Page 120 of Seen Knot Heard

The receptionist lifts her head, her gaze shifting between us with sympathy.

“We’re here to see Sadie Patel,” I say, signing the visitor log.

The receptionist’s fingers fly across the keyboard. “She’s in the common area.” She passes me a visitor pass. “Down the hall, third door on the right.”

“Thank you.” With a smile down at Quinn, I encourage her forward.

As we near the common area, the faint murmur of voices reaches my ears. I pause, my free hand hovering over the doorknob.

Quinn looks up at me, her bottom lip quivering.

“It will be okay,” I reassure her, hoping with everything I have that it’s true.

She takes a breath and straightens her spine.

Bracing myself, I turn the knob, and we step into the room.

The common area is a stark contrast to the sterile hallways, with worn couches and a flickering television in the corner. I scan the room, searching for my sister, and spot her perched on the edge of a faded armchair, her bleached blonde hair hanging in stringy clumps around her gaunt face and her vacant stare fixed on the floor.

Quinn sticks close to me, staring at the other patients in the room. Most ignore us, but a few stare back unblinking.

As we approach, Sadie’s head snaps up, and her lips crack when she smiles. “Quinn, baby.”

Quinn’s grip on my hand tightens, her little body trembling as she huddles close to my side. “Hi, Mommy.”

Sadie’s attention shifts to me, a flicker of resentment darkening her features. “Blake.”

Before I can respond, a familiar figure steps into the room from a different door, his presence commanding the room.

Our father’s eyes narrow with contempt when he spots me. “Blake. It’s about time you showed your face around here.”

I bristle at the implication that I haven’t been here the entire time, but I restrain my temper, not wanting to argue in frontof my niece. “I’m here because Sadie asked to see Quinn. If I’d known you’d be here, too, I would have come later in the day.”

“Why? So you could keep poisoning my granddaughter against her mother?” Our father reaches into his suit jacket. “Well, your little charade ends now. I have legal documents here that challenge your guardianship. Quinn belongs at home, not with some wannabe hero with a savior complex.”

My heart pounds, his words crushing me. I’ve fought so hard to give Quinn the stability and love she deserves. And now, with a few pieces of paper, he threatens to tear it all away.

Sadie’s eyes dart between us, her expression a mix of hope and desperation. “Quinn, baby, come to Mommy. We can be a family again, like we’ve always been.”

Quinn trembles, her small voice quivering as she speaks. “But Uncle Blake takes care of me. He keeps me safe. And Uncle Holden cooks all our meals. And Uncle Dom and Nat play with me. And Sprinkles protects me. I’m part of the Misty Pines pack now.”

I brush a hand over her head. “That’s right, princess.”

“Enough!” Our father’s face contorts with rage, his fist slamming on the armrest of the couch. “I won’t have you filling her head with lies. She belongs with her mother, and I’ll be damned if I let you stand in the way of that.”

He brandishes the legal documents like a weapon, but I refuse to give in this time. “You have no right to make that decision, not after everything Sadie’s put Quinn through. She needs stability, love, and a home where she’s safe.”

Our father scoffs. “And you think you’re the one to provide that? You’re barely an adult yourself, playing house with your little pack of misfits. Quinn deserves better.”

The words sting, but I refuse to let them shake my resolve. “Better than what? A mother who’s never there, who drownsherself in alcohol and leaves her daughter to fend for herself? You think that’s what Quinn deserves?”

Sadie flinches at my words, and she focuses on the floor. Shame colors her cheeks, and her shoulders droop. But I can’t let my sympathy for her cloud my judgment, not when Quinn’s future is at stake.

Our father takes a menacing step forward, his scent spiking with anger. “Watch your tongue, boy. You have no idea what you’re talking about. Sadie is Quinn’s mother, and that’s all that matters.”

Fear radiates off Quinn in waves, and it breaks my heart that she’s caught in the middle of this, torn between the love she has for her mother and the safety she feels with me.

“Please don’t take me away from Uncle Blake.” Quinn’s grip on my hand tightens, her small fingers digging into my skin. “I want to stay with him.”

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