Page 79 of Left Behind

Aaron handed her his gift, then pointed at Dani. “You already know Dani. She helped me pick out this gift. Wanna open it?”

Ava gave Dani a shy glance and nodded, tearing into the wrapping on this gift with more force. With Aaron’s help, she got the lid off the box and saw a treasure of another kind.

“Look, Bubba! Two coloring books and crayons. Colored pencils with paper to draw on. My own little scissors! I know how to cut paper! I learned how at school! I will be careful. I will only cut paper…just my paper. I am not a baby.”

“I know that, darlin’. You are responsible,” he said. “Do you know what responsible means?”

She nodded. “That I know how to behave.”

“Yes, that, but it also means you know what’s right and what’s wrong, don’t you?” Wiley said.

She was quiet for a moment, thinking about what he said, and then she nodded.

“Yes. I’m not a mistake, am I, Bubba?”

Shock silenced all of them as Wiley leaned over and ruffled the curls on her head.

“No, ma’am, you are not a mistake. What did I say you were?”

“A gift. You said I was a gift,” Ava whispered.

“And you are a gift! To all of us,” Sean said. “I’m Sean, and I brought a gift, too.”

By now, Ava was into the swing of the moment, and the brothers all looked so much alike that she wasn’t scared of them anymore, but still reserved the right to back off if the need arose.

She walked over to where Sean was sitting and sat down in front of him.

“Hello, darlin’,” he said softly. “See that pretty woman with the white streak in her hair? That’s Amalie, my wife. She’s also your sister. She helped me pick out our gift to you.” He slid the box toward her.

Ava glanced back at Wiley again, but this time her expression was lit from within.

“Bubba! I have another present!”

“I see that! Better open it to see what it is!” Wiley said.

She smiled shyly at Sean and then tore the paper off her gift and lifted the lid from the box.

“An iPad, Bubba, and it’s pink! We used these at school. I know how! I know how!” she cried.

“I promise it’s only for kids her age. I’ve vetted the programs and links. They’re fun, but all geared to learning. Gotta make sure our little sister is up-to-date with the world she’s growing up in.”

“This is awesome,” Wiley said.

“We use things like this at school,” Dani added.

This time, Ava didn’t need any urging. She stood up, hugged Sean’s neck, and whispered, “Thank you,” in his ear. Then went to where Dani and Amalie were sitting. “Thank you for coming to my party,” she said.

Dani hugged her. “We wouldn’t miss it for anything.”

Amalie held out her hand, and when she did, Ava saw the burn scars on the back of it, and then saw the burn scars on her neck. But instead of the scars, it was the white streak in Amalie’s hair that caught her eye.

“You have pretty hair. Thank you for coming to my party,” she said.

Amalie had already seen herself in this child.

“Thank you for finding us,” Amalie said. “I was lost when I was a little girl, and it took a long time for my real family to find me. I’m so glad we found you now.”

Ava blinked. “You didn’t have people?”

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