’t get to respond because my dad finally stepped forward, away from the stairs.
“Scotty, you’re such a softy. Don’t let anyone see you or else your cold-hearted cover will be blown.”
Scotty finally let my mom go and then ruffled her hair. “She’s still the only person who’s ever stood up to me. She’s earned my respect, and a few hugs.”
“I stand up to you all the time,” my dad argued and it made me smile.
Scotty shook his head and turned back toward the doors, where Iwas spying. I started running back, but the dogs were right behind me, which made it awkward when they started running after me.
I heard laughing and then my dad ran after me, catching me mid-run.
“Caught ya.”
And just like that, I remembered exactly why I was enduring the training Scotty put me through. Why I hit the bag until my knuckles bled, and why I endured bruises and broken fingers. I did it because one night my dad was nearly ripped out of my world, and I’d do anything to prevent that from ever happening again.
I archedthe line into something that resembled a barn and then bit my lip while I erased it, only to reshape it again. I was with the twins, trying not to think about how badly my hands hurt, or how frequently they kept glancing at them. I just wanted to forget for a while and be their friend who liked fluffy cows, the farmhouse next door, and stargazing.
“What animal is going to sleep up there?” Gio slid into the chair next to me, moving my paper toward him.
I pulled it back and shrugged. “Charlotte.”
Gio’s brow lifted, while his eye narrowed. Just the left one. It was weird that only his left eye moved when he did that with his eyebrows, but it’s how it always had been.
“A pig?”
“The spider.” Kingston’s smooth voice cut into our conversation as he peeled an apple by the sink.
I saw luggage being pulled out of storage and left near the family wings, which meant we would be leaving again. My parents told me we were headed out on yet another vacation, but I caught Uncle Scotty packing weapons, some similar to the one he’d placed in my hand and others that were larger but just as deadly.
And just like that my bubble had burst. In the manor it was easyto forget that there were people out there who wanted to hurt us. That all the training I did had a purpose behind it.
It was possible that I didn’t know everything about Dad and Scotty’s business, but I understood enough to know that our world was a sandcastle built on a beach with choppy waters and unpredictable tides. Any second and it could wash away.
